Mac Brunson, senior pastor of First Baptist Church, Dallas, since May 1999, was expected to preach Feb. 19 in view of a call to become pastor of First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Fla. (Developing story: Members of Jacksonville First Baptist Church voted to call Brunson as pastor on Feb. 19, according to a Baptist Press release dated Feb. 20.)
Mac BrunsonA native of Greenwood and former South Carolina pastor, Brunson shared his decision with the Dallas congregation in each of its three morning services Feb. 12, according to Baptist Press reports.
Brunson, who served as president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Pastor’s Conference in 2003, would succeed Jerry Vines, who has served the 28,000-memberJacksonville church for the past 23 years. Last May, Vines, a former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, announced his retirement, effective Feb. 7.
A graduate of North Greenville University, Furman University and Southwestern Seminary, Brunson’s first pastorate was First Damascus Baptist Church, Greenwood. He grew up in South Main Street Baptist Church, Greenwood.
During his morning message, Brunson, who also serves as chancellor of Criswell College, told members of the Dallas church that he had initially declined an earlier appeal from the Jacksonville church, at first directing the pulpit committee to other pastors. He then began reconsidering late last year because of their persistence, the BP story noted.
In recounting a fervent prayer offered during a recent trip to the Holy Land, Brunson told of seeking direction. “There were these two great congregations, the convention looking on and watching, and I’ve got to know what your will is for my life,” he recalled.
“Some of you folks think I’ve been plotting and planning this for the last five years – that it’s some great devious scheme ofsome kind. The fact is you’re just mistaken,” he told the congregation. “You’re looking at a man who has wrestled and struggled with this and sought godly wisdom, godly counsel.”
A longtime leader at First Baptist, Dallas, Jack Pogue, told the Fort Worth Star Telegram, “Dr. Brunson is a terrific preacher, and we hate to lose him. If they like good preaching in Jacksonville, they have picked a wonderful man for the job.”
Prior to serving First Baptist Church, Dallas, Brunson was pastor of Green Street Baptist Church, High Point, N.C. He served as president of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina in 1997 and 1998.
He and his wife Debbie, also a native of Greenwood, have three children: Courtney, a recent International Mission Board Journeyman to the Middle East; Trey, a student at Dallas Baptist University; and Wills, a student at First Baptist Academy. A family committed to missions, they have taken trips to Argentina, England, Lebanon, Russia and the Ukraine.