Gifted and Even More Godly
In the summer of 2016 Tim Keller gave a sermon to a room full of pastors and church leaders, saying, ‘When you preach, let people see a heart that’s been repaired by the very truth you’re proclaiming’.
As I sat in the back of the hall that evening, I thought, ‘Ah, there it is. That’s why Tim’s preaching hits his hearers the way it does. Because it hit him first.’ Tim was good — the best — at communicating the gospel because he himself lived in the gospel, rejoiced in the gospel, loved the gospel.
On 19 May 2023, Rev Dr Timothy Keller died. I am deeply sad that Tim is no longer here with us, and my heart is also bursting with gratitude for his life.
It would be impossible for me to articulate the extent of Tim’s impact on me. He’s affected everything about my ministry: preaching, pastoring, evangelism, and leadership. But his impact runs much deeper. He was the most gifted minister I’ve ever observed, but he showed me that godliness and grace are more important than gifting. It was Tim who first put me on to John Owen’s The Grace and Duty of Being Spiritually Minded. Owen writes about a great danger that ministers face, namely, confusing giftedness with godliness:
No persons are in greater danger of walking at hazard with God than those who live in the exercise of spiritual gifts in duties unto their own satisfaction and that of others; for they may countenance themselves with an appearance of everything that should be in them in reality and power, when there is nothing of it in them.
Owen is basically saying: if you’re really gifted, watch out. There’s a difference between appearing holy and being holy. And the more gifted you are, the easier it is to fake it.
This is, I believe, one of the reasons why Tim’s ministry is as impactful as it is. He was the most gifted minister I’ve ever observed, but he never rested on those gifts as a substitute for grace and growing in the gospel. Maybe the best way younger ministers can honour Tim’s legacy is to seek to emulate his piety even more than his preaching.
Many wonderful articles celebrate Tim’s life and legacy. For my part, I want to point you to a few of Tim’s sermons or talks that have been particularly helpful to me over the years.
Tim’s last sermon as pastor of Redeemer. This sermon was the last service of the last Sunday Tim preached as pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. This sermon is classic Tim, and profoundly pastoral. He left the church with the most important truths we would need to face life — and death — well.
Leadership Wisdom. This talk given in London from 2018 is helpful for anyone following Jesus and should be required listening for any church leaders.
The Beauty of God. Tim showed me that the glory of the Christian life is not just finding God useful, but enjoying him as beautiful.
The Reason for God at Google. One of the things Tim is most well-known for is his winsomeness: his ability to present the Christian faith to those who don’t believe with fairness, charity, and respect. This talk he gave at Google when his first (major) book came out is the example par excellence of how he did it.
Evangelism. My good friend David Plant wisely suggested adding this talk to the list. In this 2006 conference message, Tim presented an approach for communicating the gospel that has become increasingly relevant in the years since.
Thank you, God, for Tim Keller.
