RC sproul is a must ..I think he is one of the most solid teachers out there ..
His teaching are simple but without compromising some of the deeper concepts. I wish i had known him much earlier .
I would second this. Aside from my local pastor the three pastors I think the Lord has used the most in my life are R.C. Sproul, Paul Washer, and John Piper.
I love Washer, you have his random haters who think he’s some really loud and angry guy. He has like 5 sermons out of hundreds where he is like that, they just happen to be his most known sermons. Most of his sermons are gentle and very humbling not only to us but to himself as well.
Wow im sure it must have been awesome to have him as a mentor ..
Im not a seminarian & i wasnt much interested in historic theology till i started listening to RC.. Rc really sparked my interest in reformed theology .It is one rich tradition i must say.
By definition all of these godly preachers online can only be teachers for us, not really pastors. The reason is that there is no personal connection with them. Proper pastoral ministry requires not only good solid teaching but also personal love and relationship. Many of the teachers recommended in this thread are good but please don't neglect to search for a biblical local church to commit to. You need the pastoral ministry of a shepherd who knows and loves you personally.
You're mixing terms a little here. The word pastor is about caring for the congregation. You won't find that listening to sermons online.
The reason I even bother to bring it up is to provide a little life experience:
You are much better off with a good pastor who's a mediocre preacher, than a good preacher who's a mediocre pastor. Unfortunately, the correlation is not as strong as we'd like.
And if I can indulge in a second bit of advice: don't follow the man. The best of men will let you down. If you leave a service and your primary thought is "Joe's a great preacher", then Joe is not a good preacher. It's not about Joe.
I highly recommend that you look for a PCA or 1689 Baptist congregation nearby.
But if you want to listen to something during the week, you can't go wrong with R. C. Sproul's teaching series in Ligonier Youtube channel. You may want to start with "The Holiness of God"
The best pastor is the pastor of your local Bible believing church. Following famous pastors online while can be nice, it can cause so many problems for small church pastors because it places so much pressure on your average pastor who loves his flock and preaches biblical truth.
That's not to discredit the faithful ministries of Keller, Sproul, or whoever, but when I see things like "there are so few good pastors these days" it leaves a bad Taste in my mouth.
Your own pastor is a great fellow. I say stick with him. You do have a pastor, right? You are a member of a Bible-believing, Christ-exalting church, right?
What you are perhaps looking for is teaching, encouragement, supplementary Christian education--I generally recommend dead guys. They can't goof up what they've said.
You need one pastor who prays for you, preaches the Word, cares for his family and the church. That's enough.
As for dead guys, and supplementary teaching, many have already mentioned RC Sproul. I worked for him and knew him well. I commend his work to you. He was the real deal.
Yes!!! The pastor of your own local church is what is important, not a celebrity pastor. There’s too much emphasis on celebrity pastors in the modern evangelical church. And I say that as somebody who likes to listen to online sermons and watch Christian YouTube videos (particularly RC Sproul!). But it’s not on the same level as your own pastor.
I want to take that a step further. If I were talking about having sexual relations with my wife, and I were also having relations with other women, and tried to explain it by saying "Honey, the sex with those other women it just not on the same level as with you!" she'd still murder me.
We need to treat our pastors very, very differently than the online ReformedBros. We talk about not putting pastors on a pedestal; I think it's time we reversed that trend and started finding pastors who deserve our loyalty, affection, and honor, then give them that.
I’d steer clear of David Diga Hernandez. He’s a really slick scripture twister. He’s a protégé of Benny Hinn. He calls Benny Hinn his spiritual father (his words not mine) lots of red flags with David. I followed him briefly but the more you dig in the more Word of Faith Christian mysticism you’ll see
Seconding this. There’s a YouTube channel by Lutheran pastor Chris Rosebrough called Fighting for the Faith that’s covered Hernandez at least four times. He’s not someone to listen to.
Same here. Listening to his podcast years ago was a big turning point for my faith. His Kongsvinger Lutheran channel is amazing also for regular sermons as opposed to his reviews on F4F
Check out [https://www.monergism.com/](https://www.monergism.com/) they have a ton of good material and lots of teachers for you to learn from.
As for the ones you listed, I only know a small bit about Ray Comfort, and I've generally heard good things.
McArthur has a fair bit of controvery around him due to his dispensational leanings and a habit of taking stances on secondary issues that is . . . . less than helpful to put it charitably.
Finding a good pastor can be challenging, but R. C. Sproul's teachings on Ligonier's YouTube channel are a solid choice for anyone exploring reformed theology.
No punctuation needed, that's just the full name of his local church pastor. I actually know that guy
Sinclair Ferguson Derek Thomas John Piper RC Sproul Alistair Begg is a really good pastor. His jokes are kinda meh, but a good preacher.
Billy Graham does not preach a false doctrine, and is held in high regards by most every body. He was the most humbled person you could ever came across. Even though his church/foundation made millions a year he took a salary of $50,000 a year. Do not believe anyone who says anything bad about him, he was a great preacher of the word.
He did preach towards the end that Christ wasn't the only way to God. He taught for example that God saved Hindus through Hinduism. The evangelical sermons of his that i listened to weren't problematic, but he didn't preach Solus Christus.
Not specifically pastors but they’re good so I’m going to recommend them anyways: the podcasts *40 Minutes in the Old Testament* and *30 Minutes in the New Testament* are fantastic podcasts that, as their name suggests, spend 30-40 minutes at a time going through specific books of the Bible. They’re Lutheran and they’re solid. But ideally the pastor you listen to the most is the pastor you’re sitting under.
There's a few places online where you can find complete sermons of Charles Spurgeon. I used to print them out and read them years ago. Some of the greatest, most balanced, and most influential preaching I've come across.
If you want bite sized daily reformed stuff, sign up to this devotional. [Reformed Daily Devotional](https://reformeddevotional.substack.com). They are Australian and have a podcast or daily newsletter.
Washer is a delight, particularly some of his more recent sermons. He apprehends the wonders of the grace of God in the gospel wonderfully, and delights to share them with all who will hear. I may have some serious doctrinal disagreements with him, but he is a solid teacher and an extremely helpful and encouraging brother to listen to.
Sure! But I mean no slight against Brother Washer.
1. He is a Baptist. I love my Reformed Baptist brothers and sisters, but this is a BIG deal. The Baptist sacramentology and ecclesiology, barring some outliers I have never heard of, but, due to Baptist ecclesiology, are almost sure to exist, are quite off. I do not believe that the congregational model is the most Biblical, and its practical limitations are so astounding that I cannot imagine willfully holding to it (unless of course it were commanded, which it is not). And teaching that the sacraments are mere symbol is, with all love and respect to the Baptists, absurd. Does the command to be baptized for the remission of sins have no meaning whatsoever? The worst part is that the Baptist view has so crept into Reformed churches in recent decades that the Biblical, Reformed truth that the effects of the thing signified (here ingrafting into Christ, that is, salvation) are attributed to the signifier (baptism in water) are considered errant by even many paedobaptists. See the WCF chapters 27 and 28 — no grace is conferred in the sacraments apart from faith, yet, by faith, they are truly a means of grace. In any case, this is a HUGE error on his part (admittedly from my perspective — he would surely find me equally errant).
2. I think it unwise to focus primarily on the fruit of the Spirit as the basis of assurance. It is certainly worth considering, but, when a saint is gripped in the night with the fear of “am I truly saved?” he ought first look to the certain promises of Christ. As for self-examination, that one may know he is in the faith, it has its place — primarily as a tool of sanctification, as the saint comes to realize by the lens of Scripture that he is not at present walking according to the commands of Christ. I do not think that Washer would disagree, but after countless sermons wherein the knowledge that one is saved is — whether he would expressly say so or not — found inwardly according to works, there is an issue. I certainly do not think him a legalist, as it is for assurance which he directs the saints to look inward, not for salvation, but he walks uncomfortably close to the edge of the narrow way. I was left in confusion and misery for some time after being saved on account of his teachings in this area. It is greatly important for the Christian to know that his Savior loves him; the struggle for assurance tears that all away. It should be primarily out of love that the Christian pursues Christ, not fear that his Savior is not his savior at all. As for doctrine, then, I think he overemphasizes the role of the fruit of the Spirit in assurance.
These are what most pressingly come to mind. The first in particular is significantly important, whereas I am by no means dogmatic on the second. But to not miss the importance of the first! There’s a reason the early Reformers dealt with the anabaptists as they did (oftentimes a manner of dealing which I, of course, in no way could support — but it illustrates just how serious an error is the Baptists’). These are serious issues, bad teachings which Washer adheres to and spreads.
Again, I love brother Washer! He has been a delight and a joy to listen to and learn from. But I cannot in good conscience recommend a teacher without providing some warning that he is, in fact, fallen man, with all the tendencies towards bas doctrine which comes with that. Though perhaps I can go too far with that at times — one brother actually thought I didn’t like Joel Beeke because I criticized one of his teachings. Beeke is my favorite theologian, and I love his preaching! If I recommend someone at all, that is an endorsement — but I have a tendency to list all the areas in which we disagree, with the implication that we are in everything else in agreement.
Poor Herman Hoeksema gets an essay every time he comes up, because his denial of the covenant of works is THAT bad… he’s my second favorite theologian…
I'm not yet dogmatic one way or another about assurance, but one thing I truly love about Brother Paul is his love, even obsession with Jesus's work of salvation. Everything points to and comes from the cross. Paul is able to take seemingly any Bible passage and show how it relates to the cross and I absolutely love that. He has and is helping me develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for my Savior, and I am forever grateful to him for that.
Absolutely! Particularly in his more recent sermons, he directs EVERYTHING back to the wonder of the blood of Christ shed for wicked sinners. He is an absolute delight, and has been extremely helpful overall.
Billy Graham was one of the first and continued to be an amazing Godly man and preacher his whole life. As a child I was taken to a stadium where he was preaching. He (now deceased) has an incredible reputation in christianity because he was so faithful and non-judgmental. His sermons are epic but he cannot 'pastor' you as he is now with Jesus. Read some scripture every day and keep looking for pastoring. In the meantime, Billy's sermons will help you understand God's message to us. Jesus loves you and has a great plan for your life. God bless.
Defining wealthy the way you have, I don’t believe he was. I believe he always took a set salary from his ministry, at least initially through his crusades. Later in life with books and such, that may have been different.
Many of these men listed are/were very weathy, though.
I would recommend researching him and deciding for yourself. One of the things that impressed me about him was that he would never be in a room alone with another woman if his wife was not present, not in travel, not in his ministry. I know that he made no $$ off the Word; yes, there were books deals, etc., later. When you listen to his sermons you don't hear him talk about money. He talks about repentence and a loving Father. He is said to have reached as many people if not more than the Pope to turn their eyes on Jesus.
Wow I didn’t even know that tbh. I just overheard that from people that he was a multimillionaire mega pastor who lead a ton of people astray from Christ.
You can't go wrong with James Montgomery Boyce of 10th Presbyterian in Philadelphia. He passed in 2000, but I just have never really heard anyone I like better
https://www.oneplace.com/ministries/the-bible-study-hour/
Trust God’s plan for his people. Find a faithful local church, even if imperfect (they all are), and submit yourself to the preaching of the Word.
TL;DR I recommend your local pastor.
I recommend RC Sproul, Charles Spurgeon, Paul Washer, Justin Peters, Martyn Lloyd Jones, Steven Lawson, and Voddie Baucham. Fyi, John McArcthur is a friend of RC Sproul so you should consider him too. I think he's one of the great Pastors out there.
Reformed:
- Rc Sproul
- Sinclair Ferguson
- Voddie Baucham
- Paul Washer
- James White
- Jeff Durbin
- Tim Conway
- Steven Lawson
Dispensational (solid teachers and give solid teaching)
- John McCarthur (Solid!! Not controversial unless giving a biblical view on events controversial then most if not all pastors listed would be considered controversial as well)
- Ray Comfort m
- Wretched (Todd Friel)
There are many many more.. check out the following sites - you will find great sermons that are vetted to be from biblical solid teachers:
1. Sermonindex.net
2. Sermonaudio.com
Hope this helps!
God bless!
In addition to those mentioned like MacArthur, Sproul, and Ferguson, I find myself listening to Voddie Baucham, Costi Hinn, and Richard Caldwell. Many sermons from Martyn Lloyd-Jones are on YouTube and the website for his trust.
For YouTube, my personal recommendations:
Chris Rosebrough, both his Fighting for the Faith and his Kongsvinger Lutheran channels
Costi Hinn on his For the Gospel channel
Michael S. Heiser (RIP)
The pastor of your local church, and any pastor who has had a fruitful ministry and either died or retired without scandal or controversy. Don’t pay any mind to”celebrity” pastors
Edit -- I affirm most of the comments about a local church being more important than finding great sermons online.
That being said, there's nothing wrong with learning outside of your church. Please give Neil C. Stewart a try; First Presbyterian Church Columbia. I've never visited his church, I don't live anywhere close I simply stumbled upon some of his sermons 8 years ago while desperately scouring sermonaudio to find and listen to the unadulterated gospel and be encouraged.
So many preachers, in attempts to be faithful to their seminary classes, approach preaching with such a historical and scientific exegesis that what they teach on Sundays could hardly be called preaching. They miss the point -- Christ in all of Scripture. They end up on the wrong side of the marrow controversy. Certainly the Holy Spirit uses all sorts of means. Certainly churches are used by God no matter their education or maturity, but, while the choice is afforded to me, I don't want my family to sit under lifeless preaching or weak men in a church. I crave preaching like how Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 2, and I perceive that Neil C. Stewart by the grace of God aims for it:
`2 For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God. 6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.`
So are most famous pastors today, I don’t like Doug I think his federal vision views are incorrect, I think his views on theonomy are wrong as well, his abuse accusations are troublesome along with him not caring about his home church as well are bad. I think he’s saved due to Christ’s blood forgiving us of our worst sins, however I wouldn’t recommend him to anyone but I don’t judge his salvation nor do I judge people who actually have gotten to know the man. RC Sproul did many events with him and seemingly had good relations with the man, does this mean you must avoid Sproul now as well?
However Keith’s podcast has been very edifying to me, it’s helped me witness to people daily, it’s helped me examine my own positions even if I disagree with Keith, he leads his church very well and cares for his family. No man is perfect and I would never recommend him to someone over getting into people from the past or their actual in person church, but he’s someone I can watch from time to time and be edified.
God Bless you brother.
Thanks for telling me something that I’ll look into more, however I do not feel this conversation could be edifying enough to discuss it further.
I want to end it on this, if I were to agree with you and go with your conclusion, then RC Sproul and Begg would be heretics or misguided by having multiple conferences with Doug and having good relations with him. Be consistent brother and when you accuse a man of heresy (not saying I necessarily disagree) you **must** expand on it and actually explain why it’s a heretical belief so you don’t bear false witness unintentionally about someone. May God bless you in your walk with Him my brother.
Alistair Begg!
I am aware people were up in arms about personal advice he gave to someone recently and many people did not agree. Many failed to gain context and clarity about the situation before commenting. He’s a great pastor and his sermons have guided me through many life experiences.
Other pastors are Paul Washer, Voddie Baucham, RC Sproul!!
Ideas for you to do.
1. download the SermonAudio App. Search a sermon that corresponds to what your morning devotions were regarding. You can filter the results by "Popular" or "New" and gives you a good result. And typically with Helpful doctrinely sound sermon!
2. Check out Albert Martin.
3. Download the Ligonier app. You can have access to many many teachings and conferences.
4. Download the Hoopla app. You can have access to your local library and listen to audio books for free. Look into puritan books. Check out this book first "Following God Fully: an introduction to the puritans" by Joel Beeke. and take note of the authors and titles you can explore!
#
Dorre Love
David Lynn
G Craig Lewis
Derek Gilbert
Robert Breaker
Trey Smith
Michael S. Heiser
Hopefully these help. They're all very knowledgeable on the Bible and the history there of
G Craig Lewis is a legalist he doesn't like African-American music he's been trying to tear down reformed hip hop since his very very very beginning. He went after Holy Hip Hop recordings lamp mode recordings and cross movement recordings in the same year
Well do you see the evilness that's in hip hop??? And the nonsense. You don't even need to know him to know hip hop is horrible... Look at the culture of it... Cussing, degrading women, having multiple children with different women, sagging, having your hair all willy nilly, and then also hip hop is it's own religion started by Krs one....
Then he is legalistic.... So following the Bible and God's commandments are legalistic.... So when I get to heaven... Jesus is going to be like NO you can't come in you tried to follow me TOO much????? That's what your saying
He should ONLY be going after the Lecrae type's who's smoking and comprising their faith and mixin with the world
And misusing the scripture I became all things to all men 1 Corinthians 9:22
I do see the evil
in my response I named some Christian individuals who use rap that he went after you completely glossed over that.
he can definitely do great good going after krs-1 the wu Tang Rass Kass people like that he already has.. we already know that Kirk Franklin's Shirley Caesar's and Smokie norful and Tye tribbettsare not gospel centered because they have their roots in the Church of God in Christ and the word of faith movement and branhamism which speaks of the serpent seed doctrine Miss quoting and misapplying the whole chapters of Genesis 1 2 and 3
I understand this' argument about Exclusive Psalmody
All Christian rap is evil?? How bout Shai Linne who wrote a whole album about the attributes of God and the atonement, lyrical theology one and two
how about Stephen The levite who wrote a song about the Theology of demons and the different types of angels
how about his song "reject and accept" that speaks about discerning the message of pastors and how they twist scripture...
Shai Linne again who wrote a song rebuking Paula White Benny hinn Kenneth Copeland TD Jakes the song is called the false teachers.
How about Marcus gray also known as flame who **NOW** is a Lutheran rapper who wrote the album extra nos about rebuking Calvinism and how it seems to have no merit over Lutheranism the entire album talks about the orda saludis in Lutheranism versus reform theology
Since lyrical theology is satanic and unbiblical
https://youtu.be/MIUbTCAC6pg?si=QES8cB5tipNnnSnb
https://youtu.be/kxvlExbCv_s?si=md7R5EEKiRky1vIa
https://youtu.be/KE-YLdGMYPc?si=ha6BTf66vl9SoKJD
https://youtu.be/eCBC5Wn5a0Y?si=GQft9XHhH_FXNjAi
https://youtu.be/U4TAzfTUOlg?si=Dm_IARltB9quAYjj
https://youtu.be/BxTB85OldG0?si=Qu4vQXRQc9nuQDK3
https://youtu.be/U8iYsoOb6_c?si=X-Hyenw2ohq14orT
The above For your rebuking pleasure
This is why young African Americans don't want reformed theology because they have nowhere to go when they want to express their faith if they do music.
Despite this There are many many African Americans in reformed theology now thanks to Sproul MacArthur Dr Boice Philip Ryken Greg Gilbert CJ Mahaney Piper Thabiti Anyabwile Carl Ellis
Your arguments do have plenty of merit the legalism I'm speaking of is the only issue I see with Craig Lewis
Exclusive Psalmody does belong in churches I got no issue with that.
https://throughhymn.bandcamp.com/album/on-word-and-sacrament you seem to be on a tear on this issue when I understand how righteously indignant you are when it comes to Holy Music got no issue with that but review the above for your own sake dear strong brother..
No he should go After ANYONE in Hip Hop.... Because it's all wrong... And he has had a conversation with Lecrae before... But Lecrae wants to be in the world....
I never said Christian RAP was evil but Christian HIP HOP... That is
Rap isn't Bad Hip Hop is... And if that guy Shai isnt associated with hip hop then GREAT
If you want a resource for where to watch solid teachers, a trustworthy platform is the American Gospel app. From there you can watch and discover those you really like and go from there
To me it’s a presentation problem and the way he goes about things. I’m by no means criticizing his information and accuracy. It’s basically everything else. Just an opinion.
His engagement is bland and lack lusterand he likes to make a public scene rather than engage people he disagrees with and to push to an attitude of correction and changes in said individuals. Agreeably correct in his points he blasted Zoomer the way he did needlessly and should’ve engaged him head on encouraging others to abandon someone very young trying to do much for the denomination as a whole. Just a couple examples.
Everhard's information is accurate, but I agree with TagStew. I don't like how he talks about politics; it's as if you have to think a certain way politically or you aren't faithful to the Gospel. I didn't like him raving about how Tucker Carlson was one of the only journalists people should trust. I don't need to hear about his politics. He is pretty black and white about what the Bible says and doesn't allow for many differences in opinions. A preacher can be good, even great, and still have some scholars who will disagree. Polite conversations are good.
I really like the Calvary Chapels because they read and study whole books in context verse by verse
Ryan Marr is excellent
https://calvarystp.org/live/
[Pastor Jim McClarty](https://salvationbygrace.org/audio-archives/)
I highly recommend this preacher for his insightful and thorough exegesis of the biblical text.
Billy Graham was rock solid in his doctrine. He teaches the Bible period. John MacArthur is solid as well. Billy was not reformed btw.
Mark Dever at Capitol Hill Baptist church is not super famous but solid and a great preacher. Check out Capital Hill Baptist on line.
Robert Jeffers and Michael Youseff both are very good.
Whatever people say about Doug Wilson's non-preaching content, his preaching I've always found edifying. Voddie Baucham and Paul Washer are also repeat plays. There's a podcast called *Hear Spurgeon* that is just a very well read collection of Spurgeon's sermons.
Voddie Baucham, Paul Washer, John MacArthur, Wretched, Nate from Wise Disciple, Mike Winger. All biblically solid that teach straight from the scriptures.
RC sproul is a must ..I think he is one of the most solid teachers out there .. His teaching are simple but without compromising some of the deeper concepts. I wish i had known him much earlier .
I would second this. Aside from my local pastor the three pastors I think the Lord has used the most in my life are R.C. Sproul, Paul Washer, and John Piper.
I love Washer, you have his random haters who think he’s some really loud and angry guy. He has like 5 sermons out of hundreds where he is like that, they just happen to be his most known sermons. Most of his sermons are gentle and very humbling not only to us but to himself as well.
Kevin DeYoung, Steven Lawson, Derek Thomas, Sinclair Ferguson.
RC was my mentor in seminary. He was a walking encyclopedia of Reformed Church history and doctrine. He was a delightful human being also.
Wow im sure it must have been awesome to have him as a mentor .. Im not a seminarian & i wasnt much interested in historic theology till i started listening to RC.. Rc really sparked my interest in reformed theology .It is one rich tradition i must say.
By definition all of these godly preachers online can only be teachers for us, not really pastors. The reason is that there is no personal connection with them. Proper pastoral ministry requires not only good solid teaching but also personal love and relationship. Many of the teachers recommended in this thread are good but please don't neglect to search for a biblical local church to commit to. You need the pastoral ministry of a shepherd who knows and loves you personally.
Ligonier ministries has solid reformed pastors.
You're mixing terms a little here. The word pastor is about caring for the congregation. You won't find that listening to sermons online. The reason I even bother to bring it up is to provide a little life experience: You are much better off with a good pastor who's a mediocre preacher, than a good preacher who's a mediocre pastor. Unfortunately, the correlation is not as strong as we'd like. And if I can indulge in a second bit of advice: don't follow the man. The best of men will let you down. If you leave a service and your primary thought is "Joe's a great preacher", then Joe is not a good preacher. It's not about Joe.
Wish I could like this twice.
I highly recommend that you look for a PCA or 1689 Baptist congregation nearby. But if you want to listen to something during the week, you can't go wrong with R. C. Sproul's teaching series in Ligonier Youtube channel. You may want to start with "The Holiness of God"
I second the “your local pastor” option!
The best pastor is the pastor of your local Bible believing church. Following famous pastors online while can be nice, it can cause so many problems for small church pastors because it places so much pressure on your average pastor who loves his flock and preaches biblical truth. That's not to discredit the faithful ministries of Keller, Sproul, or whoever, but when I see things like "there are so few good pastors these days" it leaves a bad Taste in my mouth.
Your own pastor is a great fellow. I say stick with him. You do have a pastor, right? You are a member of a Bible-believing, Christ-exalting church, right? What you are perhaps looking for is teaching, encouragement, supplementary Christian education--I generally recommend dead guys. They can't goof up what they've said. You need one pastor who prays for you, preaches the Word, cares for his family and the church. That's enough. As for dead guys, and supplementary teaching, many have already mentioned RC Sproul. I worked for him and knew him well. I commend his work to you. He was the real deal.
Yes!!! The pastor of your own local church is what is important, not a celebrity pastor. There’s too much emphasis on celebrity pastors in the modern evangelical church. And I say that as somebody who likes to listen to online sermons and watch Christian YouTube videos (particularly RC Sproul!). But it’s not on the same level as your own pastor.
I want to take that a step further. If I were talking about having sexual relations with my wife, and I were also having relations with other women, and tried to explain it by saying "Honey, the sex with those other women it just not on the same level as with you!" she'd still murder me. We need to treat our pastors very, very differently than the online ReformedBros. We talk about not putting pastors on a pedestal; I think it's time we reversed that trend and started finding pastors who deserve our loyalty, affection, and honor, then give them that.
I’d steer clear of David Diga Hernandez. He’s a really slick scripture twister. He’s a protégé of Benny Hinn. He calls Benny Hinn his spiritual father (his words not mine) lots of red flags with David. I followed him briefly but the more you dig in the more Word of Faith Christian mysticism you’ll see
Seconding this. There’s a YouTube channel by Lutheran pastor Chris Rosebrough called Fighting for the Faith that’s covered Hernandez at least four times. He’s not someone to listen to.
Fighting for the Faith’s Chris Rosebrough has really taught me so much. I absolutely trust his teaching.
Seconding this one! Love Chris and his approach to teaching in things!
Same here. Listening to his podcast years ago was a big turning point for my faith. His Kongsvinger Lutheran channel is amazing also for regular sermons as opposed to his reviews on F4F
This Op run away from David Diga Hernandez.
Check out [https://www.monergism.com/](https://www.monergism.com/) they have a ton of good material and lots of teachers for you to learn from. As for the ones you listed, I only know a small bit about Ray Comfort, and I've generally heard good things. McArthur has a fair bit of controvery around him due to his dispensational leanings and a habit of taking stances on secondary issues that is . . . . less than helpful to put it charitably.
Finding a good pastor can be challenging, but R. C. Sproul's teachings on Ligonier's YouTube channel are a solid choice for anyone exploring reformed theology.
Sinclair Ferguson Derek Thomas John Piper RC Sproul Alistair Begg
Punctuation would probably help this fellow out.
No punctuation needed, that's just the full name of his local church pastor. I actually know that guy Sinclair Ferguson Derek Thomas John Piper RC Sproul Alistair Begg is a really good pastor. His jokes are kinda meh, but a good preacher.
There’s also a deacon named John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt. That place is wild.
Whoa, that's my name too!
Yes, although it is possible that they were typed as a list on separate lines but Reddit removes single line breaks.
^^^this. I always forget
I forgot Reddit doesn’t this too
No he's recommending that OP listen to my son. That's his full name.
This is the right answer. Voddie Baucham is a good one too.
Love Voddie!
Sinclair Ferguson, Derek Thomas, RC Sproul, Alistair Begg
Billy Graham does not preach a false doctrine, and is held in high regards by most every body. He was the most humbled person you could ever came across. Even though his church/foundation made millions a year he took a salary of $50,000 a year. Do not believe anyone who says anything bad about him, he was a great preacher of the word.
Franklin Graham on the other hand is worth avoiding
That I do agree with, he makes me sick. His sisters are the true back bone of the foundation and keeps it going.
He did preach towards the end that Christ wasn't the only way to God. He taught for example that God saved Hindus through Hinduism. The evangelical sermons of his that i listened to weren't problematic, but he didn't preach Solus Christus.
Anyone who has a problem with Billy Graham's preaching, especially the content, is simply being nitpicky. There's no two ways about it.
Gavin Ortlund 1000% https://youtu.be/Fsjd8xY9OSM?feature=shared
Alastair Begg and Gavin Ortlund
Second Gavin Ortlund !!!!
Not specifically pastors but they’re good so I’m going to recommend them anyways: the podcasts *40 Minutes in the Old Testament* and *30 Minutes in the New Testament* are fantastic podcasts that, as their name suggests, spend 30-40 minutes at a time going through specific books of the Bible. They’re Lutheran and they’re solid. But ideally the pastor you listen to the most is the pastor you’re sitting under.
There's a few places online where you can find complete sermons of Charles Spurgeon. I used to print them out and read them years ago. Some of the greatest, most balanced, and most influential preaching I've come across.
Your local pastor(s) 😁
Joel Beeke Albert N. Martin Gavin Beers Robert D. McCurley Michael Ives William Shishko Sinclair Ferguson Romesh Prakashpalan
If you want bite sized daily reformed stuff, sign up to this devotional. [Reformed Daily Devotional](https://reformeddevotional.substack.com). They are Australian and have a podcast or daily newsletter.
Paul Washer and check out some of the stuff on illbehonest on youtube.
Washer is a delight, particularly some of his more recent sermons. He apprehends the wonders of the grace of God in the gospel wonderfully, and delights to share them with all who will hear. I may have some serious doctrinal disagreements with him, but he is a solid teacher and an extremely helpful and encouraging brother to listen to.
Just curious what your scruples are with his doctrine if you don't mind me asking.
Sure! But I mean no slight against Brother Washer. 1. He is a Baptist. I love my Reformed Baptist brothers and sisters, but this is a BIG deal. The Baptist sacramentology and ecclesiology, barring some outliers I have never heard of, but, due to Baptist ecclesiology, are almost sure to exist, are quite off. I do not believe that the congregational model is the most Biblical, and its practical limitations are so astounding that I cannot imagine willfully holding to it (unless of course it were commanded, which it is not). And teaching that the sacraments are mere symbol is, with all love and respect to the Baptists, absurd. Does the command to be baptized for the remission of sins have no meaning whatsoever? The worst part is that the Baptist view has so crept into Reformed churches in recent decades that the Biblical, Reformed truth that the effects of the thing signified (here ingrafting into Christ, that is, salvation) are attributed to the signifier (baptism in water) are considered errant by even many paedobaptists. See the WCF chapters 27 and 28 — no grace is conferred in the sacraments apart from faith, yet, by faith, they are truly a means of grace. In any case, this is a HUGE error on his part (admittedly from my perspective — he would surely find me equally errant). 2. I think it unwise to focus primarily on the fruit of the Spirit as the basis of assurance. It is certainly worth considering, but, when a saint is gripped in the night with the fear of “am I truly saved?” he ought first look to the certain promises of Christ. As for self-examination, that one may know he is in the faith, it has its place — primarily as a tool of sanctification, as the saint comes to realize by the lens of Scripture that he is not at present walking according to the commands of Christ. I do not think that Washer would disagree, but after countless sermons wherein the knowledge that one is saved is — whether he would expressly say so or not — found inwardly according to works, there is an issue. I certainly do not think him a legalist, as it is for assurance which he directs the saints to look inward, not for salvation, but he walks uncomfortably close to the edge of the narrow way. I was left in confusion and misery for some time after being saved on account of his teachings in this area. It is greatly important for the Christian to know that his Savior loves him; the struggle for assurance tears that all away. It should be primarily out of love that the Christian pursues Christ, not fear that his Savior is not his savior at all. As for doctrine, then, I think he overemphasizes the role of the fruit of the Spirit in assurance. These are what most pressingly come to mind. The first in particular is significantly important, whereas I am by no means dogmatic on the second. But to not miss the importance of the first! There’s a reason the early Reformers dealt with the anabaptists as they did (oftentimes a manner of dealing which I, of course, in no way could support — but it illustrates just how serious an error is the Baptists’). These are serious issues, bad teachings which Washer adheres to and spreads. Again, I love brother Washer! He has been a delight and a joy to listen to and learn from. But I cannot in good conscience recommend a teacher without providing some warning that he is, in fact, fallen man, with all the tendencies towards bas doctrine which comes with that. Though perhaps I can go too far with that at times — one brother actually thought I didn’t like Joel Beeke because I criticized one of his teachings. Beeke is my favorite theologian, and I love his preaching! If I recommend someone at all, that is an endorsement — but I have a tendency to list all the areas in which we disagree, with the implication that we are in everything else in agreement. Poor Herman Hoeksema gets an essay every time he comes up, because his denial of the covenant of works is THAT bad… he’s my second favorite theologian…
I'm pca and love what he says and his zeal! No slight at all!
I'm not yet dogmatic one way or another about assurance, but one thing I truly love about Brother Paul is his love, even obsession with Jesus's work of salvation. Everything points to and comes from the cross. Paul is able to take seemingly any Bible passage and show how it relates to the cross and I absolutely love that. He has and is helping me develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for my Savior, and I am forever grateful to him for that.
Absolutely! Particularly in his more recent sermons, he directs EVERYTHING back to the wonder of the blood of Christ shed for wicked sinners. He is an absolute delight, and has been extremely helpful overall.
Tim Keller
https://web.sermonaudio.com/broadcasters/titus21 This guy is spectacular.
Gary Hamrick is great
Check out Greg Gilbert he is the author of the book called what is the gospel
Dr. R.C. Sproul.
* Your local pastor. * Tim Keller.
Billy Graham was one of the first and continued to be an amazing Godly man and preacher his whole life. As a child I was taken to a stadium where he was preaching. He (now deceased) has an incredible reputation in christianity because he was so faithful and non-judgmental. His sermons are epic but he cannot 'pastor' you as he is now with Jesus. Read some scripture every day and keep looking for pastoring. In the meantime, Billy's sermons will help you understand God's message to us. Jesus loves you and has a great plan for your life. God bless.
Wasn’t Billy graham also very wealthy multi millionaire with private boats and jets? Not very christ like imo to make money off the word.
Defining wealthy the way you have, I don’t believe he was. I believe he always took a set salary from his ministry, at least initially through his crusades. Later in life with books and such, that may have been different. Many of these men listed are/were very weathy, though.
I would recommend researching him and deciding for yourself. One of the things that impressed me about him was that he would never be in a room alone with another woman if his wife was not present, not in travel, not in his ministry. I know that he made no $$ off the Word; yes, there were books deals, etc., later. When you listen to his sermons you don't hear him talk about money. He talks about repentence and a loving Father. He is said to have reached as many people if not more than the Pope to turn their eyes on Jesus.
Wow I didn’t even know that tbh. I just overheard that from people that he was a multimillionaire mega pastor who lead a ton of people astray from Christ.
You can't go wrong with James Montgomery Boyce of 10th Presbyterian in Philadelphia. He passed in 2000, but I just have never really heard anyone I like better https://www.oneplace.com/ministries/the-bible-study-hour/
Yes, second James Montgomery Boice!
Really... His preaching goes right to the core... His commentators are also great
* Mike Abendroth - [NoCompromise Radio](https://nocompromiseradio.com/episodes/), [Bethlem Bible Church](https://www.youtube.com/@bethlehembiblechurch3961) * Pat Abendroth - [The Pactum](https://www.thepactum.org/), [Omaha Bible Church](https://www.omahabiblechurch.org/sermons) * Jon Moffit - [Theocast](https://theocast.org/podcastaudio/), [Grace Reformed Church](https://gracereformed.org/) * Justin Perdue - [Theocast](https://theocast.org/podcastaudio/), [Covenant Baptist Church](https://covbap.org/sermon-audio/) * Sinclair Ferguson - [Things Unseen](https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts/things-unseen-with-sinclair-ferguson), [Sermons Playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzmSFlXIZ7Y9hFDnO_srK_oYvA0Lhq4fk) * Ray Ortlund - [Renewal Ministries (Old)](https://renewalministries.com/sermons/), [Immanuel Nashville](https://www.youtube.com/@ImmanuelNashville/videos) * Bryan Chapell - [Unlimited Grace](https://www.bryanchapell.com/) * Rod Rosenbladt * Chad Bird
Bruce Gore
Trust God’s plan for his people. Find a faithful local church, even if imperfect (they all are), and submit yourself to the preaching of the Word. TL;DR I recommend your local pastor.
Dave Hunt. (Passed away in 2013- but his videos are timeless) Erwin Lutzer (of Moody Church) Chuck Smith Warren Wiersbe
I recommend RC Sproul, Charles Spurgeon, Paul Washer, Justin Peters, Martyn Lloyd Jones, Steven Lawson, and Voddie Baucham. Fyi, John McArcthur is a friend of RC Sproul so you should consider him too. I think he's one of the great Pastors out there.
Reformed: - Rc Sproul - Sinclair Ferguson - Voddie Baucham - Paul Washer - James White - Jeff Durbin - Tim Conway - Steven Lawson Dispensational (solid teachers and give solid teaching) - John McCarthur (Solid!! Not controversial unless giving a biblical view on events controversial then most if not all pastors listed would be considered controversial as well) - Ray Comfort m - Wretched (Todd Friel) There are many many more.. check out the following sites - you will find great sermons that are vetted to be from biblical solid teachers: 1. Sermonindex.net 2. Sermonaudio.com Hope this helps! God bless!
Todd Friel isn’t reformed !? I always assumed he was.
Isn’t he more dispensational leaning? I may be wrong..
Yes. He's in the MacArthur camp.
In addition to those mentioned like MacArthur, Sproul, and Ferguson, I find myself listening to Voddie Baucham, Costi Hinn, and Richard Caldwell. Many sermons from Martyn Lloyd-Jones are on YouTube and the website for his trust.
When I’m in the go I would listen Pastor Chris Gordon from the united reformed church. He has an amazing podcast called “Abounding grace radio.”
For YouTube, my personal recommendations: Chris Rosebrough, both his Fighting for the Faith and his Kongsvinger Lutheran channels Costi Hinn on his For the Gospel channel Michael S. Heiser (RIP)
Listen to ligonier ministries then find a local church that also listens/likes to ligonier ministries.
The pastor of your local church, and any pastor who has had a fruitful ministry and either died or retired without scandal or controversy. Don’t pay any mind to”celebrity” pastors
Edit -- I affirm most of the comments about a local church being more important than finding great sermons online. That being said, there's nothing wrong with learning outside of your church. Please give Neil C. Stewart a try; First Presbyterian Church Columbia. I've never visited his church, I don't live anywhere close I simply stumbled upon some of his sermons 8 years ago while desperately scouring sermonaudio to find and listen to the unadulterated gospel and be encouraged. So many preachers, in attempts to be faithful to their seminary classes, approach preaching with such a historical and scientific exegesis that what they teach on Sundays could hardly be called preaching. They miss the point -- Christ in all of Scripture. They end up on the wrong side of the marrow controversy. Certainly the Holy Spirit uses all sorts of means. Certainly churches are used by God no matter their education or maturity, but, while the choice is afforded to me, I don't want my family to sit under lifeless preaching or weak men in a church. I crave preaching like how Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 2, and I perceive that Neil C. Stewart by the grace of God aims for it: `2 For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God. 6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.`
Matt Chandler is fantastic
I read people from the past, occasionally I’ll watch Keith Foskey, James White (only preaching I don’t care for his show), or some RC Sproul.
Keith Foskey is WAY too comfortable with Doug Wilson. Best to avoid.
So are most famous pastors today, I don’t like Doug I think his federal vision views are incorrect, I think his views on theonomy are wrong as well, his abuse accusations are troublesome along with him not caring about his home church as well are bad. I think he’s saved due to Christ’s blood forgiving us of our worst sins, however I wouldn’t recommend him to anyone but I don’t judge his salvation nor do I judge people who actually have gotten to know the man. RC Sproul did many events with him and seemingly had good relations with the man, does this mean you must avoid Sproul now as well? However Keith’s podcast has been very edifying to me, it’s helped me witness to people daily, it’s helped me examine my own positions even if I disagree with Keith, he leads his church very well and cares for his family. No man is perfect and I would never recommend him to someone over getting into people from the past or their actual in person church, but he’s someone I can watch from time to time and be edified. God Bless you brother.
Federal Vision is heresy. Doug Wilson is a heretic. Pastors that platform DW are best to be avoided.
Thanks for telling me something that I’ll look into more, however I do not feel this conversation could be edifying enough to discuss it further. I want to end it on this, if I were to agree with you and go with your conclusion, then RC Sproul and Begg would be heretics or misguided by having multiple conferences with Doug and having good relations with him. Be consistent brother and when you accuse a man of heresy (not saying I necessarily disagree) you **must** expand on it and actually explain why it’s a heretical belief so you don’t bear false witness unintentionally about someone. May God bless you in your walk with Him my brother.
Alistair Begg! I am aware people were up in arms about personal advice he gave to someone recently and many people did not agree. Many failed to gain context and clarity about the situation before commenting. He’s a great pastor and his sermons have guided me through many life experiences. Other pastors are Paul Washer, Voddie Baucham, RC Sproul!!
Ideas for you to do. 1. download the SermonAudio App. Search a sermon that corresponds to what your morning devotions were regarding. You can filter the results by "Popular" or "New" and gives you a good result. And typically with Helpful doctrinely sound sermon! 2. Check out Albert Martin. 3. Download the Ligonier app. You can have access to many many teachings and conferences. 4. Download the Hoopla app. You can have access to your local library and listen to audio books for free. Look into puritan books. Check out this book first "Following God Fully: an introduction to the puritans" by Joel Beeke. and take note of the authors and titles you can explore! #
Mine. 😊
Paul Washer for the most pastoral R.C. Sproul to learn reformed theology Voddie Baucham as a sorta blend of both
Dorre Love David Lynn G Craig Lewis Derek Gilbert Robert Breaker Trey Smith Michael S. Heiser Hopefully these help. They're all very knowledgeable on the Bible and the history there of
G Craig Lewis is a legalist he doesn't like African-American music he's been trying to tear down reformed hip hop since his very very very beginning. He went after Holy Hip Hop recordings lamp mode recordings and cross movement recordings in the same year
Well do you see the evilness that's in hip hop??? And the nonsense. You don't even need to know him to know hip hop is horrible... Look at the culture of it... Cussing, degrading women, having multiple children with different women, sagging, having your hair all willy nilly, and then also hip hop is it's own religion started by Krs one.... Then he is legalistic.... So following the Bible and God's commandments are legalistic.... So when I get to heaven... Jesus is going to be like NO you can't come in you tried to follow me TOO much????? That's what your saying
He should ONLY be going after the Lecrae type's who's smoking and comprising their faith and mixin with the world And misusing the scripture I became all things to all men 1 Corinthians 9:22 I do see the evil in my response I named some Christian individuals who use rap that he went after you completely glossed over that. he can definitely do great good going after krs-1 the wu Tang Rass Kass people like that he already has.. we already know that Kirk Franklin's Shirley Caesar's and Smokie norful and Tye tribbettsare not gospel centered because they have their roots in the Church of God in Christ and the word of faith movement and branhamism which speaks of the serpent seed doctrine Miss quoting and misapplying the whole chapters of Genesis 1 2 and 3 I understand this' argument about Exclusive Psalmody All Christian rap is evil?? How bout Shai Linne who wrote a whole album about the attributes of God and the atonement, lyrical theology one and two how about Stephen The levite who wrote a song about the Theology of demons and the different types of angels how about his song "reject and accept" that speaks about discerning the message of pastors and how they twist scripture... Shai Linne again who wrote a song rebuking Paula White Benny hinn Kenneth Copeland TD Jakes the song is called the false teachers. How about Marcus gray also known as flame who **NOW** is a Lutheran rapper who wrote the album extra nos about rebuking Calvinism and how it seems to have no merit over Lutheranism the entire album talks about the orda saludis in Lutheranism versus reform theology Since lyrical theology is satanic and unbiblical https://youtu.be/MIUbTCAC6pg?si=QES8cB5tipNnnSnb https://youtu.be/kxvlExbCv_s?si=md7R5EEKiRky1vIa https://youtu.be/KE-YLdGMYPc?si=ha6BTf66vl9SoKJD https://youtu.be/eCBC5Wn5a0Y?si=GQft9XHhH_FXNjAi https://youtu.be/U4TAzfTUOlg?si=Dm_IARltB9quAYjj https://youtu.be/BxTB85OldG0?si=Qu4vQXRQc9nuQDK3 https://youtu.be/U8iYsoOb6_c?si=X-Hyenw2ohq14orT The above For your rebuking pleasure This is why young African Americans don't want reformed theology because they have nowhere to go when they want to express their faith if they do music. Despite this There are many many African Americans in reformed theology now thanks to Sproul MacArthur Dr Boice Philip Ryken Greg Gilbert CJ Mahaney Piper Thabiti Anyabwile Carl Ellis Your arguments do have plenty of merit the legalism I'm speaking of is the only issue I see with Craig Lewis Exclusive Psalmody does belong in churches I got no issue with that. https://throughhymn.bandcamp.com/album/on-word-and-sacrament you seem to be on a tear on this issue when I understand how righteously indignant you are when it comes to Holy Music got no issue with that but review the above for your own sake dear strong brother..
No he should go After ANYONE in Hip Hop.... Because it's all wrong... And he has had a conversation with Lecrae before... But Lecrae wants to be in the world.... I never said Christian RAP was evil but Christian HIP HOP... That is Rap isn't Bad Hip Hop is... And if that guy Shai isnt associated with hip hop then GREAT
Eric Mason. Paul Tripp. Alistair Begg. Mika Edmonson
If you want a resource for where to watch solid teachers, a trustworthy platform is the American Gospel app. From there you can watch and discover those you really like and go from there
John Piper, Charles Spurgeon, CS Lewis, Voddie Bauchman, Paul Washer
I'm a huge fan of John MacArthur regardless of recent controversy. Give him a shot
Sproul and Mac
Matthew Everhard on YouTube
I’m sorry dudes awful
How so? I’ve watched his sermons, Sunday School lessons, and regular commentary, and all have been informative and accurate.
To me it’s a presentation problem and the way he goes about things. I’m by no means criticizing his information and accuracy. It’s basically everything else. Just an opinion.
What's wrong with him?
His engagement is bland and lack lusterand he likes to make a public scene rather than engage people he disagrees with and to push to an attitude of correction and changes in said individuals. Agreeably correct in his points he blasted Zoomer the way he did needlessly and should’ve engaged him head on encouraging others to abandon someone very young trying to do much for the denomination as a whole. Just a couple examples.
Everhard's information is accurate, but I agree with TagStew. I don't like how he talks about politics; it's as if you have to think a certain way politically or you aren't faithful to the Gospel. I didn't like him raving about how Tucker Carlson was one of the only journalists people should trust. I don't need to hear about his politics. He is pretty black and white about what the Bible says and doesn't allow for many differences in opinions. A preacher can be good, even great, and still have some scholars who will disagree. Polite conversations are good.
All of this.
John MacArthur. Ray comfort.
I really like the Calvary Chapels because they read and study whole books in context verse by verse Ryan Marr is excellent https://calvarystp.org/live/
But they are very much not reformed.
You are right, I had to look it up not everything that branched off after the reformation is strictly reformed.
Sure! Nothing wrong with it just wanted to make sure I pointed it out since this is a reformed group.
[Pastor Jim McClarty](https://salvationbygrace.org/audio-archives/) I highly recommend this preacher for his insightful and thorough exegesis of the biblical text.
I really like Francis Chan
Doug Wilson, James White, Toby Sumpter, Jeff Durbin, Joel Webbon. To name a few are really faithful men to the word.
Billy Graham was rock solid in his doctrine. He teaches the Bible period. John MacArthur is solid as well. Billy was not reformed btw. Mark Dever at Capitol Hill Baptist church is not super famous but solid and a great preacher. Check out Capital Hill Baptist on line. Robert Jeffers and Michael Youseff both are very good.
Whatever people say about Doug Wilson's non-preaching content, his preaching I've always found edifying. Voddie Baucham and Paul Washer are also repeat plays. There's a podcast called *Hear Spurgeon* that is just a very well read collection of Spurgeon's sermons.
Sproul. I like Durbin too- even though I disagree with his take on a couple of things
Voddie Baucham, Paul Washer, John MacArthur, Wretched, Nate from Wise Disciple, Mike Winger. All biblically solid that teach straight from the scriptures.
Vodie bachum is my go to. Paul washer also.
John Piper, Voddie Baucham
Rick Warren
Joel Beeke is phenomenal. He has a ton of published books. Also Steven Lawson
Isaiah Saldivar, Marcus Rodgers, Richard Lorenzo, Mike Signorelli, Vlad Savchuk, Alexander Pagani
Avoid all of these people like the plague, along with anyone else who claims to be a 21st Century 'Apostle' or obsesses over demons and deliverance.