John Piper, the senior pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, is committed to sharing the life and teachings of Jesus Christ through his sermons, radio broadcasts, and online. He is the author of more than 50 books and currently travels across the world giving seminars on God’s supremacy. He writes poetry for significant family occasions and creates story-poems for Advent churchgoers every year, in addition to his religious duties. He completed his doctorate in New Testament Studies at the University of Munich and went on to become one of the world’s most prominent and eminent theologians in modern times. Many of his books have won ECPA Christian Book Awards and other accolades, including ‘Pierced by the World,’ ‘The Passion of Jesus Christ,’ ‘God’s Passion for His Glory,’ and ‘Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist.’ He formed ‘Desiring God Ministries during his time as a pastor and fellow ‘Christian Hedonist,’ which makes all of his sermons and publications available through annual conferences and, more recently, multimedia. Continue reading if you want to discover more about this fascinating individual.
Childhood and Adolescence
John Piper was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Bill and Ruth Piper. His father used to travel as an evangelist and church planter, therefore he was primarily raised by his mother. His family relocated to Greenville, South Carolina, where he attended Wade Hampton High School and graduated.
He studied Romantic Literature and majored in literature and philosophy at Wheaton College from 1964 to 1968.
He enrolled in a Pre-med program in college but went on to get a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in California.
He subsequently went on to get his doctorate in New Testament Studies at the University of Munich in Germany.
From 1974 until 1980, he taught Biblical Studies at Bethel University and Seminary after completing his Ph.D. degree.
John Piper’s Career
He became the pastor of Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1980, and in 1986, he published ‘Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist.’ He expanded his theological boundaries by writing a number of other publications about ‘Christian Hedonism.’
In 1994, he launched ‘Desiring God Ministries,’ which distributed all of Piper’s theological talks, sermons, and information in the form of CDs, DVDs, and even over the internet.
Piper claimed that a tiny tornado that struck at a seminar in August 2009 was a sign from God. He published a blog post about it, linking the tornado to a contentious LGBT blog. Although he was initially chastised for his remark, it was eventually praised by readers as a “brave” statement.
From May 1, 2010, to January 9, 2011, he took a hiatus from ministry. He focused on writing a number of novels during this time, as well as traveling throughout the world.
Jason Meyer was elected to succeed John Piper as pastor on May 20, 2012. On March 31, 2013, he offered his farewell homily as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church before retiring permanently. During this speech, he announced that he and his family would be leaving the church for a year in order for the incoming pastor to be able to work without distractions.
‘Counted Righteous in Christ,’ ‘Think About These Things,’ ‘The Hidden Smile of God,’ and ‘The Misery of Job and the Mercy of God’ are some of his most recent works.
His Major Projects
In 1994, he launched ‘Desiring God Ministries,’ which sells or gives away all of his sermons, books, and essays online and offline. For fellow ‘Christian Hedonists,’ his sermons are also available on DVD and CD. Because he considers ministry to be the “primary effort of his life,” this is considered one of his key works. He has impacted the lives of approximately 2 billion individuals around the world as a result of this foundation.
During his lifetime, he wrote a number of books, but one in particular, ‘Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist,’ was a best-seller and won the ECPA Christian Book Award.
‘The Passion of Jesus Christ,’ published in 2004, was not only the winner of the ECPA Christian Book Award, but it was also his magnum work, explaining the majestic truths of the gospel with theological evidence, which was unusual at the time.
Personal History and Legacy
In 1968, he married Noel Henry, a fellow Wheaton, and they have four kids, a daughter, and twelve grandchildren.
Piper enjoys reading literature in his leisure time and also enjoys writing poems for special occasions or festivities in his family.
On January 11, 2006, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, for which he underwent surgery on February 14, 2006.
Estimated Net Worth
John Piper is one of the wealthiest novelists and one of the most well-known. John Piper’s net worth is estimated to be $17 million, according to Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider.
Trivia
Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die, one of this great theologian’s books, became a best-seller as well as a controversial publication because it included 50 reasons why Christ sacrificed himself for his people.