The few, the proud, the chosen...

     There should be no pride here, I suppose--for I am talking about the chosen of God.  See, I believe in election or predestination, if you will.  So the elect have no reason to be proud-they are chosen of God.  It is nothing which they have done that causes them to be the "elect".  It is by Divine choice.
     Scripture tells us that the numbers of those who are saved are small.  Mt. 7: 13-14 states:  "Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.  For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it."  This gives no indication as to how many 'few' or 'many' are, but the actual numbers will be small.  Jesus says that he is: the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father but by Him.  So any of the many who try to get to heaven by some other route will be met with destruction.  We are to seek Him while He may be found-and to keep on seeking until we find Him.
     I guess the part which I do not understand is that we are to seek Him, but He is the one who gives us the desire to seek-He is the one who saves.  He is the one who has elected the saved ones from time immemorial-so we actually do not have free will; it seems we have only the illusion of free will.  It is God who saves-but He is also the one who puts the desire to seek Him in our hearts.  None that are His will NOT accept Him; conversely, I do not see how any that are not His will even seek Him.  If He has given you the desire to seek Him-you will find Him.  If you do not have that desire, then you are not going to seek Him, and you will not find Him.  Seems like a Catch 22 there someplace-but only the elect will be saved, and they will be the only ones who actually seek Him!
     What else can I really say?  There will be people from all walks of life-probably people from all over the world who are in the kingdom of God.  It will be to the glory of God that these few, all of which He has predestined are saved--and no others--showing His power and omniscience to have known this since the foundation of the the world.
     God also states that none of those which He has given Jesus, except the one destined for perdition(i.e. Judas Iscariot), can be taken out of His hand-thus the security of the believer.  If God has got you(through your faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior) he ain't a gonna lose you.  That is something worth knowing.  Hold on to this promise.