Dubai: John MacArthur, the steadfast California preacher whose verse-by-verse Bible expositions shaped evangelical pulpits worldwide, has died in Santa Clarita. He was 86.

His death on Monday, following recent hospitalisation for pneumonia, was confirmed by longtime associate Phil Johnson, who led MacArthur’s Grace to You media ministry.

For over five decades, MacArthur stood behind the pulpit of Grace Community Church in Los Angeles, preaching through scripture with what admirers called unmatched clarity and conviction. He eschewed storytelling and emotional appeals, opting instead for rigorous exegesis, delivered always in a suit and tie, New York Times said.

To his followers, he was a lion in the pulpit. To his critics, a lightning rod. But few denied his impact.

“The longer I knew John MacArthur, the more I loved him,” wrote popular theologian John Piper. “Admiration intensified into affection… I simply stood in awe of what he could do in the pulpit with a passage of Scripture.”

Piper, a retired pastor in Minnesota who was a longtime friend, said in an email: “To this day, from Dallas to Dubai, young people (especially men) come up to me and say that they listen to John MacArthur.”

“He was a preacher God used to make other preachers better preachers,” Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, told AP news agency.

Franklin Graham called him “one of America’s great Bible teachers,” and Jonathan Falwell, chancellor of Liberty University, said his legacy “will inspire generations to come.”

Known to many simply as "JMac," MacArthur taught that truth was objective, not shaped by culture or feeling.

His sermons — numbering in the thousands — were first distributed on cassette tapes and later across the globe via radio, internet, and translated books. His MacArthur Study Bible and 33-volume New Testament commentary series became staples in churches.

He never strayed far from home. From 1969 until his death, he served the same church. He also founded The Master’s Seminary, training thousands of men in his model of pastoral ministry.

Life and legacy, at a glance

Born: June 19, 1939, in Los Angeles, California
Died: July 15, 2025, in Santa Clarita, California
Role: Senior Pastor, Grace Community Church (1969–2025)
Education: Master of Divinity, Talbot Theological Seminary
Family: Survived by wife Patricia, four children, 15 grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren
Books: Author of The Gospel According to Jesus, MacArthur Study Bible, and 150+ other works
Institutions founded: The Master’s Seminary, The Master’s University
Media ministry: Grace to You — heard globally via radio, podcast, and online
Sermons archived: Over 3,000, spanning the entire New Testament

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