Paul Washer
Encyclopedia
Paul David Washer is the Founder/Director & Missions Coordinator of HeartCry Missionary Society which supports indigenous
missionary work.
He is also a Southern Baptist
itinerant
preacher
. Washer's sermons tend to have an evangelistic focus on the gospel
and the doctrine
of the assurance of salvation
, and he frequently speaks against practices such as the sinner's prayer
, and a focus on numerical church growth
.
. According to Washer, a person is saved through faith alone
, but the evidence of a person's repentance is their works. Washer claims that most people who profess a belief in Christianity aren't truly saved. Washer blames preachers, as he claims many preachers often say a person is saved without looking for evidence of repentance in that person's life.
Washer cites Thomas Watson
, R.C. Sproul, John F. Macarthur, George Muller
, John Piper
, Jonathan Edwards
, George Whitefield
, Charles Spurgeon
, Leonard Ravenhill
, John Wesley
, A.W. Tozer
and Martyn Lloyd-Jones
among others, as influences. He has frequently appeared on Christian radio to discuss how people are saved.
Washer had a born again experience while studying to become an oil and gas lawyer
at the University of Texas
. Upon graduation,
he attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
and achieved a Master of Divinity
degree. He then moved to Peru
to become a missionary
for 10 years, after which he returned to the United States. Washer resides in Radford
, Virginia
, where he lives with his wife and three children.
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
missionary work.
He is also a Southern Baptist
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention is a United States-based Christian denomination. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination and the largest Protestant body in the United States, with over 16 million members...
itinerant
Itinerant
An itinerant is a person who travels from place to place with no fixed home. The term comes from the late 16th century: from late Latin itinerant , from the verb itinerari, from Latin iter, itiner ....
preacher
Preacher
Preacher is a term for someone who preaches sermons or gives homilies. A preacher is distinct from a theologian by focusing on the communication rather than the development of doctrine. Others see preaching and theology as being intertwined...
. Washer's sermons tend to have an evangelistic focus on the gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
and the doctrine
Doctrine
Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
of the assurance of salvation
Assurance (theology)
Assurance is a Protestant Christian doctrine that states that the inner witness of the Holy Spirit allows the justified disciple to know they are saved. Based on the writings of St...
, and he frequently speaks against practices such as the sinner's prayer
Sinner's prayer
A sinner's prayer is an evangelical term referring to any prayer of repentance, spoken or read by individuals who feel convicted of the presence of sin in their life and desire to form or renew a personal relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ. It is not intended as liturgical like a...
, and a focus on numerical church growth
Church growth
Church Growth is a movement within evangelical Christianity which emphasizes mainly missionary work combined with sociological awareness of the target population. The "seeker sensitive" label for this approach characterizes the would-be converts as "seekers".-History:Church Growth began with the...
.
Biography
Washer's sermons often focus on the character of Christ and how a person is saved from hellHell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. According to Washer, a person is saved through faith alone
Sola fide
Sola fide , also historically known as the doctrine of justification by faith alone, is a Christian theological doctrine that distinguishes most Protestant denominations from Catholicism, Eastern Christianity, and some in the Restoration Movement.The doctrine of sola fide or "by faith alone"...
, but the evidence of a person's repentance is their works. Washer claims that most people who profess a belief in Christianity aren't truly saved. Washer blames preachers, as he claims many preachers often say a person is saved without looking for evidence of repentance in that person's life.
Washer cites Thomas Watson
Thomas Watson (Puritan)
Thomas Watson was an English, non-conformist, Puritan preacher and author.He was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he was noted for remarkably intense study. In 1646 he commenced a sixteen year pastorate at St. Stephen's, Walbrook...
, R.C. Sproul, John F. Macarthur, George Muller
George Müller
George Müller , a Christian evangelist and Director of the Ashley Down orphanage in Bristol, England, cared for 10,024 orphans in his life...
, John Piper
John Piper (theologian)
John Stephen Piper is a Christian preacher and author, currently serving as Pastor for Preaching and Vision of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota...
, Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards was a preacher, theologian, and missionary to Native Americans. Edwards "is widely acknowledged to be America's most important and original philosophical theologian," and one of America's greatest intellectuals...
, George Whitefield
George Whitefield
George Whitefield , also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican priest who helped spread the Great Awakening in Britain, and especially in the British North American colonies. He was one of the founders of Methodism and of the evangelical movement generally...
, Charles Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon
Charles Haddon Spurgeon was a large British Particular Baptist preacher who remains highly influential among Christians of different denominations, among whom he is still known as the "Prince of Preachers"...
, Leonard Ravenhill
Leonard Ravenhill
Leonard Ravenhill was an English Christian evangelist and author who focused on the subjects of prayer and revival. He is best known for challenging the modern church to compare itself to the early Christian Church as chronicled in the Book of Acts...
, John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
, A.W. Tozer
Aiden Wilson Tozer
Aiden Wilson Tozer was an American Christian pastor, preacher, author, magazine editor, Bible conference speaker, and spiritual mentor. For his work, he received two honorary doctorate degrees.- Biography :...
and Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Martyn Lloyd-Jones
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones was a Welsh Protestant minister, preacher and medical doctor who was influential in the Reformed wing of the British evangelical movement in the 20th century. For almost 30 years, he was the minister of Westminster Chapel in London...
among others, as influences. He has frequently appeared on Christian radio to discuss how people are saved.
Washer had a born again experience while studying to become an oil and gas lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
at the University of Texas
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. Upon graduation,
he attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is a private, non-profit institution of higher education, associated with the Southern Baptist Convention...
and achieved a Master of Divinity
Master of Divinity
In the academic study of theology, the Master of Divinity is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America...
degree. He then moved to Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
to become a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
for 10 years, after which he returned to the United States. Washer resides in Radford
Radford
-Places:England* Radford, Coventry* Radford, Nottingham* Radford, Oxfordshire* Radford, Somerset* Radford Semele, WarwickshireAustralia* Radford College, CanberraUSA* Radford, Virginia* Radford University, Virginia...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, where he lives with his wife and three children.
External links
- HeartCry Missionary Organization Official site of Washer's organization.
- Shocking Message Transcript: http://www.scribd.com/doc/789/The-Truth-About-Christianity
- Regeneration vs. Idolatry of Decisional Evangelism: http://adidab.wordpress.com/2009/05/05/paul-washer-transcript-01-regeneration-v-the-idolatry-of-decisional-evangelism/
- Ten indictments video & transcript: http://adidab.wordpress.com/2009/05/05/paul-washer-transcript-03-ten-indictments/
- Truth About Man Workbook: http://www.heartcrymissionary.com/resources/online_books
- Brief Washer Biography: http://www.hcmissions.org/about/staff/2
- Paul Washer Bible Study Video Series Studies: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=8872D3C0103E8568
- Paul Washer Biography on Theopedia: http://www.theopedia.com/Paul_Washer
- Paul Washer en Español: http://salvacioneterna.com/pwasher.html