Category — Preaching & Teaching

If you would like to hear Paul Washer’s comments in context, here’s the audio from my last post, “Personal Discipleship.” The full message is well worth the 50 minutes it takes to listen to it.

• True Discipleship: The Gift Nobody Wants, part 1 (excerpt; 4:28)
• True Discipleship: The Gift Nobody Wants, part 1 (full message; 52:02)

I just finished listening to this two-hour sermon by Paul Washer, and it’s good (very good)! Please take the time to download it, put it on your iPod, burn it to a CD (or two), and listen to it. It’s convicting and very encouraging!

• The Ten Indictments web site (audio, video, transcripts, pictures)
• Direct link to the mp3 audio file of the sermon

I certainly think we need to take “Indictment #1″ one step further than where Paul left it (he doesn’t touch on the translation and version issue which I think is key; you can learn more of that here). But, don’t let that be a stumbling block to taking in the rest of what he has to say.

The ten indictments are:

1. A practical denial of the sufficiency of Scripture
2. An ignorance of the character and attributes of God
3. A failure to address man’s malady
4. An ignorance of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the doctrine of regeneration
5. An unbiblical gospel presentation and invitation
6. An ignorance regarding the nature of the Church
7. A lack of loving and compassionate church discipline
8. A silence on separation (holiness)
9. Psychology and sociology have replaced the Scriptures in regards to the family
10. A departure from the faith and a devotion to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons (1 Timothy 4:1-16)

There is a common idea among many evangelicals and evangelical churches today that “church planting” is evangelism. But, starting a church is not biblical evangelism. A new church is started as a result of evangelism (as the historical and inspired record of the Book of Acts shows us). The philosophy of “church planting to evangelize” most often results in church swapping, not new conversions–it results in “transfer growth” and not “true growth.”

Evangelism, according to the Bible, is going out to where the sinners are, preaching the cross of Christ (Law and grace; justice and forgiveness; wrath and love), and leading the lost to repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. When that happens with two or three sinners, then those two or three new converts can gather together and… you got a church!

Todd Friel addressed this issue on his radio show yesterday (Monday, March 31, 2008). You can listen to the 2.5 minute clip here if you’d like. When I heard what he had to say, I remembered a couple of messages I preached at a church in the States a couple years ago. I was one of several invited speakers and the thrust of the conference was church planting in the region’s growing cities (amen! wonderful vision!). I spoke first on the Mission God gave us to seek and save the lost, and my second message was about calling men to repentance. The two-part series centered around these two foundational truths: [Read more →]