Crossway Church and Prayer

"So, what is your church going to be like; how will it be different; what will be your target audience?" These are questions that often come to people's minds when they hear about a new church. No doubt, these are questions that are foundational and important. Even though the verse is used out of context frequently, the fact still remains that "without vision the people perish." We've got to know what we're doing, what we're about.

If you've explored our website a little, you've already gotten a feel for some of our distinctives--just where it is that we're coming from. We love the triune God. We love His Word. We love to see His kingdom expand and more people come to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus. We like to answer the question 'who will be your target audience?' by saying, 'Wayne County' or 'all kinds of men, women, boys, and girls who need the gospel.'

But what about a distinctive that often doesn't seem so flashy? I'm talking about prayer. Didn't Jesus himself say that his Father's house was a house of prayer? Does the church have an altogether different agenda than this? We recently took a couple of weeks in our care group meeting to think about this vital issue of prayer and our desperate need of it as we launch Crossway. We considered the prayer of Daniel in Daniel 9, and we thought about how Moses' prayer in Psalm 90 helps us today. These were encouraging studies, but we pray that it will only be the beginning of what will come to be a defining characteristic of Crossway Church in Goldsboro: fervent, prevailing prayer. May God help us to be faithful in this specific joy-filled task that He has called us to.

What's so special about Crossway??

A few of us have been reading a new book by Mike McKinley, Church Planting is For Wimps: How God Uses Messed-up People to Plant Ordinary Churches That Do Extraordinary Things.

The idea behind the title involves McKinley poking fun at church planters because they have an easier job than men who go into an existing church that needs change and revitalization. In the end, Mike loves church planting and the book is quite suitable for planters.

I was especially encouraged by chapter three--"One thing is necessary." The "one thing" to which McKinley refers is the Word of God, especially the Word as it is preached. He writes that what his church needed most (he embarked on a church revitalization project five years ago) "was someone to preach God's Word to them. And, friend, if you are a church planter or church revitalizer, this is what your church needs as well." (p.49)

So, what will make Crossway Church of Goldsboro such a special community of believers in Jesus? Why should you consider checking us out or supporting us? Well, it won't be because we are super savvy; Lord willing, it will be because we love God's Word--which is just that, the actual Word of the one true God. In McKinley's words, we hope to "teach God's Word. Evangelize using God's Word. Disciple people using God's Word. And then, when you [we] launch a public service, preach God's Word." (53)

Profound Truth for Practical Living

Thanks to Gabe Lewis for recently pointing us to this quote by Charles Spurgeon...

"I must take care above all that I cultivate communion with Christ, for though that can never be the basis of my peace - mark that - yet it will be a channel of it."

May God help us at Crossway Church of Goldsboro to be both doctrinally and experientially healthy! We can only do this as we understand and truly believe that Christ is everything to the believer. God has made him to be our wisdom, our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.
Our message for ourselves, Goldsboro, and the world is this: Christ receives sinful people--boys, girls, men, and women. Look (and keeping looking) to Christ.

Meet John & Kristie Randolph

John Randolph has accepted the call to be the lead teaching pastor of Crossway Church when it launches. We'd like to introduce John and his wife Kristie to you in this brief blog post.

John was born and raised in Gastonia NC. "The grace in which I currently stand is the free grace of God from first to last. Raised by Christian parents, I responded to an invitation to follow Christ at a young age. Although I occasionally doubted this decision as a teenager, I came to see that God had, in fact, worked in my life to produce in me a love for Him, His people, and His Word. I continue to this day to repent of sin and believe the gospel, my only hope." Sensing the call to ministry (a call that has been confirmed in the local church), John attended Liberty University where he received his Bachelor's in Biblical Studies. John went on to the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary where he received his Master of Divinity in 2008 and subsequently his Master of Theology in 2009.  John served as a deacon overseeing mercy ministries at Immanuel Baptist Church in Louisville, KY. John works for Memoria Press, a homeschool curriculum publishing company located in Louisville.  John and Kristie met at Liberty and were married in 2005. Kristie works in the Communications Department for the Kentucky Baptist Convention. They are expecting their first child in June.

What books have influenced you the most?

John:

I have had the privilege of doing a lot of reading through college and seminary.  Now that I am finished with my formal education, I am really refreshed by having the Bible as my main ‘textbook.’  So, certainly, the Scriptures have influenced me the most in life, particularly as I have sat under the ministry of faithful preachers. 

Other helpful books (in no particular order) include Richard Sibbes’ The Bruised Reed, The Valley of Vision: a collection of Puritan prayers, Desiring God (John Piper), The Potter’s Freedom (James White), A Vision for Missions (Tom Wells), Manly Dominion…in a passive-purple-four-ball world (Mark Chanski), anything by Ed Welch and the guys at the Christian Counseling and Education Foundation, Mark Dever’s The Deliberate Church, Nancy Pearcy’s Total Truth, and According to Plan (Graeme Goldsworthy).  I should also add the basic writings of R. C. Sproul—Holiness of God, Chosen by God—and the very accessible writings of J. I. Packer—Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God and Concise Theology. 

What do you do for leisure?

John:

I recently trained and won the dead-lift portion of a Gold’s Gym weight-lifters mega tournament. 

Aside from telling poor jokes, I like to drive around and listen to a good audio book by David McCullough.  I like to exercise and be outdoors with Kristie, whether that be playing tennis, golf, or just walking.  We enjoy traveling. 

What are the most important things a church needs in order to be healthy?

John:

A church needs to constantly remind herself that the Lord Jesus is her head.  Pastors are given as under-shepherds, and they serve the Chief Shepherd, who best knows how to lead and care for His church.  This realization of the resurrected and reigning Christ as the head of the church has several critical implications. 

One is that Christ can only be said to lead and guide a church where His Word is held up in the highest position.  All members of a local body must share this fundamental commitment to submit to what Christ says through His Word. 

Another implication would be that the church is not just another organization propelled and maintained by human interest or striving.  The church is the living body of the living Christ. 

A healthy church is a church that prioritizes prayer and understands that nothing spiritually significant ever happens apart from believing prayer.   

What historical figures would you like to study under if you could?

John:

I suppose I would pick Martin Luther, among others.  Luther could be quite hilarious (read excerpts from his Tabletalk).  I like the balance of a man who takes our enemy, the devil, with blood-earnest seriousness but who also knows the freedom that we have in Christ to enjoy the good creation of God.

What kind of church would you envision Crossway Church to be now and in 5 years?

John:

I would envision a church in Goldsboro, NC that seeks to be faithful.  This means being faithful to preach the gospel of the grace of Jesus Christ—to those who attend our gatherings, to each other, to ourselves individually, and to the nations.  This gospel is powerful, and it creates communities that are unlike any man-made groups.  Therefore, I pray that Crossway would be a place of true gospel community, a place where we prioritize the corporate disciplines of worshipping together, confessing sin to each other, and seeking to evangelize together. 

I envision Crossway as a people made up of true believers who constantly walk in all kinds of good works.  As people who have been shown incredible mercy, may we be a church that is characterized by compassionate hearts and deeds of mercy.

Tell us about your wife Kristie.

John:

My Wife Kristie is my best friend. Originally from a land with little or no sweet tea, a distaste for cornbread and grits, and funny accents (Telford, PA, which is close to an hour north of Philadelphia), Kriste made her way to Virginia for college, where we met. Kristie is a hard worker in anything that she puts her hand to, and she is a wonderful homemaker. Last year, she ran a half-marathon and didn't even wait on her friends who couldn't keep pace with her towards the end. Kristie enjoys reading the Bible, Christian biography, and good fiction.

Why commit to a local church?

Josh Harris on church membership.

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheGospelCoalition#p/u/98/SEy31_KWYgI

What makes a church different than a club?

Piper on how the local church should care for it's people.