Exerpts:
"MacArthur's schooling was at Bob Jones University, Los Angeles Pacific College and Talbot Theological Seminary. He is senior pastor of the large Grace Community Church of Panorama City, California and is speaker on the popular "Grace to You' broadcast, He has stirred controversy and gained fame by taking nontraditional positions on the blood of Christ, lordship salvation and the eternal sonship of Christ. He appears to delight in purporting to know more than the historic theologians on these questions. It is not my purpose to analyze these positions. I will leave that to others."
"...He has spoken for R.C. Sproul, Jerry Falwell and various General Association of Regular Baptist Churches...."
"...I list these names to show that his speaking engagements range from supposed fundamentalists to confessed new evangelicals,
MacArthur has stated, concerning himself and his Grace Community Church staff, that they consider themselves evangelicals, not fundamentalists. In this light, it is rather strange that MacArthur is a member of the Independent Fundamental Churches of America. Grace Community Church was host to the 1990 National Convention of this group. The prospect of this invitation caused some stir among the more fundamental brethren of that fellowship. Consequently, at the group's 1989 convention in Limerick, Pennsylvania, a question and answer session was held with Dr. MacArthur. The panel members quizzed him about the blood of Christ, lordship salvation and Christ's eternal sonship. The group decided that he was not heretical. Sad to say he was not quizzed about his new evangelical connections and engagements. I have not studied MacArthur's writings enough to call him heretical, but a glance at his itineraries demonstrates that he is by all means new evangelical.
I was a member of the Independent Fundamental Churches of America in 1963 and contended on the convention floor that to eliminate criticism of ecumenism and new evangelicalism from the Voice magazine, the group's organ, would open the door for independent men who had no conviction of separation to enter the group and hold ministerial credentials there. In Dr. John MacArthur I offer you Exhibit A."
