The Oxymoron of Choice

First of all, I have to say that I really like the sound of the word oxymoron. I get a visual of a big, dumb oxen lumbering down the road. I envision this big guy just ambling through life without a care in the world. I even like saying the word oxymoron. It just swirls around my mouth and rolls off my tongue so nicely.

The dictionary has a little something different to say about this word. It comes from the Greek oxumoron and means a rhetorical figure in which an epigrammatic effect is created by the conjuntion of incongruous or contradictory terms; for example, "a mournful optimistic." Say what? The second definition is a clever remark, more pointedly witty for seeming absurd or foolish. Okay, that I get.

As I walk deeper in my faith, there appears to be all sorts of examples of the first definition of oxymoron Take John 15:16 where God says, "You did not choose Me, but I chose you." But I thought that's what freewill was all about. He lets me choose whether or not I want to believe in Him, follow Him, trust in Him, spend eternity with Him. Ah yes, but here's the rub. He chose me first because He created me. He wrote my name down in the book of life. He wanted me first, but I had to take the active step of choosing Him before He could act on His choosing me first.

So what at first appears to be an oxymoron actually is not. I must choose Him to know that He already chose me. Sounds like a celestial board game. Checkmate!!