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Susan Piraino is Director of Communications for The Carter Report. In this issue she asks Pastor John Carter questions from the mailbox.
SP: What do you make of the heated debate over gun control?
JC: People are afraid. Insanity, social unrest, distrust of government, poverty and crime abound. Millions of Americans see their security through the barrel of a gun. We have a culture of violence. Things definitely will get worse and the demons will rule (Rev. 9). Events unfolding are descriptive of the final events. See Lk. 21:26. The good news is that Christ is coming and death is not a big deal.
SP: What do you think Christians ought to be doing?
JC: A good start would be to stay out of politics and share the Good News of Jesus with a lost, fearful world. Too often we hide away in secluded communities and care only for ourselves.
SP: Are you ever afraid of being shot?
JC: I have been in more dangerous situations than most. I have preached the Everlasting Gospel with nothing between me and potentially hostile crowds but the Holy Spirit. I am not afraid of dying. Christ has promised us eternal life. Death happens and the next thing we know is Glory.
SP: Have you ever received threats?
JC: In Los Angeles, at the Shrine Auditorium I received bullets in the offering. In Africa, I was marched at gunpoint down a jungle pathway. In Russia, a person came after me one evening with a gun. I have a message for the fearful: God is bigger than irrational people armed with guns. We need not be afraid.
SP: Where do you see the Christian Church going in North America and the Western World?
JC: The Church is being sidetracked from her mission. Masses of disillusioned souls, especially young people, are giving up on the Church that they see as self-serving and preoccupied with the maintenance of the status quo.
SP: What is needed?
JC: It was only after the “professionals from overseas” got kicked out of China that the Christian Church grew, even exploded, in that atheistic country. The Church in the West needs to recapture the spirit of Christ and the Apostles as is happening today in much of China. We need a more Biblically based, Gospel oriented, evangelistic kind of Christianity. Here in the United States, the involvement of millions of Christians in politics has been a curse, not a blessing. I was amazed by what I saw in China as I met with Christian leaders.
SP: Is there a tendency for Christians here to trust in religious authority figures who do the thinking for them?
JC: Many Christians are ignorant of the teachings of Christ. We need to read the words of Jesus for ourselves and ask the Holy Spirit to show us His will for our lives. We must think for ourselves.
SP: Evangelism is pretty much a lost art; it seems to be dying out. Most members of the Church say it doesn’t work, is expensive, so why bother? Many pastors seem to think it belongs to a past era and is not for them.
JC: I can only speak from what I have seen and experienced. I believe it does work when the Holy Spirit takes over. Our biggest need is the personal outpouring of the Holy Spirit. I have seen hundreds of thousands, even millions, of souls come to Christ in evangelistic meetings.
SP: Have you always been an evangelist?
JC: I am first and foremost a pastor. Beverley and I have looked after many churches, large and small, during 50 years of ministry. I am convinced the best way to inject spiritual life into a complacent or cantankerous congregation is by personally leading them in a mission to save the lost for Christ. We spend too much time playing church and babysitting sleeping saints. Good leaders are not armchair generals.
SP: Have you always been an evangelist?
JC: I am first and foremost a pastor. Beverley and I have looked after many churches, large and small, during 50 years of ministry. I am convinced the best way to inject spiritual life into a complacent or cantankerous congregation is by personally leading them in a mission to save the lost for Christ. We spend too much time playing church and babysitting sleeping saints. Good leaders are not armchair generals.
SP: You seem to be swimming against the current. How do you manage to conduct some of the largest and most successful evangelistic campaigns in the history of the Church?
JC: It’s all by grace. I sometimes feel that my strength is almost gone, but then God comes and renews my spirit.
SP: Campaigns like the recent one in Port Moresby shook the whole nation. Some nights saw 140,000 souls in attendance. How do you pay for these campaigns?
JC: God is our hope and sufficiency. We don’t receive a dime from the Church organization and that’s okay, we don’t complain. God’s people are moved to send donations. People receive real soul satisfaction when they are part of something truly significant, big, and meaningful. That’s why they give.
SP: What drives you on?
JC: I believe the Bible. I’m not a liberal. I’m a old time Christian. I believe that Jesus only is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. I believe that people cannot be saved without Christ. I believe that the preaching of the Gospel is God’s ordained means of saving the lost. (Rom. 10:10-15)
SP: What are your plans?
JC: To keep preaching while God gives me grace and strength, to stand for the Truth, and not be a conformist for the sake of popularity.
SP: What do you hope to accomplish during 2013?
JC: We need to fully accept the Gospel commission the Lord gave us. We plan, by His grace, to preach His Word in Manila, Africa, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and India. We plan to expand our television outreach around the world. We plan to produce a Christ-filled, Holy Spirit anointed evangelistic series for the Spanish people. I would love to produce a special series for young people.
SP: When are you planning to retire?
JC: I don’t read anywhere where Paul and the Apostles retired. “My times are in His hands.” It is tragic when a minister who has his health is counting the days to retirement. I think he should question his calling.
SP: What message would you give to those who profess to be Christians?
JC: Read your Bible everyday and don’t let others do your thinking for you. Recognize that Jesus is coming soon. Put your money into soul-saving work that produces results. Think BIG. Be courageous. Shun mediocrity. Determine to make a difference. Never, never give up. Remember, “Those who turn many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever and ever.” Dan. 12:3
SP: Pastor Carter, thank you for spending time with us today.
JC: Thank you, Susan. It has been my pleasure and privilege. Thank you for all you do for Christ.
“And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” ~ Daniel 12:3 KJV
When you send your gift for the winning of souls to Christ, please request our DVD, “Letter from Prison” (Please quote this number when requesting your DVD: LW1203*). Please write today.
*All gifts to this ministry are tax-deductible as defined by U.S. Treasury regulations. The fair market value of my DVD is $15.00 and all tax-deductible receipts will be in accordance with U.S. Treasury regulations. The DVD is a gift to you, but according to the tax-laws of the IRS is not tax-deductible. The market value is $15.00 and your receipt will reflect the tax requirements of the IRS.
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Susan Piraino is Director of Communications for The Carter Report. In this issue she asks Pastor John Carter questions from the mailbox.
SP: What do you make of the heated debate over gun control?
JC: People are afraid. Insanity, social unrest, distrust of government, poverty and crime abound. Millions of Americans see their security through the barrel of a gun. We have a culture of violence. Things definitely will get worse and the demons will rule (Rev. 9). Events unfolding are descriptive of the final events. See Lk. 21:26. The good news is that Christ is coming and death is not a big deal.
SP: What do you think Christians ought to be doing?
JC: A good start would be to stay out of politics and share the Good News of Jesus with a lost, fearful world. Too often we hide away in secluded communities and care only for ourselves.
SP: Are you ever afraid of being shot?
JC: I have been in more dangerous situations than most. I have preached the Everlasting Gospel with nothing between me and potentially hostile crowds but the Holy Spirit. I am not afraid of dying. Christ has promised us eternal life. Death happens and the next thing we know is Glory.
SP: Have you ever received threats?
JC: In Los Angeles, at the Shrine Auditorium I received bullets in the offering. In Africa, I was marched at gunpoint down a jungle pathway. In Russia, a person came after me one evening with a gun. I have a message for the fearful: God is bigger than irrational people armed with guns. We need not be afraid.
SP: Where do you see the Christian Church going in North America and the Western World?
JC: The Church is being sidetracked from her mission. Masses of disillusioned souls, especially young people, are giving up on the Church that they see as self-serving and preoccupied with the maintenance of the status quo.
SP: What is needed?
JC: It was only after the “professionals from overseas” got kicked out of China that the Christian Church grew, even exploded, in that atheistic country. The Church in the West needs to recapture the spirit of Christ and the Apostles as is happening today in much of China. We need a more Biblically based, Gospel oriented, evangelistic kind of Christianity. Here in the United States, the involvement of millions of Christians in politics has been a curse, not a blessing. I was amazed by what I saw in China as I met with Christian leaders.
SP: Is there a tendency for Christians here to trust in religious authority figures who do the thinking for them?
JC: Many Christians are ignorant of the teachings of Christ. We need to read the words of Jesus for ourselves and ask the Holy Spirit to show us His will for our lives. We must think for ourselves.
SP: Evangelism is pretty much a lost art; it seems to be dying out. Most members of the Church say it doesn’t work, is expensive, so why bother? Many pastors seem to think it belongs to a past era and is not for them.
JC: I can only speak from what I have seen and experienced. I believe it does work when the Holy Spirit takes over. Our biggest need is the personal outpouring of the Holy Spirit. I have seen hundreds of thousands, even millions, of souls come to Christ in evangelistic meetings.
SP: Have you always been an evangelist?
JC: I am first and foremost a pastor. Beverley and I have looked after many churches, large and small, during 50 years of ministry. I am convinced the best way to inject spiritual life into a complacent or cantankerous congregation is by personally leading them in a mission to save the lost for Christ. We spend too much time playing church and babysitting sleeping saints. Good leaders are not armchair generals.
SP: Have you always been an evangelist?
JC: I am first and foremost a pastor. Beverley and I have looked after many churches, large and small, during 50 years of ministry. I am convinced the best way to inject spiritual life into a complacent or cantankerous congregation is by personally leading them in a mission to save the lost for Christ. We spend too much time playing church and babysitting sleeping saints. Good leaders are not armchair generals.
SP: You seem to be swimming against the current. How do you manage to conduct some of the largest and most successful evangelistic campaigns in the history of the Church?
JC: It’s all by grace. I sometimes feel that my strength is almost gone, but then God comes and renews my spirit.
SP: Campaigns like the recent one in Port Moresby shook the whole nation. Some nights saw 140,000 souls in attendance. How do you pay for these campaigns?
JC: God is our hope and sufficiency. We don’t receive a dime from the Church organization and that’s okay, we don’t complain. God’s people are moved to send donations. People receive real soul satisfaction when they are part of something truly significant, big, and meaningful. That’s why they give.
SP: What drives you on?
JC: I believe the Bible. I’m not a liberal. I’m a old time Christian. I believe that Jesus only is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. I believe that people cannot be saved without Christ. I believe that the preaching of the Gospel is God’s ordained means of saving the lost. (Rom. 10:10-15)
SP: What are your plans?
JC: To keep preaching while God gives me grace and strength, to stand for the Truth, and not be a conformist for the sake of popularity.
SP: What do you hope to accomplish during 2013?
JC: We need to fully accept the Gospel commission the Lord gave us. We plan, by His grace, to preach His Word in Manila, Africa, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and India. We plan to expand our television outreach around the world. We plan to produce a Christ-filled, Holy Spirit anointed evangelistic series for the Spanish people. I would love to produce a special series for young people.
SP: When are you planning to retire?
JC: I don’t read anywhere where Paul and the Apostles retired. “My times are in His hands.” It is tragic when a minister who has his health is counting the days to retirement. I think he should question his calling.
SP: What message would you give to those who profess to be Christians?
JC: Read your Bible everyday and don’t let others do your thinking for you. Recognize that Jesus is coming soon. Put your money into soul-saving work that produces results. Think BIG. Be courageous. Shun mediocrity. Determine to make a difference. Never, never give up. Remember, “Those who turn many to righteousness will shine like the stars forever and ever.” Dan. 12:3
SP: Pastor Carter, thank you for spending time with us today.
JC: Thank you, Susan. It has been my pleasure and privilege. Thank you for all you do for Christ.
“And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” ~ Daniel 12:3 KJV
When you send your gift for the winning of souls to Christ, please request our DVD, “Letter from Prison” (Please quote this number when requesting your DVD: LW1203*). Please write today.
*All gifts to this ministry are tax-deductible as defined by U.S. Treasury regulations. The fair market value of my DVD is $15.00 and all tax-deductible receipts will be in accordance with U.S. Treasury regulations. The DVD is a gift to you, but according to the tax-laws of the IRS is not tax-deductible. The market value is $15.00 and your receipt will reflect the tax requirements of the IRS.
