Until He Comes Podcast

One of the most important passages in the New Testament is Jesus’ teaching on the Vine and branches in John 15:1-8. How do we, Christ’s branches, stay close to Him, our Vine? There is no surer or more direct way to maintain vital connection to our Vine than by simply giving Him thanks – in the morning, through the day, and when we lay down to sleep. The result? A dynamic prayer life: “If you abide in [remain in close touch with] me, and my words [including the biblical call to ‘give thanks’] abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you” (v. 7). Such fruitfulness in prayer glorifies God: “In this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit” (v. 8). So, give thanks! Pray dynamically! Bear much fruit. Bring God much glory!

If God asked you to do something easy to radically improve your Christian walk, wouldn’t you do it? That’s just what He does in challenging us to “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Nothing is easier than yielding your heart and opening your lips, and saying, “Thank you, Jesus!” Jesus told us His yoke is “easy.” Don’t be like proud Naaman, who wanted the prophet to tell him something hard to do to receive his healing. Listen to Naaman’s servants – and Jesus! – and start forming the habit of giving thanks. Every day. Every moment. In every situation. From your heart. It will enable you to “draw near to God” at any moment of the day or night. And you will never be the same . . .

Christian, do you know you can deeply please God today, right now, just where you are? How? Simply by giving Him thanks from your heart – irrespective of your circumstances. In Psalm 69:30-30, David revealed this great secret that was a part of His daily life and God wants to be part of ours. “I will praise the name of God with a song, and magnify him with thanksgiving. This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bullock that hath horns and hoofs.” And when deeply pleased, God is more inclined to readily release His delivering power for us and those for whom we pray. So, today, right now, just where you are, in the midst of blessing or chaos, start giving the “sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our [your] lips giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15).

The habit of complaining is a direct slur against God's goodness. And it is dangerous and destructive. God judged the Israelites for complaining against Him in their wilderness period. And Paul taught they are “examples unto us” (1 Corinthians 10:10). If we do not break the habit of complaining in our lives, we, too, will experience destruction – the destruction of our spiritual growth and fruitfulness for Christ. And that will cause us to forfeit closeness to Christ now in this world and the loss of our rewards at the Judgment Seat. Thanksgiving, on the other hand, will turn our life story around. It is the will of God, it puts us in the will of God, and it is a huge factor in overcoming adversity: we will not rise above our trials and become true overcomers without it! Forming the habit of thanksgiving will displace the habit of complaining, cultivate deeper fellowship with God, and grow the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.

Giving thanks in “every” situation is commanded in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 and is thus the will of God for every believer. If we willingly obey, the habit of thanksgiving will set us apart from unthankful Christians, just as the lone Samaritan leper, when he returned to thank Christ for his healing, stood out from the other nine Jews who neglected to do so. Thus a thankful Christian is a set apart one, or a holy one, whom God can count on to do any task in any place at any time. Let this truth encourage you to be grateful to Christ, and give Him thanks, in “every” situation, even in life’s worst adversities. If you humbly do so by faith, the Holy Spirit will deeply transform your character, radically alter your life, make you spiritually fruitful, and bring you much closer to God.

Giving thanks to God is an act of obedience that puts us in His will and humbles us, ensuring answers to prayer and setting us apart from unthankful Christians. King David and King Jehoshaphat were thankful men who practiced thanksgiving, and their lives were blessed as a result. When we give thanks, we show beautiful submission to the authority of Christ in our life, trusting that He controls our circumstances and will answer our prayers. Thanksgiving also strengthens our confidence in God's faithfulness and helps us to refuse anxiety, choosing instead to put our trust in God. By giving thanks, we can experience the peace of God that passes all understanding, guarding our hearts and making us impervious to Satan's attacks.

November 22, 2025
“The Importance of Giving Thanks – Part 1”
We believe Paul’s teaching on salvation, typology, the church, and the end times, as we should. But we should pay even more attention to Paul’s practical theology – his plain commands for everyday Christian living that sprang from his own experience. One of the hidden gems in Paul’s treasure chest of practical theology is 1 Thessalonians 5:18. When we learn to “give thanks” to God in “everything,” we are on our way to spiritual maturity, Christlike humility, Davidic living, strong faith, and a vibrant, spiritually successful prayer life. This is not a message for one season but for all seasons. Listen, learn, obey, and overcome – exactly as Paul did in his amazingly victorious life – giving thanks to God, all day, every day, good days, bad days, the rest of your days!

Greg continues discussing Christianity in India with three deeply committed Indian ministers. This interview – which discusses Hindu soteriology, India’s holy rivers, its caste system, and the miraculous conversion experience of a deathly ill, ultra-devout young Hindu woman – was not taped in a sound studio but in an open-air setting in India, complete with traffic noise, monkeys jumping loudly on metal roofs, and live roosters “amening” the conversation in their own distinctive way! Greg hopes this series will prompt American Christians to prayerfully consider getting involved in God’s work in what is currently the most populous nation on earth. Christ is coming very soon and if we are to help our needy brothers and sisters in India, now is the time.

Greg discusses the current state of Christianity in India with three Indian nationals who are deeply committed Christians and ministers. His hope is that this series will prompt American Christians, ministers, churches, and missions organizations to prayerfully consider getting involved in God’s work in what is now the most populous nation on earth. Christ is coming very soon and if we are to help our needy brothers and sisters in India, now is the time.

Did your salvation just happen … out of nowhere? Or was God at work in your life before you were consciously born again? And if so, why? And what prompted this, His mystical, pre-conversion work? Greg answers these questions straight from the lips of Jesus, who in John 6:44 said, “No man can come to me, unless the Father, who sent me, draws him,” and who in John 12:32 added, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” Greg also identifies typical signs that tell us God is working in a sinner’s life and how we should respond; namely, by continuing to pray for him (or her) even more steadfastly until the divine drawing process has produced in them the miracle of spiritual rebirth!