Tim Keller and Me

His Impact on My Life and Ministry

It is with a great deal of sadness to see this giant of American Christianity leaving far too soon.  His vision to see the importance of bringing gospel ministry to cities was not a popular idea in the late ‘80s.  His concept of ‘applying the gospel’ while problematic in some respects, is dynamic in others and has shaped an entire generation of male pastors. His philosophy of ‘preaching to the empty seats,’ which revolutionized how I and countless others communicated, motivated people to invite their friends to church. His concept of ‘a contextualized communication of the gospel’ was made more mainstream and that is still sorely needed in all expressions of Christian faith today.  His commitment to social justice, while not prophetic enough for many, was still at the tip of the spear in his own tribe, and predictably got him scapegoated by the ultra-right in the PCA.  I could do this forever it seems, just outlining the many things Tim Keller contributed to the ongoing conversation of the gospel of Jesus and its application to modern times and challenges. 

It is widely documented that Tim and I had fundamental disagreements on two crucial issues: the inclusion of women in ministry and the affirmation of LGBTQ persons. I have plenty to say about that for another time. Today I’m remembering and honoring his impact on me, and the church I founded, City Church San Francisco. 

I was shaped profoundly by Tim Keller. The first time I ever heard him preach was like lightning.  I’ve often thought of that day as my ‘vocational conversion’.   I never preached another sermon the same way after that one day.  It was at the Church of the Advent Hope¹, in 1992. The sermon was on Genesis 3. From that moment, it was evident that I was witnessing the emergence of a preacher who would go on to be regarded as one of the greatest in conservative Christianity. The Chrysostom of his era. 

Tim's focus was crystal clear: he spoke to the person who wasn't yet present in the room. He inspired consumeristic Christians to adopt a more missional mindset, inviting them to bring their non-Christian friends without fear of embarrassment. His sermons avoided unnecessary alienation, allowing the message of Jesus to be accessible to anyone.  It was a revelation for me and an idea that preachers today would be wise to remember and practice. When Tim came along, typical evangelical churches functioned as factories of confirmation bias, merely reassuring the already convinced of their rightness. Tim turned that model on its head. While he argued for his version of the Christian faith, he also critiqued your own version, particularly if it fell short in the area of practical application. Tim wasn’t afraid of the book of James.  As he liked to say, the gospel critiques every worldview and has something in it to offend and challenge anyone, convinced, unconvinced, or otherwise.

After that trip to New York City in 1992, I knew I had to be in a city for my next pastoral post. It was with a great deal of joy that I accepted a call to plant City Church San Francisco in 1996.  While almost everyone assumes City Church was planted by Redeemer, the truth is we were not, (despite a few overzealous marketers of Redeemer claiming we were at one point) but I would have gladly received the financial support!  My primary desire was not financial aid but rather the opportunity to learn from Tim and the brilliant urban missiologists on their staff. 

During the PCA's General Assembly in the summer of '96, I had the privilege of sitting down with Tim and his Executive Pastor, the late Dick Kaufman. Armed with a tape recorder, I posed a straightforward question to them: "What on earth do I do when I get to San Francisco this August?"  Remarkably, I still possess those tapes. True to their guidance, I followed their instructions diligently. They provided insights on networking, gathering a launch team, emphasizing the importance of allowing the church's name to organically emerge from an understanding of the city, the significance of listening to and learning from the city instead of assuming a role as its savior, creating an inclusive space² for everyone regardless of their beliefs, and structuring home gatherings. If you were present at City Church San Francisco during those early days, before it acquired its official name, you were witnessing the implementation of the playbook that Tim and Dick imparted to me during that extensive conversation at General Assembly.

Tim displayed a remarkable willingness to be accessible over the phone as well. In order to be respectful of his time, I made it clear that I would only reach out if I genuinely required an answer to a pressing question. Our conversations were focused solely on addressing that specific need, and I adhered to a designated day and time of the week that he had indicated as generally available. Employing this strategy, Tim tended to answer when I called, for which I will forever be grateful. Furthermore, he consistently exceeded our allotted time, generously providing me with more of his valuable time than we had originally planned.

Ten years later I would leave the PCA over women’s ordination, something I thought Tim was a little more on board with than I realized. That story can be told another day, but I’ll always be proud of the way Tim and I, sitting poolside at a hotel in Palo Alto in 2008, mended fences.   It marked the last time we were physically present in the same space and the final conversation we had together. Not necessarily on purpose, we were just running in different denominational circles after that time. 

There would be no City Church San Francisco if not for Tim Keller. I would have had no idea what to do in San Francisco if not for Tim Keller.  While there will be time for a more full assessment of his theology and ministry, the way it helped and hurt like there will be for mine and every pastor, today is a day to honor and remember this unique reflection of God’s image. It is a day to recognize that, just as God has always known him and all individuals, Tim Keller has now come to more fully realize what he so frequently preached: that he is a beloved child of God. 

PS: Can I finish with my favorite one-liner of Tim’s?   

“We are not all Ivan the Terrible, but it’s not for lack of talent.”  

You see what he did there?  He just told you, in the most accessible of ways, that you are not perfect, and in fact, have the ability to do bad things very creatively. Tim is telling the truth about the human condition in a way that is disarming and believable. That was his gift.  May he rest in peace and rise in glory. 

1. Where Redeemer Presbyterian Church was holding morning services that day.

2.  One of our founding questions during those months was “How can we be a church that is good news for all of San Francisco?”  I realize that many, including me, do not think Tim and Redeemer answered this question as extensively as we hoped.  I’ll always dream of the liberation he could have brought to women in ministry and LGBTQ folks in particular. However, it is important to acknowledge that the mere existence of this question within our thinking was a direct result of Tim and Redeemer's influence. I will forever believe that the evolution of City Church is directly related to these foundational questions taken very seriously, with a willingness to make significant sacrifices in pursuit of answers.