John MacArthur and His Critics

This post is a tribute to long-time pastor and prolific author John MacArthur, who died on July 14, 2025, at the age of 86.

How many years does it take to be considered a “long-time” pastor? How about 55 years – all at the same church (Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California).

During that time, he preached over 3,000 sermons, all of which are available for free in downloadable PDF and MP3 formats at gty.org. Or you can just listen to them on the website.

Most of these sermons are verse-by-verse expositions of all 27 books of the New Testament. I have listened to many of them on my daily walks in the neighborhood. Two of my favorites are “Which Way to Heaven?” (Matthew 7:13-14) and “Fifteen Words of Hope” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

How many books do you have to write to be called a “prolific” author? How about 100+ and counting.

You can check them out at Amazon. My favorite is The Gospel According to Jesus. This book turned my theology on its head and taught me much about the meaning of the gospel.

For a free paperback copy of one of MacArthur’s books, visit:
https://www.gty.org/free-offer/25WS0009

MacArthur was also controversial. He had his critics. On spiritual gifts, he was a cessationist and received much wrath from the Charismatic Movement. On the Lordship Salvation issue, he taught that if Jesus wasn’t your Lord, then He wasn’t your Savior either. On the role of women, he was a complementarian; I’ve heard him say, “A church with a woman pastor is a church without a pastor.” (For more MacArthur quotes, see below.)

Through it all, he was a faithful Bible teacher. I thank the Lord for him and the way God has used him in my life.

John MacArthur Quotes:

“On the cross God looked at Christ and saw you, now he looks at you and sees Christ.”

“If you could lose your salvation, you would.”

“He loves us not because there is something in us that attracts Him to us; He loves us because He determined to love us in spite of our unattractiveness … It’s a love we don’t deserve, a love that will never end. It’s a love that perseveres even when we fail Him.”

“The dammed think they are good. The saved know they are wicked.
The damned believe the kingdom of God is for those worthy of it. The saved know the kingdom of God is for those who realize how unworthy they are.
The damned believe eternal life is earned. The saved know it is a gift.
The damned seek God’s commendation. The saved seek His forgiveness.”

“God must open the eyes of our understanding before we can truly know and rightly interpret His truth. His truth is available only to those with a regenerate spirit and in whom His Spirit dwells, for only the Spirit can illumine Scripture. Just as the physically blind cannot see the sun, the spiritually blind cannot see the Son. Both lack proper illumination.”

Source: https://www.monergism.com/dr-john-macarthur
This link provides an excellent overview of various biblical topics that John MacArthur has preached on and/or written about, with links to resources, both free and for sale.