WesleyGospel Ministries

I dreamed that I was speaking with a Pentecostal pastor. He said that while he has deep respect for Paul Washer, there’s no way that he could preach against sin the way he does. He’s aware that lots of Pentecostal pastors criticize Washer because of this. I thought, Man, these guys are such cowards. And I was glad that I hadn’t been deceived by such a false ministry concept. Then I thought about that timeless pamphlet Why Preach Against Sin? by Dr. John R. Rice, and I woke up. –J.B.

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Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet,
and shew my people their transgression,
and the house of Jacob their sins.
–Isaiah 58:1 (KJV)–

⁴ And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: ⁵ But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. ⁶ And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? ⁷ If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. ⁸ And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
–Genesis 4:4-8 (KJV)–

Tim gets born again at a Christian summer camp during high school, but when he comes back to his public high school, he realizes that Jesus has become more important to him than anything else in his life. He doesn’t want to hang out with his worldly non-Christian friends anymore. He wants to make new friends with the youth group at his church. Eventually he starts to date a popular girl from the youth group, but finds out that she’s shallow, vain, prideful, and doesn’t really care about living for God; she’s just into the youth group for the social aspect and the safety it provides. His dad, who’s a rich secular humanist, gives his son a hard time about his faith, and keeps insisting that he’s joined a “cult,” even though he’s just a Bible believing Christian with a new desire to live right. His dad constantly pressures him to backslide, to try and have a “normal” social life, and party with his worldly non-Christian friends. His former friends persecute him for becoming a Christian; and get into trouble with drugs, fornication, crime, and the police. The friendship evangelism concept confuses him (Psalm 1:1; James 4:4). This reinforces Tim’s decision to mainly stick with Christian friends and walk on the straight and narrow path. But he finds out his so-called Christian girlfriend has no heart for the lost; and that the other youth group kids feel the same way. They have no heart for evangelism: they’re just into themselves. His former best friend, who was a non-Christian, goes through some family trouble as his parents get divorced. He slowly and reluctantly expresses a desire to go to the youth group. Tim reaches out to him and invites him to go on a camping trip with the youth group. But while on the trip, his friend gets lost on whitewater rapids; and Tim goes after him, risking his life to save his friend. This moves his friend so much that he also gives his heart to Jesus. There’s three Keith Green songs in this film. –J.B.

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WesleyGospel, “The Evils of the Public School System.”

AiG, “Christian Education vs. Public School.”

J. Gresham Machen, Education, Christianity, and the State (Trinity Foundation, 2004).

Jeff Farnham, The Octopus of Humanism (Sword of the Lord, 2009).

Dr. John R. Rice, The Unequal Yoke (Sword of the Lord, 1946).

—. Evolution or the Bible–Which? (Sword of the Lord, 1963).

John Stamper, Conflicted (Master Books, 2023).

IndoctriNation (Gunn Productions, 2011).

Beware of false prophets,
who come to you in sheep’s clothing
but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
–Matthew 7:15 (ESV)–

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Dr. Norman Geisler, Signs and Wonders (Tyndale House, 1988), ch. 5: “Miracle or Magic? Learning to Discern Human Fraud.”

Dr. Jack Deere, Why I Am Still Surprised by the Power of the Spirit (Zondervan, 2020), ch. 22.

—. Why I Am Still Surprised by the Voice of God (Zondervan, 2022), ch. 15.

Hank Hanegraaff, Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century (Thomas Nelson, 2009), chs. 21-24.

Kathryn Kuhlman, Captain LeVrier Believes in Miracles (Dimension Books, 1973).

I’VE NEVER FELT THE PRESENCE OF GOD.
–Dr. John MacArthur–

The Christ that Adolf Harnack sees, looking back through nineteen centuries of Catholic darkness, is only the reflection of a liberal Protestant face,
seen at the bottom of a deep well.
–George Tyrell–

It seems that John MacArthur believes the Holy Spirit is an influence on the Christian’s mind as he studies the Bible. It is also a moral energy to resist temptation. While he claims that the Holy Spirit is the living presence of Christ dwelling within the believer, the teaching is so brief and cursory as to be described by nothing but a few adjectives along the way (e.g., indwelt, led, filled, enabled, gifted, taught, illuminated by the Spirit). One is left with the impression that, because he rejects all charismatic experiences, his view of the Holy Spirit is only one based on trusting what the Bible says about its influence on the Christian’s mind in Bible study. There is no real presence of Jesus known by a felt experience: this is all something that has to be taken on faith as a Bible teaching, and logged away as yet another Bible fact: that we can all make the logical inference the Holy Spirit helps us to study the Bible and resist temptations. But there’s nothing supernatural going on here. He’s probably just taking his own mind and sense of right and wrong; and then humanistically calling that the Holy Spirit. So here we have nothing more than a deistic view of the Holy Spirit: he’s there because the Bible says, but not because he speaks, intervenes, or his presence is felt in any tangible way. MacArthur says, “The Spirit of God is still indwelling you even if all the good qualities just mentioned are not now present in your life. You may not sense the Spirit’s presence or feel like following His guidance every moment, but his presence is dependent on God’s promises, not our feelings” (The Silent Shepherd, pp. 112-113). So apparently he does believe that Christians can have moments when they “sense the Spirit’s presence,” and so that means something. But then shortly he denies the need for feelings of God’s Spirit and confidently asserts that our belief in the Holy Spirit should depend on “God’s promises,” in other words, what Jesus promised the Church about the indwelling of the Spirit in John 14. So Baptists and Presbyterians and non-charismatics are just left to trust what the Bible says: that Christians are indwelt by the Holy Spirit even though they practically never feel his presence at all. Their experience will reflect what they are taught. If people are taught to have faith to feel the presence of God, then the Holy Spirit will honor that faith. But if people are taught unbelief towards the presence of God, then the Holy Spirit will not honor such unbelief. Matthew 9:29 (KJV): “According to your faith be it unto you.”

It came to pass, when the minstrel played,
that the hand of the Lord came upon him.
–2 Kings 3:15 (KJV)–

David took an harp, and played with his hand:
so Saul was refreshed, and was well,
and the evil spirit departed from him.
–1 Samuel 16:23 (KJV)–

They should seek the Lord,
if haply they might feel after him, and find him,
though he be not far from every one of us.
–Acts 17:27 (KJV)–

In thy presence is fullness of joy. 
–Psalm 16:11 (KJV)–

Come before his presence with singing. 
–Psalm 100:2 (KJV)–

Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost…
ye shall receive power,
after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.
–Acts 1:5, 8 (KJV)–

Did not our heart burn within us,
while he talked with us by the way,
and while he opened to us the Scriptures?
–Luke 24:32 (KJV)–

The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts
by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
–Romans 5:5 (KJV)–

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit,
that we are the children of God.
–Romans 8:16 (KJV)–

If an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!”   
–1 Corinthians 14:24-25 (NIV)–

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Whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him,
neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
–Matthew 12:32 (KJV)–

Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures,
nor the power of God.
–Matthew 22:29 (KJV)–

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears,
ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
–Acts 7:51 (KJV)–

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Grace to You, “The Promise of the Holy Spirit, Part 1 (John 14:15-19).”

—. “The Promise of the Holy Spirit, Part 2 (John 14:15-24).”

—. “The Illuminating Role of the Holy Spirit (John 14:24-26).”

Harold Horton, The Gifts of the Spirit (Gospel Publishing House, 1975).

Robert Graves, ed. Strangers to Fire (Empowered Life, 2016).

Don Williams, “Charismatic Worship,” …Worship Spectrum (Zondervan, 2004).

In the last days, God says,
    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    your young men will see visions,
    your old men will dream dreams.
–Acts 2:17 (NIV)–

The Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
–Acts 17:11 (NIV)–

As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
–1 John 2:27 (NIV)–

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Dr. Jack Deere, The Beginner’s Guide to the Gift of Prophecy (Regal, 2001), ch. 4: “Discerning God’s Voice.”

Donald Gee, Concerning Spiritual Gifts (Gospel Publishing House, 1972), ch. 12: “Abuses: Their Cause and Cure.”

Holly Pivec and Douglas Geivett, Counterfeit Kingdom (B&H Books, 2022).

—. “The Hidden Dangers of ‘Hearing God’s Voice’: Exposing Spiritual Bondage and Abuse.”

The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
–Ephesians 6:17 (NIV)–

Broad is the road that leads to death,
And thou­sands walk to­ge­ther there;
But wis­dom shows a nar­row­ path,
With here and there a tra­vel­er.

Deny thy­self, and take thy cross,
Is the Re­deem­er’s great com­mand;
Nature must count her gold but dross,
If she would gain this heav’n­ly land.

Lord, let not all my hopes be vain
Create my heart en­tire­ly new;
Which hy­po­crites did ne’er at­tain,
And false apos­tates nev­er knew.

–Isaac Watts, “Broad Is the Road That Leads to Death”–