The morning Manna will be provided at 6am. Thanks.

Studying Ephesians in the SSnet.org series Lesson 14, may the Holy Spirit be the speaker to your heart.

The Topic today is: “Ephesians 2 about salvation by grace only no works salvation and true faith that produces good works of sanctification towards perfection for Morning Manna of the Sabbath School Lesson Ephesians”.

The Opening Hymn will be 229 "Spirit of the Living God."

The Sabbath School Quarterly, downloadable from SSnet.org in the Teacher's Edition is on page 112-114 and 176-179 in the Teacher’s edition (alternative one below).

The SSnet.org site allows anyone, anywhere to read the lesson in their own language. Choose your own language to see God speaking also to your heart.

Why do you not click on this now?

 https://www.adultbiblestudyguide.org/pdf.php?file=2023:3Q:SE:PDFs:EAQ323_14.pdf

---Or try in alternative this one:  https://ssnet.org/lessons/23c/less14.html

------For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8–10,

---Ever heard of both sides of the same coin? In 1985 Denis Priebe wrote about salvation focusing on Sanctification. In 1987 Helmut Ott wrote about the same focusing on Justification by faith alone without works.

---Then Arnold V. Wallenkampf wrote a book to fuse the two and have an eclectic accommodative approach to the subject.

Source: https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/1988/06/justification-perfection-and-the-real-gospel

---By Grace are you saved without works (Helmut Ott says period, no more talking). Denis Priebe said the same but continued to say that there is an importance of Sanctification following this event and that perfection needs to be attained.

---In this text Paul speaks like Priebe (on Justification) and like Helmut Ott (on Justification) but also like Paul, Priebe said it leads to good works. Ott wants to debunk any good works even with the Holy Spirit as important.

---Ellen White through all her works had the two side coin approach. Justification is important and no works of ourselves can save us. We need divine help. The purpose of Justification is to lead the person to good works and Sanctification.

---Those who insist that Martin Luther only spoke of salvation by grace alone or justification and not also of good works or sanctification, should check the sermon of Luther at the Leipzig debate with Eck in 1519.

---It was Debate’s off day and King George went elsewhere so Luther could preach. They could not find a church so they used the debate floor.

---“On the next day there was no debate. Luther had been asked by Duke Barnim to preach. No church could be obtained for him to deliver the sermon, and he was forced to preach in the hall of debate. The hall was crowded. Some had come as spies to find a cause against Luther. Duke George had gone to Dresden and was not present. Luther spoke on the Gospel for the day, Matt. 16, 13 — 19. He touched upon the great questions on which the debate turned, and explained them briefly and to the edification of his hearers. On the basis of Jesus' words : "Flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto thee," etc., he showed that in spiritual matters divine grace must do all, and human free will can do nothing. The soul must first despair of its own strength; then comes faith, which lays hold of the grace of God, and in the state of grace and by grace the believer then begins to do good works.”

---That is what Paul said. That is what Luther said. That is what Ellen White said. That is what Denis Priebe said. That is what Andrew Kang said. That is what Helmut Ott also said but with reservation as to the possibility to attain perfection which was also the point of Luther but all the others agreed: perfection is a must.

---Then there is the issue whether perfection is all from above or from above and below?

---Paul said with Ellen White and Denis Priebe and Andrew Kang that perfection is from above and below in cooperation with the Holy Spirit only and not without it.

---There is no good works possible by human’s own endeavor ever, said Ellen White in Steps to Christ.

Listen to Luther in his Commentary to Galatians in 1523:

“The true way of salvation is this. First, a person must realize that he is a sinner, the kind of a sinner who is congenitally unable to do any good thing. "Whatsoever is not of faith, is sin." Those who seek to earn the grace of God by their own efforts are trying to please God with sins. They mock God, and provoke His anger. The first step on the way to salvation is to repent.”

Source: Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1549/1549-h/1549-h.htm

---Like Paul, Ellen White side also with James that man is not only saved by faith minus good works. It is faith that produces good works that is the true faith. Get that? Paul said it in Romans 10 and James in James 2.

Listen to Luther in his Commentary to Galatians in 1523:

“Here the question arises by what means are we justified? We answer with Paul, "By faith only in Christ are we pronounced righteous, and not by works." Not that we reject good works. Far from it. But we will not allow ourselves to be removed from the anchorage of our salvation.”

Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1549/1549-h/1549-h.htm

---If you have a secret sin that you cling to and do not want to give up, then of course you do not like the call to perfection and of course you will insist that man cannot really keep the law and of course you will not see it a problem to be saved by 9 commands instead of ten, because you go to church on Sunday. Correct?

---Good works and overcoming are brothers. Jude 24 says Christ is the effective example of a perfect Overcomer for us.

---Revelation asks us more than 8 times to overcome.

---Jesus said to the Woman caught in Adultery after Justification, “Go to your sanctification process ‘and sin no more’”. Correct?

---Welcome to the true gospel that is a case of both sides of the same coin.

---But, Luther was a beer and wine drinker at his Table Talks. So perfection? Not possible.

---Listen to Luther in his 1523 Galatians Commentary:

“To live as a Jew is nothing bad. To eat or not to eat pork, what difference does it make? But to play the Jew, and for conscience' sake to abstain from certain meats, is a denial of Christ.” Oops. This is the man that with Augustine wants to say perfection is not possible ever on earth because of original sin in us.

Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1549/1549-h/1549-h.htm

---Do not say that the Reformers were not properly informed at that time. They were. They had strong debates after this year on Infant Baptism versus Adult Baptism. Oh.

---They had George Joye saying in his Daniel Commentary on Daniel 7:25 that the papacy is the Little Horn because he changed Saturday Sabbath to Sunday, in 1542!

---They had the debates among themselves on the role of the will and grace all along.

---The heart must be fully surrendered to God. Not 9 commands of the Law only. Not 99%. Correct?

---Is your pastor a smoking or drinking pastor? Oops. Better speak to him. When? Immediately. He has to change. If he does not want to get out of that church. Call an Adventist pastor in your area. They are not smokers or drinkers and try to keep all ten commandments, including Saturday as Sabbath. Got it?