John MacArthur Jr, an influential figure in American evangelicalism, died at 86 on Monday after a series of illnesses.
MacArthur led Grace Community Church in California for 56 years, building a vast following through his popular “Grace to You” radio ministry and authoring hundreds of books and biblical commentaries.
Widely recognised for his verse-by-verse preaching style, he was often hailed as “the world’s premier expositor”, according to The Roys Report.
His death was announced by Phil Johnson, longtime head of MacArthur’s media ministry and editor of many of his books. MacArthur had undergone multiple heart and lung surgeries over the years and was hospitalised earlier this month with pneumonia.
Revered for his uncompromising, fundamentalist theology and Calvinist doctrine, MacArthur also founded and expanded The Master’s University (earlier named Los Angeles Baptist College).
His ministry’s slogan was “Unleashing God’s Truth, One Verse at a Time”.
While deeply influential, MacArthur’s legacy is also marked by controversy – including alleged mishandling of abuse cases, misogynistic remarks, plagiarism claims, and clashes with authorities over Covid-19 restrictions. An ardent opponent of feminism, LGBTQ rights, and evolution, he was central to the resurgence of Calvinism in the US, Baptist News Global reported.
In his later years, MacArthur became an increasingly vocal figure in America’s cultural and political battles. He condemned critical race theory and emerged as a prominent evangelical critic of “wokeness”.
Though Grace Community Church initially closed at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, it soon defied California’s public health orders by resuming indoor services, prompting a legal standoff that ended with the state and Los Angeles County paying an $800,000 settlement over alleged violations of religious freedom.
“Evangelicalism is a pulpit-driven movement, and John has driven the most influential pulpit in evangelical Christianity for more than a half a century,” R Albert Mohler Jr, the president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, in Louisville, said in an interview earlier this year, according to The New York Times.
MacArthur was the son of Jack MacArthur, an independent fundamental Baptist preacher and radio host known for “The Voice of Calvary”.
Deeply influenced by his father, MacArthur attended Bob Jones College before transferring to Los Angeles Pacific College. He earned a Master of Divinity from the Biblical Institute of Los Angeles (now Biola University and Talbot School of Theology), where he later became a faculty representative.
After graduation, he worked with his father’s ministries and was ordained by the Independent Fundamental Churches of America.
In 1969, Grace Community Church in Sun Valley appointed MacArthur as its youngest and third pastor.
Under his leadership, the church expanded rapidly, and his preaching led to the creation of the “Grace to You” media ministry, which now broadcasts in nine languages on over 2,400 stations.
He also led The Master’s University and authored the bestselling “MacArthur Study Bible” – which has reportedly sold more than four million copies.
Though he received an honorary doctorate from Biola in 1977, some criticised his use of the “Doctor” title.
Critics also accused MacArthur of oversimplifying scripture, arguing that his insistence on a single, definitive interpretation of even the Bible’s most complex passages misled listeners. But to his followers, that was precisely his strength.
MacArthur “inspired thousands of pastors to believe that explaining what the Bible means honours God, saves people and is just plain interesting,” John Piper, a retired pastor and popular theologian in Minnesota who was a longtime friend, told The New York Times. “To this day, from Dallas to Dubai, young people (especially men) come up to me and say that they listen to John MacArthur.”
“Grace To You” ministry website noted: “While this is a profound loss, our commitment – our plan – has not changed. As the Lord sustains this work, Grace to You will always and only distribute the Bible teaching of John MacArthur.”
He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Patricia, along with four children, fifteen grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.
