Richard Carvath is a Christian (since the 4th of May 1998). He adheres to traditional protestant theology (including creationism).
It would be correct to identify him as a ‘conservative evangelical’ – though he is not a stereotypical 21st century British Evangelical. Culturally, Richard often manifests his faith very differently to expected Evangelical norms. He is not exactly welcome in many churches today (and never has been). Richard has an ‘uncomfortable’ faith.
Richard is not a ‘lone ranger’, in the derogatory sense in which that term is used amongst Evangelicals.
Richard says, “Those Christians who essentially go off by themselves, without blessing or authority, to do their own thing – usually ending badly – are the lone rangers.”
“However, there are some so-called ‘lone rangers’ who were wrongly rejected by local churches or Christian ministries, and who therefore had no option other than to step out on a solitary walk with Jesus. It was the church that rejected the ‘lone ranger’ – not the other way round. And then there are other so-called ‘lone rangers’ who have some rare and specific calling from God to pioneer with Jesus – outside the church – in some new endeavour. Such people are being obedient to God, regardless the anxiety and offence taken by the church pastor.”
“In these latter two instances of ‘lone rangers’, the person in question is a faithful and true Christian; there is firstly the ‘lone ranger’ who has been treated with prejudice and contempt by fellow believers, and thus parted company for that reason; secondly there is the ‘lone ranger’ who has an unusual calling, such as to be a Christian leader in the sense of being the first to go somewhere or do something.”
“So Christians should be careful in the judgements they make. To be a so-called ‘lone ranger’ is the exception to the rule (that every Christian ought to belong to a local assembly), but there are a few so-called ‘lone rangers’ who nonetheless do belong to the body of Christ.”
Richard upholds the truth that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God. He is most familiar with the NIV (1984) and NKJV (1982) translations into English of the Holy Scriptures.
Richard understands becoming and continuing to be a Christian as what happens when a person trusts, follows and obeys Jesus – for life (and on into eternity).
The authentic gospel (Good News) is simply that (1) Jesus died for our sins, (2) Jesus was buried, and (3) Jesus was resurrected.
Now, Jesus commands all sinners (all people) everywhere to repent and believe.
To repent is to admit to being a sinner and to turn away from one’s sins and turn to God.
To believe is to trust in Jesus as one’s personal Lord and Saviour – to believe that Jesus died in our place to reconcile us (those who repent and believe) to God, by providing us with God’s forgiveness of our sins and giving us His gift of eternal life.
Jesus is both the Saviour and the Judge. All people who do not receive Jesus as their Saviour will eventually face Him as Judge.
A spiritual exchange takes place at the Cross: once and for all, the sinner’s unrighteousness is transferred to Jesus and crucified (punished and put to death) with Him, at the same time as Jesus’ perfect righteousness is transferred to the repentant believing sinner – an amazing transaction completed by the resurrection (when Jesus was raised from death to life).
The Christian is one who has died to self and been made alive in Christ. Such a person may be said to have been saved by Jesus.
Jesus gives various commands to those who follow Him.
(For example, Jesus calls and commands His followers to practise love, and to proclaim the gospel to all people.)
Jesus commands all persons whom He has saved to publicly identify with Him (in His death, burial and resurrection) by means of baptism by full immersion in water.
Richard was baptised in this way after he became a Christian.
As regards the influence of other Christians, Richard’s early formative years as a Christian were shaped primarily by Baptists, and also Salvationists (notably Majors Ian and Christine Kennedy).
Richard has also been shaped by the influence of Pentecostals (AOG), conservative evangelical Anglicans, and messianic Jews (i.e. Jewish Christians).
Richard’s favourite Bible teacher is Derek Prince.
(Of course, Jesus is the only perfect teacher.)
Of genuinely Christian and also ‘Christian’ pastors, teachers and leaders, Richard Carvath says, “There are only two kinds of shepherds: good and bad. There are those whom God approves, and those He condemns. There is no grey area or middle ground. False teachers and their poison are deadly. For example, John Piper is hugely influential, but he is a false teacher. Don’t listen to him. Don’t read his books. Don’t follow him or the many other false teachers today. Jesus is The Truth, and His infallible written Word – the Bible – is The Truth. Read, study and obey the Bible for yourself. Be careful about whom you receive as your Bible teacher: be sure that the teacher’s message is truly consistent with the whole teaching of the Bible, and that your teacher is a mature Christian believer. Many Christians as well as so-called ‘Christians’ today have Satan for a Bible teacher!”
In 2023, twenty-five years after he first began to follow Jesus, Richard Carvath said, “I hope that by now I am beginning to mature as a disciple of Jesus. I know I still have a long way to go to be truly faithful. I have much ongoing need of God’s refining and purifying power in my heart. The Bible warns us that ‘without holiness no one will see the Lord’.”
Richard Carvath 