He's a seventy year old man who lives far from the Bible-belt and he's become one of most influential Evangelicals on earth. On Twitter he has more than 800,000 followers, his podcast "Ask Pastor John" has attracted tens of thousands and he's written over forty books that keep selling.
He's John Piper and here's ten things you should know about him:
1.) He's a true believer: Mr. Piper was born in Tennessee and raised in South Carolina his father was a traveling preacher and his mother was also a devout Christian. He attended Wheaten college in Illinois to major in literature and get a minor in philosophy. John wanted to go into Pre-Med school but after dealing with health problems decided instead to study Theology in California. In 1971 he graduated Fuller Seminar with a Master's of Divinity Degree. He wasn't done: he moved to Munich, in what was then West Germany to do doctoral studies in the New Testament. After returning to America he became a Professor and taught in St. Paul, Minnesota until 1980 when at age 34 he became Pastor at Bethlehem Baptist church; a position he held for over thirty years. What perhaps shows his devotion the most is when towards the later years before retirement he was diagnosed with cancer, he released this statement:
"This news has, of course, been good for me. The most dangerous thing in the world is the sin of self-reliance and the stupor of worldliness. The news of cancer has a wonderfully blasting effect on both. I thank God for that. The times with Christ in these days have been unusually sweet."
2.) He has a family: John Piper married a women named Noel in 1968, she's into literature and is of course also an Evangelical. He had four sons and one daughter; a few decades later he is a grandfather to twelve children.
3.) He's anti-racism: Growing up in the American south in the 50's Mr. Piper's environment was a racist one. Although it's unclear how much it effected his views early in life what is clear is that he would go on to preach against racism in no uncertain terms.
4.) He's Theologically Reformed--and that's a big reason he's popular: This article isn't designed to go into detail about Evangelical Theology. What can be said is that Evangelical Christianity (and Protestantism generally) can be split between Arminism (which focuses on "You choosing Jesus") and Calvinism (which focuses on "Jesus choosing you") the term Reformed refers to an Evangelical who believes in Calvinism. Reformed theology has becoming more popular since the 90's and in recent years has been very popular among young Evangelicals.
5.) He greatly opposes the "prosperity Gospel": The prosperity Gospel is the message that accepting Christ's Atonement in faith and repenting from one's sins means that you will become wealthy, healthy and more successful in your lives' endeavors. John Piper has criticized the teaching so popular among televangelists (especially in past decades): he says that it makes him angry, he hates it and in 2009 sat down to explain why he "abominates it." (Video here.)
6.) He describes himself as a "Christian Hedonist": John Piper's personal struggle with depression may well have lead to him promoting the idea of Christian Hedonism wherein the Christian takes great pleasure and joy in his or her life in accordance with the teachings of Jesus not sinful gain. "God is most glorified in you, when you are most satisfied in Him." is popular quote from Mr. Piper.
He explains what he means here.
7.) He's a prolific writer: Mr. Piper is the author of over forty books and is still writing. In addition to his books he puts out poetry every Christmas season.
8.) He's not very political: Although like most Reformed Pastors Piper has spoken against abortion and the redefining of marriage he's been hesitate to call for specific political action. He's not without he's critics for this.
9.) He's part the Gospel Coalition: The Gospel Coalition is a group of Reformed Evangelicals who are seeking to reform Evangelical Christianity as a whole. He is among other respected leaders like John MacArthur, Voddie Baucham and Tim Keller.
10.) He will almost certainly be remembered as a saint: Although he's not without his criticism from Arminians or political activists it is almost certain that for millions of people from America,
South Africa, Singapore, the Philippines, the United Kingdom and a number of other countries John Piper will be remembered as saint who had an influence on their lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment