I Deleted This John MacArthur Video at 1.2 Million Views

John MacArthur whole sermon on youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTBJjUdOuvE

This is the story behind the John MacArthur video that became the most viral video I have ever posted—and why I voluntarily deleted it after it reached approximately 1.2 million views in just 48 hours.

The original video featured Pastor John MacArthur preaching at Grace Community Church. During the sermon, MacArthur discussed people getting up and leaving while he was preaching on a controversial biblical subject. When the clip was posted online, viewers naturally began asking questions. Were people actually walking out because they were offended by John MacArthur's preaching? What happened inside Grace Community Church that morning?

The video exploded on YouTube.

Within approximately 48 hours, it had received 1.2 million views, making it the biggest video I had ever posted and potentially one of the fastest-viewed John MacArthur videos online.

Then I received a phone call from a leader at Grace Community Church.

What I learned during that conversation changed my understanding of what had happened.

According to the explanation I received from the church, the people seen leaving were not walking out in protest against John MacArthur or rejecting his preaching. They had other ministry responsibilities and were leaving near the conclusion of the service to prepare for what they needed to do next.

By that point, however, the John MacArthur video had gone viral. People were calling Grace Community Church asking questions about who had walked out and why.

The church kindly asked whether I would consider removing the video.

Nobody forced me to take it down. YouTube didn't remove it. There was no copyright strike requiring me to delete it.

I voluntarily removed a video that had generated approximately 1.2 million views in 48 hours because, after learning more of the context, I believed honoring the