God's Chosen.

In my quest to be drawn back into the folds of God's will, I made a committment to myself that I would read the Bible through in its entirety. I started in I Kings. I am presently in I Chronicles.

It's almost as if I'm slowly awakening as I read his Word. I seem to notice and remember more things. I find myself asking questions about things.

Throughout the scriptures, there are so many references to the "Chosen Nation" or his "Chosen Ones". One of the questions that I'm searching to find an answer to is: How did God choose Israel as his Chosen People? What criteria did he use to choose them?

He wanted a "chosen people" to bring forth Jesus Christ into the world to be our Savior from sin and death. I know that God’s desire for Israel was that they would go and teach others about Him. Israel was to be a nation of priests, prophets, and missionaries to the world.

But why Israel? Why not the Levites? Or some other nation of people? Were the Israelites more holy than another nation? Or were they more needing of God's mercy and grace?

But, if I take the question one step further ... why does he choose ANY of us to serve Him?