John Piper (theologian)

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John Piper
John Piper
John Piper
John Piper

John Stephen Piper (born January 11, 1946, Chattanooga, Tennessee) is a Reformed Baptist minister and author, currently serving as senior pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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[edit] Biography

Piper was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Bill and Ruth Piper. When he and his older sister were still young, the Pipers moved to Greenville, South Carolina, where he spent the rest of his youth. His father was an itinerant evangelist who actively ministered through international radio and Bible courses until his death in March, 2007. Piper has written a tribute to his mother, who died in 1974, in the booklet, What's the Difference? (Crossway Books, 1990) which is also chapter one of the book, Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (Crossway Books, 1991).

At Wheaton College (1964-68), Piper majored in Literature and minored in Philosophy. Studying Romantic Literature with Clyde Kilby stimulated the poetic side of his nature and today he regularly writes poems to celebrate special family occasions as well as composing story-poems (based on the life of a Biblical character) for his congregation during the four weeks of Advent each year. At Wheaton, he also met Noël Henry, whom he married in 1968.

Following college, he completed a Bachelor of Divinity degree at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California (1968-71). While at Fuller, he took as many courses as he could from Daniel Fuller, the most influential living teacher in his life, and through Fuller he discovered the writings of Jonathan Edwards, his most influential non-living teacher.

Piper did his doctoral work in New Testament Studies at the University of Munich, Munich, West Germany (1971-74). His dissertation, Love Your Enemies, was published by Cambridge University Press and Baker Book House. Upon completion of his doctorate he went on to teach Biblical Studies at Bethel University and Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, for six years (1974-80).

In 1980, after what he described as an irresistible call of the Lord to preach, Piper became Senior Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he has been ministering ever since. He is also a contributor to World magazine.

On January 11, 2006, Piper announced that the month beforehand, he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. According to a letter sent to his church[1], he and his doctors believe that the cancer is fully treatable. Piper's reaction to his diagnosis was: "This news has, of course, been good for me. The most dangerous thing in the world is the sin of self-reliance and the stupor of worldliness. The news of cancer has a wonderfully blasting effect on both. I thank God for that. The times with Christ in these days have been unusually sweet."

Piper's motto in ministry, preaching, and teaching is: "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him." He calls those who live out this motto Christian Hedonists. Piper places a heavy emphasis on the objective and absolute nature of truth and is confident in the Christian's ability to grasp that truth through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. According to Piper, those who do not know Christ do not possess the truth or eternal life. His work sharply divides between conservatives and liberals, condemning the alleged "relativism" of the latter. Piper is currently considered one of the most influential Reformed Christian writers and theologians today.

Piper has four sons, a daughter, and seven grandchildren.

[edit] Authored books

  • Love Your Enemies: Jesus' Love Command in the Synoptic Gospels and the Early Christian Paraenesis (Cambridge University Press, 1980; Baker, 1991).
  • The Justification of God: An Exegetical and Theological Study of Romans 9:1-23 (Baker, 1983; 2nd edition 1993).
  • Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (Multnomah, 1986; 2nd edition, 1996, 3rd edition, 2003).
  • The Supremacy of God in Preaching (Baker, 1990, 2nd edition, 2003).
  • The Pleasures of God (Multnomah, 1991; Expanded edition, 2000).
  • Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (Co-editor) (Crossway, 1991).
  • Let the Nations Be Glad! The Supremacy of God in Missions (Baker, 1993, 2nd Edition 2003).
  • The Purifying Power of Living By Faith In Future Grace (Multnomah, 1995).
  • A Hunger for God: Desiring God Through Fasting and Prayer (Crossway, 1997).
  • A Godward Life: Savoring the Supremacy of God in All of Life (Multnomah, 1997).
  • God's Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards (Crossway, 1998).
  • The Innkeeper (Crossway, 1998).
  • A Godward Life, Book Two: Savoring the Supremacy of God in All of Life (Multnomah, 1999).
  • The Legacy of Sovereign Joy (Crossway, 2000).
  • The Hidden Smile of God (Crossway, 2001).
  • Seeing and Savoring Jesus Christ (Crossway, 2001, 2nd edition, 2004).
  • The Dangerous Duty of Delight (Multnomah, 2001).
  • The Misery of Job and the Mercy of God (Crossway, 2002).
  • Brothers, We Are not Professionals: A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry (Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2002).
  • The Roots of Endurance: Invincible Perseverance in the Lives of John Newton, Charles Simeon, and William Wilberforce (Crossway, 2002).
  • Counted Righteous in Christ: Should We Abandon the Imputation of Christ's Righteousness? (Crossway, 2002).
  • Beyond the Bounds (Co-editor) (Crossway, 2003).
  • Don't Waste Your Life (Crossway, 2003).
  • Pierced By the Word (Multnomah, 2003).
  • The Prodigal's Sister (Crossway, 2003).
  • The Passion of Jesus Christ (Crossway, 2004).
  • When I Don't Desire God: How to Fight for Joy (Crossway, 2004).
  • Life As a Vapor (Multnomah, 2004).
  • Taste and See (Multnomah, 2005).
  • God is the Gospel: Meditations on God's Love as the Gift of Himself (Crossway, 2005).
  • Sex and the Supremacy of Christ (w/ Justin Taylor, Crossway, 2005).
  • What Jesus Demands from the World (Crossway, 2006).
  • Suffering and the Sovereignty of God (Crossway, 2006).
  • God is the Gospel (Crossway, 2006)

[edit] Multimedia

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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