This is a democratic country, we vote if we want to see change. Do you know that being saved is a voting situation? Satan has the first vote; he is against your salvation. God has the second vote; he wants to share eternity with you. You have the deciding vote!
I had run across this "you get the deciding vote" formulation before, but when a friend told me that a missionary had shared it in her church recently, I decided it was time for a rant. Let's examine this unbiblical idea in the light of Scripture.
We can certainly agree that Satan is against our salvation, but he has no ability to cancel out God's desire for a person's salvation:
Romans 8:31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?
This is a rhetorical question. Paul does not anticipate that you'll respond, "Satan can be!" No, he goes on to state:
Romans 8:38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In this chapter, he has already established that God has to work in us before we can please God--a vote for God would surely be pleasing, but even if we had the deciding vote, we'd be incapable of making the right choice, regardless of hanging or dimpled chad difficulties:
Romans 8:7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. 8 Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.
Giving mankind the tie-breaking vote asserts that God can only hope for our salvation--with His divine wishes neutralized by Satan, the results are up to us. What did Jesus say?
John 6:37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.
He claimed a 100% success rate! He promised to do the will of the Father, and that will was that the Son would lose none of all that the Father gave him. That is why the vision of heaven given to John showed the adoration for the Son:
Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song: "You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. 10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth."
Jesus Christ purchased men for God, ransoming sinners, not merely dying so depraved humans unable to please God could cast their ballot one way or another. Were we made alive by researching the issues and voting wisely? Not at all:
Colossians 2:13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ.
The author--or originator--of our faith was Jesus Christ, the same one who perfects it:
Hebrews 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith
It was not our wisdom or spirituality--it was God's grace alone that saved us:
Ephesians 2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
I can not overemphasize the words "and this not from yourselves." Casting the deciding vote would be making a great choice "from ourself." The Bible says that is not what happened. The election of God's Word is God's choosing of his people from the beginning of time:
2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.
Let us give thanks and praise to God that the eternal destiny of His people is not left in the hands of rebellious sinners, with the Creator's vote overridden by His creation, but that the only vote that matters was the one cast by God the Father as He sent His Son,
Titus 2:14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
We must join with the heavenly hosts who sing,
Revelation 5:12 "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!"
