John Piper
|
“Sometimes people ask, “Why would God have bothered to create such a microscopic speck called the earth and humanity and then get involved with us?" Beneath this questions is a fundamental failure to see what the universe is about. It is about the greatness of God, not the significance of man. God made man small and the universe big to say something about Himself. And He says it is for us to learn and enjoy— namely, that He is infinitely great and powerful and wise and beautiful. The more the Hubble Telescope sends back to us about the unfathomable depths of space, the more we should stand in awe of God. The disproportion between us and the universe is a parable about the disproportion between us and God. And it is an understatement. But the point is not to nullify us but to glorify Him." — John Piper, from “Don’t Waste Your Life"
Nov 4, 2022: Church Leaders: New Lecrae Song ‘Deconstruction’ Mentions John Piper, Voddie Baucham, Tim Keller, Tony Evans, and Judah SmithLecrae, who has been open about his faith journey in recent years, shares in his lyrics that he “still believes in the Church, but it’s gon’ take us to put in some work.”
Lecrae openly discusses his deconstruction journey, giving listeners and fans a better understanding of what he went through. The lyrics are similar to some of what he has shared in recent interviews, but with fresh vulnerability. He also mentions well-known pastors and church leaders who lent to some of his deconstruction. Mar 22, 2022: The Transformed Wife: SHOULD WOMEN BE POLICE OFFICERS?
A woman asked John Piper if it was okay for women to become police officers. He answered her here. I will give a few comments from his article and then respond. Jan 2, 2023: Christian Post: John Piper: Christians who participate in body-mutilating trans surgeries are 'normalizing evil'
Theologian John Piper has explained why Christian healthcare workers should not work in hospitals that perform body-mutilating sex-change surgeries, warning that doing so contradicts “God’s revealed will,” damages people and normalizes evil in the world. Sept 10, 2021: Tempo: Praying with Gary V.
Pray.com has multiple functions that can be accessed by registered users: daily prayers every morning, nightly prayers before bedtime, audio Bible stories, Christian meditations, prayer plans, podcasts of pastors from around the world including globally renowned Christian personalities like John Piper, TD Jakes, Joyce Meyer, Manny Pacquiao and even Philippine pastors James Aiton of Favor Church, Paul and Shoddy Chase, and Mylene Evangelista of New Life Church, and Bo Sanchez of Light Of Jesus Family. It also has inspirational music of different genres. Sept 3, 2021: Relevant Magazine: Today’s Devotional: Craving God As John Piper says, “What we hunger for most, we worship.” May 2, 2018: Christianity Today: Tim Keller, John Piper, and Andy Stanley Among the 12 ‘Most Effective’ Preachers
This week, Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary released its 2018 ranking of the ministers who set the standard for contemporary sermons. It lists a cross-denominational mix of evangelical heavyweights ranging from Reformed leaders such as John Piper and Tim Keller, to classic preachers such as Chuck Swindoll and the late Haddon Robinson, to fresher voices such as Andy Stanley and Ralph Douglas West. Mar 12, 2016: Roger E Olson: John Piper Does It Again: My Response to “The Self-centeredness of Arminianism”
John Piper Does It Again: My Response to “The Self-centeredness of Arminianism”For those of you who are new to this blog or have missed reading my earlier messages here about John Piper and his many anti-Arminian messages (both in writing and in talks), let me catch you up briefly Apr 28, 2015: Wartburg Watch: John Piper and Duck Dynasty: Celebrity Endorsements Validate the Demonology of Peter Wagner and Robert Morris
So, before making dinner, I decided to put the name John Piper into a search with Peter Wagner's name. My jaw hit the table. It appears that way back in 1992, approximately 6 years after the publication of Desiring God, Piper seemed to think well of the thoughts of Peter Wagner. On the Desiring God website is a sermon he preached called Angels and Prayer. Aug 24, 2015: Wartburg 2015: John Piper Backs Himself Into a Corner and Even Reformed Complementarians Are Confused. Over the last two years, there have been a few more people who are willing to discuss the issues surrounding John Piper. Mar 25, 2015: Charisma: WATCH: John Piper on Why Theologians Fall Into Adultery Why is it that people who have Ph.D.s in theology are fighting "graduate-level sins" with "grammar-school knowledge" of God? For Pastor and Theologian John Piper, it boils down to one succinct item: They don't know God. Mar 9, 2015: Jesus Creed: John Piper and Women Preachers Theologian John Piper was recently asked if the Bible allows women to preach as long as they do it under the permission of church elders. Piper answered, “No.” Sept 26, 2014: Worldview Weekend: Part Two: Lewis’ and Piper’s Transitive Influences on Evangelicalism. In a previous column, I examined Lewis’ and Piper’s troubling affirmations of hedonism. In that piece, special notice was given concerning Piper’s troubling praise of atheist Ayn Rand: “I think she [Ayn Rand] points to truth and to Jesus ultimately: she esteemed reason, individualism, and hedonism - and so do I..." |
Mar 1, 1985: Desiring God: What We Believe About the Five Points of Calvinism
This explanation, compiled by John Piper and the Council of Elders, represents the doctrinal position of Bethlehem Baptist Church. In 1980, Piper became Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he ministered until March 31, 2013. Piper hit the evangelical scene after the publication of his book Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (1986) and has continued to publish dozens of other books further articulating this theological perspective. In 1994, he founded Desiring God Ministries, with the aim of "spread[ing] a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples through Jesus Christ." Desiring God Ministries offers all of Piper's sermons and articles from the past three decades—and most of his books—online free of charge, while also offering Piper-related media for sale, and regularly hosting conferences. Piper took an eight-month leave of absence from his ministry from May 1, 2010 to January 9, 2011.
He announced in June 2011 that he would soon step down from his role of pastor. A candidate to succeed him was announced in March 2012, and on May 20, 2012 Jason Meyer was voted in (784 Yes to 8 No) to be the next Pastor for Preaching & Vision, replacing John Piper. On March 31, 2013 (Easter Sunday), Piper preached his final sermon as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist and announced in an open letter to the congregation that he and his family would be moving to Tennessee for at least a year so that the new leadership can develop a strategic vision for the church without distractions. "We are all starved for the glory of God, not self. No one goes to the Grand Canyon to increase self-esteem. Why do we go? Because there is greater healing for the soul in beholding splendor than there is in beholding self." -John Piper 
Nov 19, 2022: Denny Burk: What Happened at the Rocky Mountain ETS?
This was the only session that I planned to listen to from start to finish, and I did. There has been some controversy around Piper’s recent book What Is Saving Faith? Reflections on Receiving Christ as a Treasure (Crossway, 2022). I won’t rehearse it all here, but some critics have charged Piper with adopting a view of faith that is more akin to Roman Catholicism than to Reformed Protestantism. Because Piper includes an affectional element in his definition of faith, he undermines sola fide. That’s the gist of the criticism anyway. I came with an open mind and heart wanting to hear from both sides to find out who could make the most persuasive case from Scripture. John Piper presented his case first, and then Guy Waters and J. V. Fesko responded with substantial critiques. Waters focused his critique on Piper’s reading of Scripture, and Fesko focused his on Piper’s use of historical sources. Joe Rigney moderated a spirited and respectful discussion after the three papers. “I HAVE SEEN SO MUCH EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL IN MY MINISTRY, I AM JEALOUS TO RAISE A WARNING AGAINST IT. EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL HAPPENS WHEN A PERSON EQUATES HIS OR HER EMOTIONAL PAIN WITH ANOTHER PERSON’S FAILURE TO LOVE. THEY AREN’T THE SAME. A PERSON MAY LOVE WELL AND THE BELOVED STILL FEEL HURT, AND USE THE HURT TO BLACKMAIL THE LOVER INTO ADMITTING GUILT HE OR SHE DOES NOT HAVE. EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL SAYS, ‘IF I FEEL HURT BY YOU, YOU ARE GUILTY.’ THERE IS NO DEFENSE. THE HURT PERSON HAS BECOME GOD. HIS EMOTION HAS BECOME JUDGE AND JURY. TRUTH DOES NOT MATTER. ALL THAT MATTERS IS THE SOVEREIGN SUFFERING OF THE AGGRIEVED. IT IS ABOVE QUESTION. THIS EMOTIONAL DEVICE IS A GREAT EVIL. I HAVE SEEN IT OFTEN IN MY THREE DECADES OF MINISTRY AND I AM EAGER TO DEFEND PEOPLE WHO ARE BEING WRONGLY INDICTED BY IT.” —JOHN PIPER Jan 28, 2023
|
May 2, 2018: Christianity Today: Tim Keller, John Piper, and Andy Stanley Among the 12 ‘Most Effective’ Preachers
Baylor’s seminary asked homiletics experts to pick the top English-speaking sermon givers of today’s generation
Baylor’s seminary asked homiletics experts to pick the top English-speaking sermon givers of today’s generation
Sept 18, 2014: Radical.net Blog: John Piper Interviews David Platt
Several years ago, John Piper sat down with David Platt to ask him some questions about missions and his heart for the unreached. This 30 minute video gives a great glimpse into who David is and what he’s about.
Several years ago, John Piper sat down with David Platt to ask him some questions about missions and his heart for the unreached. This 30 minute video gives a great glimpse into who David is and what he’s about.
May 18, 2014: Thoughtlife: Is Rachel Held Evans’s Use of “God Herself” Biblically Faithful?
Grounding her attacks in an oft-cited instinct for justice, Evans has—by my count—mocked and opposed the following in just the last few years: The Council on Biblical Manhood & Womanhood, The Gospel Coalition, Together for the Gospel, The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, Southern Seminary, Desiring God Ministries, Al Mohler, John Piper, Russell Moore, Tim Challies, Mark Driscoll, myself, Denny Burk, Andrew Walker, Doug Wilson, Jared Wilson, and the list goes on.
Grounding her attacks in an oft-cited instinct for justice, Evans has—by my count—mocked and opposed the following in just the last few years: The Council on Biblical Manhood & Womanhood, The Gospel Coalition, Together for the Gospel, The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, Southern Seminary, Desiring God Ministries, Al Mohler, John Piper, Russell Moore, Tim Challies, Mark Driscoll, myself, Denny Burk, Andrew Walker, Doug Wilson, Jared Wilson, and the list goes on.
Mar 5, 2014: Christian Post: John Piper Responds to Pastor David Yonggi Cho's Conviction for Embezzling $12M by Making Plea to US Pastors
When asked about the conviction of David Yonggi Cho, founder of world's largest Pentecostal congregation in South Korea, for embezzling $12 million from his church, popular pastor John Piper took the opportunity to warn pastors in the U.S. who might "love money," in a recent message.
When asked about the conviction of David Yonggi Cho, founder of world's largest Pentecostal congregation in South Korea, for embezzling $12 million from his church, popular pastor John Piper took the opportunity to warn pastors in the U.S. who might "love money," in a recent message.
Feb 22, 2014: World Magazine: Ripping racial strife out by the roots
Black History Month | We close out Black History Month with John Piper’s personal, prophetic, and profound words on the power of the gospel in racial reconciliation
June 2012: Marlena Graves: Christianity Today: Prodigal Children: If It Can Happen to John Piper, It Can Happen to You
Black History Month | We close out Black History Month with John Piper’s personal, prophetic, and profound words on the power of the gospel in racial reconciliation
June 2012: Marlena Graves: Christianity Today: Prodigal Children: If It Can Happen to John Piper, It Can Happen to You
2010
|
Apr 5, 2010: Tim Challies: Why John Piper Should Not Have Invited Rick Warren
So John Piper has asked Rick Warren to speak at this year’s Desiring God National Conference, Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God. You may have heard about this, either through buzz in the blogosphere or even from Piper himself in his recent Ask Pastor John session |
Warren has proven repeatedly that he does not and will not honor the Bible. He preaches from the Bible, he knows vast amounts of Scripture and I’m sure he loves studying the Bible. But his ministry makes clear that he does not truly honor it in the way he uses it. I hardly even know where to begin here. Turn to any of Warren’s books and you will see that this is the case. Time and time again he has misused and abused the Bible. Years ago I read The Purpose Driven Life day-by-day and blogged my way through each chapter. I looked up each and every Bible reference. And in almost every chapter I found that Warren had used Scripture poorly, stretching its meaning, choosing translations that, more than being true to the text, furthered his intended meaning. This is the way he always has used Scripture and the way he continues to today. Turn to just about any review of his books and you’ll find multitudes of examples. 4.5.10 |
2009
Nov 23, 2009: H4CBlog: John Piper’s Replacement Theology
Preface: I regularly attended Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis for over eight years. The senior pastor there, Dr. John Piper, is a gifted and eloquent speaker, but I often detected a not-so-subtle theological bias in his teaching that suggested that God had no abiding interest in the State of Israel or in the Jewish people.
On June 2nd, 2009, I met with Dr. John Piper (of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis) to discuss his theology of Israel, or “Israelology,” as it is sometimes called. I wanted to know why, in particular, Dr. Piper said (during a sermon I attended) that he “would rather have his car fixed than to get a free trip to Israel for his 30th anniversary” (i.e., as Bethlehem’s senior pastor). As a Messianic Jew, I found this comment deeply offensive coming from a man who professes to have faith in the One born “the King of the Jews” (Matt. 2:2). How could a pastor of a well-respected Evangelical church express an almost callous indifference to Israel’s past, present, or future? Is not the God Dr. Piper claims to believe in explicitly called the LORD God of Israel (Exod. 5:1, Psalm 41:13, Luke 1:68, etc.)? Did not God tell Moses that this was His Name forever (Exod. 3:15)? Is not God repeatedly called the “King of Israel” (Isa 44:6, John 12:13)? Indeed, does not the word “Messiah” itself indicate a regal title given to the anointed King of Israel? And does not the New Covenant itself (בְּרִית חֲדָשָׁה), as foretold by the prophet Jeremiah, explicitly promise the perpetuity of Israel forever (Jer. 31:31-37)?
According to the great prophet Jeremiah, if you saw the sun shine today or the stars in the night sky, you can be assured that God’s promise to preserve the “offspring of Israel” — i.e., zera Yisrael — is in effect. Indeed, in the world to come, heavenly Jerusalem will have the names of the twelve tribes of Israel engraved upon its gates (Rev. 21:12). Note well that this is the only occurrence in the entire “Old Testament” that the New Covenant (בְּרִית חֲדָשָׁה) is explicitly mentioned… It is a foundational passage of Scripture for those who claim to be followers of the Jewish Messiah…
As I discussed some of these truths with Piper, I was sure he was going to argue that God had rejected Israel because he regards the “church” as “reconstituted Israel” or else to claim that ethnic Israel had forfeited their status as God’s people because they failed to keep covenant with God (first by failing to keep the terms of Sinai, and later by rejecting Yeshua as the Messiah). Dr. Piper surprised me, however, since he claimed that the nature of the Abraham covenant, i.e., the “Covenant Between the Parts” (בְּרִית בֵּין הַבְּתָרִים) found in Genesis 15:9-21, is a conditional, rather than an unconditional covenant. This theological “move” by Dr. Piper allowed him to claim that ethnic Israel “failed” to keep the terms of that covenant (of faith) and therefore is (present tense) subject to Divine Censure or curse. In other words, the rejection of Israel in God’s plan is not on account of their failure to keep the terms of the Sinai covenant, but rather because they have failed to keep the Abrahamic covenant… This is a puzzling position, to be sure, since it negates the point the Apostle Paul made regarding the idea of “Justification by Faith” in the Book of Galatians and subtly adds an element of “works” righteousness into the idea of being declared righteous by faith alone…
At any rate, the paradox of Dr. Piper’s position — despite his commitment to Calvinism — is that it leads to a lack of assurance of salvation, since “eternal security” is based on human merit, after all. This “works righteousness” is alien to the true intent of Scripture and reveals a profound misunderstanding of the nature of the New Covenant itself (i.e., Jer. 31:31-38). It reveals a confusion between the historical covenants by regarding them as functions of fictive covenants posited by Covenant Theology itself (see below)…. If God breaks His promises to Israel, why do Christians like John Piper think that He won’t break His promises to the Church?
Ultimately I believe John Piper’s replacement theology comes from his veneration of the saints of the Reformation and to later Christian scholars who devised the theosophical paradigm called “Covenant Theology.” This system of theology, not unlike theoretical Kabbalism, claims that it understands God’s purposes and actions — even before the creation of the universe itself. The idea of “covenant” (בְּרִית), in particular, is more a philosophical construct than a genuinely Biblical doctrine, inductively discovered…. Indeed, the “great covenants” of Covenant Theology (i.e., “Works” and “Grace”) are not historically rooted interventions into the human experience made by the LORD God of Israel at all, but rather are theological fictions devised by those who claim to give a meta-narrative account for “God, the universe, and everything in it.”
Preface: I regularly attended Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis for over eight years. The senior pastor there, Dr. John Piper, is a gifted and eloquent speaker, but I often detected a not-so-subtle theological bias in his teaching that suggested that God had no abiding interest in the State of Israel or in the Jewish people.
On June 2nd, 2009, I met with Dr. John Piper (of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis) to discuss his theology of Israel, or “Israelology,” as it is sometimes called. I wanted to know why, in particular, Dr. Piper said (during a sermon I attended) that he “would rather have his car fixed than to get a free trip to Israel for his 30th anniversary” (i.e., as Bethlehem’s senior pastor). As a Messianic Jew, I found this comment deeply offensive coming from a man who professes to have faith in the One born “the King of the Jews” (Matt. 2:2). How could a pastor of a well-respected Evangelical church express an almost callous indifference to Israel’s past, present, or future? Is not the God Dr. Piper claims to believe in explicitly called the LORD God of Israel (Exod. 5:1, Psalm 41:13, Luke 1:68, etc.)? Did not God tell Moses that this was His Name forever (Exod. 3:15)? Is not God repeatedly called the “King of Israel” (Isa 44:6, John 12:13)? Indeed, does not the word “Messiah” itself indicate a regal title given to the anointed King of Israel? And does not the New Covenant itself (בְּרִית חֲדָשָׁה), as foretold by the prophet Jeremiah, explicitly promise the perpetuity of Israel forever (Jer. 31:31-37)?
According to the great prophet Jeremiah, if you saw the sun shine today or the stars in the night sky, you can be assured that God’s promise to preserve the “offspring of Israel” — i.e., zera Yisrael — is in effect. Indeed, in the world to come, heavenly Jerusalem will have the names of the twelve tribes of Israel engraved upon its gates (Rev. 21:12). Note well that this is the only occurrence in the entire “Old Testament” that the New Covenant (בְּרִית חֲדָשָׁה) is explicitly mentioned… It is a foundational passage of Scripture for those who claim to be followers of the Jewish Messiah…
As I discussed some of these truths with Piper, I was sure he was going to argue that God had rejected Israel because he regards the “church” as “reconstituted Israel” or else to claim that ethnic Israel had forfeited their status as God’s people because they failed to keep covenant with God (first by failing to keep the terms of Sinai, and later by rejecting Yeshua as the Messiah). Dr. Piper surprised me, however, since he claimed that the nature of the Abraham covenant, i.e., the “Covenant Between the Parts” (בְּרִית בֵּין הַבְּתָרִים) found in Genesis 15:9-21, is a conditional, rather than an unconditional covenant. This theological “move” by Dr. Piper allowed him to claim that ethnic Israel “failed” to keep the terms of that covenant (of faith) and therefore is (present tense) subject to Divine Censure or curse. In other words, the rejection of Israel in God’s plan is not on account of their failure to keep the terms of the Sinai covenant, but rather because they have failed to keep the Abrahamic covenant… This is a puzzling position, to be sure, since it negates the point the Apostle Paul made regarding the idea of “Justification by Faith” in the Book of Galatians and subtly adds an element of “works” righteousness into the idea of being declared righteous by faith alone…
At any rate, the paradox of Dr. Piper’s position — despite his commitment to Calvinism — is that it leads to a lack of assurance of salvation, since “eternal security” is based on human merit, after all. This “works righteousness” is alien to the true intent of Scripture and reveals a profound misunderstanding of the nature of the New Covenant itself (i.e., Jer. 31:31-38). It reveals a confusion between the historical covenants by regarding them as functions of fictive covenants posited by Covenant Theology itself (see below)…. If God breaks His promises to Israel, why do Christians like John Piper think that He won’t break His promises to the Church?
Ultimately I believe John Piper’s replacement theology comes from his veneration of the saints of the Reformation and to later Christian scholars who devised the theosophical paradigm called “Covenant Theology.” This system of theology, not unlike theoretical Kabbalism, claims that it understands God’s purposes and actions — even before the creation of the universe itself. The idea of “covenant” (בְּרִית), in particular, is more a philosophical construct than a genuinely Biblical doctrine, inductively discovered…. Indeed, the “great covenants” of Covenant Theology (i.e., “Works” and “Grace”) are not historically rooted interventions into the human experience made by the LORD God of Israel at all, but rather are theological fictions devised by those who claim to give a meta-narrative account for “God, the universe, and everything in it.”
2008
"Jesus is where we meet God. If you want to say, “Where on the planet today is a holy place that I can do a pilgrimage and be in the house of God?” Answer, “Jesus!” You want to go to a holy place on the planet? Stand still and come to Jesus. There aren’t any holy sites in the Christian religion. Zero. I’ve never gone to Israel mainly for that reason. Please, when I’m here 30 years don’t give me a free trip to Israel – fix my car! I got no problem with you going to Israel. I don’t want any emails. There’s just no more Jesus in Israel than there is in your pew right now."
-John Piper; Dec 7, 2008 Sermon
-John Piper; Dec 7, 2008 Sermon