Christian Personal Ethics

Henry's "Christian Personal Ethics" presents a comprehensive systematic theology of moral life grounded in divine revelation and the authority of Scripture. The work argues that authentic ethics must derive from God's self-disclosure rather than autonomous human reason, positioning itself against both secular ethical systems and liberal Protestant accommodations to modern philosophy. Henry contends that Christian ethics represents not merely one option among many but the only coherent foundation for moral obligation, as it alone provides an absolute standard transcending cultural relativism and subjective preference.

The monograph develops its argument through careful exposition of biblical texts while engaging critically with contemporary ethical theories. Henry examines naturalistic ethics, situational ethics, and existentialist approaches, demonstrating what he views as their inability to generate binding moral norms without reference to transcendent authority. He particularly critiques the reduction of ethics to social convention or evolutionary adaptation, arguing that such approaches cannot explain the categorical nature of moral experience or the human conscience's appeal to standards beyond empirical description.

Central to Henry's theological method is the principle of biblical inerrancy and the conviction that Scripture provides propositional revelation about God's moral character and will. He argues that the imago Dei doctrine establishes human dignity and moral capacity while the Fall explains moral failure without eliminating responsibility. The work emphasizes how Christian ethics integrates personal holiness with social responsibility, rejecting both pietistic withdrawal and Social Gospel reductionism.

Henry's contribution to the God debate lies in his rigorous defense of theistic ethics against mid-twentieth century challenges. Writing during the height of logical positivism and existentialism, he maintains that moral discourse becomes incoherent without divine grounding. The work significantly influenced evangelical scholarship by demonstrating how conservative Protestant thought could engage philosophical ethics without compromising biblical authority. His argument that ethical relativism leads inevitably to nihilism anticipated later postmodern developments, while his insistence on revelation as the basis for ethics challenged both natural law traditions and Protestant liberalism. The monograph remains influential in evangelical circles as a model for how systematic theology can address contemporary moral philosophy while maintaining commitment to scriptural authority and the reality of God as the source of moral obligation.