If you haven’t seen already, Dr. William S. H. Piper passed away Tuesday. Dr. William Piper was the father of Dr. John Piper of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, and Desiring God ministries.

John Piper has shared his journal from the night of his father’s passing, as well as an obituary he wrote for his father for the Greenville (S. C.) News.

William Piper was an evangelist, and one of the first stories in John Piper’s book, Don’t Waste Your Life, is a story his father used to tell about evangelism, a story that had a profound impact on John and his own ministry. You can read that story here on Justin Taylor’s blog. I would quote it here, but instead, I would like to quote something from John Piper’s journal:

It was 12:55 as I walked out of room 4326. Just before the elevators on the fourth floor in the lounge, a young man in his twenties was sitting alone listening to his iPod with headphones. I paused. Then I walked toward him. He stopped his music. Hello, my father just died. One of the greatest tributes I could pay to him is to ask you, Are you ready to meet God? “Yes, Sir.” That would make my father very happy. You know Jesus is the only way? “Yes, Sir.” Good. Thank you for letting me talk to you.

I never met Dr. William Piper, and I’ve never met Dr. John Piper, although his preaching and teaching have touched me and instructed me.

But I would still like to pay tribute to William Piper the same way his son did, by asking you, dear reader, are you ready to meet God? Do you know that Jesus is the only way?