RT Kendall Ministries

Category: Articles

  • Physical Exercise

    Physical Exercise

    “For bodily exercise profiteth little, but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come” – 2 Timothy 4:8 (KJV).

    “For while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” – 2 Timothy 4:8 (ESV).

    Shortly after our retirement from Westminster Chapel in 2002, the late John Paul Jackson gave me a prophetic word out of the blue. Sitting at the dinner table with my family, he looked at me and said, “R. T., you will live to a ripe old age, but if you don’t get into physical shape you won’t be around to enjoy it”.

    I had known John Paul for over ten years, having been introduced to him by Mike Bickel in 1991. His previous words to me had been so accurate that his sudden warning to me about physical exercise sobered me. My friend and publisher Steve Strang had just shared with me a routine for exercising each morning and also urged me to get a trainer. Therefore with this surprising word from John Paul I began to think that God was giving me a wake-up call regarding my own health! Our son T. R. was present and immediately got me a book pertaining to a healthy diet.

    I also recalled a conversation with Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones many years ago. Whereas I had taken the King James translation, “bodily exercise profiteth little”, to minimize the importance of physical exercise, Dr. Lloyd-Jones insisted that Paul was not showing disdain for physical training but only saying that godliness is more important. In fact Dr. Lloyd-Jones felt that Paul was actually encouraging physical exercise as long as we remember that godliness is more important.

    I began using Steve’s suggestions by exercising every morning. I call it “Stronger with Strang”. I lost ten pounds by careful eating. I avoid things such as sugar, white flour and anything containing high fructose syrup. Rightly or wrongly, I weigh myself every morning. John Stott told me he weighed himself every morning. If my weight is up, I cut down eating that day; if it is down, I might have a pizza that day! I have a trainer who comes to our house once or twice a week, depending when we are not on the road. I lift weights, do push-ups and try to walk at least a mile in twenty minutes on the treadmill. I only wish I had started this forty years before, but perhaps this word will encourage others who have waited too long to take their health seriously.

    Jesus said that by worrying we cannot add “a single hour” to our span of life (Matt.6:27 – ESV). I take this also to mean we cannot add a single hour to how long we live by exercising. But surely we can improve the quality of our lives by taking care of our bodies. After all, the physical body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor.6:19). Any one who is over weight but loses weight will tell you they immediately feel better by doing this. They will also tell you they feel better when they exercise sensibly and regularly.

    I attended a service when the preacher’s subject was “Fat Christians”. I thought, “Oh good. I know a lot of people who should be here today”. But his sermon was about Christians who are over-fed with truth but do not witness to the lost. It was a good sermon, but not many preachers are willing to tackle the issue of over weight Christians today. Flabby, pot-bellied, unhealthy servants of Christ are not exactly a great testimony to the world.

    I am 82 as I write these lines. There is no doubt in my mind that I am able to travel as I do – literally all over the world – because I took John Paul’s word seriously. I hate to think what I would be like had I had not listened to that timely word.

    I am a Word and Spirit man. This includes bringing in logos and rhema – both of which translate “word” – into my teaching and preaching. These Greek words can be used interchangeably so we must not press the distinction too far. That said, the Word in this particular article pertains to a balanced understanding of 2 Timothy 4:8. The Spirit refers to the prophetic – as in John Paul’s rhema word to me.

    We must be open to both.

  • Martin Luther and Wittenberg today

    Martin Luther (1483-1546) and Wittenberg 2017

    I have just had an amazing week in Wittenberg, Germany. Accepting a wonderful invitation by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN UK and TBN USA), I was accompanied by Leon Schoeman, Director of TBN UK, and filmmaker Luke Bradford. I was given an opportunity of a lifetime – a thrill and privilege beyond any offered to me: to preach the Gospel where Martin Luther once stood.

    The purpose of this trip was to make a film that will be shown all over the world on October 31st 2017 – to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s nailing his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on October 31st 1517. It was the moment that ended up turning Germany and Europe upside down. The film will be partly a documentary but mostly preaching the Gospel that Luther rediscovered. It seemed to me that the best way we could honor Martin Luther was to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That said, this film shows beautiful scenes not only of the landscape and town of Wittenberg today but also of the lovely surroundings of Wartburg Castle where Luther translated the New Testament into German in 1521-1522.

    The filming did not come easily. Whereas 200,000 tourists are expected to come to Wittenberg on the anniversary day of the Ninety-five Theses, we still had to work past hundreds of tourists already coming to Wittenberg who wanted to take pictures of the famous Door. In order to succeed in our mission we got up right after dawn and I managed to preach a few minutes as the sun arose before the crowds moved in. We were also given permission for me to speak in the pulpit inside the Castle Church. Luther preached in this church hundreds of times. Whereas the Eucharist had been the center of worship for centuries, Luther’s unfolding of the Gospel, especially as in Romans and Galatians, made preaching popular. People came from all over Germany just to hear the Bible explained to them – an unprecedented phenomenon at the time. The people did not have Bibles in those days nor did they understand the Gospel.

    Wartburg Castle is where Luther spent ten months translating the New Testament into German. People bought copies as fast as they could be printed. The irony of today is, we all have Bibles but we don’t read them! Nor do we, sadly, understand the Gospel. Let us all make a commitment to read our Bibles and witness another reformation. This is partly why I have written a book to be published shortly, Whatever Happened to the Gospel?

    I may be known as a Calvinist, but Luther is my hero. One difference between Luther and John Calvin is that if you were going to go on a long holiday, you’d rather go with Luther! Luther was fun, crude, never boring and full of life. The three of us determined to have fun on this trip – and not take ourselves too seriously. I think we succeeded to some degree. Do pray for the production of this film. Pray most of all that many thousands will come to know Jesus Christ through this telecast next October 31st.

  • Dr. Michael Eaton (1942-2017)

    Dr. Michael Eaton (1942-2017)

    My Great Encourager is now in Heaven. He died in hospital aged 74 in Johannesburg, South Africa on June 9th 2017. We had preached together that week in the Cornerstone Church in Johannesburg. Brilliant as always, he preached for the last time on June 6th, 2017. I followed him a few moments later. He sat on the front row listening to me, but got up during the sermon. I found out he needed to lie down and rest owing to a lot of pain. It turned out to be a heart attack. He died three days later.

    Michael and I have been linked together for a long time. We were opposites in many ways (personality, style) but when it came to theology – especially soteriology, we were on the same page. I first met him at Westminster Chapel in 1977. He was between churches, that is, he had resigned the pastorate at Lusaka Baptist Church and was undecided what to do next. He came to Westminster Chapel while I was preaching through Galatians. He later claimed that my view of the Law changed his perspective entirely. I hardly knew him, but a few years later he wrote to say that my view of James 2:14 had changed his life and ministry. He decided to accept the pastorate at Rouxville Baptist Church in Johannesburg and grew a multiracial congregation there – a huge and precarious thing to do at the time.

    He was the most learned theologian I have met. His knowledge was incredibly vast – exceeding all I have ever come across. He was a walking encyclopedia, at home with Greek or Hebrew; he preached in Swahili. He read Plato and all the Apostolic Fathers and Church Fathers, the medieval scholastics, knew Luther and Calvin backwards and forwards, read many of the Puritans, the eighteenth century Methodists, the nineteenth century British preachers, the main theologians of the 20th century – including Barth and Brunner, and if it was written last week – Michael probably read it! His mentor was Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones and Michael read all of the Doctor’s books and heard the recordings of most of his sermons.

    I was a mentor to Michael in a small way, but he became a mentor to me in a big way. I think I would be accurate to say that he learned Paul’s teaching of justification and the place of the Law largely from my expositions of Galatians. But he surpassed me in all that I ever taught him and the result was, he became my teacher! These things said, he was a great encourager over the years. There were at last five things I had come to see that Michael came along to agree with: (1) James 2:14 “Can faith save him?” – the “him” being the “poor man” of James 2:6; (2) the place of Christ’s death and intercession (Jesus died for all but interceded only for the elect which I actually got from John Calvin); (3) the faith of Christ: pistis chistou = literally Jesus’ very own faith (Rom.3:22, Gal.2:16,20); (4)the meaning of the concept of God swearing an oath (Heb.6:13ff); and (5) Hebrews 6:4-6 referring to saved people who forfeited not salvation but their inheritance. These are five examples of what I stood for – presumably by myself – but which Michael embraced and in turn taught me from these! My book Once Saved, Always Saved became the foundation for what Michael and I have taught all over the world for the past twenty-five years: the concept of reward and inheritance, persistent faith as being different from saving faith.

    But here is the point: he became my teacher in all these things. He referred to me as being a miner for gold. I would get the nuggets. But he turned the nuggets into bracelets and watches. I learned more from him than I ever saw by myself. I wrote him on the average of once a month for his view on this or that verse or idea.

    I don’t know what I will do without him. I will miss him greatly. More than words can describe.

    But my memory of him is this: he was my great encourager. When I felt alone and out there in no man’s land, he would come along side to say “R T you got that right”. Not that we agreed on everything. But almost everything.

    I always wanted us to do our own translation of the Bible. I mentioned it to him again only five days before he died. I doubt it would have happened anyway, but it was a nice thought (I thought)!

    One sweet memory – our being on television together – will survive. TBN UK came up with a Book Show for me. He was on two one-hour programs. They will be a permanent legacy of our ministry together.

    Good-bye old friend. I will see you in Heaven. We will find out then if the Lord really approved of what we taught!

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  • New Year’s Letter 2017

    New Year’s Letter 2017

    Dear Friends,

    “Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said: ‘Who am I, O Lord God, that you have brought me this far?’” – 1 Chronicles 17:16.

    I have chosen this Scripture for my 2017 New Year’s Letter for two reasons. First, it is exactly the way I feel as I grow older. I was gripped by this verse just before Thanksgiving Day when my Bible Reading (Robert Murray M’Cheyne’s) included this passage. You have no idea how unworthy I feel and how amazed I am that God has brought us “this far”. I can never forget that I come from the hills of Kentucky when our state was second from the bottom in educational standards. Hence our saying in those days, “Thank God for Arkansas”. Not only that; for the first ten years of our marriage – though always in ministry – I worked as a salesman, mostly selling vacuum cleaners door to door.

    My closest friends on both sides of the Atlantic are cautioning me to “slow down”. I am asking: is this warning from the Lord? I don’t know. I am almost overwhelmed that at my age (81) we get more invitations from all over the world than I can fill. Please pray for my wisdom in this connection. I find it so hard to say No.

    Who am I that the Lord has brought us this far?

    Our third grandson arrived a few weeks ago – continuing the TR pattern. We have Tobias Robert (Toby), Timothy Robert and now Tyndale Robert (whom we call Ty). They live about forty minutes from us. TR travels with me a lot these days, although Louise will be joining me in London from February to July.

    Pastor Colin Dye of London’s Kensington Temple has kindly invited us back to be on his staff for the fourth year in a row. We dearly love Colin and Amanda and all the members of KT. I plan to preach on the Life of Elisha. My final Sunday night preaching series at Westminster Chapel was on Elijah (now a book – These are the Days of Elijah). I will also be teaching at the International Bible Institute of London (IBIOL) as well as teaching selected themes from our School of Theology series on Friday nights beginning April 21st).

    Melissa works for a hospital in Nashville, doing what she was trained to do (with her Master’s degree in psychology). Rex continues to be blessed in his real estate business. They live some thirty minutes from us.

    This year we have finally brought R T Kendall Ministries Inc. officially from Florida to Tennessee. We thank God for our Board Members there who served Louise, T.R. and me faithfully for some fourteen years – Richard Oates, Randy Wall and Charles Carrin. We welcome new Tennessee Board Members: Roger Perry (accountant), Joshua Hankins (attorney) and Ricky Skaggs (country singer recording artist).

    When asked how people can pray for us, my reply is: for our continued good health, stamina and all the anointing we can be trusted with!

    Perhaps the most surprising development of 2017 is that TBN UK have invited me to speak on a regular basis – on any subject I choose. It is a 30 minute program which they call “Word and Spirit”. It reaches all over the UK, Africa and Europe four times every week!

    The second reason I chose the aforementioned Scripture pertains to the verses following 1 Chronicles 17:16. It was when David graciously came to terms with the disappointment that he could not build the temple. David accepted this and thanked God for how good God had already been to him. So I ask: will I have to accept that not all I have hoped for will come to pass in my lifetime? David accepted his disappointment with dignity; if I must – by not seeing all I have hoped for, will I be so gracious? I certainly hope so. So many unfulfilled wishes – and prophetic words from good people – remain unfulfilled. Time will tell.

    God bless you all. Thank you for your prayers. Louise, T R, Annette, Toby, Timothy, Ty, Rex and Melissa join me in sending our sincere love.

    R T – Psalm 84:11

    PS – John Newton (1725-1807) wrote a hymn nearly every week when he was vicar of Olney that came from the verse he would preach on. One week he decided to preach on 1 Chronicles 17:16. Being gripped by the words “this far” (“hitherto” – KJV), he wrote “Amazing Grace”. Verse three of his most famous hymn includes these words:

    “Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come; Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home”.

  • Donald Trump and Toby

    Donald Trump and Toby

    Every grandfather probably thinks his grandson is a genius. But Toby is!

    Yesterday at lunch when the conversation with our friend Benjamin Chan (see my tweet of 27-11-16) was about the BBQ we were enjoying at Hendersonville’s Center Point BBQ, our seven year old grandson Toby spoke up out of the blue: “Grandpa, is Donald Trump a Christian?” I replied: “I don’t really know for sure”. “Well then, Grandpa, can God use someone who is not really a Christian to do His work?” I replied: “Yes, through God’s common grace”.

    Common grace is God’s goodness to all humankind. John Calvin called it “special grace in nature”. We call it “common grace” not because it is ordinary but because it is given commonly to all people of all ages in all places in the whole world. It is a creation gift not a salvation gift. It is what keeps the world from being topsy-turvy. It is why there is a measure of law and order in all countries. It is why we have traffic lights, hospitals, firemen, policemen, nurses and doctors. It is the basis of one’s IQ, their ability for poetry, science, botany, astronomy. It is what gave Albert Einstein what is (perhaps) the highest IQ in history. It is what gives an Arthur Rubenstein an ability to play the piano, Yehudi Menuhin to play the violin, Rachmaninoff to write a concerto. It has nothing to do with whether you are a Christian. Being a Christian is not what gives you your IQ; you would have had the same IQ whether saved or lost.

    Common grace is what lay behind Cyrus (Isa.45:1 – probably the same person as Darius in Daniel 6) the surprising decision to let the Jews return to Jerusalem from the Babylonian captivity. This to me is a plausible explanation for Donald Trump – that is, if indeed he appoints good Supreme Court justices and does some of the other things he has promised to do.

    Perhaps Donald Trump is a Christian. I have heard rumors of this person or that person who led him to the Lord Jesus Christ. I hope they are true. But if not, one should have a theological rationale for God using people like him to be used of God in this wicked world of ours.

    Yes, Toby, God can use someone who is not a Christian to do His work in the world. And if Donald Trump is truly born again, all the better for us all!

  • July 13, 2016

    July 13, 2016

    Dear friends:

    As some of you will know, I write an open letter to my friends and followers twice a year: on New Year’s Day and my birthday. Today I am 81. I often think of the funny line: “If I knew I would have lived this long I would have taken better care of myself!”. But it’s true in my case. And yet God graciously gave me a wake-up call shortly after we retired – when I was 67. The late John Paul Jackson (I still grieve with tears when I try to cope with his death) said to me out of the blue one evening: “R. T., you will live to a ripe old age, but if you don’t get in shape physically you won’t be around to enjoy it”. I took him seriously. I began the next day with exercises Steve Strang taught me; T.R. bought me a book called The Abs Diet which I pretty much followed (and still do); I began walking on the treadmill a mile a day in twenty minutes; I have a trainer who comes to me once or twice a week (making me lift weights). I used to think that the word in the KJV, “Bodily exercise profiteth little” was a put-down of exercising. It was my mentor Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones who said this was not a put-down on physical exercise but it meant that by comparison godliness is more important. Modern versions are helpful: “Physical training is of some value” (NIV); “bodily training is of some value” (ESV). I never dreamed at the age of 81 I would be traveling the world as I do. I give God all the praise for this.

    We just finished our third six-month period with Kensington Temple, London. Pastor Colin Dye has given London back to us. He has kindly asked us to return next year. It is fun but also hard work. In addition to preaching at KT and teaching at the International Bible Institute Of London Colin suggested we revive our old School of Theology series on Fridays which I did for many years at Westminster Chapel. When in London Louise and I love walking the streets, this being something one seldom does in America. Over half of our adult life was spent in the UK. It is like being back home. So many doors have opened to us as a result. The greatest surprise was from TBN UK. I never dreamed this would happen but I have been given a weekly slot – actually appearing on TV four times a week in the UK, all over Africa and Europe. The new UK director Leon Schoeman calls the program WORD AND SPIRIT, a name he believe spells out my ministry.

    Louise enjoys good health with me. But she travels less with me in the USA as she prefers to be with the grandsons, so T. R. mostly will accompany me all over America plus places like Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and India.

    My book Pigeon Religion came out in April of this year. It seeks to show the difference between the authentic (the dove) and counterfeit (the pigeon) Holy Spirit. Many have told me they think it is my best book! My book on the Midnight Cry (which the publisher chose to call Is Your Heart Ready for the Midnight Cry?) comes out November 1st . I am now writing a book on the presence of God, something that Pastor Grant Brewster of Bainbridge Island, Washington has been asking me to do for over ten years. It will probably be called In His Presence.

    People ask me all the time, “What is God doing in the world today?” My reply: “Not a lot” (in my opinion). There are exceptions. God is using Alpha in the UK, He is using people like Rolland and Heidi Baker in Mozambique (where I visited in June). But by and large the most apt description of the church today, speaking generally, is: asleep. This includes high profile leaders who espouse everything from open theism to hyper-grace, annihilationism to universalism. This is what my book on the Midnight Cry is partly about. I would like my forthcoming book to be a mini wake-up call before the Big One comes – when it will be too late for the foolish virgins to enjoy the next great move of God, as Jesus put it in Matthew 25:1-13.

    May I insert this question: which to you is more important – getting more of God or getting more from God? Please think about that. It is to me a litmus test as to where one is in his or her spiritual relationship with God. Sadly the number is increasing in those who only want more from God, that is, how to get Him to do things for us – versus getting more of Him – that we might know Him and His ways (Exod.33:13; Phil.3:10). Please think about this. Do you see the difference?

    You and I know that the world situation is worsening with every passing day. A year ago we would not have thought it could be this bad. I can tell you, it will be even worse a year from now. The only hope – in my view: the Midnight Cry. Please read this book Are You Ready for the Midnight Cry? when it comes out and pray for its wide distribution.

    Thank you for your prayers for a greater anointing of the Holy Spirit on me – and for my continued good health, clear thinking, stamina and mobility – and the same for all our family. Grandchild number three is coming in October.

    God bless you all. From Louise, T. R., Annette, Toby, Timothy, Rex and Melissa,

    Warmest love, deepest thanks and appreciation.

    RT – John 5:44

  • Mozambique

    Mozambique

     

    Recently I was privileged to visit the African country of Mozambique for the first time. I flew from London to Johannesburg over night and preached at the Cornerstone Church there Sunday morning and Doxa Deo in Pretoria Sunday night. I then flew into Pemba, Mozambique where I was greeted by Rolland and Heidi Baker plus a group of Mozambican children (see the photo).

    Rolland and Heidi have been in Mozambique for twenty-one years. They run what is called Iris Global. They have founded thousands of churches. In Pemba, they feed 5,000 poor people daily, educate 3,500 daily (grades 1 to 12), train 200 Mozambique people for ministry daily, and in Harvest School of Mission train international students who come to learn how to minister to and pray for people in the bush. They live by faith day by day and sometimes wonder if there will be food for the day. There is a least one story of God multiplying food. A dinner was prepared for only twelve people. Eighty people showed up – hungry! Without preparing extra food (which they did not have) everyone was filled. Ninety-eight percent of the converts in Mozambique are ex-Muslims, the rest being former animists. While there I spoke to 300 young people from 29 countries. I also met with some 30 people (mostly young – in their 20s and 30s) who are on the staff. This time was in a sense the highlight of my visit as I listened to their testimonies. A young lady from northwest Tennessee, who happened to be sitting next to me on my left, told me that while in the bush a few days before she prayed for a mute child who began to speak for the first time (to the amazement of the mother who never heard a sound come from the child). The Tennessee girl afterwards saw another woman behind a mud hurt – distressed in great consternation and grief. She went to see what was wrong. It turned out this woman was sobbing because her four-year old boy had died of malaria some two hours before. They were wrapping the child in sheets, waiting for an imam to arrive to bury the child. The Tennessee girl began praying for the dead child. The child was stiff from rigor mortis. After several minutes of praying she noticed the child’s fingers, then hands, beginning to move, then the arms. The child was raised from the dead before her eyes. When the Tennessee girl went to the mud hut the next day she saw the little boy running around. Those who witnessed this came to Christ. This is how most of Heidi and Rolland’s converts are saved; they see the miracles and instantly abandon their false teaching. A young man who was a graduate in theology from Durham, England, sitting next to me on my right, told me he prayed for three different blind people who were healed before his eyes. He added that they for some reason have almost a complete success rate with deaf people being healed. He implied that they are always glad to see a deaf person because they know they will be healed.

    I felt cheated that I could not go to the bush while there. They refer to the bush and the “bush bush” – which means it is very remote. This is where many miracles take place. I could only be there for three days – or wait until next year (my schedule is completely filled). So I saw no miracles first hand. But there is no doubt in my mind that these young people were not making up these stories: mute people speaking, Muslims coming to Christ, witch doctors coming to Jesus, blind and deaf people being healed. I vowed to go to the bush if I have the opportunity to return.

    The Iris Ministries board met while I was there. I was privileged to speak to them for over an hour on my “life verse” (John 5:44). I also gave my testimony and related how I came to believe in the doctrines of sovereign grace. Rolland, who has an earned doctrine in theology (as does Heidi) was particularly gratified by what I said. We are on the same page theologically. I also took questions and did my best to answer them honestly. The discussion somehow led to the subject of open theism – a very dangerous teaching that many prominent Charismatics and Pentecostals are taking on board. While I was there I cautioned everyone as lovingly and firmly as I could. All seemed deeply appreciative that I was there for this time. They want me to return, but I want to go back only if I can go to the bush!

    I first met Rolland and Heidi on a Caribbean cruise some ten years ago along with Carol and John Arnott who invited me to do the Bible talks on the ship. Heidi came to all my talks, always sitting on the front row, and I got to know her a bit. She told me of her miraculous healing at Toronto and how being prayed for at Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship changed her life. A New York City church that had supported her dropped her for going to Toronto. And yet her ministry never really took off until after Toronto. She and Rolland live completely by faith and are now supported by people from all over the world. If you ask me, this is the best vindication of the “Toronto Blessing” I have come across

  • New Years Letter 2016

    New Years Letter 2016

    “Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O LORD. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy” – Habakkuk 3:2.

    My deepest ambition for 2016 is to help make the God of the Bible famous. He is famous in a sense, it is true; He is the most hated person on the planet. When the Beatles made the claim in the 1960s that they were “more popular than Jesus” they were no doubt correct. When the Midnight Cry comes things will change. Not that all humankind will adore the true God. But they will certainly know about Him. Coming ahead is the combination of unprecedented wrath from God joined by amazing mercy. The fear of the Lord is going to return to the church and also to the world.

    As we welcome the New Year in, I think that I am possibly the most sobered of any time in recent years. Generally, the situation in the entire world has never looked so dire. The outlook has never been so bleak. But should this surprise us? If we are in the very last days – as I have been claiming for a long time, nothing should surprise us.

    Particularly, this has been a sobering year for me. Two very close friends have been taken to Heaven. First, John Paul Jackson, and, second, Dr. Billy T. Ball. The death of Billy is no surprise; he was 88. The death of John Paul at 65 is something I am still struggling to come to terms with. What is interesting to me is that these two men had in common an unusual prophetic gift. But from two angles. John Paul based a lot of his prophecies on what I would call the rhema word, Billy Ball was entirely a logos word man. Many of their prophecies coalesced but both agreed on the premise that the Midnight Cry of Matthew 25:6 precedes the actual Second Coming of Jesus by a period of time during which the church is awakened which in turn will precipitate a revival that spreads around the entire world.

    But there were two other things John Paul and Billy Ball had in common: they each believed they would be major figures on the national, if not world, scene in the last days. Depending how you define “major”, I would have thought that both of these men died feeling unfulfilled. They were used of God in their day, yes, but not to the extent they hoped for.

    I am having to come to terms with how good, honorable and respectable men could get it so wrong when it came to their own expectations. And yet the great Jonathan Edwards sincerely thought that what he was witnessing in his day was precisely what we now call “last day ministries”.

    I am on record for believing that the Midnight Cry – not the Second Coming – will take place while I am alive. We will certainly see!

    I will have two books coming out in 2016: Pigeon Religion – which purports to show the counterfeit vis-à-vis the genuine Holy Spirit; and The Midnight Cry – my interpretation of the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matt.25:1-13).

    I am extremely grateful to God for good health and stamina. 2015 has by far been the busiest and most challenging year of my life. 2016 will likely be equal to this, such beginning with a ministry for the third year in a row at Kensington Temple, London (late January to early July). But I have promised Louise I will cut down a lot.

    God bless you all. I would be so honored if you would put us on your prayer list. Will you? Louise, TR, Annette, Toby and Timothy and Melissa and Rex join me in wishing you a wonderful year to come.

    “In wrath remember mercy”.

    Warmest greetings.

    R T Psalm 84:11*

    * For some reason I began using a new verse alongside my name, having used Romans 8:28 for so long.

     

  • How Much do You Read your Bible?

    How Much do You Read your Bible?

    This is the most important Blog I have written in many years. I pray with all my heart that this will be read and spread to ordinary Christians all over the world. I cannot come close in emphasizing how important this particular Blog is.

    A melancholy fact: most Christians do not have a Bible reading plan. Most Christians do not read their Bibles regularly. Some Christians do not read their Bibles very much at all. And…some church leaders do not read their Bibles. I happen to know more than I care to reveal – how many famous Christians and leaders have not read the Bible through at all!

    I am aiming this Blog at ordinary Christians. My followers are not clergymen or church leaders but laymen – ordinary Christians.

    Mrs. Martyn Lloyd-Jones made a gripping observation about C. S. Lewis’ book Screwtape Letters, a brilliant satire that includes among other things how the devil tempts new Christians. She lamented that one huge thing Lewis left out – that should have been put in – was how the devil wants to keep people from reading their Bibles. I do agree; it would have been so helpful had Lewis put that in.

    I am convinced that the devil will do anything to keep people from reading their Bibles.

    Has the devil succeeded with you? How much do you read your Bible?

    This Blog was inspired by a recent trauma I had in Bimini, Bahamas. Perhaps trauma is too strong a word. But what happened was this. I took a brief vacation to do some bonefishing – my only vacation for 2015. When I turned to read my Bible, lo and behold, I had not packed my Bible or diary (which includes my prayer list)! I was sobered. I never leave home without my Bible, but somehow I let that happen. The thought of not getting to read my Bible for three or four days was almost horrifying. I thought: what do people do who don’t have their Bibles?

    Then I remembered something I heard only a few days ago when I was in Singapore. That there is a church where people are not encouraged to read their Bibles – at home or at church – but only wait for God to give a “revelation”. Like a vision. Or rhema word of knowledge. That’s it. The thought of reading the Bible or hearing an expository sermon does not come on to their radar screen! I was flabbergasted when I heard that.

    Do listen to me dear reader. Once we give up the conviction that the Bible is the only infallible Word of God, we open ourselves to a strange world out there that may include the Holy Spirit but also if not equally the realm of the demonic. Do not be surprised: Satan “masquerades” as an angel of light (2 Cor.11:14). The devil will work overtime to keeping Christians from reading the Bible. He would love you to close it and just wait on God.

    Whereas the Bible was not given to replace the miraculous or even revelation, as Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones used to say, but “to correct abuses”, too many people don’t know their Bibles well enough to know what the Word of God says. And what the abuses might be. The Bible is the Final and Ultimate Revelation of Truth; no vision, word of knowledge or insight will ever – ever – contradict what the Bible has said. The first test of any vision or prophetic word is to run it by Scripture. If it is not upheld by the infallible Word of God, reject it – no matter how much you may respect the person who gives you a word.

    I am grateful in particular for two things in my life. First, my parents taught me to read my Bible daily. This is what they did. The thought of not reading at least a chapter a day in the Bible was out of the question. Second, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones – my chief mentor – introduced me to Robert Murray M’Cheyne’s Bible Reading plan many years ago. As a consequence I think I can say I have read the entire Bible through some forty times and the New Testament eighty times. A Bible Reading Plan “keeps you in the Word”, Dr. Lloyd-Jones used to say to me.

    Many preachers only consult their Bibles when they need a sermon. I persuaded a very close friend – a high profile prophetically gifted man – to start reading his Bible. Two years ago he began a plan and read the Bible through for the first time in his life! He could not thank me enough. He was (amazingly) amazed over how much it meant to him!

    Why had he not been doing this sooner? You tell me.

    How much do you read your Bible?

    I urge you to go on line and find a One Year Bible Reading Plan, one that will help you to read the Bible through in a year. I urge you to begin today in this plan and never, never, never, never stop it.

    The very thought that the devil does not want you to do this should galvanize every true Christian to want to fall on their knees – to pray more and read the Bible more.

    Here’s the thing. Read the Bible – logos, Holy Scripture – and you will be thrilled to discover how often God gives you a rhema word. A rhema word basically means the unfolding of God’s secret will, when He speaks directly to you. God does this. But I can predict: chase after a rhema word all the time and you will probably receive nothing from God; chase after Holy Scripture and He will give you rhema words whenever you need such.

    I have said little in this Blog about personal prayer time. Please see my book Did You Think to Pray? In it I stress time with God. Children spell love T I M E. How much time do you spend in prayer? I recommend thirty minutes a day for every layman; sixty minutes a day (minimum) for every church leader. The average church leader in Britain and the USA spends four minutes a day in quiet time. And you wonder why the church is powerless?

    Please read your Bible through this year. The Bible is the Holy Spirit’s greatest product. He wrote it (2 Tim.3:15; 2 Peter 1:21). If you want to get on good terms with the Holy Spirit, then read His Word!

    One can go through Seminary (preparing for the ministry) nowadays and never get to know their Bibles. They read about the Bible. Many young people going into the ministry have not read their Bibles through and then they read only about the Bible without the foggiest idea what the Bible says.

    One very, very famous Christian said that if he had his life to live over he would spend more time reading the Bible than reading books about the Bible.

    It is my heart-felt cry to God that many people will read this Blog and take it seriously. You will never be sorry. Also, you will never be the same again.

     

    RT

  • Sixty Years ago Today

    Sixty Years ago Today

    On October 31st 1955 I had the greatest spiritual experience of my life. Driving in my car from Palmer, Tennessee (where I was pastor) to Trevecca Nazarene College in Nashville (where I was a student) I had what I might call a “Damascus Road” experience. As I drove there appeared the Lord Jesus Christ at my right – interceding for me to the Father. I never felt so loved. But I could not tell what Jesus was saying, only that He was putting His whole authority on the line with the Father in my behalf. I burst into tears as I drove – on old U. S. 41 between Monteagle and Manchester, Tennessee.

    Two Scriptures had come to my mind as I was praying: 1 Peter 5:7 (“Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you”) and Matthew 11:30 (“My yoke is easy, and my burden is light”). Before the vision of Jesus appeared I was laboring in prayer, asking the Lord to enable me to cast all my care upon Him so I could say that my yoke was “easy”. I had felt a deep burden on me to pray. Normally I would play the radio all the way on a trip from Palmer to Nashville but that morning I wanted only to pray.

    The next thing I remember – over an hour later – was hearing Jesus say clearly to the Father, “He wants it”. The Father replied, “He can have it”. In that very moment there came a peace into my heart – with warmth – that is impossible to explain. It was not merely the absence of anxiety but the presence of rest in my soul. A moment later I saw the face of Jesus looking at me. This lasted for less than a minute. Then I was at Trevecca and went to my first class at 8:00 am.

    What happened to me that day? What was “it”? I heard Jesus say, “He wants it” and the reply came back, “He can have it?” Over the last sixty years I have asked what was – what is – “it”?

    I have come up with several answers: peace – that’s for sure. The “it” was peace. I immediately connected it at the time to the “rest” described in Hebrews 4:9-10. The “it” was certainly “full assurance” (Gr. plerophoria) of my salvation. I knew beyond any doubt that I was eternally saved. The “it” was the earnest of my inheritance. It was surely the baptism of the Holy Spirit (although I did not speak in tongues at that time). When I get to Heaven I will inquire further what “it” is!

    The calm peaceful presence in my heart transformed me. Things did not bother me. What people said about me had minimal effect on me. I did not get easily upset. The person of Jesus was so real to me.

    A month later I had my first vision. Among other things, it indicated I would have a wide ministry but outside my old denomination. Three months later as I was driving from Kentucky into the Tennessee border I felt a well inside that wanted to come out; the only way to let it out was to utter unintelligible sounds. I did it. I kept this to myself; speaking in tongues is more offensive to Nazarenes than Calvinism. I told only two or three people over the following twenty years, one of whom was Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. He affirmed to me that what happened was real.

    But there was more. My theology changed immediately after that experience of October 31, 1955. I knew I could not lose my salvation. Before the day was over I was acutely aware of the sovereignty of God. This led me to believe in predestination. For a while I wondered if I was the first since the Apostle Paul to experience anything like this!

    Seeing Jesus at the right hand of God made me see how real the resurrection of Jesus was. I was amazed to discover that He really is a man. I was attracted to the verse that there is one mediator between God and men, “the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim.2:5). One of the most overwhelming realizations was that Jesus is my elder brother. Also, his death on the cross became real. Furthermore, the literalness of the Second Coming was real. The Bible began to speak to me as it never had. I saw things in the Scriptures I had never seen before. I was attracted to Romans 9:15, “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious”.

    “You are going off into Calvinism”, my professor Dr. W. M. Greathouse said to me. And what is that? “We don’t believe that”, he said. I replied, Then we are wrong”.

    I have never put down in writing (until today) a summary of doctrinal convictions that immediately followed this experience. I emphasize: what immediately followed – as in hours and days – not what I came to embrace many years later (which would build on what I state below):

    • How literally true the resurrection of the person of Jesus is.
    • How true it is that Jesus is truly a man.
    • The fact of Jesus interceding for us at the Father’s right hand.
    • The historicity of the crucifixion of Jesus.
    • The full assurance of my salvation = my unconditional eternal security.
    • The utter reality of the Second Coming: so real as if it already happened.
    • A sense of sin inside, although I was possibly as sinless as one could be.

    I remained a Nazarene a good while, but I eventually left my old denomination. I am grateful for my background. “That is what has saved you”, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones used to say to me. By that he meant that my Nazarene background (he seemed to know a lot about it) is what preserved me from being a cold “perfectly orthodox, perfectly useless” Reformed minister. Those are his words.

    However, I’m afraid Nazarenes today are quite different from the days in which I was influenced by them. A few days ago I had lunch with several Trevecca professors (retired). Not one of them appeared to believe that the sun standing still in Joshua’s day was literally true. One of them unashamedly espouses “open theism” – the notion that God does not know the end from the beginning; indeed, God does not know the future and looks to us for wisdom what to do next! I left that lunch sobered. But thankful.

    It is the experience of October 31, 1955 that has preserved me from liberalism. I think I was the only one at the table that day who believes in the infallibility of the Bible. Some orthodox people poke fun at the idea that “a man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with an argument”. Cold, dead orthodoxy often depends on argument or reason to support Scripture. But I have both – thanks to the Holy Spirit unveiling truth in the Word of God. I can defend what I believe; I would go to the stake for what I believe. This is why we need the Word and the Spirit together.

    Thank you, Lord, for what You did for me sixty years ago. I hate to think what I would have become without Your coming to me as you did. I might well have become a liberal while staying in my old denomination.

     

    RT