10 Evangelical Leaders Who Died in 2023

Remembering Tim Keller, Charles Stanley, Elizabeth Sherrill, and others.

Christianity Today December 20, 2023

When professional soccer player Christian Atsu looked back at his life, he saw a lot of years of hard work. But also evidence of something greater.

“I am working hard, but it is the will of God, the grace of God, that has brought me this far,” he said.

Atsu died at 31 in a devastating earthquake in Turkey in February. His words may, in a sense, speak for all the evangelical leaders we lost in 2023. These were men and women who had a significant impact—planting churches, starting mission organizations, telling stories of faith, helping people pray, and encouraging our faith in a myriad of ways.

And yet perhaps their greatest gift to us is not the things they did, but the times that they pointed us back to what God has done, is doing, and will continue to do. We are grateful for their ministries and labor. But even more for their testimonies to the greater work of divine grace.

Check out the rest of our 2023 year-end lists here.

Also in this series

Our Latest

News

Gateway Church Founder Robert Morris Pleads Guilty to Child Sex Abuse

The criminal conviction comes decades after the abuse and a year after the survivor shared her account online.

A Quiet Life Sets Up a Loud Testimony

Excellence and steady faithfulness may win the culture war.

The Just Life with Benjamin Watson

Cornel West: Justice, Not Revenge

Exploring how love grounds justice, courage resists fear, and faith shapes public action.

News

Survey: Evangelicals Contradict Their Own Convictions

A new State of Theology report shows consensus around core beliefs but also lots of confusion.

Public Theology Project

What Horror Stories Can (and Cannot) Tell Us About the World

We want meaning and resolution—and the kind of monster we can defeat.

Welcome to Youth Ministry! Time to Talk about Anime.

Japanese animation has become a media mainstay among Gen Z. You may not “get” it, but the zoomers at your church sure do.

Review

‘One Battle After Another’ Is No Way to Live

Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, the new film from Paul Thomas Anderson plays out the dangers of extremism.

Review

Tyler Perry Takes on ‘Ruth and Boaz’

In his new Netflix movie, Ruth is a singer, Boaz has an MBA, and the Tennessee wine flows freely.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube