THE MINISTRY AND INFLUENCE OF JOHN MACARTHUR
This weekend, Grace Church will celebrate the 40th anniversary of John MacArthur's ministry at our church. It was February, 1969 when John started as the pastor-teacher at Grace. Now, forty years later, our congregation has the opportunity to rejoice in God's goodness to us over the last four decades. We do so with grateful hearts, thanking the Lord for the gift our pastor has been to us.
Personally, since 1973 I have followed the ministry of John MacArthur and the Grace Community Church. My first sermon I heard John preach was from Ephesians 4:12. And that message set the plan in my mind about the biblical means of doing ministry and preaching and leading a church.
I have no apologies about my love for the work that John MacArthur accomplished and those who have come alone side him and helped him in the ministry of Grace Community Church and Grace To You. I know he could not have done any of this without the blessings of the Lord, and the work of many people who work for the church, the gty ministry.
John always said, "I preach and teach, others have accomplished all the books, and tapes, etc."
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IN 1983 and again in 1990 while pastor of First Baptist Church, Altoona, Kansas, I attended the Shcpherd Conference and there I bought the Video Library on Expository Preaching by John. The rest is history as far as my teaching and preaching the Word of God. I have never said otherwise that John has influence my style of ministry and preaching.
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While I have a biblical library of over 400 books specifically about preaching the Word of God, and understanding the text of Scripture, it has being through the Shepherd's Conference that I have gain the knowledge of ministry as a pastor and teacher.
I could write a volumn more about this experience, and I will over time.
