WesleyGospel Ministries

Law and Gospel blended.
Mercy triumphs over judgment for the children of God.
–J.B.–

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.
–Hebrews 12:2–

Be still, and know that I am God.
–Psalm 46:10–

Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image. 
–Exodus 20:3-4 (KJV)–

God opposes the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.
–James 4:6–

Let no one disqualify you, insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels, taking his stand on visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind.
–Colossians 2:18–

For God alone my soul waits in silence.
–Psalm 62:5–

When you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
–Matthew 6:6–

After the fire a still small voice.
–1 Kings 19:12–

King David went in and sat before the Lord.
–2 Samuel 7:18–

At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms liberally to the people, and prayed constantly to God. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, “Cornelius.” And he stared at him in terror, and said, “What is it, lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God.”
–Acts 10:1-4–

Peter went up on the housetop to pray, about the sixth hour. And he became hungry and desired something to eat; but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance and saw the heaven opened, and something descending, like a great sheet, let down by four corners upon the earth. In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. And there came a voice to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.”
–Acts 10:9-13–

We all, with unveiled face, beholding (Lat. contemplatio) the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
–2 Corinthians 3:18–

I John, your brother, who share with you in Jesus the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet.
–Revelation 1:9-10–

Suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind,
and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
–Acts 2:2–

Who makes his angels winds,
and his servants flames of fire.
–Hebrews 1:7–

A spirit glided past my face;
the hair of my flesh stood up 
(goosebumps).
–Job 4:15–

—

Richard J. Foster, Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home, ch. 14: “Contemplative Prayer.” HarperCollins, 1992.

—. Streams of Living Water, ch. 2: “The Contemplative Tradition: Discovering the Prayer-Filled Life.” HarperCollins, 1998.

Thomas C. Oden, Classic Christianity: A Systematic Theology. HarperCollins, 2009.

John Wimber, Power Healing. HarperCollins, 1987.

Savinien Louismet, Divine Contemplation for All. Burns, Oates, and Washbourne, 1921.

A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God. (Nicholas of Cusa as a Catholic mystical influence). Christian Publications, 1948.

Leonard Ravenhill, Tried and Transfigured, p. 81. (Francis and Catherine of Bologna.) Bethany House Publishers, 1982.

Robert Tuttle, Mysticism in the Wesleyan Tradition. (Wesley and Imitation of Christ, etc.). Zondervan, 1989.

The Cloud of Unknowing. Paulist Press, 1981.

Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God. Whitaker House, 1982.

Thomas Dubay, Fire Within, ch. 14: “Locutions and Visions.” Ignatius Press, 1989.

And so I found myself in the sun, oh, yeah
A place to end a run, oh, yeah

California, I’m fine
Somebody check my brain
California’s all right
Somebody check my brain
Check my brain

I walk these streets, a creep in the fog, oh, yeah
When she sang I answered the call, oh, yeah

California, I’m fine
Somebody check my brain
California’s all right
Somebody check my brain

Ah, tears that filled my bong
Ah, years expended gone

I hung my guns and put ’em away, oh, yeah
The trick of the trade and by the way, oh, yeah

California, I’m fine
Somebody check my brain
California’s all right
Somebody check my brain

Ah, tears that filled my bong
Ah, years expended gone

Ah, tears that filled my bong
Ah, years expended gone
Ah, tears that filled my bong
Ah, years expended gone
Check my brain
Check my brain
Check my brain

–Alice in Chains, “Check My Brain”–

—

Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said:
“Who is this that obscures my plans
with words without knowledge?
Brace yourself like a man;
I will question you, and
you shall answer me.”
–Job 38:1-3 (NIV)–

It seems that there are two main types of temptations: the positive kind will seduce you into a sinful pleasure like sexual immorality (Heb. 11:25); and the negative kind will provoke you into a fight so that you will act out with a short temper (Prov. 15:18). By practicing a mental and spiritual detachment from our surroundings; and focusing on Jesus, the Bible, and walking in the Spirit: “those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires” (Romans 8:5), we can overcome these petty distractions from the world, the flesh, and the devil. –J.B.

—

A. W. Tozer, I Talk Back to the Devil (Christian Publications, 1972).

I determined not to know anything among you
except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
–1 Corinthians 2:2 (NKJV)–

There’s a lot of evangelical podcasters today that seem to preach church as the answer. I see all of these examples in the Bible, they say, of church involvement, eldership, all these sorts of things, about being deeply involved, plugged in, and submitted to a local body of elders. After all, this is what we can see in the Pastoral Epistles. And so why take any issue with it? GOD’S WORD is one thing, but WHAT PREACHERS DO WITH IT is quite another! That’s why you should at least ask a few questions about preachers that are heavy duty on being submitted to elders. WHO? YOU? WHY? You have to understand that we’re living roughly about 2,000 years after the time of Jesus and the apostles. This means that there’s been so much divergence, so much diversity of teaching, experience, and practice, in the past two millennia, that without the process of reformation and revival among church leaders, that have a reformational and revivalistic mentality: we can’t even approximate towards coming close to Timothy and Titus, let alone Acts. The way that church is supposed to be practiced in the Bible.

People can’t just cite Bible verses and then push the concept that what they’re doing is right. You might say, “I’m an Assembly of God pastor, or a Presbyterian Church of America pastor, or a Southern Baptist pastor, a Vineyard pastor, or a Church of the Nazarene pastor, or even a Catholic priest,” but one thing’s for sure: is that in all of these cases, ALL of these church leaders are not living in the first century and they don’t even agree with each other. Theologically, all of them contradict one another on some very fundamental points of their teaching. And at the same time they all point back to the Bible, which says well, you need to be submitted to church leadership and deeply involved in church. YOU MEAN YOU? Who are you? To tell me that your church is the church spoken of in the Bible. Can you also show me your pastor’s first and last name in the Bible? Then I could be really sure the Bible means you’re the elders for me to submit to. Clergy abuse scandals are rampant in these times, with an extreme lack of theological direction, an extreme lack of holiness, righteousness, and eternal punishment being preached, an extreme doubt and unbelief, skepticism, and cessationism among pastors. And you want me to submit to you? You’re probably a video game addict, porn addict, womanizer, unless you’re an ugly old guy: and you want me to submit to your leadership? Why don’t we reframe this question: instead of viewing people as “renegades,” or being unwilling to submit to what the Word of God says about ecclesiastical leadership–why don’t we look at the church leaders and ask THEM whether or not they qualify as the type of people described in the Pastoral Epistles!

TODAY’S PASTORS ARE MOSTLY…

1. Resistant to Bold Confrontational Preaching Against Sin.

2. Resistant to Preaching On Eternal Punishment, Repentance, and Atonement.

3. Preaching Against Conditional Security and Holy Living.

4. Have Cynical Unbelieving Attitudes About Miraculous Gifts.

5. Addicted to Pornography, Womanizing, and Clergy Sexual Abuse.

6. Compromising With Evolution Instead of Preaching Against It.

7. Compromising With Gays Instead of Teaching and Reproving Them.

8. Resistant to Street Evangelism.

9. Preoccupied With the American Dream.

10. Unwilling to Write Books on Salvation and Holiness.

And you think it would be a real good idea to find a local church and submit to eldership, because that’s what the Bible says…this is what they tell you, while the whole world is going to Hell, and they’re doing nothing about it. –J.B.