This episode of the International Gospel Hour offers a heartfelt tribute to Brother David Payton, whose spirit of courage and perseverance continues to inspire his followers. Let us reflect on the Biblical viewpoints on friendship—those special bonds that can support or hinder our spiritual progress. Through teachings from Proverbs and 1 Corinthians, we learn about the power of love, loyalty, and truthfulness in nurturing strong friendships that align with our faith journey. In the latter segment of our show, we embark on a critical examination of salvation as depicted in the Bible. By comparing different verses such as Romans
00:00:00 Introduction to True Friendship and Salvation
00:00:14 Opening Remarks and Introduction of Jeff Archie
00:00:39 Honoring David Payton and Characteristics of a True Friend
00:03:37 The Importance of Loving, Faithful, and Honest Friends
00:06:21 Interview with David Payton and Introduction to Salvation Discussion
00:09:17 Explanation of Salvation Through Various Verses
True friendship and salvation. Friends, we’ve got a two-for-one study just ahead from the International Gospel Hour. Stay with us.
SPEAKER 02 :
It’s time for our broadcast from the International Gospel Hour. I’m Jay Webb, and welcome to our study today as we embrace God’s Word to help us meet the challenges of today. Let’s open our Bibles and open our heart for this time of Bible study with our speaker Jeff Archie of International Gospel Hour, a broadcast of the Churches of Christ. Here’s Jeff.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, thank you to our J-Web for his kind words. Greetings and hello, everyone. Great having you with us for our studies of the International Gospel Hour. And this week, our broadcast are honoring the work of a beloved encourager of our labors at International Gospel Hour, Brother David Payton. David passed from this life in January 2025 due to ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, from which he battled for over two years. Now, friends, he continued preaching and writing. He was able to do so to the great advantages in technology. It was amazing how, with the use of his eyes only, he could write, he could preach, drive his wheelchair, and bring up his pre-recorded voice to where it’s actually David speaking to you. I was amazed at what we could see. And I’ll tell you a little bit more about that in a moment because you will be amazed because we’ll let you know how you can see a very special interview. But what I want to do today is share some of David’s writings. And again, we’ll talk about some other things momentarily. Let’s begin with the study, Characteristics of a True Friend. On a scale of 1 to 10, what kind of rating would you give a true friend? If we are honest, we’re going to say 10. When we are looking for friends, do we look for 5s, 6s, or good 7s? Well, no. Again, if we would be honest, we look for people who are 10s. Our goal in life is to get to heaven. Our choice of friends in this life will either help us attain that goal or it will deter us from it. The Apostle Paul warned, Do not be deceived. Evil company corrupts good habits. 1 Corinthians 15.33 I do not believe that Paul is saying do not be friendly to those who are evil. For we will never be able to win them to Christ if we are unfriendly. Paul is, however, warning of the dangers of spending quality time with those who are of the world. The proverb writer also encourages us to be careful when we choose our friends. Proverbs 12, 26 says the righteous should choose his friends carefully, for the way of the wicked leads them astray. Why should we be careful in the choosing of our friends? If we choose the wrong friends, we could be led astray. Though there are many qualities we could and should look for in a friend, consider with me the following three characteristics. One, choose friends whose lives are filled with love. A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity, Proverbs 17, 17. Let’s note the word adversity that refers to distress, trouble, or acute pain, either physically or mentally. Why do I want a friend whose life is filled with love? Well, that’s the kind of individual who will love you regardless of the situation. You know, it’s easy to love someone when times are good, but what about when times are difficult? What about when that individual is struggling with temptation, sin, or some addiction? If there is one element that will get an individual through every difficulty in life, it’s love. 1 Peter 4.8 That’s why we need to be friends and choose friends whose lives are saturated with love. They love at all times. Second, let’s choose faithful friends. A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother, Proverbs 18, 24. Now, let’s note the latter part of the passage. The phrase sticks closer literally means to cleave or to cling to. The point being made is the fact that true friends are faithful. This doesn’t mean that they never make mistakes, but it does mean that you can depend on this person. Faithful friends are hard to find. Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, but who can find a faithful man? Proverbs 20 and verse 6. That’s why we need to look for friends who are faithful, and we need to be faithful friends. Third, choose honest friends. Proverbs 27, 5 and 6 says, Open rebuke is better than love carefully concealed. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. Have you ever needed someone to be truthful with you and they weren’t? Most of the time, people will not be honest for fear that if the person knew the truth, it may hurt them. Therefore, individuals will often conclude, I just love them too much to tell them the truth. But according to this proverb, we do more harm by concealing the truth than we do by revealing it. Such is why we need friends who are always honest, even if the message they share with us may cause us pain. True friends may not always tell us what we want to hear, but they will always tell us what we need to hear. Now, though this is not an exhaustive list of characteristics to look for in a friend, it is a good start. And if we wish to find friends who are loving, who are faithful, who are honest, then we must exhibit those characteristics in the lives we live. Friends, do you see why I want to honor David? What an awesome article. Our friend and brother Don Blackwell of the Gospel Broadcasting Network has an awesome program called Truth on Wheels. He conducted an interview with David and his wife Kelly that explains a little more about David and how he has addressed and how he addressed his ALS. Now, friends, we have that link available at our Facebook page, internationalgospelhour.com. You can go over there, scroll down, you’ll find that link. And we can make that link available to you if you will email us at info at internationalgospelhour.com. That’s info at internationalgospelhour.com and just put in the subject blank ALS and we will send the link to you. Now again, that’s info at internationalgospelhour.com and in the subject blank put ALS. If you would like to call us and leave your email address, you can do that as well. Please spell it out for us, if you will. And that’s 855-444-6988. Now let’s consider another study concerning salvation. And this is an article called Answering Romans 10, verse 9. Romans 10 verse 9 says that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. Many will conclude from this verse that all one must do to be saved is confess Jesus and believe. While this verse discusses the subject of salvation, is the Bible teaching from this verse that the only thing that one must do to be saved is just confess and believe? Well, let’s consider some other passages in the Bible that likewise discuss salvation. Ephesians 2 and verse 8, For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Romans 8, 24, Paul told the people at Rome, For we are saved by hope, but hope that is seen is not hope. For what a man sees, why does he yet hope for? Acts 2.21, And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Acts 16.31, The Philippian jailer was told, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved in thy house. Mark 16, verse 16, He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned. Proverbs 28, 18, Whoso walketh uprightly shall be saved, but he that is perverse in his ways shall fall at once. Matthew 10, 22, And you will be hated for all, or by all, for my name’s sake, but he who endures to the end will be saved. Now there are eight verses that we just read which all discuss salvation. Each one stated that we are saved by something different. Which one is correct? Well, the answer, all of them are. Now, how do I know that? Listen to what the Bible states in 1 Corinthians 15, 1 and 2. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also you have received, and wherein you stand, by which also you are saved, if you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain. According to this passage, we are saved by the gospel. And this teaching can also be found in the book of Romans, in Romans 1 and verse 16, of how we are saved by the gospel of Christ. The gospel, it’s the good news about Jesus Christ, and the only place where we can find the good news about Jesus is the Bible. So here’s the point. Ultimately, we are saved by the gospel, which tells us that we are saved by grace, hope, calling on the name of the Lord, faith, confession, baptism, endurance, and living an upright life. Now, what can I learn from this? Friends, never be guilty of taking one verse from the Bible and drawing a conclusion when the Bible has much to say about the subject. Good people, if we are going to be saved, it will be because we choose to do all of what God’s word teaches concerning salvation and not just the parts that we see fit. For Jesus in Matthew 7.21 said, Not everyone that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. Awesome study, friends. Awesome study. How many individuals will take just Romans 10, 9 by itself? But as David pointed out, there are many other passages. Friends, let us be of help to you in your study of these passages and to see God’s will for your lives. Have we got you thinking about some things? I’m going to pause and defer to our J-Web with our God and Man study available just for you.
SPEAKER 02 :
An additional Bible study by mail is now available from International Gospel Hour. It’s titled, God and Man, How to be Saved from Sin. The study booklet addresses a number of questions about the salvation from God to man. And friends, like all materials, it’s free. Call us toll-free at 855-444-6988 and leave your name, address, and just say, God and Man. Or you can go to our website at internationalgospelhour.com, click on the Contact tab, and leave us the same information, name, address, and type God and Man in the message box. another Bible study that is free from IGH, and our friends at godandman.com. That’s god-and-man.com. And, you know, since you can’t see it, let me just spell that out for you. god-and-man.com We’d love to hear from you.
SPEAKER 01 :
Friends, I’ve got to run. Thank you for joining me today on the International Gospel Hour. I’m Jeff Archie, and keep listening.
SPEAKER 02 :
God be with you till we meet again. Thank you for listening today. To God be the glory. And we hope that our study today will draw you closer to His Word to walk in His way. Feel free to listen to our other programs at our website at internationalgospelhour.com And join us next time.
