Obeying the Gospel

Gary Henry

5.0 (7)
Christianity
Updated Daily

Why become a Christian? And what is actually required when you do? Gary Henry tackles these questions in Obeying the Gospel. Designed for both the skeptic and the saint, these three-minute, daily episodes explore the initial basics of salvation and the lifelong dedication required to keep our promise to God. Discover why the commitment is worth the cost.

1h ago

A Ransomed People (October 5)

A RANSOMED PEOPLE (OCTOBER 5) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/ransomed-people-october-5/ "And they sang a new song, saying, 'Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation'" (Revelation 5:9). THE LAMB THAT WAS SLAIN! Reminiscent of the Passover lamb in Israel, Jesus was a greater sacrifice, enabling God to justify mankind from its sins. John the Baptist said on one occasion as he saw Jesus coming toward him, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). In Revelation, no one but this Lamb is worthy to open the scroll containing God’s purposes for mankind (Revelation 5:4,5). And He is qualified to do so — “for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation” (v.9). To “ransom” is to redeem. When people are in trouble and can’t deliver themselves, a redeemer is one who offers to pay the price to solve the problem for them. So it was that by offering His life, Jesus Christ ransomed us. He allowed us to be forgiven and released from the penalty of death. As a result of the ransom price being paid, our chains are now broken. God has a people who once were slaves but now are free to belong to Him in the most special sense. It is “for God” that we’ve been ransomed. Revelation 5:9 emphasizes that this ransomed people will be made up of those “from every tribe and language and people and nation.” Jesus had said to the Jews, “I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd” (John 10:16). There are many scriptural ways Christians may view themselves, but none is any more beneficial than to think of ourselves as having been ransomed. It is dangerous to forget that we are only able to be God’s people because He rescued us. If gratitude for grace is the most motivating force in the world, then Christians should surely be the most motivated people in the world, for they are reminded, at least once a week when they partake of the Lord’s Supper, that when God delivered them from their slavery to sin, it was an act of sheer grace. It would be a hardhearted person indeed who could know this and not respond with both awestruck reverence and the gratitude which leads to faithful obedience. "Grace is love that cares and stoops and rescues" (John R. W. Stott). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
1d ago

The Washing of Water with the Word (October 4)

THE WASHING OF WATER WITH THE WORD (OCTOBER 4) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/washing-water-word-october-4/ ". . . that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word" (Ephesians 5:26). TO ACCOMPLISH THE PURPOSES OF CHRIST, THE CHURCH MUST BE “SANCTIFIED.” This word sounds like nothing more than religious lingo to some, but its concept is important and not hard to understand. To be “sanctified” is to be set apart for special use. For example, I have an iron skillet in which I have never made anything but cornbread. When I bought it long ago, I “set it apart” for that purpose, and it has had to be content to be “different” from my other skillets. To maintain the magnificence of the cornbread that is cooked in it, it simply cannot come into contact with certain other things. (Knowing skillet nature as I do, I am sure my other skillets accuse the cornbread skillet of being self-righteous.) Now, to be very serious, it was that He might “sanctify” her that Christ gave Himself up for the church. The whole plan by which Christ was able to have a “set apart” people depended on His dying for those people. Not in fifty lifetimes could any of us have kept enough mitzvoth (“commandments”) for even one of our sins to be forgiven. The Messiah had to die for our atonement (Isaiah 53:4-6). Also in Ephesians 5:26, we see that Christ “cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.” This is a reference to the baptism (immersion in water) in which all who are now in Christ came to be so (Romans 6:3; Galatians 3:27), as a result of hearing the word of the Lord concerning the forgiveness of their sins. Paul makes the point in triplicate in 1 Corinthians 6:11 where, after referring to those whose lives were given to sin, he said, “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” How, then, does Christ sanctify the church? He does it individually. One day the process will be finished, but only for those who have entered that process individually — in the here and now. "We note that some seem to think there is a future time when, by some process undefined, Christ will cleanse the present filthy, sinful church. Current imperfections are thus excused. We beg to differ with this traditional interpretation. We do not question the future reception of the church as the bride of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2,3; Revelation 21:2), but we believe the 'setting apart' and 'cleansing' is now taking place, and has been in process ever since the gospel of Christ was first preached" (Robert F. Turner). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
2d ago

The Church in Philippi (October 3)

THE CHURCH IN PHILIPPI (OCTOBER 3) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/church-in-philippi-october-3/ "Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons" (Philippians 1:1). IT IS OBVIOUS THAT PAUL HAD A SPECIAL LOVE FOR THE CHRISTIANS IN THE CITY OF PHILIPPI. The church there had begun in unusual circumstances (Acts 16:11-40), and the brethren had kept in touch with Paul, helping and encouraging him generously. In the text above, we have the salutation of a letter that Paul and Timothy sent to that church. Philippians 1:1 is a good snapshot of what a local congregation of Christians was in the days of the New Testament. THE SAINTS IN CHRIST JESUS WHO ARE AT PHILIPPI. As we noticed yesterday, “saints” is one of the ways the Lord’s people are referred to in the New Testament. The saints were not a special group of Christians; all Christians were saints. But the word “saint” points to something special about the identity and character of Christians: as Christ’s people, they are “sanctified” to Him. That is, they are set apart exclusively for His purposes. Certainly, to be sanctified involves moral purity, but the idea is not limited to that. In every possible way, the saint is to belong uniquely to the Lord and to be held in reserve for use in the accomplishment of His purposes. In Philippi, there were such people. They had obeyed the gospel and received the forgiveness of their past sins. Beginning at that point, they were living as disciples of Christ and doing His work in the city of Philippi. They were the Lord’s church in that place. WITH THE OVERSEERS AND DEACONS. This text encapsulates what the New Testament teaches about the makeup of the local church. In the Lord’s wisdom, it was simple but very effective. The Christians or “saints” as a whole were led by “overseers” and served by “deacons.” The overseers, known elsewhere as “elders” or “shepherds” (1 Peter 5:1-4), were responsible for the leadership of the congregation, and the “deacons” (or “servants”) were appointed to assist the church in specific ways. A simple plan? Yes. But this was the church in Philippi — and three things resulted: the Lord was glorified, the church was strengthened, and the city heard the gospel. "A Christian church is a body or collection of persons, voluntarily associated together, professing to believe what Christ teaches, to do what Christ enjoins, to imitate his example, cherish his spirit, and make known his gospel to others" (R. F. Sample). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
3d ago

The Church in Corinth (October 2)

THE CHURCH IN CORINTH (OCTOBER 2) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/church-in-corinth-october-2/ "To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours" (1 Corinthians 1:2). TODAY AND TOMORROW, WE WILL BE LOOKING AT TWO CHURCHES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. First, we turn our attention to the fascinating group which Paul addressed as “the church of God that is in Corinth.” Together, the two letters that we have from Paul to Corinth take up more pages in the New Testament than we have from him to any other congregation. Notice how he refers to them: THE CHURCH OF GOD THAT IS IN CORINTH. The “church of God” refers to those whom He has saved. As a church (an assembly or collection of saved ones), the Christians in Corinth belonged to God. THOSE SANCTIFIED IN CHRIST JESUS, CALLED TO BE SAINTS. To be “sanctified” means to be reserved for a special purpose. In Corinth, then, the Lord had some “saints” — people who had answered the call of the gospel to be dedicated solely to His purposes in Christ. WITH ALL THOSE WHO IN EVERY PLACE CALL UPON THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST. The Christians in Corinth were not the only saints in the world. As followers of Jesus, the brothers and sisters there would have felt a kinship to those “in every place” who called upon the name of the Lord, even if they had never met many of those people face to face. And when they engaged in “the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58), they would have known that many others were doing the very same work in other localities. Perhaps the thing that strikes us most dramatically about the Corinthians is that Paul addresses them as “saints” despite the seriousness of their problems. This illustrates how the term “saint” has changed since the first century. In the New Testament, a saint was a person who was “in Christ”; he or she was simply a Christian, one of the Lord’s people. And the defining characteristic of the Lord’s people is not that they have reached a stage of sinless perfection in the here and now, but that, having obeyed the initial terms of the gospel, they are now living under the mercy of God. Forgiven of their past and now having access to God’s grace, they are in the process of being remade into creatures that will be with God in eternity. "A saint is a creature of vast possibilities, knit into shape by the ruling personality of God" (Oswald Chambers). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
4d ago

A Living Hope (October 1)

A LIVING HOPE (OCTOBER 1) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/living-hope-october-1/ "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1:3). WITH HOPE, ALMOST NO OBSTACLE IS INSURMOUNTABLE, BUT WITHOUT HOPE, IT DOESN’T TAKE MUCH TO DESTROY US. That being true, it should stir us deeply to hear Peter tell us in this text about what has been made possible in Jesus Christ: a living hope. It is only by God’s “great mercy” that the hope Peter speaks of has become a possibility for sinful people like us. Having rebelled even once against God’s will by doing that which we knew to be wrong, we have forfeited the privilege of fellowship with God. Alienated from Him, not all the righteousness we could exhibit would be enough to reestablish a state of perfect holiness on our part. So when God opened up the door of reconciliation, He did something we did not deserve to have done for us. And mark it well: it was “through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” that this happened. Everything about the gospel of Christ depends on the fact that His resurrection really did take place historically. In v.4, Peter continued by saying that the object of our hope is “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” If this is true — and as an eyewitness of Jesus after His resurrection, Peter was in a position to know the facts of the case — it means the Christian’s hope is in an absolutely unique category. There is nothing in this world that won’t have to be given up when we die, and even before we die, there is nothing we can have or do that isn’t perishable, tentative, and subject to disappointment. But unlike all these treasures, our hope in Christ is “pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay” (NLT). Finally, Peter says in v.5 that we “by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” Christ’s resurrection is proof that God can be counted on to help us. His power, through our faith, will guard and keep us until our hope is finally realized. So when discouragement hits us (as it surely will), one thing is to be recalled: the resurrection of Christ. "If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said; if he didn’t rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what he said? The issue on which everything hangs is not whether or not you like his teaching but whether or not he rose from the dead" (Timothy Keller). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
5d ago

The Prospect of Persecution (September 30)

THE PROSPECT OF PERSECUTION (SEPTEMBER 30) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/prospect-of-persecution-september-30/ "Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, 'There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom. Their laws are different from those of every other people, and they do not keep the king's laws, so that it is not to the king's profit to tolerate them. If it please the king, let it be decreed that they be destroyed'" (Esther 3:8,9). ONE OF THE UGLIEST REALITIES OF HUMAN HISTORY IS THE PERSECUTION OF GROUPS OF PEOPLE. Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised at this, since strife is the first and most obvious result of sin (Gen. 3:12; 4:8; 6:11; etc.). Still, it is a sad fact in this world that discord between groups of people often results in persecution. As we see in the example in Esther, the pretext for persecution is usually the charge that some group has become a threat to “us.” Wanting to get rid of the Jews, Haman knew exactly which argument to make to the king: “It is not to the king’s profit to tolerate them.” In other words, they are a menace to our society, so do away with them. The group seen as disadvantageous to society may be a religious or ethnic group, or the difference may be racial, ideological, or economic. The particular difference doesn’t matter. All it takes is for one group to acquire enough power that it can look upon another group as being “others” and exercise its power to marginalize them, if not exterminate them altogether. This is simply a fact of the world we live in. Christians are certainly not the only ones who have ever been persecuted, and sadly, they (nominal Christians, at least) have sometimes been the persecutors. But anyplace where Christians are seen as being socially disadvantageous, persecution can happen. So if you obey the gospel of Christ, you should take seriously the prospect of persecution (Acts 14:21,22). In the United States (at least for the time being), it is not likely that you would be in physical danger, but as Christians become a shrinking segment of the population — and our views become despised by the mainstream culture — it is likely that you will be mocked and demeaned. And it may be that this is, for many of us, the threat we fear most of all. Many people would die for the Lord who would not stand up to the threat of social shame. So let us pray for the courage not only to be put to death for the Lord but also to be detested and made fun of. "A man who has faith must be prepared not only to be a martyr, but to be a fool" (G. K. Chesterton). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
6d ago

Baptism Is for Believers (September 29)

BAPTISM IS FOR BELIEVERS (SEPTEMBER 29) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/baptism-believers-september-29/ "Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized" (Acts 18:8). THERE IS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT A STRONG LINK BETWEEN BELIEF AND BAPTISM. I would go so far as to say that the link is inseparable. The only people who were baptized were those who believed in Jesus Christ (Mark 16:15,16) and had repented of the sins they were seeking to be forgiven of (Acts 2:37,38). Their baptism was preceded by the “good confession” (1 Timothy 6:12,13), an oral affirmation that, yes, they were in fact believers in Christ (Romans 10:9,10). As to who was to be baptized, the New Testament is clear. Without faith, baptism only gets a person wet. It is not a ritualistic act, effective regardless of what is going on in the recipient’s heart. Rather, its efficacy depends on “faith in the powerful working of God” (Colossians 2:12) — the active ingredient is trust in God: dependence on what He has done, and also what He will do. “Infant baptism” is the act of “baptizing” (not really baptizing but only sprinkling) infants shortly after they are born. This having been done, it is said that the children are now “Christian” children, rather than “unbaptized” or “unchristian.” This is more common in Europe, where most countries have a state church. Birth in one of those countries means that you are a citizen of that country politically, and religiously, you are enrolled in that country’s national church. In such cases, your “baptism” is often a mere formality. A very secular Englishman once told me, “We only go to church twice in life: when we’re hatched and when we’re dispatched.” He made that remark humorously, but even so, he seemed to be glad not to be one of the “unbaptized” in the world. As we have seen, however, in the New Testament, baptism was meaningless without faith. I hesitate to use an entire page to talk about infant baptism. But unfortunately, there are many misconceptions about baptism in people’s minds — and this is one of the most prevalent. Yet it only takes reading the New Testament to see what baptism was originally: the appeal of a believer for a good conscience (1 Peter 3:21). "Those who were baptized [in the New Testament] were men and women who were able to make a decision to commit their lives to Jesus. This and other requirements for baptism indicate that baptism is for those old enough to know what they are doing" (Owen Olbricht). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com
Sep 28

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (September 28)

FATHER, SON, AND HOLY SPIRIT (SEPTEMBER 28) View on Website -- https://wordpoints.com/father-son-holy-spirit-september-28/ "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19). GOD IS ONE, BUT HIS UNITY IS A TRI-UNITY. That is to say, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all parts of the oneness of God. While this challenges even our best efforts to understand, it is clearly what the Scriptures reveal about God. We are not free to dispense with the unity of God, but neither are we free to deny that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are all parts of the one God. THE UNITY OF GOD. The first text that comes to mind is probably Moses’ declaration: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4). But many other texts also affirm this, in both the Old and the New Testaments (Malachi 2:10; 1 Corinthians 8:4-6; etc.). So let us not waver: God — and God alone — is God. THE COMPLEXITY OF GOD. Even in the Old Testament, God’s personhood was not simple. At Sodom, “the Lord” on the scene that morning rained down fire from “the Lord” still in heaven (Genesis 19:24). This is consistent with the New Testament, where the Father, Son, and Spirit are seen doing different things simultaneously but in different locations, as at Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:16,17). People often attempt analogies to show how God could be three Persons and still be one God, but with deep theological truths, analogy-making is often dangerous. It is best for us to simply affirm what the Scriptures teach. It is our privilege to be the recipients of every bit of information about Himself that God has revealed. We must courageously accept God’s self-disclosure, even the parts that seem to us not to “fit.” It would be wrong to delete any of it for the sake of logic or harmony. Yet in addition to being courageous, we must also be humble. It is a part of the majesty of God that He is complex beyond our ability to analyze or describe. As tempting as it is to reject complexities our minds can’t handle, we need to humble ourselves — in both wonder and gratitude — before the truth about God. Even in eternity His deep and various nature will be beyond our creaturely understanding. Yet our part will be not to tame Him but to enjoy Him . . . in all His diversity. "In fact, it is spiritually healthy for us to acknowledge openly that God's very being is far greater than we can ever comprehend. This humbles us before God and draws us to worship him without reservation" (Wayne Grudem). Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

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Why become a Christian? And what is actually required when you do? Gary Henry tackles these questions in Obeying the Gospel. Designed for both the skeptic and the saint, these three-minute, daily episodes explore the initial basics of salvation and the lifelong dedication required to keep our promise to God. Discover why the commitment is worth the cost.

Creator

Gary Henry
Years Active

2020 - 2026
Episodes

31
Rating

Clean
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© Copyright 2021 Gary Henry & WordPoints
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Obeying the Gospel