He Opened a World I’d Never Confronted Before

Like so many other Reformed Christians of my generation, John MacArthur was one of the pastors who introduced me to the doctrines of grace. Though I was baptized as an infant and received my first communion and confirmation in the Roman Catholic Church, my most formative years were spent in PCUSA, SBC, and nondenominational churches. My parents’ divorce, which happened when I was around three months old, was the reason I spent time in so many different denominations. 

Being exposed to all those different traditions was likely a contributing factor in my lack of understanding of the basics of theology. Even with PSR class (held weekly for kids who didn’t attend Catholic schools) and regularly attending mass, and then sitting under years of a multitude of preachers and being part of Sunday schools in Protestant churches, I didn’t know the difference between justification and sanctification. While I remember memorizing the books of the Bible in order and learning a few stories like Daniel in the lion’s den and Jonah being swallowed by a whale, my knowledge of Christianity didn’t go much deeper than that. It didn’t help that I did not regularly read the Bible until later in life.

By my teens, Christianity seemed almost entirely about salvation, which was understood in the narrow sense of justification. At the SBC church where my dad and stepmom were members, every effort seemed to be directed toward getting the people sitting under raised basketball hoops to pray the sinner’s prayer, which was printed in every weekly bulletin. Only the most dramatic conversions—I vividly remember the story of a former Hells Angel who submitted to Christ—were the ones that seemed to be promoted on stage. Feeding the sheep who were eager to learn more about orthodox Christianity seemed secondary at best.

But around ten years ago, the Holy Spirit began challenging my then-meager theology in a profound way. He started me on the path to plumbing the depths of the Christian tradition, similar to how I’d dived into political theory and American institutions at graduate school at Hillsdale College. Rather than Christianity being presented as a mile wide yet an inch deep—and with virtually no connection to the historic church to speak of—I began perceiving the endless depths that had been covered up by a paper-thin form of evangelical revivalism. 

Though much later on I’d be drawn to the English tradition of the historic church, John MacArthur was one of the pastors who prodded me to take Christianity far more seriously than I had previously.

I first heard Pastor John’s name while listening to an expository series on Hebrews preached by the Reverend Matt Kennedy of the Anglican Church of the Good Shepherd in Binghamton, New York. My sister-in-law was attending Good Shepherd at the time, and my soon-to-be wife brought the Rev. Kennedy’s preaching to my attention (he would officiate our wedding under a huge weeping willow by a lake in the summer of 2016).

The Rev. Kennedy came to Hebrews 2:10 and noted that the wording was careful: “Bringing many sons to glory”—not all sons. I was stunned as I read that verse over and over again, realizing that Christ’s satisfaction was effectual only for the elect. This was the first time I remember a theological truth gripping me. Although I’ve since adopted a view of hypothetical universalism similar to what the English delegation to the Synod of Dort articulated, I discovered that there was far more to Christianity than being saved. Justification through the blood of Christ was only the beginning of the journey, not the end.

One of the pastors Rev. Kennedy cited, possibly during that specific sermon or elsewhere during the Hebrews series, was John MacArthur, a “leaky dispensationalist” Baptist. I didn’t think an Anglican citing a Baptist was odd at the time, but I now see it as a model of Christian wisdom. The Rev. Kennedy didn’t believe in Sola Anglicana, that the Anglican tradition alone contained all the truths his congregation needed to hear, or was ashamed to cite a Baptist pastor who didn’t mince words. 

I thought I’d check out some of Pastor MacArthur’s books, including his Bible commentaries on Hebrews and Romans, to find out what Reformed theology was all about. Very soon, I saw how MacArthur took every word of the Bible seriously, expositing each book, verse by verse, in the mold of the great 19th-century Baptist Charles Spurgeon. He promoted the inerrancy, sufficiency, and perspicuity of Scripture at a time when, in the public mind, that doctrine had been eaten away by the corrosive acids of theological liberalism. 

Another virtue of Pastor MacArthur was his boldness, which was in stark contrast to the capitulation that defined too many churches and too many pastors. He didn’t cater to the pieties of late modernity that masquerade as timeless biblical truths. Pastor MacArthur was unashamed by passages of Scripture that pricked modern ears, such as ones on marriage and the duties of husband and wife, and men and women. He stood firm against ideologies like critical race theory that gave biblical cover for pride, vanity, and arrogance. 

In 2020, Pastor MacArthur showed his courage when he stood up against the COVID authoritarianism of Governor Gavin Newsom and the State of California. While Pastor MacArthur faced harsh criticism for his actions—even within the Reformed world—he has since been vindicated, as Los Angeles County and the State of California had to pay $800,000 to Grace Community Church for their unjust policies.

Pastor MacArthur didn’t get swept up in the latest trendy platitudes or the most recent discovery of hipster pastors. He didn’t indulge in the neo-Marcionism of progressive evangelicals like Brian Zahnd or the other theologically aberrant teachings being taught in evangelical churches. He preached in a suit and tie and stood for the old paths: teaching and applying the Word of God with precision and authority—but delivered in love to a congregation he had shepherded for nearly 60 years by the time of his death.

In 2011, it was reported that Pastor MacArthur had preached through the entire New Testament (he began teaching at Grace Community Church in 1969). What a remarkable accomplishment in a church age where, instead of getting fed the Word of God each week, many congregations this summer are essentially hearing movie reviews, complete with light shows and fancy stage productions.

I finally had the privilege of hearing Pastor John preach in person in 2022 at the campus of Northern Kentucky University. His sermon was on Isaiah 53, a dream chapter to hear any preacher preach on, especially one of the best of the 20th century. While I don’t remember most of the sermon even now, one thing stands out: during a Q&A session right before he took to the pulpit, Pastor MacArthur seemed mild-mannered and was almost embarrassed at the applause he was receiving from the audience. But when he stood up and began preaching, there was a strength and purpose that clearly emanated from him, a transformation that showed how seriously he took his task of delivering God’s holy Word to the people in that arena.

Although R.C. Sproul, who was received into heaven in 2017, would soon become a bigger influence on my theology, John MacArthur will always be someone I look up to and admire. Pastor John is an example to all Christians: he finished his race well and has entered eternity, forever in the presence of the Triune God. May God comfort his family and the congregation at Grace Community Church. And may God raise up more pastors like John MacArthur in the present and future generations. 

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