Destined for Glory

November 24th, 2025
by Dr. Josh Franklin

"In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will." - Ephesians 1:11 (NKJV)

The word "predestination" often confuses people, but it simply means "to see beforehand a boundary or horizon."

Joel Gregory once stated: “When Paul wrote the letter to the Ephesians, he wrote it in Greek. He did not write ‘Predestinate’ or anything like it. When the Greek New Testament was translated into the Latin Vulgate edition by the Roman church, they used the word ‘predestinary’. And it has come into our English version as ‘predestinate,’ laden with all sorts of bad connotations – blind fate that makes us into automatons, marionettes, or programmed computers. Just forget that word for a minute and think of the word Paul used, ‘proorizas’ – ‘to draw a horizon around.’ It is a word of ‘scope’ and a word of ‘compass’, like the horizon that bounds the earth, ‘to mark off boundaries in advance for a large territory where God will have a big family.’ That’s the word Paul used.” [Joel Gregory, "The Electing God", www.gregoryministries.org (around the 13-minute mark).]

Herschel Hobbs says, “Unfortunately, many tend to interpret the English word predestination rather than the Greek word proorisas.” As he says, the basic verb is horizo, which means among other things to set a boundary. From it comes our English word “horizon,” which is the limit or boundary of your vision from where you stand. The prefix pro means beforehand. So it means to set a boundary beforehand. [Frank Page, The Trouble with Tulip (Riverside Group Publishing, Canton, Georgia, 2006), 22.]

God's sovereignty means He established the boundaries of salvation before the foundation of the world. He predetermined the "what" and "how" of salvation, not the "who."

Think of it like this: if we board an airplane destined for Atlanta, that plane is going to Atlanta regardless of what we do during the flight. We might read, sleep, or eat, but the destination is fixed. Similarly, God predetermined that anyone "in Christ" would be destined for heaven, secure in His family, redeemed and forgiven.

This isn't about God choosing some people for heaven and others for hell. It's about God establishing Christ as the boundary. The idea of predestination means that God had a plan from the very beginning. He set a boundary, and that boundary is Christ. Anyone who is in Christ is part of His family, is set free, and will be welcomed into heaven. On the other hand, anyone who is not in Christ will be lost. This plan existed long before Adam and Eve walked the earth. God prepared the mystery of His will ahead of time and later revealed it to us.

God's sovereignty means that His plans will never be thwarted by man. God planned salvation from the very beginning, even before Adam and Eve sinned. In Genesis 3:15, God says, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; He will crush your head, and you will bruise His heel." This verse speaks about a future time when the woman's offspring will defeat satan, which happened through Jesus Christ at the cross.

God's sovereignty means that everyone who is in Christ is guaranteed a place in heaven. Their security comes from being in Christ, not from their own actions. This is the predetermined plan of our redemption.

Reflection Question: How does knowing that God's plan of salvation was established before the foundation of the world give you confidence in your relationship with Him?

Dear Heavenly Father, I stand in awe of Your sovereign plan, established before time began. Thank You that my salvation doesn't depend on my ability to maintain it, but on Your predetermined grace found in Christ. Help me rest securely in the knowledge that Your plans for my life are good and that nothing can separate me from Your love. In Jesus' Name, amen.

Adapted from "The Riches of Redemption" (Ephesians 1:7-12): https://www.joshfranklin.org/media/z6qj3xh/4-the-riches-of-redemption-eph-1-7-12

Posted in Ephesians