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As MAGA pastors gain influence, let’s talk about peace instead of power Matthew Taylor, author of The Violent Take It By Force and who has done extensive research on how the New Apostolic Reformation fueled the January 6 insurrection attempt, told Axios, “It’s a tectonic shift in power. … You have all these pastors who would have been laughed out of the room 20 years ago.” But today, Taylor says these same pastors are “driving the dynamics.” (Baptist News Global 1/19/24) READMORE>>>>> Woman Claims John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church Wrongly Disciplined and Shamed Her A woman has come forward, claiming John MacArthur’s Grace Community Church (GCC) wrongly disciplined and shamed her when she sought separation from her husband. The church disciplined Lorraine Zielinski during a July communion service at the Sun Valley, California Church, The Christian Post (CP) reported. Church leaders reportedly announced Zielinski had been put under church discipline for issues concerning her separation from her husband. No recording of this service can be found on the church’s website or YouTube page. (Christian Post 9/10/24) READ MORE>>>>> John MacArthur is out of touch on combat PTSD In a recent viral video, John MacArthur, the well-known pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, told attendees of a Bible conference in California “there’s no such thing as PTSD…” MacArthur added, “What [PTSD] is, is really grief. You are fighting a war. You lost your buddies. You have a certain amount of survivors’ guilt because you made it back. They didn’t. How did you deal with the grief? Grief is a real thing, but grief is part of life. And, if you can’t navigate grief, you can’t live life.” MacArthur, like many other faith-based leaders, has an incorrect and unbalanced view of mental health issues and solutions. His uneducated and ignorant comments demand a direct rebuttal. (Christian Post 5/11/24) READ MORE>>>>> Beth Moore, doctor criticize John MacArthur for claiming mental illness isn’t real Pastor John MacArthur is facing withering criticism from some doctors, Christian mental health experts and outspoken Evangelical figures like Beth Moore following his comment saying there is no such thing as mental illness. “This is such a bad, dangerous take. As a pediatrician, me, and the people I work with are committed to children. This conspiracy theorist language re ADHD treatment making children ‘addicts’ or ‘criminals’ is wrong, & has no data to support it,” Dr. Stephen Patrick, incoming professor and chair of health policy and management at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, said in a statement on X. “Beyond that it’s another attack on pediatricians/healthcare providers … and those attacks are taking a tangible toll on pediatricians/nurses/healthcare providers.” (Christian Post 5/2/24) READ MORE>>>>> Why John MacArthur Is Wrong About MLK It’s no great mystery why he and millions of other Americans held King in such high regard. This confessing Christian leader literally sacrificed his life to exemplify love of neighbor. His prophetic dream was a clear application of the gospel, which gave his people reason to “keep on keeping on” while suffering under the sword of oppression. He modeled a tenacity and grace that challenged America’s wicked racial caste system without reciprocating the hatred or belligerence of those lynching his people. And King always pointed Black Americans’ hope toward Jesus Christ, not himself. It’s impossible to honestly honor him without acknowledging the role his Christian faith played in his social action. Contrarily, in February comments more widely circulated this month, California pastor and theologian John MacArthur called King “not a Christian at all,” “a nonbeliever who misrepresented everything about Christ and the gospel.” He also called The Gospel Coalition (TGC) “woke” for honoring King in its MLK50 conference in 2018, implying this signaled the end of TGC’s faithfulness and orthodoxy. (Christian Post 3/8/24) READ MORE>>>>> John MacArthur walks back comments stating that ‘it’s not sinful for a cakemaker to make a cake for a gay wedding’ John MacArthur, a prominent evangelical pastor and author, recently came under scrutiny for his comments regarding the morality of making a wedding cake for a homosexual wedding, prompting a response from his ministry to clarify his beliefs on the subject. During a 2017 conference, MacArthur stated that it is “not sinful” for a baker to create a product for a same-sex wedding, drawing comparisons to serving food at a restaurant or selling bread at a market. MacArthur, the pastor of the evangelical Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, and president of The Master’s University in Newhall and The Master’s Seminary in Los Angeles, participated in a panel discussion during Ligonier Ministries 2017 regional conference in Los Angeles on June 9. During a question-and-answer session, MacArthur provided insight on two theological questions regarding homosexuality. (Christian News 3/3/24) READ MORE>>>>>  Steve Rabey
When COVID-19 turned the world upside down in 2020, many U.S. churches followed government policies and switched to online services, while others met on a limited scale with social distancing and masks.
A smaller group of churches opposed official mandates, railed against government oppression, opened church doors without precautions, experienced the predicted COVID outbreaks and faced the legal consequences. Three churches led by rebel pastors are the focus of The Essential Church, a new independent Christian movie that attempts to persuade viewers that their ordeals are equivalent to the suffering of Christians in centuries past who sacrificed their lives. The film dramatizes the exploits of John MacArthur, pastor of California’s Grace Community Church, and is produced by Grace Productions, the church’s film ministry. Promotional material calls it a “docufilm” and a “documentary,” but a better descriptor is hagiography. ---Steve Rabey; Baptist News Global; John MacArthur’s film glorifies pastors who defied COVID mandates 8.3.23  John MacArthur
What is the kingdom? In Scripture it is usually called the kingdom of God; Matthew refers to it as the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom—God’s rule over the earth and in the hearts of people—exists in mystery form. Christ does not exercise his full divine will as King over all the earth, though He is ultimately sovereign. He rules as King only among those who are redeemed, but not in a form that is visible to an unbelieving world. This aspect of God’s kingdom is utterly missed by those who were looking for a political monarchy. --John MacArthur
 John MacArthur
“Every sin ever committed by every person who has ever lived will be punished. That is required by divine holiness and divine righteousness and divine justice. It will either be punished everlastingly in the life of the sinner or that punishment will be borne by Christ.” --John MacArthur The hidden battle in Christian higher education: A conversation with Scott Okamoto One of the most under-the-radar battles going on within American evangelicalism today is a civil war between Christian higher education and the local church. If you’ve missed this new trend, there’s a good reason: The more overt stories of abuse within schools and churches catch our attention and cause us not to see the more subtle trends. For example, Liberty University, the world’s largest Baptist school, entered the spotlight in recent years after Jerry Falwell Jr. stepped down due to a sex and financial scandal that included accusations of blackmail involving Michael Cohen, the former attorney to President Trump. The Master’s Seminary, led by John MacArthur, withdrew its membership from the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability after their accrediting body put the school on probation due to their “climate of fear, intimidation and bullying,” while also mentioning “appearance of conflicts of interest with the president’s son-in-law supervising a contract from which he benefits.” Bob Jones University saw the resignation of their widely beloved president, Steve Pettit, after the board of trustees became so upset about a male student looking “like a gay man” by wearing a wrap coat and about the length of female student’s shorts that they colluded behind Pettit’s back in a scheme involving alternative lawyers, secret meetings, unsecured computers, pictures of women’s bodies without their consent, and an overhaul of the board amidst a Title IX investigation (Baptist News Global 5/12/23) READ MORE>>>>> Feb 10, 2023: Christian Post: Evaluating John MacArthur’s rationale for limited atonement
MacArthur's controversial teaching on Lordship Salvation has been addressed by numerous people over the years, myself included. The prominent pastor also espouses the disturbing theory of limited atonement, which states that Jesus did not die on the cross for everyone, but only for believers. Nov 7, 2022: Church Leaders: John MacArthur and John Piper Discuss How American Christians Can Prepare for Persecution During Q&A Session
Oct 3, 2022: Roys Report: Opinion: An Open Letter to John MacArthur
Dear John MacArthur, I recently read your open letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom, excoriating him for his upside-down morality and failure to protect the vulnerable. I resonate with much of what you wrote. As you rightly state, Scripture teaches the “chief duty” of civic leaders is “to reward those who do well and punish evildoers.” And I agree that Governor Newsom has not only failed in this regard but has routinely turned this duty “on its head, rewarding evildoers and punishing the righteous.” Christian Post: John MacArthur warns Gov. Newsom his soul 'lies in grave, eternal peril' after abortion campaign
The open letter from Grace Community Church Pastor John MacArthur dated Sept. 29 quotes the Bible numerous times in response to the campaign earlier this month, which MacArthur said “shamelessly” misquoted Mark 12:31 for Newsom’s own political purposes. 9.30.22 July 9, 2022: Religion News: John MacArthur and the dangers of biblical literalism
The Bible says that the truth will set you free, but according to popular pastor John MacArthur, the Bible also leaves plenty of room for enslaving people. May 19, 2022: Brent Dewiler: John MacArthur Was Never an All-American Football Player Recruited by NFL Teams as Claimed for Over 40 Years
I have never seen a Christian leader make up so many legendary tales about himself as John MacArthur. This is a pervasive and long-standing pattern. In this article, I am focusing on his claim to be an All-America halfback highly recruited by numerous NFL teams including the World Champion Cleveland Browns. March 13, 2022: The End Time: My Statement on John MacArthur
So, my support of John MacArthur isn’t blind. It isn’t worship. It’s support, for a man who’s done more in this century and last for the Christ’s name than any other man I can think of. I’m not throwing that away cuz some God-hating feminist comes along waving papers, no. Feb 23, 2022: Evergreen Church: INTRODUCING JOHN MACARTHUR
As Evergreen Church prepares to hear from special guest Pastor John MacArthur this Sunday, 2/27, we thought it would be great for Pastor Rocky to share more about his relationship with Pastor John MacArthur and how much of an encouragement Pastor John MacArthur has been to him personally and to our church. Nov 3, 2021: Premier Christianity: John MacArthur hits out at pastors who plagiarise
US church leader John MacArthur has described pastors who plagiarise sermons as “lazy, incompetent and unsanctified”. March 12, 2021: Concilliar Post: RELIGIOUS LIBERTY AND THE PATRIARCH OF SAN FERNANDO
John MacArthur has created a ruckus, again. A couple of his recent sermons have seemingly disparaged both democracy and religious liberty, declaring neither to be biblical concepts, at least not strict or necessary ones. “You say, ‘Well, isn’t religious freedom important for Christianity?'” MacArthur said in a sermon on February 28th. “No, it’s meaningless. It doesn’t matter what law governments make or don’t make. They have no effect on the kingdom of God.” March 5, 2021: Relevant: Uh, John MacArthur Is Urging His Church to Stop Supporting Religious Freedom
John MacArthur is pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California. He’s got a long history as a respected evangelical theologian and preacher, but has made headlines more often in recent months for illegally flouting COVID-19 guidelines. Now he’s raising eyebrows again, for a different reason: taking a stance against …religious freedom? “I told our congregation a few weeks ago that I could never really concern myself with religious freedom,” he said on Wednesday during his State of the Church address. “I wouldn’t fight for religious freedom because I won’t fight for idolatry. Why would I fight for the devil to have as many false religions as possible and all of them to be available to everyone?” he asked. Jan 25, 2021: Zeteo 3:16: John MacArthur on God’s Goodness
J Mac recently delivered a Message on God’s Goodness in 2020. The video is posted below. He discusses how God has rewarded faith and obedience, especially in the challenges Grace Community Church faced throughout 2020. Jan 4, 2022: Christian Headlines: MacArthur Urges Pastors to Preach on Sexual Morality on January 16 to Protest Conversion Therapy Bans
Pastor and author John MacArthur is urging pastors in the United States and Canada to preach a sermon on January 16 on the “biblical view of sexual morality” to protest a new Canadian law that bans conversion therapy Dec 30, 2021: Christian Post: John MacArthur urges pastors to preach on sexual morality to protest conversion therapy ban
Pastor and theologian John MacArthur of Grace Community Church in Los Angeles is calling on pastors to preach about the “biblical view of sexual morality” on Jan. 16 in opposition to a Canadian law banning therapy for unwanted sexual attractions and gender confusion — what is often derisively referred to as conversion therapy — set to take effect next month. Sept 2, 2021: Capstone Report: The John MacArthur religious liberty fight Russell Moore & ERLC ignored
Pay attention to who stood by John MacArthur. Also, pay attention to the religious liberty organizations who ignored this fight. July 26, 2021: The Gate Keepers: Brent Detwiler Exposes the Many Scandals of Pastor John MacArthur
Pastor John MacArthur has built up quite a large following over the decades of doing ministry. Being the pastor of Grace Community Church, the face of Grace To You and President of The Masters Seminary, Pastor MacArthur has built up quite the reputation as a theological and expositor of God’s Word. Brent Detwiler, however, has seen quite another side of him and his ministry that has been riddled with scandals and corruption, which is what we discuss during this episode of Conversations with Jeff Sept 11, 2020: Christian Headlines: California Judge Bans John MacArthur, Church from Worshiping Indoors A California judge on Thursday issued an injunction prohibiting John MacArthur and Grace Community Church from meeting indoors for worship services during the pandemic, thus handing Los Angeles County the ruling it has sought for several weeks. Sept 2, 2020: Christian Post: John MacArthur says 'true believers' will vote for Trump, can't affirm abortion and trans activism
Grace Community Church Pastor John MacArthur recently said that “any real” Christian will vote for Republican President Donald Trump in November because they cannot support the policy agenda of the Democratic Party. August 23, 2020: Friendly Athiest: Anti-Muslim Megachurch Preacher: Real Christians Hate Abortion and LGBTQ People
Pastor John MacArthur of Grace Community Church in California is best known as the Christian so deranged that he wants his entire congregation to catch COVID. Last week, during an in-person service in defiance of government orders, he told his congregation how proud he was that “you’re not distancing, and you’re not wearing masks.” 
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Right now, Truth is under attack, and much is at stake. Christians are caught in the crossfire of alternative Christian histories, emerging faulty texts, and a cultural push to eliminate absolute Truth altogether. As a result, many churches and Christians have been deceived. Worse still, they propagate the deception that poses itself as Truth! In The Truth War John MacArthur reclaims the unwavering certainty of God's Truth and anchors Christians in the eternal, immovable promises that are found in His Word. Aug 17, 2020: Christian Post: Defying appeals court order, John MacArthur says: 'We’re in church because our Lord commands it’
Holding indoor services once again in defiance of California’s COVID-19 lockdown orders, Pastor John MacArthur of Grace Community Church on Sunday told his congregation, “We are holding church … because our Lord commands it.” The megachurch met hours after an appeals court blocked a ruling that had allowed it to meet for worship. Aug 15, 2020: Religious News Service: Judge orders John MacArthur, Grace Community Church to wear masks, social distance during services
Megachurch pastor John MacArthur and his congregation can continue to meeting indoors for worship, a California judge ruled Friday. (August 14). But they must wear face coverings and practice social distancing, according to a California Superior Court judge's order. Los Angeles County health officials had sought temporary restraining order barring the church from violating health orders that ban large indoor meetings and singing during meetings. Dec 31, 2019: Christian Headlines: 9. JOHN MACARTHUR TELLS BETH MOORE TO ‘GO HOME’
Pastor Brandon Cox also commented on the situation writing, “The host says, ‘Beth Moore.’ And a man who is supposed to be a model of biblical manhood and spiritual leadership responds, ‘Go home!’ And a room full of men laugh. This is sad. It's unbiblical. But it's the fruit of arrogance.” Oct 28, 2019: United Methodist Insight: Cokesbury to Remove John MacArthur Books after Remarks on Women, Race, and Intersectionality
Longtime readers know I am no fan of Cokesbury or the United Methodist Publishing House. But credit is due to them for responding appropriately to the John MacArthur controversy this week Feb 11, 2019: Worldy Saints: John MacArthur Tribute (Day 1): Sharing the Gospel with Family
This past weekend, John MacArthur celebrated his 50th anniversary as Teaching Pastor of Grace Church. I was thinking that if I make it 45 more years at Wichita Bible Church (WBC), he and I will have something in common. But if I make it to 50 years at WBC, I still won’t be a prolific author, evangelical leader and tremendous expositor of Scripture – as John MacArthur is. This week on this blog, I will post a series of my own tributes to this man. Aug 21, 2015: Charisma: Self-Proclaimed 'Prophet' Stands on John MacArthur's Stage and Rebukes Him
A man claiming to be a prophet disrupted John MacArthur's sermon recently. Apr 20, 2015: Youtube: ISIS Waging War on Christians, Fox Business - John MacArthur Mar 9, 2015: Narrowing Path: Video Link: John McArthur’s outstanding defense of the Holy Scriptures at the recent ‘Inerrancy Summit’ This opening address at the recent Inerrancy Summit is well worth your time… please share it with other Christians if you can. I am not endorsing all of John McArthur’s teaching by posting this video, but this really is excellent! Mar 4, 2015: Youtube: Shepherds' Conference 2015 | The Inerrancy Summit | General Session 1 - John MacArthur Sept 7, 2014: What is Truth?: Attacking the "Fundamentalists": Bravo to John MacArthur and David Cloud, Bombarded by C. J. Mahaney and Fred Butler When an evangelical wants to take a shot at someone, he will call him a "fundamentalist." That's supposed to be an ultimate insult. I read it coming from two men aimed at two preachers in the last three or four days for the same reason. In one, I read C. J. Mahaney affronting John MacArthur in a post by Brent Detwiler, and in the other Fred Butler assaulting David Cloud. These two are very, very similar, and they both illustrate how "fundamentalist" is used as an invective by evangelicals, to discourage men from standing against certain corruption. I read what Mahaney and Butler did, to be identical to each other. They are dealing with similar situations and using "fundamentalist" as a means to discourage it. Apr 22, 2014: ABC News: ‘Heaven Is for Real’ Ignites Debate About What Awaits Us “I’m convinced that the entire book and movie is a hoax from start to finish,” said John MacArthur, the pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, Calif. “It has nothing to do with Christianity. It has nothing to do with the Bible.” Mar 21, 2014: Here I Blog: John MacArthur on Duck Dynasty and Theology I have written on Duck Dynasty and baptism a few times on this blog (see below). |
March 8, 2024: Justin Giboney wrote in an article posted at Christianity Today: It’s no great mystery why he and millions of other Americans held King in such high regard. This confessing Christian leader literally sacrificed his life to exemplify love of neighbor. His prophetic dream was a clear application of the gospel, which gave his people reason to “keep on keeping on” while suffering under the sword of oppression. He modeled a tenacity and grace that challenged America’s wicked racial caste system without reciprocating the hatred or belligerence of those lynching his people. And King always pointed Black Americans’ hope toward Jesus Christ, not himself. It’s impossible to honestly honor him without acknowledging the role his Christian faith played in his social action. Contrarily, in February comments more widely circulated this month, California pastor and theologian John MacArthur called King “not a Christian at all,” “a nonbeliever who misrepresented everything about Christ and the gospel.” He also called The Gospel Coalition (TGC) “woke” for honoring King in its MLK50 conference in 2018, implying this signaled the end of TGC’s faithfulness and orthodoxy.
October 1, 2024: Phil Johnson, executive director of MacArthur’s Grace to You ministry reported: On Oct. 1, an account called “Celebrities Who Died Today” posted a four-minute video on YouTube headlined “Pastor John MacArthur Is Announced Dead At 85.” As of Oct. 4, the video has more than 11,500 views. The narrator begins, “Just moments ago, news came out that has deeply upset the entire Christian community. The family of Pastor John MacArthur, a beloved figure and spiritual leader, has confirmed devastating news about his health.” Only later does the video indicate the pastor is still alive, noting, “Today we face the possibility of losing this incredible man.” Although the clip promises “details of this heartbreaking announcement,” it later hedges, “the specifics are still being revealed.” The narrator recaps MacArthur’s faith, achievements, and legacy, saying the news about him “comes as a reminder of the fragility of life.”
October 20, 2024: Macarthur explained his recent health issues: “I was preaching here January of 2023 in the morning service, and all of a sudden I couldn’t breathe. And I said, I’m having trouble with my breath. And then I went on and preached for 50 minutes. But that was the first service. In between, I was told that I had probably had an Afib attack on my heart, and that I was benched for the second service. So they took me to the hospital, and the upshot of that was I had four stints put in the arteries around my heart. And it was very successful, my heart was doing very well. A few months after that, they noticed an aberrant rhythm in my heart. So they did another procedure where they run an electric wire up and shock whatever that cell wants to do on its own, and it was successful. And a few months after that, maybe almost a year, the cardiologist said, you need to have your aorta replaced. (editor’s note, he almost certainly meant to say “aortic valve”) Well, that sounded pretty serious, but they have a new procedure where they literally run a catheter up through your veins in and put a new (aortic valve) in and push the old one out. It’s an amazing surgery. And they did that, and it was successful.” October 21, 2024: John MacArthur on Kamala Harris rallies after VP response to Christian protesters: 'Jesus isn't there' why “Jesus is not Lord in that place? No, I'm not saying that Jesus is not Lord over the universe. I'm not saying that Jesus is more Lord over the Republicans, but I'm telling you He's not there, not when you kill babies and mutilate children and destroy marriage."
ED NOTE: I think Jesus knows the heart of every single person who was at that rally, so He was there. Evangelicals for Harris responded: The group Evangelicals for Harris commented on the rally incident on X Tuesday in a repost of a video clip showing Pastor John MacArthur’s comments on the event. The group referenced “this false narrative” and continued, “You can’t hear what is shouted in the videos from the front (where Kamala was), which is why they all require cc or audio from videos taken from the back of the rally.” “But more importantly,” said Evangelicals for Harris, “yelling Jesus is Lord does not make you a Christian. A Trump supporter removed from a rally for yelling ‘lies, lies’ who then shouts about Jesus isn’t being persecuted for his faith...If they want to know what martyrs look like, they should look to the Christians fleeing persecution from the Middle East that then President Trump denied asylum to,” the post continued. October 23, 2024: Charisma reported: MacArthur sat down for a Q&A session led by Nathan Busenitz, executive vice president of The Master’s Seminary and an elder at GCC, as reported by Church Leaders. The conversation quickly turned to the topic of leadership failures within the church, most notably the downfall of Steven Lawson. Busenitz asked MacArthur how GCC should process the “adversity that comes from inside the church when people that we respect and trust turn out to be different than we thought they were. “I know you’re talking about Steve Lawson, and I say that with the deepest agony in my soul,” MacArthur says. Lawson, a former leader at the church and a long-time friend of MacArthur, had recently been exposed for sexual misconduct with a younger woman. MacArthur was candid about the pain of the situation but emphasized that God’s hand is at work in exposing such behavior. Aug 20, 2022: Superior Court Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff ruled that the church and pastor cannot be held in contempt of court because there is no court order prohibiting the congregation from gathering. Jenna Ellis, special counsel for Thomas More Society said: “LA County continues to harass and target Pastor MacArthur. Having failed to get a court order to shut down the church they have sought three times, they’re going to try again by hauling us back into court. Ironically, LA County said in its application for contempt that, ‘Grace Church cannot thumb its nose at the court when decisions don’t go its way,’ yet that’s precisely what LA County is now doing themselves. We will simply continue to defend our client’s constitutionally protected rights because church is essential." Jan 21, 2021: MacArthur said in a sermon: “…you thought we’re just going to go waltzing into the kingdom because you took over the world. No we lose here, get it? They killed Jesus. They killed all the apostles. We’re all going to be persecuted.”
March 3, 2021: During his State of the Church address, MacArthur said: "I told our congregation a few weeks ago that I could never really concern myself with religious freedom. I wouldn’t fight for religious freedom because I won’t fight for idolatry. Why would I fight for the devil to have as many false religions as possible and all of them to be available to everyone? The Gospel offends the sinner and seeks to break the sinner’s comfort and contentment by bringing him into stark realization of the eternal judgement of God. Evangelicals have become like Peter. They are looking for alliances with Satan that they think somehow can aid the Kingdom. Well, people would say that’s a terrible thing to say. What about Christianity? Christianity advances whether there is religious freedom or not. And there’ll always be religious freedom for all the lies. Every false religion is going to be free because it’s linked to the kingdom of darkness that operates in the world. And Christians, whatever the label of religious freedom might be in its broadest sense, Christians are always the target even with religious freedom, of the hostility of sinners. The Apostles turned the world upside down with no help from it. No social action. No alliances. The evil kingdom of darkness hates what God loves and loves everything that God hates, and the kingdom of darkness is never a friend to the light. Even rulers have exchanged the truth of God for a lie. …They function under the liar Satan himself who is the liar and father of lies. There is absolutely no reason for us to make any alliance with him.”
June 23, 2021: Religious Dispatches reported: Where did white evangelicalisms hatred of critical race theory really begin:
It was John MacArthur’s repudiation of social justice in the infamous Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel (Dallas Statement) opened the floodgates for critiques on CRT. In Article 1 it reads: We deny that Christian belief, character, or conduct can be dictated by any other authority, and we deny that the postmodern ideologies derived from intersectionality, radical feminism, and critical race theory are consistent with biblical teaching. We further deny that competency to teach on any biblical issue comes from any qualification for spiritual people other than clear understanding and simple communication of what is revealed in scripture.  Zorek Richards
September 7, 2021: John MacArthur believed he was right about his fight against "religious liberty" because he won the case in court. MacArthur believed tyranny was being committed against him because he had a right to ignore any government mandate concerning the pandemic because God was on his side. He won an $800,00 settlement in court. Leading the fight was the Thomas More Society and lawyers Jenna Ellis and Charles LiMandri. These lawyers won an $800,000 settlement from the State of California and the County of Los Angeles. It's interesting that he does not apply that same "logic" on other issues, like Roe V Wade, and all the times that losses were made in court that it wasnt considered a victory.. MacArthur is one of several mainstream pastors who are very much entrenched in Christian Nationalism.
Oct 26, 2021: In an interview at The Master’s Seminary, MacArthur was asked why does a pastor plagiarise? MacArthur responded: “Because he's lazy and incompetent - and, I’ve got a third point, unsanctified....The thing that expository preaching does that is apart from the congregation is it sanctifies the pastor…the relentless study of the Word of God is how God sanctifies and protects the pastor. When you're just opening your iPad and reading somebody else's sermon, you've never been exposed to the sanctifying work of the Word." Zorek Richards
September 2, 2020:
👉California pastor and author John MacArthur has been steadily going off the deep end for awhile now..MacArthur has referred to Catholicism as the "Kingdom of Satan, attacking Steven Furtick and Beth Moore. .But if you read his theology about 10 years ago you could see the beginning. In a nutshell, it's a desire for power which is primary motivation over proclaiming Jesus as Lord to a state that could use the message. Feb 1, 2014: Jim Floyd wrote: So what exactly does MacArthur say about repentance and faith?
“Repentance is a critical element of conversion, but do not dismiss it as simply another word for believing.” 177 MacArthur says that the meaning of the word does not stop at “change of mind.” (I agree that it is a critical element. I disagree with MacArthur however that repentance is not synonymous with believing. As far as conversion goes it most certainly is the same because there are not multiple ways of salvation. The word repent, believe, or the combination repent and believe can all be used to accurately describe repentance at conversion. Repentance and faith can be seen as two sides of the same coin so to speak. Repentance is a change of mind from what one currently believes to trusting Christ alone based on His atoning work for salvation. Faith is to trust Christ alone based on his atoning work which implies that you no longer believe what you did before. The two are inseparable as far as conversion goes for eternal life. Keep in mind that LS advocates like MacArthur, along with many moderate Calvinists and Arminians, use a similar analogy but change it. They keep with the two sides of one coin analogy but for them one side is repentance (turn from sin, be sorrowful, desire to obey) and the other side is faith (many times this faith means a faith that WILL obey or it wasn’t real). May 22, 2014: John MacArthur on the Homosexual Agenda: One of the supreme tragedies in our day is reclassification of homosexuality as a non-sin, as a normal behavior, as an acceptable behavior, even as a noble behavior because that’s the way you’re made, instead of defining it the way the Bible defines it as a perversion from which you need to be rescued. "Brown addresses MacArthur’s claim to guilt by association (the idea that if one is part of a movement that has involved scandal then one is guilty by association), and rightly points out that the pendulum can swing both ways, observing Luther’s anti-Semitism and Calvin’s draconian rules that led to men and women being burnt at the stake. Both Luther and Calvin are darlings of the theological world that John MacArthur walks in, and so Brown fairly asks if we should also associate MacArthur with such doctrinal errors." (May 14, 2014: Pneuma Review: "Michael Brown’s Authentic Fire, reviewed by Daniel Snape" ) Authentic Fire is Dr. Michael Brown’s response to John MacArthur’s book Strange Fire. MacArthur’s Strange Fire launches a scathing attack on the Christian Charismatic Movement and so it comes as no surprise that champions of the charismatic community should launch a defense to MacArthur’s assertions. "One of the most troubling aspects of Heaven Is for Real is the way Todd Burpo constantly insinuates that personal experiences—even the spectral memories of a three-year-old boy under anesthetics—are somehow more compelling than Scripture alone. “I had been a Christian since childhood and a pastor for half my life, so I believed that before. But now I knew it” (p. 84). Colton’s experiential exegesis of heaven has clearly made a far more profound impact on Todd (and has been more formative to his notion of the afterlife) than anything he had previously gleaned about heaven from his own study of Scripture.... ....That way of thinking is diametrically opposed to what the Bible says about faith, experience, and the authority of Scripture. In fact, the most important defense Christians have against self-deception is a conviction that the written Word of God is more certain and more authoritative than anyone’s experience. Scripture teaches this explicitly and repeatedly." 
October 18, 2013: Megachurch pastor Mark Driscoll claims that his books were confiscated at the Strange Fire conference put on by another megachurch pastor John MacArthur. Driscoll, who pastors Mars Hill Church in Seattle, is a reformed pastor who is more open to charismatic theology. MacArthur, who pastors Grace Community Church in southern California and has been named in the top 10 most influential pastors in a survey by LifeWay Research, has long criticized the charismatic movement, calling it “a farce and a scam.” Rich Gregory, assistant to John MacArthur, said he was there when it happened and that Driscoll’s books were not confiscated and there was nothing confrontational.
October 19, 2013: John MacArthur: The Charismatic movement with signs, wonders, “miraculous” spiritual gifts, prophecy etc. is a work of Satan and is being used to single-handedly destroy the Church of Jesus Christ.
MacArthur: I was criticized openly and publicly for what I said at Moody Bible Institute for what I said on Isaiah 53. The next week, there was an article from students at Moody hailing the arrival of Pope Francis as the new Pope. Why would anyone do that? Why would anyone in Evangelical historic Protestant history make a concession to Catholicism? It’s just become part of the contemporary fabric of Evangelicalism.....most people in the [Charismatic] movement are “not Christians” Nov 4, 2013: Tim Challies interviewed John MacArthur: MacArthur: God’s Word explicitly says that true prophets must adhere to a standard of 100% accuracy (Deut. 18:20–22) and nothing in the New Testament exempts them from that standard. The book of Acts depicts the gift of tongues as producing real human languages (Acts 2:9–11), and nothing in 1 Corinthians redefines tongues as irrational babble. And the New Testament further describes the miraculous healings of Jesus and the Apostles (including the healing of organic diseases like paralysis, blindness, and leprosy) as being immediate, complete, and undeniable (cf. Mark 1:42; 10:52; etc.). These, and many other Scripture passages, demonstrate the truly extraordinary quality of the biblical gifts.
But here is the point. The modern gifts of the charismatic movement simply do not match up to their biblical counterparts. Modern prophecy is fallible and full of errors. Modern tongues consists of unintelligible speech that does not conform to any human language. Modern healings do not compare to the miracles performed by Jesus and the Apostles. November 12, 2013: MacArthurs book "Strange Fire" is released. |
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June 5, 2011: Nearly 43 years after beginning in the pulpit of Grace Community, MacArthur completed one of his own life goals, that of preaching through the entire New Testament.
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| 2010: Pastor John MacArthur exposes Joel Osteen as a pagan religionist, a quasi-pantheist, and an agent of Satan. He critiques Joel's book, quotes, and prayer and compares them with what the Bible teaches. This is an excerpt from John MacArthur's sermon, "A True Knowledge of the True God." |
John MacArthur
We've seen that without faith it's impossible to please God. And the first step in faith is believing that God exists. In addition, we must also believe that He answers our prayers—more specifically, that He redeems those who come to Him in faith.
Scripture repeatedly tells us that God not only can be found, but also desires to be found. David said to his son Solomon, "If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever" (1 Chron. 28:9). The Lord says in Jeremiah 29:13, "You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." Jesus said, "Everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened" (Luke 11:10). At first glance those verses may seem to contradict Paul's teaching that "there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside" (Rom. 3:11-12), and Jesus' statement that no one can come to Him unless the Father draws him (John 6:44). But really they're two sides of the same theological coin. On one side you see man believing God and receiving Christ for salvation. On the other you see God enabling man to do so. Prior to salvation, a person is spiritually dead and utterly incapable of responding to the gospel. God must grant him or her saving faith. That's why the Bible contains statements like, "To you it has been granted for Christ's sake . . . to believe in Him" (Phil. 1:29); "As many as had been appointed to eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48); and "The Lord opened [Lydia's] heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul" (Acts 16:14).
God is the Great Rewarder, extending His love and grace to all who call upon Him. "Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed" (Rom. 10:11).
Suggestions for Prayer
If you've been praying for someone's salvation, don't become discouraged. Only God can grant saving faith, but He gives us the privilege of participating in His redemptive work through faithful prayer and evangelism (Rom 10:1). --From Drawing Near by John MacArthur Copyright © 1993.
Scripture repeatedly tells us that God not only can be found, but also desires to be found. David said to his son Solomon, "If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever" (1 Chron. 28:9). The Lord says in Jeremiah 29:13, "You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." Jesus said, "Everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened" (Luke 11:10). At first glance those verses may seem to contradict Paul's teaching that "there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside" (Rom. 3:11-12), and Jesus' statement that no one can come to Him unless the Father draws him (John 6:44). But really they're two sides of the same theological coin. On one side you see man believing God and receiving Christ for salvation. On the other you see God enabling man to do so. Prior to salvation, a person is spiritually dead and utterly incapable of responding to the gospel. God must grant him or her saving faith. That's why the Bible contains statements like, "To you it has been granted for Christ's sake . . . to believe in Him" (Phil. 1:29); "As many as had been appointed to eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48); and "The Lord opened [Lydia's] heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul" (Acts 16:14).
God is the Great Rewarder, extending His love and grace to all who call upon Him. "Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed" (Rom. 10:11).
Suggestions for Prayer
If you've been praying for someone's salvation, don't become discouraged. Only God can grant saving faith, but He gives us the privilege of participating in His redemptive work through faithful prayer and evangelism (Rom 10:1). --From Drawing Near by John MacArthur Copyright © 1993.
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February 9, 1969: MacArthur became pastor of Grace Community Church, a non-denominational church in Sun Valley, California.
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John MacArthur at Los Angeles Pacific College, fall 1962 (from: Iain Hamish Murray’s “John MacArthur: Servant of the Word and Flock”; colorized)
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