Obeying the Gospel

WHAT IF WE DENY THE INCARNATION? (AUGUST 15)

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"For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist" (2 John 7).

WE CANNOT ACCEPT THE GOSPEL WITHOUT EMBRACING WHAT JESUS TAUGHT ABOUT HIS BEING GOD. This may go against the modern mindset, in which there is no proposition that is not negotiable, but when it comes to the salvation of our souls, the truth about Jesus Christ is necessary. There are some facts such that if we leave them out, what we have left is not the gospel of Christ.

When John wrote, probably toward the end of the first century, what would later be called Gnosticism was beginning to influence Christians. Central to this teaching was a denial of the Incarnation: God actually taking upon Himself human form in the person of Jesus (John 1:14; 5:18; 10:30; 14:7-9; 19:7). To deny this, John says, is to be a “deceiver.” That is a strong term, obviously, and John does not use it lightly. There may have been some who were sincere in their denial that Jesus was God in the flesh, but sincere or not, the effect of such teaching is always the same. If Jesus was (and is) the Son of God, to deny that fact is to be deceived — and to teach such a denial to others is to deceive people concerning the way of salvation. The consequences of doing that are frightening indeed.

It is interesting how John describes this denial. He says it is a failure to “confess” the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Here, then, is a truth that must be acknowledged — at whatever cost. It is not an optional truth; it is what it is, and our choice is simply whether to confess it or not. If we deny it, it still remains true.

It would be impossible to overestimate the importance of believing in the Incarnation. The entire gospel depends on it. God could not have died an atoning death for our sins if He had not become a human being who was capable of being killed. So to leave this out of our “gospel” is to drain the gospel of its main meaning.

Admittedly, the idea of the Incarnation is unpopular today. It is viewed as anachronistic and unsophisticated. As were people in the first century, we might easily be drawn to a more philosophical rendition of the gospel. But an idea is not false simply because its appearance seems ungainly. Appearances can be misleading.

"The handsomest flower is not always the sweetest" (Old Adage).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

WHICH SINS DO WE PREACH AGAINST THE MOST? (AUGUST 14)

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"For all that is in the world -- the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life -- is not from the Father but is from the world" (1 John 2:16).

SOME SINS OPENLY FLY THE FLAG OF CORRUPTION AND REBELLION, WHILE OTHERS DO THEIR DAMAGE MORE PRIVATELY. Sins like pride and greed, for example, are every bit as destructive as sexual immorality (if not more so), but those of us who preach don’t preach against them nearly as often. We ought to ponder why this is so.

Sins come in all shapes and sizes. They are all equal in that they will separate us from God, and that fact should make us treat every sin, even the “least” of them, as a deadly serious matter. But in other ways, sins may be different. Some are oriented toward God while others are more in the direction of other people. Some we confine to our hearts while others erupt into outward action. Some have greater temporal consequences attached to them than others.

Admit it or not, all of us prioritize sins. If you’re a parent, there are some sins you would be more greatly concerned about if you saw them beginning to take root in your children’s lives. Such a prioritization of sins can hardly be avoided, I think. My concern is not that we view some sins as more serious — it’s that we get our priorities from the popular culture. Our “righteous indignation” is determined not by the scale of values in the Scriptures but by the ever-changing dictums of social stigma, political correctness, and modern psychology. So the problem is not that we have a list but that our ranking of the most dangerous sins didn’t come from Jesus.

Looking into our own hearts, what do we see? Whatever mistakes we might make in our concern for others, we certainly don’t want to underestimate the danger of the sins that beset us personally. So what would alarm you most if you took an honest look inside and saw different kinds of sin in your heart?

In heaven there will be no marriage and in hell, no fornication. But in heaven there certainly will be love and in hell, hatred. Even now, hatred will take you closer to hell than fornication will. Sexual sin is an abomination and it will damn your soul, but if things like pride, anger, and selfishness are in your heart, you are already farther down the road to hell than if lasciviousness was your only problem.

"The sins of the bedroom are not the only ones. The sins of the boardroom should be just as much a matter of concern" (Richard Harries).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

GOD’S WRATH IS A PART OF HIS CHARACTER (AUGUST 13)

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"Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God" (Romans 5:9).

HAVING BEEN JUSTIFIED BY CHRIST’S BLOOD IN THE PRESENT, WE SHALL BE SAVED FROM THE WRATH OF GOD IN THE FUTURE. It’s true that salvation in Christ is a present reality (Ephesians 2:8), but Paul is speaking  in Romans 5:9 of a future event: our being spared from the judgment that is coming upon the world. In 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9, Paul wrote of the time when Christ will be “revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.” Until that time, we wait “for [God’s] Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10).

Paul is clear in Romans 5:9 that it is “by him [Jesus Christ]” that we shall be saved. In Christ, we are assured of being protected from the wrath that will be poured out on the rebellious and disobedient. But even in Christ, we must not fail to take God’s wrath seriously. There are none among us who don’t need to be warned.

It is a mistake to think of God’s wrath as something that needs to be apologized for — and it is hazardous to hurry past the many Scriptures that speak of this. The devil would love for us to forget the foundational truth that Solomon learned the hard way: “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:13,14).

Let us remember, then, that wrath is a part of God’s character. If He treated evil as a trifle to be overlooked, God would not be the perfectly good God the Scriptures reveal Him to be. I would even suggest that God’s wrath is a part of His love. Very likely, it is nothing more than our immature concept of love that sees a conflict between the punishment of evil and the blessing of righteousness.

"God is love, not, God is loving. God and love are synonymous. Love is not an attribute of God, it IS God; whatever God is, love is. If your conception of love does not agree with justice and judgment and purity and holiness, then your idea of love is wrong" (Oswald Chambers).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

THE VALUE OF THE GOSPEL IS IN THE RESURRECTION (AUGUST 12)

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"If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied" (1 Corinthians 15:19).

IT’S AN AGE-OLD QUESTION WHETHER THE MAIN PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL HAS TO DO WITH THIS LIFE OR THE LIFE TO COME. In our age, the emphasis is so lopsided in favor of the here and now, one hardly ever hears from the pulpit about eternity, and there are many who say that if the gospel gives us a happier life right now, the question of the afterlife doesn’t really matter that much. Paul tackled this issue in 1 Corinthians 15, and he maintained, with all the other apostles, that the resurrection of Christ, and consequently our own resurrection, is the heart of the gospel. Leave out the preaching of the resurrection, and whatever it is that you have left, it is not the gospel of Jesus Christ. And Paul didn’t duck the implications of this. If it turns out that there is no resurrection, Christians are pathetic to have believed such a lie. “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.”

Make no mistake: there are many earthly (or “temporal”) blessings that may accompany life in Christ. Yet none of these is guaranteed to every Christian. Some of us, for example, enjoy three meals a day, but many Christians, equally faithful to the Lord, do not. The fact is, the only blessing promised by Christ to all of His faithful people is reconciliation to God — leading to eternal fellowship with Him when our earthly tribulations have been left behind.

In this life, the Lord may deliver us from some of our earthly problems. He certainly is capable of doing so. But sometimes it is His wisdom to allow us to suffer hardship, as He did with Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). When we are called upon to endure, we do so with the promise that He will help us.

So if we are Christians, our hopes should not be pinned on deliverance from earthly hardships. The value of the gospel does not lie in its power to remove the pains and difficulties of this life; its power is the promise of resurrection to eternal life when Christ returns (1 Peter 1:3-5,13). May God help us, against the spirit of our age, to put the emphasis where the apostles put it. May we not destroy Christianity in the process of making it “relevant.”

"Christianity is in its very essence a resurrection religion. The concept of resurrection lies at its heart. If you remove it, Christianity is destroyed" (John R. W. Stott).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

IF GOD COMMANDS IT, WE CAN BE COURAGEOUS (AUGUST 11)

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"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).

FACING THE FEARS THAT LAY AHEAD OF HIM, JOSHUA WAS TOLD TO BE “STRONG AND COURAGEOUS.” I can hardly read this text without thinking of my son Brock, whose favorite song as a child was “Dare to Stand Like Joshua.” And I suppose there are few admonitions in the Bible of more practical value than what God said to Joshua. “Be strong and courageous” is extremely good advice.

But today, what I want you to pay attention to is God’s question to Joshua. Just before telling him to take courage, God said, “Have I not commanded you?” This might mean that God was commanding Joshua to be courageous, but it might have another meaning as well. The situations in which Joshua would need courage were those that he would be in as a result of carrying out God’s commands. And I believe God was saying, “Joshua, as long as you are doing what I expect of you, you need not fear. I will always give you the help you need to do what I have commanded you to do.”

In one of his books, C. S. Lewis had an entire chapter called “Is Christianity Hard or Easy?” And in typical Lewis style, his answer was: it is both hard and easy, depending on how you look at it and how you go about it. But Lewis would have been the first to admit that even when it is approached in the right way, Christianity still requires some very hard things. There is no way around this fact, and ironically, we only make the Lord’s commands harder when we try to take the hardship out of them.

But if doing the Lord’s will is hard, so what? If He has commanded it, then we need to be brave. There is no such thing as a command of God that is doomed to fail due to a lack of resources. He is God, and He will help us do whatever He requires us to do.

So as you consider obeying the gospel, many of the what ifs will be frightful. I won’t insult you by saying that your path will be easy. But what I will do is share my own experience: if God commands it, it can be done. Our prayer is not for ease but for boldness.

I do not ask to walk smooth paths
Nor bear an easy load,
I pray for strength and fortitude
To climb the rock-strewn road.
(Gail Brook Burket)

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

FAITH: WHAT END IS IT MEANT TO HAVE? (AUGUST 10)

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". . . obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:9).

FAITH IS A PRINCIPLE OF SUCH IMPORTANCE, WE MIGHT HOPE THAT EVERYBODY WOULD UNDERSTAND IT. But many people do not. And one of the most misunderstood things about it is what Peter here calls the “outcome” of faith. Before we go any further, surely we can see that this point is important. If we fail to grasp what the outcome of our faith is supposed to be, we are bound to have trouble.

In 1 Peter 1:9, the word translated as “outcome” by the ESV is telos, a common Greek noun which usually meant something like goal or purpose. The corresponding verb meant to set out for a particular destination or goal. Even in English, however, these words are very flexible and can have different connotations; within a single usage, they can carry more than one meaning at the same time.

When Peter wrote that the “salvation of your souls” is the telos of our faith, he may have meant that heaven is the end point of our journey. Our salvation will be the culmination of our earthly sojourn. Also, he may have meant that salvation is the consequence of our faith. For some other result to be produced, a person would have to do something besides follow Christ. And lastly, he may have meant that salvation is the meaning of our faith. When we say that history is “going somewhere,” we’re stating that it has a meaning and is not purposeless. Similarly, the faith of the Christian is not random or absurd; it will have a meaningful outcome.

But if you’ve read the New Testament, you know something else about heaven: it is the reason why people become Christians. At least, that is what life in Christ was about in the apostolic age. Its purpose or intended goal was not a better world in the here-and-now; it was, as Peter saw clearly, “the salvation of your souls.”

Stephen R. Covey said we should “begin with the end in mind.” And the New Testament leaves absolutely no doubt: the “end” we’re trying to get to is heaven. That’s the meaning of my life, and I hope it’s yours. Any other outcome will not have been worth the journey.

My life, as his,
slips through death's
mesh,
time's bars,
joins hands with heaven,
speaks with stars.
(Luci Shaw)

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

WHAT ABOUT THE 'CHURCHES OF CHRIST'? (AUGUST 9)

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"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 1:1).

WE HAVE LOOKED AT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE “TOGETHER” PART OF CHRISTIANITY. Now let’s tackle another, more specific, question: if a new convert to Christ is searching for a faithful congregation (as we talked about yesterday), one that works together and worships God in the manner revealed in the New Testament, what about the groups that call themselves “churches of Christ”? Is it, more or less, among the “churches of Christ” that a person is most likely to find the individuals who are the people of the Lord?

First of all, if there is such a thing as the “churches of Christ” denomination (and unfortunately, there is), that is something I would steer you away from. The concept of denominational Christianity is foreign to the New Testament, and I share no more spiritual DNA with members of the “churches of Christ” denomination than I do with people in any other denomination (and in some cases less).

But, as you may know, I worship with a group that calls itself a “church of Christ,” so let me explain. When Paul said, “All the churches of Christ greet you” (Romans 16:16), he was merely saying that those churches belonged to Christ, which the CEV makes clear: “All of Christ’s churches greet you.” Any church that follows the Lord obediently is “of” Him, but how it identifies itself to the public is a question of expediency, as long as the identification is scriptural.

That said, I must be transparent. Of the congregations that I know of personally, many, if not most, of those that are faithfully following the Lord (at least in the United States) do wear the name “church of Christ,” not as a denominational label but as a generic descriptor. They just want to be congregations that are “of Christ.”

So yes, by all means investigate the “churches of Christ.” But when you visit, you’ll need to look deeper than the name and ask lots of questions. Sad to say, most of the “churches of Christ” departed from the gospel long ago. That designation expresses a noble idea, but a congregation is not “of Christ” just because it says it is. As at Sardis long ago, the Lord would say to some today, “You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead” (Revelation 3:1).

"The people of God wear the name of Christ because they are His people; they are not His people because they wear His name" (Robert F. Turner).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

WANTING TO ASSOCIATE WITH FAITHFUL DISCIPLES (AUGUST 8)

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"And when [Saul] had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples" (Acts 9:26).

IN TODAY’S READING AND TOMORROW’S, I WANT TO RAISE TWO IMPORTANT QUESTIONS, BOTH OF WHICH HAVE TO DO WITH THE IDEA OF “CHURCH.” The first is this: when a person obeys the gospel, is it necessary to associate oneself with a congregation of Christians?

I’d be less than honest if I didn’t tell you that the answer is “Yes.” As far as the New Testament goes, there is no connection to Christ available to us that does not involve responsibilities to Christ’s people (1 Corinthians 1:2; 1 John 4:20-5:2; etc.). For one thing, we will need to partake of the Lord’s Supper every first day of the week, and in the New Testament, the Lord’s Supper was a congregational activity (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:17-34).

But I must be honest with you on another point. The brief days in the New Testament when all congregations were holding to the truth of the gospel are long gone. Most churches now professing Christianity are practicing a religion that is not even a forty-second cousin to the first-century faith. So today, you will need to look carefully for a group that takes the lordship of Christ seriously.

Please know that I’m willing to help you. Wherever you live, I can put you in touch with brothers and sisters who are committed to the simple, unadulterated gospel found in the New Testament. Feel free to contact me, and I will do everything I can to assist you.

If you’re a new Christian looking for a faithful congregation, you may feel as if you’re looking for a needle in a haystack. It is sad but true that most churches claiming to follow Christ are not doing that — they’re following their own preferences about what “seems right” (Proverbs 14:12). But don’t give up. It took you a while to find the true Messiah, and in a confused world, it may take you a while to find the Messiah’s faithful people. Don’t be misled by the attractions of modern entertainment masquerading as religion. You are searching for the Lord’s people, so “examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21 NASB).

"It is scarcely possible in most places to get anyone to attend a meeting where the only attraction is God. One can only conclude that God’s professed children are bored with him, for they must be wooed to meeting with a stick of striped candy in the form of religious movies, games, and refreshments" (A. W. Tozer).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

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CHRIST TO HIS PEOPLE: CONGREGATE! (AUGUST 7)

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"For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians" (Acts 11:26).

MANY THINGS ARE NOW SEEN AS UNNECESSARY (AND EVEN HARMFUL) THAT USED TO BE VIEWED AS ESSENTIAL. One of these is marriage. Chelsea Sullivan, a friend who used to manage a Starbucks in Vermont, said that when customers would hear that she was married, they would express shock and disbelief. “Yes, a committed relationship is okay, but at this date why in the world would a seemingly normal person like you want to be married?”

Another now-seen-as-unnecessary concept is “church.” When “organized religion” is spoken of today, it is usually not with admiration. As with marriage, many argue that the benefits can be enjoyed without the traditional obligations. “Yes, be a believer if you wish, but why would a spiritual person want to go to church? Nowadays, being spiritual doesn’t require you to be religious.”

First of all, I agree that the “institutional” concept of salvation is wrong. The church does not stand between us and God or dispense salvation on His behalf. But on the other side of the road is an equally dangerous ditch: the notion that there is no collective or “together” aspect of Christianity at all. Our vertical relationship with God is primary, but that doesn’t mean that a horizontal relationship with other Christians is merely optional. So let’s break this issue into two questions, the answer to both of which is “Yes.”

(1) DOES IT MATTER IF I “GO TO CHURCH” AT ALL? You can’t read what happened in Antioch in Acts 11:19-26 and imagine those people downplaying their duties to the Lord’s church in their locality. And this is not an isolated text. The entire New Testament assumes that Christians will be members of local groups of disciples.

(2) IF I GO, DOES IT MATTER WHERE I GO? In the first century, it wasn’t long before people began departing from the apostles’ teaching (1 John 2:18,19; 2 John 7-11). Today, the problem is even worse. So we need to be careful. Not every church we might check out is one the Lord would recognize as being true to Him. And studying the Scriptures is the only way to know what markers we ought to be looking for.

"The New Testament does not envisage solitary religion; some kind of regular assembly for worship and instruction is everywhere taken for granted in the Epistles" (C. S. Lewis).

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com

I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH (AUGUST 6)

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"And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18).

PETER HAD JUST CONFESSED THAT HE BELIEVED JESUS WAS THE MESSIAH. When Jesus had asked His disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” (v.15), Peter had spoken up and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (v.16). Following Peter’s confession, Jesus said He would build His church on this “rock” — not Peter himself, but the truth confessed by Peter. This truth, that Jesus is the Son of God, is the secure foundation on which the church is built.

In the New Testament, the word “church” is a translation of the Greek ekklesia, which meant an assembly or gathering. Literally, it meant a “called-out” group, a convening of people who left whatever they were doing to answer the call to come together. So in Matthew 16:18, the Lord said that He would have a group of people who would be His church, His assembly — they would be separated from the world in order to belong to Him. We read in the Book of Acts about the fulfillment of this, where after the gospel was first preached following Jesus’ resurrection, many people were baptized and began living as members of the Lord’s church (Acts 2:1-47).

So the Lord did just what He promised He would do: He built His church. The very word “build” signifies solidity and permanence. The church’s foundation is the truth about Jesus — the truth that He loved us and died to forgive us so that we could become His people. And because this truth is indestructible, the church built upon it is indestructible. The gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Satan could not prevent God’s Son from accomplishing His mission, and he cannot destroy the church which the Son has built.

We err tragically when we minimize the church and fail to appreciate it. Shame on us if we think the church is nothing more than a topic that unbalanced preachers of a bygone era felt they needed to stress. If Christ built His church, it deserves our awe. Let us not “damn with faint praise” (to use Alexander Pope’s expression) that which ought to be gloriously and joyously exalted.

I love thy church, O God!
Her walls before thee stand,
Dear as the apple of thine eye,
And graven on thy hand.
(Timothy Dwight)

Gary Henry - WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com

For more information, visit http://AreYouaChristian.com