“My mother, who grew up in Pennsylvania, literally washed my mouth out with soap once for saying, 'Shut up!' to my sister. She would have washed my mouth out with gasoline if she knew how foul my mouth was racially when she wasn't around.”

American Reformed Baptist theologian and retired pastor

John Stephen Piper is an American Reformed Baptist theologian and retired pastor. He is known for his work in New Testament studies and for his long ministry in Minneapolis. He taught biblical studies at Bethel University from 1974 to 1980, then served for 33 years as pastor for preaching and vision at Bethlehem Baptist Church. He is also chancellor of Bethlehem College and Seminary in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and his writing and teaching are shaped by theology and Scripture.