April 1. Jack Wyrtzen. Jack was not always Jack. He was originally dubbed Caspar, but high-school classmates showed him the wisdom of an immediate name change. So Jack—not Caspar—was less than respectful of Christianity. Early encounters included mocking a Bible teacher at the YMCA and a fist-fight at the Methodist Church. Young Jack was a member of the National Guard band, but there he joined in the physical persecution of a Christian member.
In 1932, Jack committed his life to Christ, and he took off. He never finished high school, and he was never ordained, but he preachedin Times Square and City Hall Park, establishedrescue missions, and foundednumerous prison ministries.
Eventually, Jack focusedon youth and young adults, and workedwith Youth for Christ before he established Word of Life International.On this date in 1944, Jack spoke about Jesus at Madison Square Gardens.
For more than 50 years, Jack led Word of Life ministries. He pioneered evangelical radio and television, hosted rallies and cruises, and created Bible institutes, clubs, and family camps, that shaped the lives of individuals and families for years to come.
Being respected often starts with being real.
As a boy Jack Wyrtzen had a bad temper. After he became a Christian, it didn’t magically disappear, even though God called him to preach. Soon after he was saved, Jack married. The man preached nine times on his honeymoon!
Then he worked for the Merchant’s Fire Insurance Corporation to support his family, but still he preached—every noon hour, almost every night, weekend, and vacation. But telling others about Jesus didn’t conquer his temper.
As a kid it was normal for Jack to kick things. When people upset him, he let them have it. Now that he followed Jesus, he knew his behavior damaged other people—and himself. He didn’t want to act like that anymore. But a few months after he was saved, his boss, Jenkins, an atheist, mocked everything Jack said about his new-found faith and the Lord he’d come to love.
The men had put in extra hours, and Jack and his boss were tired. And there was more work to do. Jenkins had mocked Jack before, but this time he didn’t let up. Then Jenkins took it too far. Jack’s temper flared. He swore at Jenkins. Used God’s name to lash out. When he did, it was like he’d put a dagger in his own heart. He went to the men’s room and cried like a bellowing baby.
“God,” said Jack, “I guess I’m a Judas Iscariot, I’m a phony, I…I’ve denied you.”
But as he sat in the bathroom, he thought about the verse his friend Bill had told him to memorize. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 NKJ). The Holy Spirit used it to speak to Jack, and sitting there, all alone and crying in the men’s room, he prayed, “God, You said if I confess it. And God, I’m a…I’m a stinker, I’ve used Your name in vain, I’ve cursed, and yet, You’ve said You’ll not only forgive me, but cleanse me.”
Jack sat a moment in the forgiveness God offered. The first Scripture Jack memorized was the “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NASB).
Jesus had made him a new creation. He wanted to live like the person God had remade him to be.
Jack knew what he had to do. He wiped his eyes and returned to his boss. “Mr. Jenkins, I just want to apologize,” he said. “You must think that I’m a big phony, using the name of my Lord that I’ve been talking about in vain and doing this and that.”
Jenkins started at him. Finally, he spoke. “You know, now I’m beginning to think that you’re for real.”
For the next nine years Jenkins was Jack’s boss. He never chose to follow what Jack taught about Jesus, but if anyone mocked Jack, his religion, or the fact that he preached, Jenkins was the first to defend Jack.
Are you a new creation? What do you do when you don’t act like it? Being respected often starts with being real.
This story told by Jack during an interview of John Casper “Jack” Wyrtzen by Robert Shuster, October 5, 1991, Billy Graham Center Archives, Collection 446—Jack Wyrtzen.