Tim Keller - Redeemer Church Message from Tim Keller
On May 19th we lost one of the most thought-provoking Christian writers of our age.
Tim Keller’s son shared one last moment of wisdom before passing, “There is no downside for me leaving, not in the slightest.”
Even as he was approaching his end, thoughtful words to comfort those he left behind.
In the last several months I have been leading a study in Mark influenced by one of Tim’s books, Jesus the King.
It was my first introduction to the writing of this man; he would become one of the key influences of my journey to serve the Lord.
I have bought many more of his books and found them feeding my soul and desire to serve the Lord.
I had the pleasure of seeing him in person a few years ago at the Dallas Theological Seminary.
I was awestruck, sitting there, listening to this man that I had read so eagerly over the years.
He was a soft-spoken man, an intellectual, with a gift for words on the page that inspired you to seek the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind.
In 2021, he announced that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, he was taking treatments, saw improvements but early this year announced he was going back for more treatments as his condition worsened.
On May 19th, a Friday morning, they announced he was in hospice and shortly after that he was gone.
Tim Keller was an apologist, a defender of the gospel.
He broke the gospel down to this simple statement, "The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope."
I listened to words of comfort from the likes of John Piper, Alister Begg, and many other Christian leaders, learning that Tim impacted each of us similarly.
He was eulogized in many diverse publications, one that captured my attention was a thoughtful piece in The New Yorker, one that I was not expecting to see.
His influence reached out beyond Christian circles, into the secular world.
His church was in downtown Manhattan and on 9/11 he opened its doors to bring comfort to a frighten city.
He wasn’t afraid to challenge his church or his readers, encouraging to look beyond the culture and find Jesus Christ in all things.
His message was such that it reached both Christian and the secular world with thoughtful respect.
He was blessed with a unique Christian world view and the gift to capture it on the written page.
He leaves behind a legacy of thought-provoking wisdom in our modern age to enjoy beyond his time.
Yet his wisdom, insight, and influence were a gift, a gift from God through the Holy Spirit.
The apostle Paul speaks to Spiritual wisdom in 1 Corinthians 2: 1-16 and in the passing of this man that has meant so much to me and so many others, let’s remember the origin of such a gift.
Wisdom, especially Spiritual wisdom comes from one place, it comes from the mind of Christ.
Tim understood that and honored God in his work and life.
He was “more sinful and flawed than he ever dared believe, yet at the very same time he was more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than he ever dared hope."
Amen.