Crosswalk Ministries

Book by Thomas Watson

2011-07-29T12:04:00.000-07:00

Thomas Watson, a puritan, wrote a tremendous read on sin and repentance. Just a few notes from the book:
"Every step forward in sin is a step backward from God. The further one goes from the sun, the nearer he approaches to darkness. The further one goes from God, the nearer it approaches to misery".
"Sin first courts, and then it kills. It is first a fox and then a lion"

"It is one thing to be a terrified sinner and another to be a repenting sinner"

-The Doctrine of Repentance by Thomas Watson

Particular atonement...

2011-06-21T18:13:00.000-07:00

A quote from Charles Hodge as he explains the atonement and his position of "for whom did Christ die?":
"No man pays a ransom without the certainty of the deliverance of those whom it is paid. It is not a ransom unless it actually redeems. And an offering is no sacrifice unless it actually expiates and propitiates". (p 548, volume II Systematic theology).

2011-05-09T09:21:00.000-07:00

From John Owen’s Book, Apostasy from the Gospel
John Owen was a leading Puritan pastor and theologian who served as a chaplain to Oliver Cromwell and later as Dean of Christ Church in the University of Oxford 1616-1683
Consider some of Owen’s words that explain what the Gospel message is and what it is not. Consider his words on the church then verses the church now. His teachings speak right to the core of the modern message and its failures.
The early church was careful whom they admitted into fellowship. Every Christian who sinned was only readmitted into fellowship by open repentance. But where notorious and scandalous sins, such as murder, adultery or idolatry, were committed, no readmission into the fellowship was allowed. This was especially so when a Christian committed idolatry through fear of being martyred for his faith.
Right or wrong, contrast the following from Owen's book with the typical modern evangelical church. Currently, what we have is man-centered entertainment and idolatry.All of this is blatant hypocrisy. -w

“The Lord must be accepted and received as the Son of God, and His gospel must be obeyed, or He must be seen as justly crucified as a deceiver, a blasphemer and an evildoer.
Now no-one living can bring a higher dishonor against Jesus Christ, in His person or in any of His ways, than openly to declare that having tried Him and His gospel, they found nothing in them to be desired.
When any important principle of evangelical truth is forsaken and renounced; when gospel obedience is persistently neglected; when men begin to believe other things than what it teached and do not live as the gospel requires, THEN WE HAVE A PARTIAL APOSTASY.

The gospel is made up of three things:
-Doctrine. What we are to believe
-the holiness of its commands. How we are to live
\-purity of its worship. How are professed faith and obedience is tested.
-The foundation of true holiness and true Christian worship is the doctrine of the gospel, what we are to believe. So when Christian doctrine is neglected, forsaken or corrupted, true holiness and worship will also be neglected, forsaken and corrupted.
Men may profess truth and not obey it (Titus 1:16; 2 Tim 3:5)

HOW THE APOSTATE CHURCH PRESERVES
-The apostate church allows men to continue to sin, but at the same time to give the appearance of being truly Christian
-they love darkness rather than light (John 3:19, 20). They love the praise of men more than the praise of God (John 12:42, 43). They may appear to receive the truth, but they do not love the truth( 2 thess. 2:10)

The great secret purpose of sinful man is to go on living his sinful life with as little trouble as possible in the present life, and with every hope of avoiding future punishments in the next.
There are 2 ways of doing this:
1 Deny that there is a God
2 Give them a religion which will allow men to continue to indulge their sinful lusts and yet still appear to be Christian (2 Tim 3:5)
Sin and conscience must be brought to live peacefully with each other. Sin resists conscience and conscience resists sin so that there can be no peace while both exist. But corrupt nature will bring them to live peacefully together (2 Peter 2:18,19)

Pride, neglect, worldliness, causes of apostasy
The mind of man since the fall is naturally filled with high thoughts of itself. Man thinks he has sovereign free will over all his actions (psalm 12:4)
The PROUD spirit greatly hinders the learning of God’s Word. The Word of god is a troublesome inmate to an unhumbled mind and heart (Psa 25:9; Isa 28:9, Psa 131:2)
In the gospel, there are also things which corrupt reason rejects because it does not like them, for the whole of man, including his mind and reason, is impaired, depraved and corrupted.
SATAN DRAWS MANY INTO APOSTASY-
Satan’s aim is to corrupt men’s minds (2 Cor 11:3). The way he did this was by bringing in a false gospel, v.4. So he raised up false teachers to be his emissaries, vv14,15. As he deceived Eve by his false interpretation of God’s Word, so he deceived many today by his false interpretations of the gospel.

Why people may turn from the doctrines of grace.
-Ignorance of their need of Jesus Christ for salvation
-lack of a spiritual sight of the glory of Christ in His persons and offices
-lack of a personal experience of the power of the Spirit and of the grace of Christ for the mortification of sin
-ignorance of the righteousness of God
-lack of evidence in themselves of the divine authority of the Scriptures

God will not accept lazy, slothful performances of some duties and abstinence from some sins. Crucifying sin, mortifying unrestrained lusts, resisting the devil, fleeing fleshly lusts and not loving the world are all gospel duties to be constantly maintained while we live in this world.
The unconverted person does not know and cannot produce a true evangelical repentance. Repentance is the gift of God (Acts 5:31; 11:18; 2 Tim 2:25)

Meekness, gentleness, self-denial, poverty of the spirit, mourning for sin, hunger and thirst after righteousness, mercy, compassion, purity of heart, honesty and simplicity of spirit, readiness to undergo and to forgive injuries, zeal for God, contempt for the world and fear of sinning and of God’s judgments on sin are NOT praised by men.

The purity or apostasy of a church greatly depends on its ministers, leaders, teachers, preachers, just as the Old Testament depended for its purity on the faithfulness of its priests (Mal 2:1-9)
The great opposition made to every gospel doctrine today is because men dislike holiness.

When men find that they can easily come by this assurance and all the outward privileges of the church simply by submitting the ordinances without any true repentance or faith and while they are still continuing to live the most sinful lives, what hope is there of bringing them to true repentance and faith, resulting in holy obedience?
Ignorance of truth and hatred of holiness work hand in hand to promote apostasy (rephrased)
If religious leaders are not examples of holiness but lead irreligious immoral, wicked lives, neglect their duties, refuse to rebuke flagrant sins, and yet praise those who do such sins, then a whole generation of professed Christians will soon be influence, corrupted and depraved. What will the household be like when the stewards are evil? (matt 24:48-51).

Warning. Consider how widespread this apostasy is. Ignorance, profaneness, and worldly-mindedness show how people have forsaken the Lord; how sinful the nation is; how its people are laden with iniquity; how they have provoked the Lord to anger (Isa 1:4-6).
Unbelief, the deceitfulness of sin, corrupt lusts and desires, spiritual laziness, the love of money and its attendant worries, all lie ready to entice us away from the gospel into apostasy".
-from the work of John Owen

preaching on the streets

2011-04-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

Consider Phil Johnson's comments on open air preaching...

2011-04-07T18:51:00.000-07:00

"It may surprise you to learn that Scripture never once exhorts sinners to 'accept Christ'. The familiar twenty-first-century evangelistic appeal in all its variations ('make a decision for Christ'; 'ask Jesus into your heart; 'try Jesus'; 'accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior'), violates both the spirit and the terminology of the biblical summons to unbelievers. The gospel invitiation is not an entreaty for sinners to allow the Savior into their lives. It is both an appeal and a command for them to repent and follow Him." -John MacArthur The Gospel According to Jesus

Psalm 1

2011-01-09T18:07:00.000-08:00

How blessed is the man
who does not walk in
the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of
sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of
scoffers!
But his delight is in the
law of the Lord,
And in His law he
meditates day and
night.
He will be like a tree
firmly planted by
streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its
season
And its leaf does not
wither;
And in whatever he
does, he prospers.
-psalm 1:1-3

Worldly counsel is ungodly. Let us never get to the place where be are complacent with the way of the wicked or go further to be comfortable with their ways.
Our delight is in Him and His word, there is where we find the answers. The result of being a man that meditates on His word and avoids the counsel of the wicked, is a blessed man. A man that is always watered with divine grace. -Wes

Spend more time with God and less time with men-George Whitefield

2010-11-01T06:24:00.000-07:00

OCTOBER 30, 2010-MEGOWEEN DOWNTOWN MELBOURNE. Justin and Wes with one double sided cross. With much mocking and opposition, His Word went forth. We thank the Lord that He allows us to participate in reaching the lost and proclaiming His name. Our goal, Soli Deo gloria. -w

in season and out

2010-07-16T20:25:00.000-07:00

We must press on, in the power of the Holy Spirit. We must fight the good fight, be ready in season and out, preach His name to all creatures, do the work of an evangelist, proclaim His holiness, desire to put His name on display throught the preaching of His word. Not to us but to His name be the glory forever, amen.

2010-06-23T17:54:00.000-07:00

Finally... we are in the process of changing the website around and adding new features. We have new videos to add. It has be a while since any updates, pictures, or videos have been placed on the blog or the website. I will not appologize, for it is obligatory to prioritize! Wes Romans 11:36

2010-04-20T18:35:00.000-07:00

When we read 2 Timothy chapter 3 in 2010 those who are discerning can observe that this is happening right before our eyes. Sometimes we may even mistakenly desire to have lived in the times when things were more simple. Read what John Calvin says about what he is observing 500 years ago in the 1500s. "...as indeed it is at this day: for the light of the gospel has gone forth again, and God has exhibited Himself as Father, and we see how great the wickedness and perversity of men in rejecting the gifts of God; we see some contemptuously rejecting the gospel, and other impelled by satanic fury to resist the doctrine of Christ; we see them making a boast of their blasphemies, and we see them kindled with cruel rage and breathing slaughters against the children of God; we see the world of ungodly men and of the dispisers of God; we see an awful contempt of God's grace prevailing everywhere; we see such an unbridled licentiousness in wickedness, that it ought to make us ashamed of ourselves and weary of our life"
How would Calvin describe the world in 2010? Furthermore, How would he describe the American seeker-friendly 'church' in 2010? There would be no difference in his description.- W

2010-03-15T17:15:00.000-07:00

The Reformed Pastor by Richard Baxter. Baxter was a Puritan pastor in the late 1600's. This book is a must read for those who have even a thought that they may be being called or are called to a pastoral or leadership role. Those of us who are not pastors have no idea of the immense difficulties of leading a flock. There is the implication of counting the costs before acknowledging that such a precious call may be on one's life. Many are in this role who should not be!
If more Pastors were like Baxter, the institutions that many call churches would actually possibly be real churches. Throw away the seeker-friendly wimpy market driven book, and pick up the Reformed Pastor. -Wes

Shep confr. Phil Johnson

2010-03-08T19:14:00.000-08:00

Pulpit Highlights - Phil Johnson from Grace Community Church on Vimeo.

2010-02-08T18:01:00.000-08:00

SOUTH BEACH, MIAMI. Super bowl weekend=thousands of lost souls. Modern day Sodom and Gomorrah. We were able with many other men and women this weekend to reach many.We must preach for the glory of Jesus Christ. Romans 11:36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.-wes

elect

2010-02-08T17:57:00.000-08:00

...going through Ephesians, stopping at verse 4 in chapter 1. just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love
What I would like to point out is that He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world. Remember this book is to believers. Why do we enjoy the gifts, the joy, the fruit, the perseverance in trials in such a dark world? Because He chose us before the foundation of the world. Before He laid it down, the foundation, we were chosen. How can He allow us to enter the narrow gate to heaven and allow us to walk the narrow way? because He chose us before the foundation of the world. Election took place before we were even a thought in our parents minds. Before our parents were even conceived, election took place. Before Moses and before Noah, even before Adam, election of the redeemed took place. Those who God chose to save in the past, present, and future were chosen by Him and for Him before the foundation of the world. We have nothing to do with His choosing of those whom He will call to Himself, for His Glory.-wes

2010-01-28T10:11:00.000-08:00

I'm very much enjoying the company of a few friends lately in such a difficult time. I thank Mr. Luther, Mr. Calvin, and Mr. Edwards for obeying God and writing, for us to feed on what you wrote..... and I thank God for the Comforter, who comforts those whom He loves. W

Test Yourselves

2010-01-13T16:19:00.000-08:00

Oh dear saints,
Today I would suggest to you that it is war….. Our faith is being assaulted from within.(Jude 1:3) There are many today that are just floating around on life, not worried for other souls let alone their own. They have been feed a false assurance through a modern message. We cannot live like the world and expect to be welcomed into heaven. Know the bible says you will know them by their fruit. So my question to you is your life a struggle over sin, a constant planning to avoid any thing that may make you stumble, a hatred for sin and the things of the flesh? If some of these things you can dive into and swim about without a care please test yourself to see if you are in the faith.(2 Corinthians 13:5) Do not trust in a decision, profession, or some type of religious activity to be saved. Read the book of 1 John there are ten tests in there. Let the Spirit of God convince you of your salvation not man. ----------------Justin

SALVATION

2010-01-04T17:34:00.000-08:00

6 years ago today, the day that I remember that Jesus Christ saved my life. Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a filthy radically depraved wretch like me. Praise the King of kings, the Lord of lords. Help me to love you more my Savior. I praise Christ and Him alone for eternal life! Salvation is of the LORD.
Romans 11:36 Wes

The Truth About Christmas

2009-12-25T06:02:00.000-08:00

It's all about the Truth.....

2009-11-28T16:42:00.000-08:00

2009-11-17T17:48:00.000-08:00

CONVERSION= something that the modern seeker-friendly man centered church does not take seriously, and portrays conversion as easy as 1,2,3.
Here is what John Bunyan wrote "Conversion is not the smooth, easy going process some men seem to think...it is a wounding work, of course, this breaking of the hearts, but without wounding there is no saving..where there is grafting there is a cutting, the scion must be let in with a wound; to stick it on to the outside or tie it on with a string would be of no use. Heart must be set to heart and back to back, or there will be no sap from root to branch, and this I say must be done by a wound" I like Bunyan

FLEE IMMORALITY

2009-11-04T04:03:00.000-08:00

RUN FROM IT AS IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT.
Men- do you know of a location that is going to be a brothel for your eyes. FLEE before even going there.
Is going to the movies to see a PG-13 movie honoring Jesus Christ? Yes, that's right, I said PG-13. Movies filled with fornication not to mention the Blasphemy. Why would a born again christian willingly go pay money and sit in a Sodom an Gomorrah like setting for entertainment? Married men, why would you take your wife to see such filth? Have you no shame? You laugh at this entertainment, drool over the half naked women and then wonder why you are not satisfied with your wife. You call yourself Christians??
If there is no conviction from the HOLY SPIRIT while sitting before a large screen with nudity and blasphemy there is a big problem. Your conscience could be seared to such an extent that it doesn't even bother you. Possibly, you are in a worldly minded church where the pastor doesn't have the guts to preach and teach on this sin. Or maybe there is no conviction because you were never saved in the first place. Pray to God for grace wrought repentance that leads to life and turn from your evil ways and turn to to Christ. ( 1 Corinthians 6:9-20, Matthew 5:27-30)
-WES

2009-10-13T18:55:00.000-07:00

"The evidence of conversion is not a decision card filled out, it's a life being lived out" - Paul Washer

Jesus did not call men to make a decision, He called men to REPENTANCE!

2009-10-13T18:37:00.000-07:00

Too many to name. Too many men standing behind a music stand asking men to make decisions for Jesus rather than preaching what Jesus preached. Too many men leaving out the necessity of repentance in their teaching. Too many men being concerned with offending people with the truth. Too many men trying to grow their church by being like the world. Too many men asking people to raise their hand to receive Jesus when their is no such event mandated or modeled in Scripture. Few men are bold enough to speak the Truth, wont you do the same? "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel." -Jesus (Mark 1:15)

2009-08-23T18:31:00.000-07:00

DEATH- A lady that lives on my street was found dead tonight. She was just around days ago as usual. Ostensibly, she went to bed one night and took her last breath. We need to continue sharing the Truth with our neighbors, we never know when they are going to step into eternity, heaven or hell..............

2009-08-05T04:19:00.000-07:00

Peace and safety! Listen to this short commentary from John MacArthur from 1 Thessalonians 5.... "Just as false prophets of old fraudulently forcast a bright future, in spite of imminence of God's judgement (Jer 6:14, 8:11, 14:13, Ezek 13:10) so will they again in future days just before the final day of the Lord destruction"
What are you hearing and seeing in your church? Are they focused on winning the lost and preaching the future wrath to come? Or are they playing on people's felt needs, having performances,giving a false sense of security of peace? Are they preaching peace, peace,when there is no peace? Be careful, be warned. - Wes

now hear this!

2009-07-26T19:31:00.001-07:00

ENOUGH SAID...

2009-07-23T20:18:00.000-07:00

Let go of your Sin or Perish - Tim Conway from I'll Be Honest on Vimeo.

2009-07-19T04:56:00.000-07:00

Let your Christianity never be at idle speed, for that is worthy of repentance. Paul, Peter, and others were sharing the true Gospel which created wake back then. When we preach the true Gospel today it creates wake as well. Unregenerate men hate it because it they hate the truth, they are dead in their tresspasses and sins and are not seeking God (Romans 3:11). The Gospel also creates wake,or could I say large chop, among many of the "churched" today because it is in contrast to what they are hearing about the smooth sailing seas promised to them after making their decision. If your "christianity" is idle speed and a continued smooth sailing there is something wrong and you need to examine yourselves ( 2 Cor 13) and repent. Christians are promised trials and tribulations not smooth seas. Lukewarmness is warned against in Revelations chapter 3.
When you hear and read about the lives of men such Spurgeon, Wesley, Edwards, Owen, Luther, and others it makes you realize how weak modern "christianity" is today and how weak and man- centered many leaders are today.
Romans 11:36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.

2009-06-13T19:46:00.000-07:00

(Here is Justin). Some of the best theologians still speak today. Their words still provide men with truth even though their bodies are nothing more than dust. John Calvin, Charles Spurgeon, Matthew Henry, George Whitfield are men of God that have truly blessed us. It is too late to lift them up in prayer, so let us be in prayer for the few men who still hold to sound doctrine such as John MacArthur, John Piper, Paul Washer, and more personally to us our pastor Myrue Spivey. Of course there are others, but these men have trully touched many lives while holding to sound biblical doctrine in these latter days.-Wes

2009-06-13T19:38:00.000-07:00

Going to the Library?

Make sure you bring your tracts. Hit as many books as you can especially the new releases and the most read/most checked out. If you visit the Library frequently, start in one section at a time each visit. By doing this, you are placing the Gospel in the hands of the lost, and giving them a free book mark they may find more interesting then the book they picked up. Every minute counts.

2009-06-06T11:49:00.000-07:00

Every minute counts, being able to pass out hundreds of tracts between my son's track events.

2009-06-05T04:31:00.000-07:00

Good illustration from Spurgeon... There are times in every believer's life when through trials and afflictions God seems to withdraw His presence and hide His face. Why? It is likened to a tender hearted father walking through the city with his little son. The boy, enthralled by the sights, runs ahead and lingers behind and soon becomes more thrilled at the sights than content with the father. So the father hides behind a post or around a corner until the child realizes his aloneness and cries out for his father. The end result is a closer walk and a deeper relationship. Truths like that are timeless.

2009-05-29T04:08:00.000-07:00

EVERY MINUTE COUNTS...
like when I was leaving a patient's house the other day and a man by the name of Kurt was walking up the driveway passing out fliers for his landscaping business. I tried to give him a tract, but he said he already had the same one that had been given to him!I asked him where he would spend eternity if he died today. He said heaven because Jesus had saved him and forgiven him of all his sins. He told me he had a terrible life of abuse in foster care and the one day God saved him. He has been attending a local church consistently for the last three years. I was able to give him Save yourself some Pain and a cd on biblical repentance. Kurt is permantly on Crosswalk Evangelism's prayer list. You never know the impact when you just take a simple step to open your mouth about Jesus Christ. Every Minute Counts....

DOCTRINE DIVIDES

2009-03-08T12:37:00.000-07:00

JOHN MACARTHUR: DOCTRINE DIVIDES TRUE FROM FALSE
By Ken Silva pastor-teacher on Mar 7, 2009 in Quotes

When you don’t even lay down clear doctrine at the level of the Gospel, where are you going to go from there? And the cry is, as one man said to me when my book on The Gospel According to Jesus came out, he said, “Your book is divisive!”

You want to know something? He’s right. He’s right. Want to know something else? Doctrine divides. People say, “Oh doctrine divides…doctrine divides.” I say, “Amen, preach it, doctrine divides.” You know what it does? It confronts error. It separates true from false. It makes judgments. Today’s climate, however, of unity in the priority of relationships, that’s not tolerable.

John MacArthur

2009-03-06T06:36:00.001-08:00

2009-03-06T06:32:00.000-08:00

2009-03-06T06:29:00.000-08:00

2009-03-06T06:26:00.000-08:00

2009-03-06T06:20:00.000-08:00

2009-03-01T17:35:00.000-08:00

Here is something from christianresearch.net

Feb 25 by Samuel Guzman

There are many over-grown boys leading the professing Church today, acting like fools and profaning God’s name, in His name. God will never use them because they are serving a god made in their own image (Psalm 50:21), and not the true and living God. But what kind of men does God use?

Horatius Bonar, writing the preface to John Gillies’ Accounts of Revival, describes true men of God as possessing the following nine characteristics:

1. They were in earnest about the great work on which they had entered: “They lived and labored and preached like men on whose lips the immortality of thousands hung.”

2. They were bent on success: “As warriors, they set their hearts on victory and fought with the believing anticipation of triumph, under the guidance of such a Captain as their head.”

3. They were men of faith: “They knew that in due season they should reap, if they fainted not.”

4. They were men of labor: “Their lives are the annals of incessant, unwearied toil of body and soul; time, strength, substance, health, all they were and possessed they freely offered to the Lord, keeping back nothing, grudging nothing.”

5. They were men of patience: “Day after day they pursued what, to the eye of the world, appeared a thankless and fruitless round of toil.”

6. They were men of boldness and determination: “Timidity shuts many a door of usefulness and loses many a precious opportunity; it wins no friends, while it strengthens every enemy. Nothing is lost by boldness, nor gained by fear.”

7. They were men of prayer: “They were much alone with God, replenishing their own souls out of the living fountain, that out of them might flow to their people rivers of living water.”

8. They were men whose doctrines were of the most decided kind: “Their preaching seems to have been of the most masculine and fearless kind, falling on the audience with tremendous power. It was not vehement, it was not fierce, it was not noisy; it was far too solemn to be such; it was massive, weighty, cutting, piercing, sharper than a two-edged sword.”

9. They were men of solemn deportment and deep spirituality of soul: “No frivolity, no flippancy . . . . The world could not point to them as being but slightly dissimilar from itself.”

2009-02-06T17:38:00.000-08:00

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

2008-12-02T19:48:00.000-08:00