In Memory Of John MacArthur

John MacArthur: Knowing where to draw the lines

John MacArthur set the standard of no compromise for a generation, were we listening?

How do we thank a person who has helped to mold our theology to the point that we are willing to go against the tide to value Jesus Christ more than the approval of others? A person who affects us that profoundly means more than words can express. I cannot express what John MacArthur means to me personally. Still, I can briefly say that, after listening to thousands of sermons, attending Shepherd's Conferences, participating in the Expositors Institute, and visiting him at home, I have come to understand what John has meant to the church.

There is a way to look at men who are pleasing to God, and that is, as sinners saved by grace. All of God's people come under His edict of obedience and fruitfulness in the building of His kingdom. However, often God's people tend to elevate men in a way that is not in keeping with God's will. God chooses the weak things of the world so that He might get the glory. Nevertheless, the church often judges according to the flesh, which it is warned not to do; that is to put the truth on its head. Eleven Apostles were untrained and unlearned men and their names will be found on the foundation stones of the New Jerusalem. The one Apostle who was learned counted all that he was as dung.

IN MEMORY OF JOHN MACARTHUR: ELEVATING JESUS

"...preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction." (2 Timothy 4:2) John was loved and hated by many. Men of God are hated because they speak the truth, and in doing so, infuriate all those who do not want to hear it. In the church, there are two kinds of workers as recorded by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Philippians. "Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good will; the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice." (Philippians 1:15-18)

Paul could rejoice even over envy and strife because Christ was being preached. Paul would never rejoice over false teachers and the lost who make a vile living out of proclaiming "Christ." He said it this way, "...treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. "...Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith." (2 Timothy 3:4, 5, 8)

In memory of John MacArthur, he never obscured the lines between the faithful and those who could not and should not be trusted. The church is corrupted primarily by false teachers, and no one fought harder against such corruption than John MacArthur.

IN MEMORY OF JOHN MACARTHUR: ELEVATING THE CHURCH

The church is Jesus' bride, and how the bride behaves should never be taken lightly or without the highest regard for her representing her bridegroom. John took the church's purity very seriously, realizing that she represents Jesus Christ to an unsaved world. For this reason, he and the church leaders obeyed Jesus' commands in Matthew 18 and, after careful consideration, removed those found living in unrepentant sin from the community of Grace Church. Because John was unwilling to compromise on this matter, people became infuriated with him. When I bought one of John's books while waiting online to pay, I was accosted by the saleslady for purchasing the book. I was not about to allow her to denigrate John or Grace Church standing in a long line without an answer as to why they obeyed Jesus' commands. The reasons for church discipline are not nearly as important as obeying God's command to do so.

The primary reasons for the significant division within the church, with some estimates suggesting that there are 45,000 splits within the umbrella of "Christianity," are pride and self-will. The cry of the sinner is I will do what I want and the way I want, So, when lukewarm Christians do what is right in their own eyes and by so doing divide, they misrepresent God, who is three in one.

IN MEMORY OF JOHN MACARTHUR: ELEVATING GOD'S WORD

John did not preach out of pride; he always emphasized humility from the pulpit and in discipleship. Grace Church has many elders, but more shepherds. There is a mature teaching shepherd for every fifteen to twenty people, making Grace more like a collection of many little house churches. Through a thorough teaching of God's Word as it is written, and not as John wanted it to say, Grace Church was obedient to God, where there is nothing more important.

Christians should never be okay with division in the church when God's word could not be more clear, "make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit..." (Philippians 2:2-3) The problem with the traditional church is that it is a machine; it operates without reference to the personal nature of God and how a Father desires a bride for His Son. My proof is her weak prayer life, which can be measured in minutes rather than hours spent in prayer, both alone and together.

John preached Christ correctly, but he also taught us how to do so. He returned to the methods used by the reformers, who emphasized a proper study, taking every word, phrase, sentence, paragraph, and chapter in the context of the whole Bible. He studied the original languages and overlooked nothing to reveal the truth as it is, from God, and not from men. He was a man of study and of prayer. There are no shortcuts except for those who are more full of themselves than of God.

John MacArthur is not controlled by tradition, men, or man-made agencies. His concern was not about numbers or worldly success. He cared nothing for accolades, but as a godly man, he pastored and preached only for God's pleasure and praise. By pointing out the ministries and the men who are destructive to God's people, John MacArthur fulfilled the calling of a prophet and pastor. "Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh..." (Philippians 3:2-3)

Praise God for the ministry of John MacArthur. My prayers are with John's family and those who move forward at Grace Church from this point.

In memory of John MacArthur, he set the standard for a generation, were we listening?