Paul's Passing Thoughts

I woke up this morning to the news that John MacArthur has passed. Here are my thoughts. First, what made him the premier preacher in evangelical circles? Because he went beyond the gospel and preached practical application of the Bible…period. Church, in the tradition of the Reformation, made everything about the gospel. Conflating justification and sanctification was the primary thrust of the Reformation gospel. Clearly, the Reformation redefined the new birth, and made sanctification the progression of justification through the practice of church ritual.

Most born again Christians in the 80s were like me, they had a zeal for living a life that promoted God, his Son, and the Christian life. But, what did we find in church? The gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, the gospel, and compromise with sin. The 70s and 80s were an evangelical wave produced by the failed spiritual movement of the 60s, otherwise known as the hippie movement or the so-called Age of Aquarius. When that movement failed, churches in the 70s were flooded with new converts, particularly in California where MacArthur’s church was located.

However, understand, that during the 70s, 80s, and most of the 90s, churches functioned according to the tradition of the Reformation, particularly the order of service, which reflected progressive justification, but denied its soteriology with a new birth concept that was relatively close to the Bible. Of course, being recreated, and secured forever as a literal child of God would have been appealing to those who experienced the spirituality of the 60s. Consequently, sanctification was seen as being chosen out of the free will of a changed heart, and church was a primary help for doing that; it was a place where zealous believers went to encourage each other unto good works. But, this was definitely NOT the ecclesiology or soteriology of the Reformation. More than likely, the confusion occurred during a time of independent/individual interpretation after the Revolutionary war. Fact is, Reformation theology as expressed by the Puritans in the colonies, and the tyranny thereof, was a major factor in igniting the Revolutionary war.

That was the landscape. Churches functioned according to Reformation theology, but intellectually, believed more like the Quakers, whom the Puritans hated, and routinley hanged, burned, and drowned whether men, women, or children. The mix resulted in an overemphasis on the gospel and the Bible being taught according to generalities and cliches. Furthermore, anemic sanctification led to the church looking like the world. MacArthur’s leadership was different. During the 80s, it was common for people to pick up roots and move to LA in order to be a member of MacArthur’s church. I almost did it myself. Single people, and even some families, just packed up their stuff and drove to LA without a place to live or a job, and just showed up at MacArthur’s church. Why? Hunger for practical application of the Bible.

In the 90s, the New Calvinism movement came calling. Why MacArthur capitulated to spiritual misfits like John Piper is yet a mystery to me. However, before then, MacArthur did show signs of being confused like the time he put a disciple of Larry Crabb in charge of biblical counseling at his church. That was a big head-scratcher for me.

Here, apparently, is what MacArthur didn’t understand: his congregation would have followed him regardless of anything; that’s how it works. In fact, if he hadn’t jumped on the New Calvinist bandwagon, I think the 80s would have repeated itself and his ministry would have been a refuge for escape from the spiritual herd mentality that church is famous for. Plenty of churchians wanted to flee the New Calvinism movement, but truly had no place to run. This is no surprise because the evangelical church was already primed for takeover because of its order of service that had never changed. And, even though he only had the gospel half right, I think he would have entered heaven as the most relavant church teacher since the apostle Paul.

But he capitulated. He let New Calvinism, which is a return to the original Reformation gospel of progressive justification, steal his full reward. In other words, they talked him into adapting the same everything-gospel preaching that people fled during the 80s to find refuge at his church. With that said, I don’t think God sends people to an eternal hell for being confused. Yes, I do believe that motives matter, and there is no doubt his motives were honorable. I believe he truly loved God with all of his heart, mind, and soul, and we will meet with him in heaven. 

But like the Bible states, bad company corrupts good manners, and obviously, right thinking.

paul