R.C. Sproul, went home to be with the Lord this afternoon
Maybe I’m rare, but I haven’t yet “discovered” Sproul. I know about his ministry, and his legacy. I have two of his books, Chosen by God and The Holiness of God, but I haven’t read them yet. I’ve never watched any videos of his teaching. I need to read Holiness of God.
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
The Holiness of God is a great book. There was a while that I was on a R.C. Sprout kick in my early twenties. A good writer and someone who always seems so likeable.
I’m thankful for Sproul’s influence in my life. It’s not a huge influence but an important one — all through video, audio, and books. He was consistently challenging — raising important questions, providing thorough answers, though not always answers I could understand. Sproul would get very excited and intense talking about relatively obscure theological and philosophical points because he saw them as important in ways most of us (or so I felt at the time) had never considered. His insights were not always accessible, but his delivery was always genuine and warmly human. He loved to tell a story!
I’m going to have to dust off some Sproul and give it another spin.
A favorite of mine ….
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Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
[TylerR]Same here. Never read a book of his, never even listened to a full sermon.Maybe I’m rare, but I haven’t yet “discovered” Sproul. I know about his ministry, and his legacy. I have two of his books, Chosen by God and The Holiness of God, but I haven’t read them yet. I’ve never watched any videos of his teaching. I need to read Holiness of God.
But because he was so influential to so many who have influenced me, I still feel a connection.
Some of his teaching now available on a podcast.
I am a regular listener.
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I first heard of Dr. R.C. Sproul in college, where I saw some of his books used as textbooks and on display in the bookstore.
I guess that planted a seed in my mind because, after college, when I started trying to really “figure things out”—back in the prehistoric days before the Internet—I sent for his complete catalog of materials. Mind you, this was in 1993-94—before the “Reformed resurgence,” “YRR” or the “neo-Calvinists.” What I saw in that catalog both intrigued and startled me. Here was an evangelical intellectual making a bold case for infant baptism, amillennialism and covenant theology.
Looking back, I can see that this was, at least subconsciously, one of the many influences that drove me on to seminary.
I can remember working overnight security in seminary at Faith and listening to Sproul’s sermons—back when they were played on Family Radio, when his own broadcast was just beginning.
In our presuppositional apologetics module, Dr. John C. Whitcomb—an ally of Sproul on the issue of inerrancy—shared his sharp disagreements with Sproul’s apologetic method, as we used Classical Apologetics as one of our textbooks.
I never met Sproul, but have listened to him on and off in the years since, and delved into his teaching on the Reformation as recently as this summer.
The two most important Presbyterians in my life have been Dr. Bruce Dunn and Dr. D. James Kennedy. Sproul would be number three.
Although I disagree with him at significant points, I have always respected and admired him. We (dispensationalists, Baptists, etc.) could learn much from his seriousness and his deep connection to historical theology.
By the way, if you have not listened to today’s episode of Renewing Your Mind, it would be well worth your while.
Church Ministries Representative, serving in the Midwest, for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry
I first became aware of RC Sproul through “Renewing Your Mind.” I met him once. Back in 2008, I think April 6, I was visiting Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. I had no idea that it was the weekend of the Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology. Expecting to hear Phil Ryken, I looked towards the platform and recognized RC Sproul. He spoke from 1 Peter 1:18-19, “Precious Blood.” It was a simple, but powerful message. I was able to shake his hands afterwards. This is a video of the message he preached:
https://www.sermonaudio.com/playpopupvideo.asp?SID=427082318128
I have a deep appreciation for RC Sproul. I’ve read several of his books, listened to him on Renewing your Mind for years, visited his church, St. Andrews twice, and attended one Ligoniere Conference in Orlando. The more exposure I had, the more he grew on me. I believe he is the man most responsible for the conservative resurgence among Presbyterians, which has become a mighty force for Biblical Christianity in America today. He is simple, direct, winsome, knowledgeable, intellectual, and difficult to dislike. My only close personal encounter was in a men’s restroom in St. Andrews church at the old location. I was quite surprised to find him standing beside me at a urinal. He was as friendly and unassuming as an old farmer. I have not found his pulpit sermons as effective as his radio teaching, but I have been helped and blessed by his vast amount of teaching on an incredibly wide range of subjects, from philosophy to music. He was amazing. (I consider his defense of infant baptism quite weak, perhaps one of the few weaknesses in his teaching.)
G. N. Barkman
Comments from Mohler and Patterson:
http://bpnews.net/50072/reformed-theologian-pastor-rc-sproul-dies
David R. Brumbelow
Discussion