The Eulogy of NRJohnson

NOTE BEFORE YOU READ: I admit, reading someone’s eulogy before they die can feel a bit morbid (or prideful). But this was a delightful and intentional declaration to my soul of what I desire God to continue doing in me. I am not there yet, but by God’s grace and empowerment, I desire to be such a man before I die (for His glory, honor, and praise). For a fuller explanation, I encourage you to read why I wrote my obituary (eulogy) before you actually read it below.

Eulogy of Nathan Johnson

Nathan Johnson was a man of God. He was happy, healthy, holy, humble, hungry, unhurried, hospitable, and hopeful … but foremost, he was a son of the King of kings. He was a man known for love and unhurried living. A man who was obsessively passionate for the things of God and not only taught with boldness the Word of God but also lived it with his life. He was a man filled with the Spirit of God and operated in His power, anointing, and life. He was a man known for clear, powerful, anointed, life-changing communication in both speaking and writing. And a good summary of his life might be that he desired to live dependent, surrendered, and abiding in the Vine of Christ every moment of every day.

Jim Elliot once said, “God, I pray Thee, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn for Thee. Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine. I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you, LORD Jesus.” ⁽¹⁾ Nathan too lived a short but full and meaningful one—living every day as if it could be his last and viewed life through the lens of eternity stamped upon his eyeballs. Or, as C.T. Studd wrote, 

“Only one life, ’twill soon be past, 
Only what’s done for Christ will last. 
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be, 
If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.” ⁽²⁾

Looking back, a radical shift happened in his life a month before turning 38. Knowing that the culture was getting darker and his end was ever drawing nearer, he decided to take more seriously God’s command to reach the nations, to turn the world upside down, to live fully in the power of the Spirit, to preach the Gospel boldly, and to quit playing and start praying. As Ravenhill so often commented, “no man is greater than his prayer life.” ⁽³⁾ And if Nathan’s life had to be evaluated by this sole standard, then he lived a great life indeed, for he was a man of prayer akin to John Hyde, David Brainerd, Rees Howells, Edward Payson, William Bramwell, E.M. Bounds, Thomas Haire, A.W. Tozer, and Leonard Ravenhill. 

God used this humble praying and preaching man to “turn the world upside down” (Acts 17:6) and be the vessel used to bring repentance and revival to purify and awaken the Church. D.L. Moody once quoted Henry Varley in saying “the world has yet to see what God can do with a man fully consecrated to Him.” Moody’s response was “By God’s help, I aim to be that man.” ⁽⁴⁾ Nathan’s deep desire was to be that man in this generation.

Through it all, Nathan was a man of impeccable integrity, character, purity, and holiness. Most of the money he earned or received was given away—with over a million dollars given to missions, the persecuted church around the world, and other Christ-glorifying, Gospel-proclaiming, and Kingdom-expanding projects. He also helped print and distribute over 500,000 Bibles to Christians in persecuted and closed countries. Nathan also began the Underground University,⁽⁵⁾ now having trained over 10,000 believers to cultivate a passion for Jesus Christ, an understanding of the depth of God’s Word, and practical leadership training for times of persecution. His desire was that every person in the world would have an opportunity to respond to the life-changing power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ—and how many people came to Christ through his life and lips we will never know.

Nathan was a great friend and a constant encouragement to everyone who knew him. Though he had a loud laugh this side of heaven, we know that it has no doubt increased volume now that he stands in the presence of His greatest love and delight, Jesus Christ.

Nathan had several Bible passages he would call “life verses” … granted, every passage he was studying he would often refer to as his favorite … but these really were his favorites. Let me read a few:

• 1 Chronicles 17:3 – … the word of God came to Nathan …
• Romans 11:36 – For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen.
• 2 Corinthians 9:8 – And God is able to make every grace abound to you, so that in everything at every time having every sufficiency, you may have an abundance for every good deed …
• 1 John 4:9 – By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.
• Philippians 1:20 – … according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
• 2 Peter 1:3–4 – His divine power has granted [given] to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the full knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted [given] to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
• Hebrews 11:6 – And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who draws near to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who [diligently] seek Him.
• 1 Peter 1:5 – … who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
• Isaiah 51:9a – Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of Yahweh; awake as in the days of old, the generations of long ago.
• Proverbs 18:10 – The name of Yahweh is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is set securely on high.
• Psalm 86:11 – Teach me Your way, O Yahweh; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name.
• He also loved to quote: Psalm 1, 16, 23, 34, 91, 103; Jeremiah 32; Revelation 5 … and had a great love and passion for Ephesians, the Gospel of John, Hebrews, Ruth, and Revelation.

To conclude, Nathan’s life reminds me of the missionary A.W. Milne. The story is told that “Around the turn of the 20th century, a group of missionaries became known as ‘one-way’ missionaries. When they departed for the mission field they packed all of their belongings into a coffin and bought one-way tickets because they knew they’d never return home. A.W. Milne was one of them. He felt called to a tribe of headhunters in the New Hebrides. All the other missionaries to this tribe had been martyred, but Milne found favor. He lived among the tribe for 35 years and never returned home. The tribe buried him and wrote the following words on his tombstone, ‘When he came there was no light. When he left there was no darkness.’” ⁽⁶⁾

Though Nathan never had the privilege of going to a tribe of headhunters, God used this man to diminish darkness and shine forth the light of Christ all the brighter.

While some here may be sad at the departure of this beloved man of God, we know he is most exuberant to finally give His king and dearest friend a big bear hug before falling at His feet in worship. And we know that with his departure, hell too is throwing a thanksgiving service—one of Nathan’s favorite ideas about death as quoted by C.T. Studd: “Let us not glide through this world and then slip quietly into heaven, without having blown the trumpet loud and long for our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Let us see to it that the devil will hold a thanksgiving service in hell, when he gets the news of our departure from the field of battle.” ⁽⁷⁾

Nathan desired, like Paul, that Christ would be magnified whether by his life or by his death (Philippians 1:20), and I think looking at his short life, Christ was magnified with both.

FOOTNOTES

(1) Elisabeth Elliot, Shadow of the Almighty (New York, NY: HarperCollins, 1989), 55.
(2) C.T. Studd, Chocolate Soldier and Quaint Rhymes for the Battlefield (Windsor, CO: Deeper Christian Press, 2020), 33.
(3) Leonard Ravenhill, Why Revival Tarries (Bethany House, 2004), 25.
(4) Mark Fackler, “‘The World Has Yet to See …,’” Christian History Magazine-Issue 25: Dwight L. Moody: 19th C. Evangelist (Worcester, PA: Christian History Institute, 1990).
(5) This has not been started. It is a deep desire in my heart that I keep praying and waiting on God’s timing for.
(6) Unknown. I originally found the quote posted by a friend on facebook years ago but have not been able to find the original author.
(7) C.T. Studd, Chocolate Soldier and Quaint Rhymes for the Battlefield (Windsor, CO: Deeper Christian Press, 2020), 71.