The news came yesterday that God has called His faithful servant, Dr. John MacArthur, longtime pastor and preacher-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, CA, home after many many many years of steadfast and unwavering commitment to the Word of God.
Next to my pastor and mentor, Ken Dolan, probably no one has had more of an impact on my spiritual life and ministry than John MacArthur. In fact, it was Ken who first introduced me to John's ministry. He probably gave me a book or two of his which led me to begin to listen to his sermons. Immediately, I was impressed by how he refused to pull any punches but would tell it like it is and the Bible says. He wasn't concerned about being "politically correct" or sugarcoating the truth at all as many popular preachers can be today. (Which is why he could be such a polarizing figure at times. Some people could not stand how straightforward he was with the truth and him speaking up against certain issues in the manner that he did.) I remember hearing him saturate his messages with so much Scripture referencing a number of them by memory and praying that God would help me be able to do the same one day in my own preaching. (I'm not sure that I am there yet but it is still an aspiration!) Some of those messages of his have stuck with me over the years. I remember as a lonely seminary student longing for a relationship someday being comforted by his exposition of 1 Corinthians 7 on singleness and marriage. The clarity he provided on the passage being exactly what I needed to hear at the time as I would be waiting on God's timing for another 6 or 7 years or so to give me the lovely and wonderful wife I have now. Also, while in seminary, a point I heard he make that to truly be about God's glory is to rejoice in the blessing that God gives to another pastor and his church instead of yours has remained with me to this day. It cut deep at the time and greatly convicted me. Such a truth is brought back to remind me even now when needed (which is more often than I like to admit). And, probably, the sermon I have listened to of his the most is the one entitled "The Theology of Sleep" where he preached on the parable of the sower and how our job as pastors is just to "sow the seed" of the gospel, go to sleep, and let God take care of the rest. In my moments of great discouragement when I may not be noticing as much fruit from my ministry labors, I replay that message and listen to it again.
I remember sitting with my buddies in seminary watching YouTube clips of MacArthur on Larry King Live and was amazed at how no matter what the topic was, he always would always work to direct the discussion to the authority of Scripture and the gospel message. It was said of William Tyndale that he was always singing one note in asking the king of England to give his endorsement to a Bible in the people's language so everyone could read and learn from it themselves. Well, the authority and sufficiency of Scripture served as the "one note" MacArthur kept singing or preaching.
When his study Bible came out in the New American Standard Bible and was on sale when I was in college, I had to get it. I wound up cutting my theological teeth so to speak on his study notes. To date, I have now wore out two or three of them and currently use his newest one in the Legacy Standard Bible translation he helped oversee. A generous Christmas gift from the congregation where I was serving as interim pastor purchased the bulk of his New Testament Commentaries. (There were a few yet to be completed at the time which now I have acquired.) I continue to consult those commentaries whenever I am preaching something from the New Testament. They are so invaluable with the clear explanation of the text and practical applications of it. Many a time when I find myself stumped trying to figure out what something in the passage means, I can open the commentary to that page and read MacArthur's explanation and it finally makes sense. (And if not MacArthur, another John with the last name Calvin.) The Systematic Theology ("Biblical Theology") that he and the professors at his seminary put together quickly became my "go to" of the collection I have. With the possible exception of Joel Beeke's recent four volume tome, it is by far the most thorough of all of them. It pretty much covers just about all that Scripture says on an issue and is just what you need when researching a topic. With all this said, I don't agree with MacArthur on everything. I would differ from him when it comes to the identity of the "sons of God" in Genesis 6 seeing them as being the descendants of Seth rather than fallen angels, divorce and remarriage (holding to a stricter view), and now understanding of the end times (no longer being a premillennialism but an optimistic amillennialist). Nonetheless, I still value his perspective and know that it will be backed up with Scripture to be considered and evaluated.
One of my desires for a while was to be able to hear him preach in person. (It is always better to hear and see someone preach in person than on TV, the computer screen, your phone, or on the radio.) I got so excited when I heard that a local church in Maryland not too far from my seminary was having "An Evening With John MacArthur.". I quickly got a bunch of free tickets for me and my friends for it before I even asked any of them to go. We were going and they were coming with me! Boy, was I bummed when they had to cancel it because the publisher of John's latest book at the time required him to do something for it. I thought that might have been my only shot at seeing him. California is quite a distance away and probably not feasible for me to ever make it out to. But thankfully, in God's good and gracious providence, I wound up being able to go to the Together for the Gospel Conference (T4G) in 2014 in Louisville, KY, where he was one of the main speakers. I was finally in a place where I could see and hear him in person. He presented himself as an elder statesmen just getting up behind the pulpit and preaching what Scripture says and what it means by what it says. That was the only time I ever was given that opportunity. I would loved to have shook his hand to express my appreciation to him personally for the impact of his ministry on me but that will now have to wait until we meet in heaven.
There are two things in particular about MacArthur that have probably encouraged me the most in my view and philosophy of ministry. One is his faithfulness at one place for such a long time. He served the same church and preached behind the pulpit there for 56 years. In a day and age where most pastors remain at a congregation for no more than 5 or 6 years and then move on to another followed by another, this is remarkable. It led to me wanting to have a similar longevity in my own ministry if the Lord would allow such of course. To labor for a number of years discipling families and pouring into them. I actually toyed around with the idea of becoming a seminary or college professor while in seminary due to my love of biblical scholarship and teaching. But I didn't like the idea of having the students for only three or four years and no more. Not being able to follow up with them much after that. What I have witnessed MacArthur do was much more desirable for me. At 14 years at this point I have got quite a ways yet to go! And I am already at the point where I am beginning to baptize some of those I had the privilege of dedicating as a baby in their mom or dad's arms praise the Lord!
The second thing
with his ministry that has greatly encouraged me in my own is his
commitment to sequential expository preaching. That is preaching verse
by verse through entire books of the Bible. In fact, God has granted him
the privilege of achieving a feat that only a few have in history; preaching through every single verse of the New Testament. (Though I do
wish that he would have preached more from the Old Testament. I try to give the
congregation under my charge a healthy balance, alternating between
preaching through a book from the New Testament and the Old. We need a
robust understanding of the types, shadows, and prophecies of Christ
there as much as we do the antitypes, substance, and fulfillment of
Christ in the New. And I write this right after having just finished preaching through the book of Leviticus and planning on starting Ephesians soon.) MacArthur is actually the one who in a real sense
showed me how to do this. I witnessed him do so week after week as I
listened to his preaching. I may not have known that it was even
possible to do that had I not come in contact with his ministry. Now, it
has become my practice and I believe that it is the best way to ensure
that I am proclaiming the whole counsel of God without neglecting any of
the hard uncomfortable topics Scripture talks about.
And
while my oldest son was not named after him, it could be said that
MacArthur is one of his namesakes. One of the main reasons he is called
"John" is due to the meaning of the name being "God is gracious,"
acknowledging that God has been gracious to hear our prayer for him (his
middle name "Samuel" means "God hears"). But also it was to honor the
rich legacy of the numerous theologians who loved the Lord and His Word
throughout the history of the church who were named John which would
certainly include MacArthur but not be limited to him. (I believe that I
have counted up to 30 at one point from John the Baptist to John Calvin
to John Bunyan and John Owen to John Charles (JC) Ryle to John Piper
and John MacArthur.)
John MacArthur has been sometimes called the Charles Spurgeon or John Calvin of our time and I would agree with that. In many ways, he had been fighting a modern day theological downgrade much as Spurgeon had in his day and has the tenacity of Calvin with the same steadfast unwavering commitment to verse by verse preaching through books of the Bible as the French Reformer. (Calvin was SO committed to verse by verse preaching that when he came back to Geneva after having been forced out three years prior, he actually began preaching on the verse he had left off on when he had left!) His impact and influence will be felt long after he is gone much like theirs still are as well. His set of commentaries actually are right next to my set of Calvin's on the shelf in my office.
And now, at 86, MacArthur has reached the end of his race with his work in his ministry completed. Following Paul, he can say, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. In the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing (2 Timothy 4:7-8). John MacArthur goes up with what it looks like to finish well. He didn't retire early to take it easy and just enjoy whatever leisure he wanted to the rest of his life. He kept preaching literally up to the point where his health would not allow him to continue. And I'm sure he would have been back up in the pulpit again had the Lord willed him to get better and prolong his days more. With him, there were no major scandals. (Some have certainly tried to pin something on him but usually further research into the claims revealed that certain things in the reports had been left out or were intentionally skewed in a specific way to lead to a conclusion that the full facts did not support.) There was no infidelity to his wife. No veering from core doctrine or commitment to the truth of the Word of God in any way. He didn't capitulate to the culture or begin to water down any hard truths or teachings as so many others wind up doing in their sunset years. He remained "steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord" and it is clear that his labor was not in vain in the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58).
I am sure though that this will not be the end of God using him and his rich impressive preaching and teaching material which remains. As, like Abel, though dead, he will still speak through his sermons and books. More lives can still be touched and impacted by God's Spirit working through the Word he preached. Personally, I will forever be grateful for the gift that God has given His church with his preaching and teaching ministry. I know that I am not the only one who can say that. I would not be the minister that I am today without it. Thank God for His using this flawed weak man to impact so many lives with the gospel and may He continue to do so with what he has left behind to outlive him so to speak! To God be all the glory!
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