022010: Steps to Life: Unconditional?

Memory Texts:
From the Bible:
“For many are called, but few are chosen.” Matthew 22:14.

From the Spirit of Prophecy:

“There is no such thing in the Word of God as unconditional election—once in grace, always
in grace. In the second chapter of Second Peter the subject is made plain and distinct. After
a history of some who followed an evil course, the explanation is given: ‘Which have
forsaken the right way ... following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the
wages of unrighteousness’ [II Peter 2:15].” The Faith I Live By, 157.

Introductory Readings:
“There could be no such thing as one not prepared for heaven entering heaven. There is no
such thing as a human being sanctified and fitted for the heavenly kingdom not having an
election to that kingdom. God elects those who have been working on the plan of addition.
The explanation is given in the first chapter of Second Peter. For every human being, Christ
has paid the election price. No one need be lost. All have been redeemed. To those who
receive Christ as a personal Saviour will be given power to become the sons and daughters
of God. An eternal life insurance policy has been provided for all.
“Whom God elects, Christ redeems. The Saviour has paid the redemption price for every
soul. We are not our own; for we are bought with a price. From the Redeemer, who from the
foundation of the world has chosen us, we receive the insurance policy that entitles us to
eternal life.
“There is the election of God on the condition of practice, and there is no other election in
the Bible. Election is within our reach. ‘If ye do these things, ye shall never fall’ [II Peter
1:10].” Ibid., vol. 7, 944.
“Here is the condition of the only saving election in the Word of God. We are to become
partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through
lust. We are to add grace to grace, and the promise is, ‘If ye do these things, ye shall never
fall: for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’ [II Peter 1:10, 11].
“There is no such thing in the Word of God as unconditional election—once in grace, always
in grace. In the second chapter of Second Peter the subject is made plain and distinct. After
a history of some who followed an evil course, the explanation is given: ‘which have
forsaken the right way … following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the
wages of unrighteousness.’… [II Peter 2:15–20 quoted.] Here is a class of whom the apostle
warns, ‘For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than,
after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them’ [verse
21].
“There is truth to be received if souls are saved. The keeping of the commandments of God
is life eternal to the receiver. But the Scriptures make it plain that those who once knew the
way of life and rejoiced in the truth are in danger of falling through apostasy, and being lost.
Therefore there is need of a decided, daily conversion to God.

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“All who seek to sustain the doctrine of election, once in grace, always in grace, do this
against a plain, ‘Thus saith the Lord.’ [Eze. 18:21; 33:13 quoted.]
“Those who have been truly converted have been buried with Christ in the likeness of His
death, and raised from the watery grave in the likeness of His resurrection, to walk in
newness of life. By faithful obedience to the truth they are to make their calling and election
sure.” Ibid., vol. 6, 1114, 1115.

Bible Reading:
Ephesians 2
Ephesians 2:1 (KJV) And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and
sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to
the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of
disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our
flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the
children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace
ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in
Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his
kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of
God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God
hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
11 Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are
called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by
hands;
12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of
Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without
God in the world:
13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood
of Christ.
14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle
wall of partition between us;
15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments
contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making
peace;
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16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain
the enmity thereby:
17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were
nigh.
18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the
saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ
himself being the chief corner stone;
21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the
Lord:
22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

Spirit of Prophecy Readings:

“Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 7, 943,
944.
(Eph. 2:1-6; see EGW on Gen. 2:7; Ex. 20:1-17; Matt. 4:1-11; Heb. 2:14-18; 4:15.) Partakers of
the Divine Nature.--We must learn of Christ. We must know what He is to those He has
ransomed. We must realize that through belief in Him it is our privilege to be partakers of the
divine nature, and so escape the corruption that is in the world through lust. Then we are
cleansed from all sin, all defects of character. We need not retain one sinful propensity. . . .
[Eph. 2:1-6 quoted.] . . . {7BC 943.1}
As we partake of the divine nature, hereditary and cultivated tendencies to wrong are cut away
from the character, and we are made a living power for good. Ever learning of the divine
Teacher, daily partaking of His nature, we cooperate with God in overcoming Satan's
temptations. God works, and man works, that man may be one with Christ as Christ is one with
God. Then we sit together with Christ in heavenly places. The mind rests with peace and
assurance in Jesus (RH April 24, 1900). {7BC 943.2}
The Enabling Grace of God.--In His Word God reveals what He can do for human beings. He
molds and fashions after the divine similitude the characters of those who will wear His yoke.
Through His grace they are made partakers of the divine nature, and are thus enabled to
overcome the corruption that is in the world through lust. It is God who gives us power to
overcome. Those who hear His voice and obey His commandments are enabled to form
righteous characters. Those who disregard His expressed commands will form characters like
the propensities that they indulge (Letter 44, 1903). {7BC 943.3}
One With God.--It is a knowledge of the perfection of the divine character, manifested to us in
Jesus Christ, that opens up to us communion with God. It is by appropriating the great and
precious promises that we are to become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the
corruption that is in the world through lust. {7BC 943.4}
What possibilities are opened up to the youth who lay hold of the divine assurances of God's
Word! Scarcely can the human mind comprehend what is the breadth and depth and height of
the spiritual attainments that can be reached by becoming partakers of the divine nature. The
human agent who daily yields obedience to God, who becomes a partaker of the divine nature,
finds pleasure daily in keeping the commandments of God; for he is one with God. It is essential
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that he hold as vital a relation with God as does the Son to the Father. He understands the
oneness that Christ prayed might exist between the Father and the Son (Letter 43, 1895). {7BC
943.5}
5-7. Graces to Grow Up Together.--We are to add to faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and
to knowledge, temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to patience, godliness; and to
godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, charity. You are not to think that you
must wait until you have perfected one grace before cultivating another. No; they are to grow up
together, fed continually from the fountain of charity; every day that you live, you can be
perfecting the blessed attributes fully revealed in the character of Christ; and when you do this,
you will bring light, love, peace, and joy into your homes (RH July 29, 1890). {7BC 943.6}
5-11 (Phil. 2:12, 13). Daily Diligence Needed.--Temptation must be met and resisted. Day by
day the spiritual battle goes on. Day by day we are to work out our own salvation with fear and
trembling. It is God that works in us, to will and to do of His good pleasure. Every soul is to
strive with "all diligence" to add constantly to his spiritual attainments, strengthening every
grace, increasing in efficiency that he may grow in usefulness and holiness, as a fruit-bearing
tree in the Lord's garden. He is to be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord
and Saviour Jesus Christ. True religion leads to the cultivation of the gifts that make a man
more precious in God's sight than the gold of Ophir. {7BC 943.7}
"All diligence" means much. It means a daily diligence. There is danger that we shall be blind in
regard to the working of satanic agencies, and that we shall be ensnared by Satan's alluring
temptations. Therefore the word comes to us, "Giving all diligence," add to your character the
graces that will make you strong to resist evil. "He that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot
see afar off." He does not realize his spiritual poverty [2 Peter 1:10, 11 quoted] (Letter 144,
1903). {7BC 943.8}
6. Temperance Precedes Patience.--"And to temperance patience." An intemperate man never
can be a patient man. Temperance comes first, and then patience (MS 49, 1894). {7BC 944.1}
10 (John 1:12; 1 Cor. 6:19, 20; 1 Peter 1:2, 18-20; see EGW on Rom. 11:4-6; Eph. 1:4, 5, 11;
Heb. 7:25). Election Price Paid for All.--There could be no such thing as one not prepared for
heaven entering heaven. There is no such thing as a human being sanctified and fitted for the
heavenly kingdom not having an election to that kingdom. God elects those who have been
working on the plan of addition. The explanation is given in the first chapter of Second Peter.
For every human being, Christ has paid the election price. No one need be lost. All have been
redeemed. To those who receive Christ as a personal Saviour will be given power to become
the sons and daughters of God. An eternal life insurance policy has been provided for all. {7BC
944.2}
Whom God elects, Christ redeems. The Saviour has paid the redemption price for every soul.
We are not our own; for we are bought with a price. From the Redeemer, who from the
foundation of the world has chosen us, we receive the insurance policy that entitles us to eternal
life (Letter 53, 1904). {7BC 944.3}
Election Within Our Reach.--There is the election of God on the condition of practice, and there
is no other election in the Bible. Election is within our reach. "If ye do these things, ye shall
never fall" (MS 49, 1894). {7BC 944.4}
10, 11 (see EGW on Rev. 11:1). The Best Life Insurance.--[2 Peter 1:10, 11 quoted.] Here are
your life-insurance papers. This is not an insurance policy the value of which some one else will
receive after your death; it is a policy that assures you a life measuring with the life of God--
even eternal life. O what an assurance! what a hope! Let us ever reveal to the world that we are
seeking for a better country, even a heavenly. Heaven has been made for us, and we want a
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part in it. We cannot afford to allow anything to separate us from God and heaven. In this life we
must be partakers of the divine nature. Brethren and sisters, you have only one life to live. O let
it be a life of virtue, a life hid with Christ in God (RH May 26, 1904). {7BC 944.5}
(See EGW on 1 John 3:1.) Benefits Secured by the Elect.--It depends upon your course of
action as to whether or not you will secure the benefits bestowed upon those who, as the elect
of God, receive an eternal life-insurance policy (MS 81, 1900). {7BC 944.6}
14, 15. See EGW on Acts 8:9-24. {7BC 944.7}
21 (2 Tim. 3:16). Inspiration of the Bible Writers.--God committed the preparation of His divinely
inspired Word to finite man. This Word arranged into books, the Old and New Testaments, is
the guidebook to the inhabitants of a fallen world; bequeathed to them, that by studying and
obeying the directions, not one soul would lose its way to heaven. {7BC 944.8}
Those who think to make the supposed difficulties of Scripture plain, in measuring by their finite
rule that which is inspired and that which is not inspired, had better cover their faces, as Elijah
when the still small voice spoke to him; for they are in the presence of God and holy angels,
who for ages have communicated to men light and knowledge, telling them what to do, and
what not to do, unfolding before them scenes of thrilling interest, waymark by waymark in
symbols and signs and illustrations. {7BC 944.9}
And He has not, while presenting the perils clustering about the last days, qualified any finite
man to unravel hidden mysteries, or inspired one man or any class of men to pronounce
judgment as to that which is inspired or is not. When men, in their finite judgment, find it
necessary to go into an examination of Scriptures to define that which is inspired and that which
is not, they have stepped before Jesus to show Him a better way than He has led us. {7BC
944.10}
I take the Bible just as it is, as the Inspired Word. I believe its utterances in an entire Bible. . . .
{7BC 944.11}

Bible Study Questions:

1. When we walk, or live, in the way of this world, we are made a part of what group?
Ephesians 2:2; Revelation 2:9, last part.
Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to
the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of
disobedience: (Ephesians 2:2 KJV)
I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the
blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of
Satan. (Revelation 2:9 KJV)
Note. “Christ speaks of the church over which Satan presides as the synagogue of Satan.
Its members are the children of disobedience. They are those who choose to sin, who labor
to make void the holy law of God. It is Satan’s work to mingle evil with good, and to remove
the distinction between good and evil. Christ would have a church that labors to separate
the evil from the good, whose members will not willingly tolerate wrong-doing, but will expel
it from the heart and life.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible
Commentary, vol. 7, 958.

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2. One meaning of trespass is to deviate or turn aside from the straight road.
Understanding that meaning, which leader do we turn to when we trespass?
Ephesians 2:1-3.
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time
past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the
power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among
whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling
the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath,
even as others. (Ephesians 2:1-3 KJV)
Note. “The same spirit that prompted rebellion in Heaven still inspires rebellion on earth.
Satan has continued with men the same policy which he pursued with the angels. His spirit
now reigns in the children of disobedience. Like him they seek to break down the restraints
of the law of God, and promise men liberty through transgression of its precepts.” The Great
Controversy, 500.
3. Some say once saved, always saved or once on the right way, always on the right
way. Is this true according to what the word of God says? Can we deviate from or
forsake the right way? 2 Peter 2:15; Ezekiel 18:21; 33:13.
Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam
the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; (2 Peter 2:15 KJV)
But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my
statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
(Ezekiel 18:21 KJV)
When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own
righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered;
but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. (Ezekiel 33:13 KJV)
Note. “Balaam was once a good man and a prophet of God; but he had apostatized, and
had given himself up to covetousness; yet he still professed to be a servant of the Most
High.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 439.
“How many who have in adversity remained true to God, have fallen under the glittering
allurements of prosperity. With the possession of wealth, the ruling passion of a selfish
nature is revealed. The world is cursed today by the miserly greed and the self-indulgent
vices of the worshipers of mammon.” Counsels on Stewardship, 139.
4. What is it better for a person to have not known than to know and turn away? 2 Peter
2:20, 21.
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of
the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome,
the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them
not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn
from the holy commandment delivered unto them. (2 Peter 2:20-21 KJV)
Note. “In spite of all their display, their garnished habitation, Satan comes in with a troop of
evil angels and takes his place in the soul, to help in the deception. The apostle writes, ‘If
after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is
worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the
way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment
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delivered unto them’ [II Peter 2:20, 21].” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day
Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, 1093.
5. The word elect in 1 Peter 1:2 has the same meaning as chosen in Matthew 20:16.
Knowing this, what are the characteristics of the elect in 1 Peter 1:2?
Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the
Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you,
and peace, be multiplied. (1 Peter 1:2 KJV)
So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
(Matthew 20:16 KJV)
Note. “If we comply with the conditions the Lord has made, we shall secure our election to
salvation. Perfect obedience to His commandments is the evidence that we love God, and
are not hardened in sin.
“Christ has a church in every age. There are in the church those who are not made any
better by their connection with it. They themselves break the terms of their election.
Obedience to the commandments of God gives us a right to the privileges of His church.”
“Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Commentary, vol. 6, 1079.
“Our Saviour claims all there is of us; He asks our first and holiest thoughts, our purest and
most intense affection. If we are indeed partakers of the divine nature, His praise will be
continually in our hearts and upon our lips. Our only safety is to surrender our all to Him and
to be constantly growing in grace and in the knowledge of the truth.” The Sanctified Life, 95.
6. Even though many are called, how many did Jesus say were chosen? Matthew 20:16;
Revelation 17:14, last part.
So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
(Matthew 20:16 KJV)
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is
Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen,
and faithful. (Revelation 17:14 KJV)
Note. “The Father sets His love upon His elect people who live in the midst of men. These
are the people whom Christ has redeemed by the price of His own blood; and because they
respond to the drawing of Christ, through the sovereign mercy of God, they are elected to be
saved as His obedient children.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist
Bible Commentary, vol. 6, 1114.
7. To predestinate means to predetermine or to reach a definite purpose. What is God’s
purpose for you and me? Romans 8:29, 30; Ephesians 1:4, 5.
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of
his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did
predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and
whom he justified, them he also glorified. (Romans 8:29-30 KJV)
According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we
should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto
the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of
his will, (Ephesians 1:4-5 KJV)

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Note. “Now here are the most precious jewels of truth for every individual soul of us. Here is
the only election in the Bible, and you can prove yourself elected of Christ by being faithful;
you can prove yourself the chosen of Christ by abiding in the vine.” Ibid., 1079.
“It will require a sacrifice to give yourself to God; but it is a sacrifice of the lower for the
higher, the earthly for the spiritual, the perishable for the eternal. God does not design that
our will should be destroyed, for it is only through its exercise that we can accomplish what
He would have us do. Our will is to be yielded to Him, that we may receive it again, purified
and refined, and so linked in sympathy with the Divine that He can pour through us the tides
of His love and power. However bitter and painful this surrender may appear to the willful,
wayward heart, yet ‘it is profitable for thee’ [Matthew 5:29, 30].” Thoughts from the Mount of
Blessing, 62.
8. By faithful obedience to the truth, what do we make sure? 2 Peter 1:10.
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure:
for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: (2 Peter 1:10 KJV)
Note. “Here is the condition of the only saving election in the Word of God. We are to
become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world
through lust. We are to add grace to grace, and the promise is, ‘If ye do these things, ye
shall never fall: for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the
everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’ [II Peter 1:10, 11].” “Ellen G.
White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 6, 1114.
9. When we no longer walk in the way of this world and become strangers and
foreigners of this country, who then are we fellow citizens with? Ephesians 2:12-19.
That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of
Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without
God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made
nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath
broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh
the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in
himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both
unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and
preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through
him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Now therefore ye are no more
strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of
God; (Ephesians 2:12-19 KJV)
Note. “Our work is to attract minds away from earth to heaven; to take others with us as
companions, to walk the path that is cast up for the ransomed of the Lord. The children of
the Heavenly King are to move among men, not as citizens of the world, but as citizens of
the kingdom above. We are pilgrims and strangers in this world, seeking a better country,
even a heavenly.” The Signs of the Times, August 17, 1891.
10. What is our foundation built upon and who is the cornerstone? Ephesians 2:20.
And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself
being the chief corner stone; (Ephesians 2:20 KJV)
Note. “The preparations made for the building of this house for the Lord, must be in
accordance with the instructions He had given. No pains must be spared in its erection; for
in it God was to meet with His people. The building must show forth to the nations of the

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earth the greatness of Israel’s God. In every part it must represent the perfection of Him
whom the Israelites were called upon to honor before all the world.
“The specifications regarding the building were often repeated. In all the work done, these
specifications were to be followed with the utmost exactness. Believers and unbelievers
were to learn of the importance of the work from the care shown in its performance.
“The care shown in the building of the temple is a lesson to us regarding the care that we
are to show in our character-building. No cheap material was to be used. No haphazard
work was to be done in matching the different parts. Piece must fit piece perfectly. Just as
God’s temple was, so must His church be. Into their character-building His people are to
bring no worthless timbers, no careless, indifferent work.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The
Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 2, 1029, 1030.

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