JPM Newsletter 2024

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Hello! I hope this finds you and your families doing well. Thank you for reading my newsletter. In it, I hope to provide you with a brief review of the year 2024 and what, as best I know, lies ahead for 2025.

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

I had three international trips this past year. In April, I preached in the Philippines. I’ve preached in the Philippines four times now and always enjoy my time there. The Filipinos are such sweet people. I was with Armand and Jackie Ngo and their family. Armand, pastor of Rock of Refuge Christian Church in Manila, is such a kind, gentle-spirited man, but is fiercely devoted to truth and committed to exposing false teaching that is rampant in the Philippines.

The first of several preaching venues there was in Manila. At this conference that we named Strange Fire Philippines, there were about 1,100 in attendance. For one of my sessions, I gave an overview of the history of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement. I showed how all of its early leaders (whom charismatics often refer to as “God’s Generals”), such as John A. Dowie, John G. Lake, Aime Semple McPherson, Smith Wigglesworth, Charles Parham, Kathryn Kuhlman, etc. were—to a person—theological heretics, prolific and proven false prophets, con artists, and most (if not all) were sexually immoral. While discussing Kathryn Kuhlman, I made a brief point on the biblical truth that Scripture forbids a woman to serve as a pastor. I quoted 1 Timothy 3:2 which says that a pastor/elder/overseer (these words are used interchangeably in the New Testament) must be “the husband of one wife.” I said, “If you attend a church with a female pastor, you have neither a pastor nor do you have a church.” It was not a major point at all, I just briefly stated this and moved on, not thinking much about it—until a few days later.

One of the Filipino brothers who organized the conference came up to me and said, “Justin, remember what you said on Friday about how women cannot serve as pastors?” “Yes,” I replied. “Well, you did not know this, but towards the back of the room, there was a group of female pastors who attended the conference. One of them was convicted by what you said and resigned as pastor of her church the next day.”

“Really?!” I replied. I was floored. But isn’t that amazing? She was a pastor on Friday, was convicted by the truth of God’s Word, resigned as pastor on Saturday, and did not even preach in her own home church on Sunday! Praise the Lord! It’s not often that we get to see such a dramatic and immediate change in people—especially one that comes at a great personal cost. God’s Word indeed will not return to Him void without it accomplishing what pleases Him (Isaiah 55:11).

While preaching in Bohol, Philippines, I met a dear brother named Jose, who pastors a tiny church in a mountainous and remote part of Borneo, an island in Southeast Asia. After introducing himself he said, “I must ask your forgiveness, brother Justin.” I could not imagine why, as I had just met him. He continued, “I have taken many of your teaching videos up into the mountains and shared them with my church without asking your permission. Your teaching has opened the eyes of many in my church who were being deceived by the charismatic movement. I did this without first getting your permission; please forgive me.”

“Oh, brother,” I said, “You have absolutely nothing to apologize for! That is wonderful! I’m so glad it was helpful for your church! Praise the Lord!” This just thrilled my soul to hear. What a precious brother, though, to be so sensitive as to see a need to ask for forgiveness. Many of you have heard me say before how grateful I am for all of our faithful shepherds out there. Though it is easy to get discouraged at how many high-profile preachers either disqualify themselves morally or compromise theologically (or both), for every one of those, there are untold numbers of faithful shepherds—men who labor in the Word and faithfully shepherd their flocks in anonymity. No one knows about them outside of their (often small) churches. They are not being asked to speak at the big conferences or be interviewed on any podcasts. They are known only to their own people and to the Good Shepherd Himself. But they are out there, and they are all over the world.

If you have a faithful pastor, pray for him and his family and let him know how much you appreciate him. That will be a big encouragement to him and his wife. And, if you would like to use my teaching to be of help to your church, please feel free. You don’t even need to be a pastor of a small church in remote Borneo.

In August, I went to Brazil. Like the Philippines, this was my fourth trip to preach in this country. The charismatic movement is growing rapidly in Brazil and there are many homegrown Word-Faith/prosperity preachers who have learned the tricks of the trade from watching American “Christian” television such as TBN and Daystar. In fact, I saw several cars with Rhema bumper stickers; Rhema is the Word-Faith ministry begun by Kenneth Hagin, widely regarded as the father of the modern Word-Faith movement in the United States. Just before I arrived in Brazil, Word-Faith faith healer Todd White held a crusade there. I have featured Todd White several times on my YouTube channel. He is a fraud most well-known for his fake leg-lengthening routine. Despite this trick being irrefutably proven for the chicanery that it is, his popularity seems to be growing. There were tens of thousands who attended his crusade.

I preached at the Calvary Alliance Church in Franca, Brazil, pastored by a dear man named Paulo Jr. Paulo Jr., much like Armand from the Philippines, is an exceptionally kind man but is also burdened by the danger posed by false teachers and is unafraid to confront them and call them out by name. He asked me to present my Clouds Without Water seminar over the weekend and then do an exposition on Sunday.

Paulo Jr. has been called by some as the Spurgeon of South America. Given his love for Christ, the church, and courage in confronting the theological wolves seeking to devour Christ’s sheep, I think that is a fitting title. Paulo Jr. has written several books and is the founder and president of the Missionary Society in Defense of the Gospel, which supports missions not only in Brazil but also in Africa and Europe through the publication of doctrinally sound resources.

Having been with Pastor Paulo Jr., his fellow elders, and their flock several times now, I have come to truly love them. They are precious saints and fellow slaves of Christ. Paulo Jr. has asked me to return in 2026 for what they call their Old School Conference. Lord willing, it will be my honor to do so. And I must admit, I love the food in Brazil! You’ve likely heard of, if not been to, a Brazilian steakhouse. Well, they definitely take their meat seriously down there.

My final international trip was to Thailand. Casey Butner, a friend of mine and pastor of Beulah Baptist in Winter Garden, Florida, went with me and he also preached. We were in the city of Chiang Mai at the invitation of a missionary. Formerly in China, he and his family were deported by the Chinese government due to their Christian faith.  There remains some risk of persecution to them so I will refrain from showing his picture and just call him “Fred.”

Fred and his family are precious and are doing great work in Thailand. Fred, along with Matthew Villandry, serve as elders at Grace Baptist Church. In addition to the church, there is also Grace Theological Seminary and a publisher connected to this work. Thailand is overwhelmingly Buddhist, with a whopping 94% of the population claiming this hopeless religion. You need not look far in Thailand before seeing statues of Buddha and various symbols of pagan idolatry. Muslims comprise about 5% and the remaining 1% is “Christian.” The quotation marks are intentional because most of that 1% is comprised of Roman Catholic and Word-Faith, neither of which represents biblical Christianity. So, the number of true, regenerate, doctrinally sound Christians in Thailand comprise a tiny fraction of 1% of the populace.

Given how few believers there are in Thailand, they are thinly spread across the country. Many people came to our conference from great distances (one family flew over from the Philippines to attend), eager for biblical truth and fellowship with like-minded believers.

Being a Christian in Thailand is hard. There is no cultural Christianity there. Most of Thailand’s believers were saved from Buddhism, and usually at great cost. When a person gets saved from Buddhism, they are almost always ostracized or even disowned by their families. The Christians in Thailand may be few, but due to the high cost of following Christ, they are sold out and very serious about their faith. Though I did not spend long enough in Thailand to see this played out in everyday life, I was also told that in Thailand, the few Christians who are there tend to be easy to spot.

One such convert was one of my translators, a 21-year-old man named Long. Long was saved out of an animistic Buddhist family. His father is a Buddhist shaman and, as the last-born son, Long was expected to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a shaman too. But God had other plans.

As a teenager, from time to time, Long was asked to help move various statues of Buddha, most of them made of concrete or bronze. At about age 14, Long found a Bible and began to read it. He said, “All I knew to do was begin at page 1 and just read through.” And read through, he did. He realized very quickly that the God of the Bible was very different from the idolatry of his religion. One text in particular stopped him in his tracks. It was Psalm 115:4-8 which describes pagan idols. Paraphrasing for the sake of space,

Their idols are the works of man’s hands. They have mouths but they do not speak, they have eyes but they do not see, they have ears but they do not hear, they have mouths but they do not speak, they have feet, but they do not walk. …Those who make them will become like them.

Long realized this was a perfect description of the Buddha statues at his family’s temple. He noticed one other thing: “When I picked up a Buddha statue with my hands, it was hollow inside. After reading the Bible, I realized my belief system was hollow, just like the Buddhas.” Long continued to read Scripture and read about Christ in the New Testament. Long left the religion of his family and came to Christ in faith and repentance. When he left the religion of his family, his family left him.

Long is one of the most impressive young men I’ve ever met in my life. He seems wise beyond his years and is fully committed to Christ. Absolutely sold out. I told Long that I was sorry that his family left him, but in coming to Jesus, he gained an entirely new family. He now has brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world. I hope I live long enough to see what God will do through this young man.

Unfortunately, the Word-Faith/prosperity gospel movement is growing quickly in Thailand. It was explained to me that the Buddhist religious culture actually provides fertile soil for its growth. Buddhist philosophy believes in good spirits vs. bad spirits. When the Pentecostals came to Thailand, they promised the people the elimination of bad spirits (demons) through their distorted view of spiritual warfare. Everything bad that happens to you (misfortune, sickness, etc.) is the result of demonic activity. According to the Pentecostals, these demons could be rebuked and bound. The Pentecostals also promised people that if they became Christians, they would enjoy financial prosperity. Health and wealth can be yours if you just become a “Christian.”

In Thailand, the most famous prosperity preacher is a man out of Bangkok named Champ. Long told me that Champ recently engaged in a highly publicized debate with a Buddhist monk on whether Buddhism or Christianity was true. The debate did not go well for Champ (preachers in his theological camp are notoriously ill-equipped either doctrinally or apologetically) and as it progressed, he became increasingly agitated and lost his temper. The overwhelming consensus was that the “Christian” lost to the Buddhists. One observer commented on Champ, “He’s crazy. Poor Jesus, poor Jesus.” Bad theology always results in a bad witness to the watching world.

But the small pockets of good theology in Thailand are being blessed by the Lord. I had the privilege of preaching the commencement address for the second graduating class of the Equipping Center for Christian Workers. This is a small Bible college just getting its feet off the ground, but it is good work. The graduates ranged in age from early 20s to (my best guess) mid-60s. The graduates of this school are from neighboring Burma and fled from the war there. So, for this service I was preaching through a Burmese translator. This may be the first time I’ve preached in two different languages in one country!

All throughout the week I heard many testimonies from people whose lives were totally transformed by the gospel. All of them were saved out of pagan idolatry. There were also many people who told me they were delivered out of bad theology from watching my YouTube channel. Two told me they were saved by hearing the gospel presented on my channel—praise the Lord! Fred told me that my teaching in Thailand will have a lasting impact because it will be translated into Thai, Burmese, and Mandarin and put up on YouTube.

DOMESTIC TRAVELS

Domestically, in 2024, I preached the gospel in thirteen states, and many of those multiple times. It is always such a joy to go into new churches and meet so many like-minded believers who are hungry and grateful for the truth.

Oddly, I have preached in every contiguous state west of the Mississippi multiple times except for Utah. Utah has always been this large blank spot in my preaching map, but by God’s grace, that spot was filled in this past year. Our dear friend Susan Heck was teaching a ladies’ conference at Crossroads Church in Sandy, UT, on a Saturday, and I was asked to preach the Sunday morning service. It was a wonderful weekend there. Susan and her assistant, Deb Pendegraff (also a dear friend of ours), and Kathy and I had good fellowship with each other and the folks at Crossroads.

Another domestic highlight for me was in February when I preached at Sherman Bible Church in Sherman, TX. Pastor Steve LebBlanc has become a good friend of mine. He has a deep love for the Truth and is fearless in confronting false doctrine. Many years ago, he was a friend of Robert Morris, former pastor of Gateway Church in Southlake, TX, and served on his pastoral staff. Steve saw firsthand the dangers of false doctrine and both the spiritual and physical harm it inflicts upon people. God graciously opened his eyes to that deception, and he is now a courageous warrior for sound doctrine.

I also did some filming for Wretched TV, hosted by Todd Friel. Todd had me in the studio to record several programs on a wide range of topics, from the dangers of false prophets, the importance of discernment, and the precautions we must take with baptizing children, and I also recorded my testimony.

One of my domestic preaching highlights came in October at the Cessationist Conference hosted by G3 Ministries. The Strange Fire Conference back in 2013 was, in my opinion, one of the most needed and impactful biblical conferences in our lifetimes. It is not hyperbole when I say that at every single preaching venue I’ve had in the dozen years since then, at least one person—and usually several—tell me how much they benefitted from it.

The Cessationist Conference was, in effect, Strange Fire II. I was but one of nine speakers, each of whom did an outstanding job laying out a biblical and theological case for the cessation of the miraculous gifts. God is still performing miracles today when it is His sovereign will to do so, but there are no miracle workers today. What is being portrayed today in the charismatic movement bears absolutely no resemblance to the true miracles that were wrought at the hands of true apostles in the early church.

In Acts 3, for example, we see Peter and John heal a man who was born lame from his mother’s womb. In verse 6, Peter seized him by the right hand and commanded, “In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk!” Immediately, this man who had never even stood on his own (notice in verse 2 that this man was carried and daily laid at the temple gate) got up and began walking and leaping.

This was no psychosomatic healing. The miracles done by Jesus and the apostles were real, instantaneous, permanent, and, most importantly, undeniable. Upon the lame man’s healing, all the people of Jerusalem “were filled with wonder and amazement” (verse 9) and stared at the man and at Peter in slack-jawed marvel. The rulers, elders, and scribes “had nothing to say in reply” (4:14). That a true miracle had taken place was evident to all who lived in Jerusalem, and even the enemies of the gospel could not deny it (vs. 16).

I can absolutely deny that modern so-called faith healers are performing miracles. Bethel Church, pastored by Bill Johnson, claimed again this year that angel feathers were falling out of the sky in their services. I publicly asked them to provide one of these feathers and have it inspected. Crickets. I can deny all day long that Todd White is lengthening people’s legs by half an inch. These things are cheap parlor tricks perpetrated by charismatic hucksters and charlatans.

It is interesting to note that in Acts 3 and 4, the rulers, elders, and scribes were trying to keep word of this miracle from spreading (4:17). They were trying to put a lid on it. Today’s miracle workers are doing everything they can to convince us they are real. The fact that charismatics have to spend so much of their time trying to prove that the miraculous gifts continue to be in operation today is self-evident proof that they are not. If they were, it would be evident to all, and there would be no debate. For those of you old enough to catch the reference, here is a humorous meme I found illustrating this. If you do not catch the reference, well, my childhood Saturday mornings were better than yours.

EVANGELISM

I am an evangelist by calling and profession. I travel and preach and teach. But I also strive to share the gospel regularly with people just as I am out and about.

I must admit that having a disability provides me with a bit of an advantage—or so it seems anyway. Quite often, people will say something either about my scooter or they may ask me where I’m going if we are talking in an airport. When I tell them I’m traveling to preach somewhere, they will often express a combination of surprise and admiration that I would travel given my limitations. Consider the door opened!

I tell them how kind God has been to me in that my handicap is not worse than it is, allowing me to take these trips. I explain that anything short of Hell is God’s mercy because that is what I deserve. That usually raises an eyebrow or two! But it is the truth and is a great segue straight to the gospel.

I had numerous witnessing encounters this past year, but one will stay with me for a long time. Early one morning, Kathy and I drove to the Billings airport for me to go preach in South Carolina. As we pulled up, there was a large van parked just in front of us with a number of young people pouring out of it, along with a Roman Catholic friar. A friar is a priest-in-training. You can spot them because they wear long, off-white robes with belts and have their heads shaved save for a ring of hair around the crown of the head to symbolize the crown of thorns worn by Christ. The odd thing about the bus was that it had First Baptist Church (from where I forgot) written in large letters on the back. I said to Kathy as we pulled up, “Maybe they will be on my flight.”

Not only was this group on my flight, but the friar sat right next to me! He introduced himself as John Paul, a name he assumed upon becoming a friar, but his given name was James. “Hi, James,” I said and introduced myself. “I noticed the van you guys got out of, but if you don’t mind me saying, you don’t look much like a Baptist!” He laughed. He seemed to be a nice young man. This was the icebreaker I needed, and for the next two hours, we discussed nothing but theology.

John Paul told me all about what he believed as a Catholic. We talked about the Mass, praying to the saints, Mary and who the Catholics believe her to be, grace, faith, works, and on and on. At each point, I answered from Scripture the erroneous beliefs Catholics had about these things. I quoted Scripture for every topic, but when he ran into a biblical wall, he just diverted and went on to another subject. Nothing seemed to faze him until I brought up, of all things, Purgatory.

Purgatory, he explained, is a place of punishment where people go to have their remaining sins cleansed or purged (hence the name). I quoted Romans 8:1 to him: “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

No condemnation. Romans 8:1 is a Purgatory-killing verse.

He just stopped. I showed it to him on my phone so he would see I was not misquoting it. No condemnation. He just sat there and stared. He had rehearsed answers for everything else (rehearsed does not mean good), but he had nothing with which to answer Romans 8:1. That stopped him in his tracks. I gave him the gospel as clearly as I knew how to give it. By this time, the plane had landed, and passengers were preparing to disembark. I asked him to please give it some thought, and he said he would.

As Christians, we are instructed to “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense (give an answer) to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). We all miss opportunities to share the gospel with people—me included. But evangelism is a command from Christ to all of us. Hell is real, and it is the due penalty we all deserve. As Christians, we have been mercifully delivered from this just punishment and are in possession of God’s only provision for others to be likewise delivered—the Good News of Christ Jesus.

You would be surprised to see how many people genuinely are willing to have conversations about eternity. Death is an appointment we will all meet one day. It hangs over all of us as the ultimate Sword of Damocles. Most people are quite open to talking about eternal matters. It’s fairly rare that I encounter people who just shut me down and are unwilling to talk. Share the gospel with them. It is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16).

SUNDRY MATTERS

In my previous annual newsletter, I mentioned that Kathy and I have moved to just outside of Billings, MT, and have joined Laurel Bible Church. The pastor, Rob Kimsey, is a graduate of The Master’s Seminary and is a great guy. As of this writing, he has been the pastor for about two years.

He was the only elder of the church, however, and the Bible clearly models a plurality of elders for church leadership (the terms pastor, elder, and shepherd are used interchangeably in the New Testament). With that in mind, in August of 2024, I became a fellow elder with Rob. As elders, Rob and I have equal authority in the church, but he does most of the preaching and is the only one who receives a salary. I do, however, teach Sunday school every Sunday. I am not out of town, and I preach in the morning service every eight weeks or so. As I have the opportunity to preach, I am preaching expositionally through the book of James. I’ve preached nine sermons thus far and am still comfortably in chapter 1, so it will take a while—but it is such a joy.

The past couple of years have seen a breathtaking number of high-profile preachers morally disqualify themselves from the pulpit. Most of these have been charismatic/prosperity gospel preachers, but not all. In the charismatic camp, the sin of adultery rarely means a permanent disqualification, but in our theological camp, it does, and it should.

One of the qualifications of an elder is to be “above reproach” (1 Timothy 3:2). If an elder commits adultery, he no longer meets that qualification. Proverbs 6:32-33 states, “The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking a heart of wisdom; He who would destroy his soul does it. Wounds and disgrace he will find, and his reproach will not be blotted out.”

The sin of adultery can be forgiven just as any sin can. But if committed as an elder of a church, the reproach it leaves permanently disqualifies him from the pulpit.

The Apostle Paul writes to Timothy, “Watch your life and your doctrine closely” (1 Timothy 4:16). Doctrine is vitally important. Sound doctrine leads to a right understanding of God and the gospel. My theological camp is known for championing sound doctrine and that is a good thing. But equally important is our life, our conduct, and our personal holiness.

For many years now I’ve been troubled by the lack of holiness and sanctification of some in our circles. This should not be. Regardless of how sound our doctrine is, if it is not paired with a life of personal holiness, it only increases our judgment (James 3:1). Habitual, unrepented sin may be kept in the shadows for a season, but not forever. Be sure that sin will find us out (Numbers 32:23). A private life that does not match our public proclamation brings reproach upon the name of Christ and causes untold numbers of people to stumble—and we all know what Christ said about those who cause others to stumble (Luke 17:2).

One man who will finish well is John MacArthur. At the Shepherds Conference this past year, I, along with my friend Jim Osman and his son Liam, had an opportunity to visit with John in his office. John, as usual, was so kind and gracious. He is 85 as of this writing and has serious health issues. I pray that the Lord grants him more years to preach, but, as with all of us, John’s times are in God’s hands (Psalm 31:15). John is a kind man and faithful preacher for whom Kathy and I have much love and respect.

LOOKING AHEAD

James, the half-brother of Jesus, exhorts those of us who may be too confident in the plans we make for the future when he writes in chapter 4, verse 15 of his namesake letter: “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.’” So, as I share with you what I have planned for this next year, it is undergirded with “If the Lord wills.”

If the Lord wills, I will continue to preach both domestically and internationally in 2025. I have preaching engagements across the country and have international trips planned this year to Poland, American Samoa, Fiji, and possibly New Zealand.

I will continue my work on YouTube. It has grown far beyond anything I ever imagined. I checked, and this time last year, my channel had about 230k subscribers with around 25 million total views. As of this writing, my channel has 315k subscribers and 41 million views. It is rare now that I am in an airport when at least one person does not come up to me and thank me for teaching on YouTube. There is nothing fancy about my channel; it is pretty bare-bones. But by God’s grace and His grace alone, it continues to grow, and people all over the world—in nations that I’ll never be able to visit—watch it and are edified by it. Praise God.

Here are just a few comments left by viewers:

Thank you for exposing many of my own errors to me through Christ Jesus. I used to question myself when I was a younger convert; saying, “What am I doing wrong? Why can’t I be healed? Why don’t I experience these miracles?” Now, I know that my Salvation, and the Salvation of any of us, is the greatest miracle ever. I seek the “solid food” of the Gospel and the Knowledge of Christ, crucified. 

 

I just finished the second year of listening to you read the Bible every night before I go to sleep (tonight starts the 3rd year) and I can’t tell you Justin how much your commitment to that work means to me. THANK YOU! May the Lord bless you for reading His Word to the world! 

 

Thank you, Mr Peters! I am always encouraged by your humble and Godly content. Your confident but gentle wisdom is much appreciated, and I always look forward to listening to you . . . AND like you very much!!! With much love in the precious name of Jesus, our Lord and Saviour, from a grandmother living in the South of England.

What a tremendous encouragement these are to me. God’s Word indeed does not return to Him void (Isaiah 55:11).

IN CLOSING

As the breadth of this ministry has increased, the expenses have as well. As many of you know, I have a policy of traveling to preach wherever I am invited and do not charge a fee. I give away my teaching resources to those who cannot afford them. The international trips I take are almost always at the ministry’s own expense, and I always have someone to travel with me for assistance. My electric scooters get beat up on these trips and must be replaced every year or so. Please know that I do not say this to pat myself on the back, I just want those of you who may not be very familiar with my ministry to know a bit about the ministry philosophy.

If you are already supporting this ministry, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, thank you. If you are not but would like to with either a one-time gift or a monthly donation, you may do that here or by the good old fashioned “Pony Express” with a check. All donations are tax-deductible. This will be a huge blessing to us and very, very appreciated.

I know that many people pray for us all over the world. I cannot put into words how much that means to Kathy and me. Please pray that the truth would continue to be spread abroad and that not only in what I teach but also in how I comport myself (Ephesians 4:15) I would bring honor to Christ. We have an Audience of One.

Thank you for reading, and may God in Christ bless you and your family.

Your fellow slaves,

Justin and Kathy Peters