Photo credit: Ligonier Ministries
Ligonier Ministries announced today that apologist, author, and pastor Dr. R.C. Sproul passed away Thursday afternoon in Altamonte Springs, FL after being hospitalized for twelve days from “severe respiratory difficulties exacerbated by the flu and complicated by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).”
He was 78 years old.
Sproul was born on February 13, 1939 in Pittsburgh, PA. Sproul placed his faith in Christ in 1957. He shared his testimony in 2002.
Afterwards, God called Sproul to proclaim the Gospel. Sproul graduated from Westminister College with a B.A. in 1961. He later earned an MDiv from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in 1964 and two doctorate degrees from the Free University of Amsterdam (1969), and Whitefield Theological Seminary in 2001.
Sproul was ordained an elder in the United Presbyterian Church in the USA in 1965 but left that denomination in 1975 to join the Presbyterian Church in America. He taught at several colleges and seminaries including Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, FL and Knox Theological Seminary in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. He was also a council member of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals.
Sproul founded Ligonier Ministries in 1971 “to equip Christians to articulate what they believe, why they believe it, how to live it, and how to share it.”
He co-pastored Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Sanford, Fla., chancellor of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. His radio program Renewing Your Mind was broadcast on hundreds of radio outlets in the United States and around the world. Sproul contributed dozens of articles to national evangelical publications, has spoken at conferences, churches, and schools around the world, and wrote more than one hundred books, including The Holiness of God, Chosen By God, Faith Alone, and Defending Your Faith. He also serves as general editor of the Reformation Study Bible.
Sproul is survived by his wife Vesta, his two children, and numerous grandchildren.
Below may be the last tweet Sproul personally sent before being hospitalized.
When God writes our names in the "Lamb's Book of Life," He doesn't do it with an eraser handy. He does it for eternity.
— R.C. Sproul (@RCSproul) December 1, 2017
He now enters eternity with Jesus. Well done, good and faithful servant.
Shane Vander Hart
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I had the honor of every morning on my way to work to listen to R.C. Sproul at 7:30am. I was new to the faith in 2002, and he was a blessing to me. I was afraid to listen to just any preacher as I wanted to hear the truth of God’s Word. So many questions I had and without fail he answered them.
I could hardly wait to listen to his podcast. More than anything he taught me is that the Lord is Holy!
He answered my questions on what did it mean to be “born again”. I am blessed to have heard him preach.
Flo Tuten
Richmond, Texas