Illustration by Keith Negley for byFaith.
“The hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you” (Philem. 7). That high praise cannot be given to all Christians, sadly. But it certainly can and should be said of Tim Keller. It’s what I want to say here, with personal gratitude.
Tim Keller was the publicly prominent voice for Christ in my generation who I trusted the most. When he spoke or wrote, I never had to brace myself for embarrassment. He rang true again and again, because he was true—true to Christ.
I first encountered Tim’s ministry back in the 1980s. While still on faculty at Westminster Theological Seminary, he taught at our summer training events for PCA church planters. Then his leadership as The Gospel Coalition was being formed and defined made TGC a positive rallying point for a wide range of conscientious Christians. His books then began appearing, pressing the implications of the gospel further, right where we needed new clarity. And his preaching as pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City set a new standard for persuasive faithfulness.
As I look back over these many years, three aspects of Tim’s ministry stand out in my mind.
1. Gospel Fullness
By “gospel fullness” I mean a principled sensitivity to the biblical gospel as the integrating center of everything that is truly Christian. I mean a reverence for the gospel as a total repositioning of each of us before God—and before everyone we meet every day at every level of human engagement. Gospel fullness is how we serve Christ in ways more consistent with who he actually is, so that he becomes more visible to the watching world. Gospel fullness renews our churches too, as we stop diminishing the gospel and we start allowing the gospel to exert its power in practical change.
In Center Church, under the heading “The gospel changes everything,” Tim explains:
The gospel is not just the ABCs but the A to Z of the Christian life. It is inaccurate to think the gospel is what saves non-Christians, and then Christians mature by trying hard to live according to biblical principles. It is more accurate to say that we are saved by believing the gospel, and then we are transformed in every part of our minds, hearts and lives by believing the gospel more and more deeply as life goes on.
This is how Tim changed my ministry about 20 years ago. Many significant voices have helped me along the way: my dad, J. I. Packer, John Stott, Francis Schaeffer, and others. But when I started listening to Tim preach the gospel as a total outlook, my piecemeal thinking gladly yielded to his grander vision. Familiar themes like the cross, grace, substitution, imputation, justification by faith alone—these truths and others finally converged on one focal point: the all-sufficiency of Christ for me, for everyone, in all our need. Yes, Tim was learned and articulate. But far more, he showed me a Christ bigger and better than I had been describing. And I was captivated.
I remember when it happened. It was on a road trip in July of 2000. I was pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Augusta, Georgia. My plan at the time was to start preaching through Romans when everyone was back in town after the summer. Before Jani and I took our own vacation, someone at church gave me a shoebox filled with cassette tapes of Tim’s preaching at Redeemer. So you can picture us driving from Georgia to Iowa and back, listening to Tim hour upon hour and discussing the sermons together.
What struck me was the sweeping relevance of his one central, repeated emphasis—the gospel itself. I’d been doing my best with what I knew. But here was a man declaring Christ in a way I needed and was ready for. My gospel renaissance began. And the journey through Romans back in Augusta became a turning point for our church as well.
I wonder how many other ministers in this generation could tell similar stories.