10 notable Christian ministry leaders, influencers who died in 2023

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Saturday, December 30, 2023

Jack Hayford – Jan. 8, 2023

Jack Hayford, president of the Foursquare Church, opens the weeklong Foursquare Convention with a message titled 'How God Emerges a New Generation,' on May 29, 2006. — Jack Hayford, president of the Foursquare Church, opens the weeklong Foursquare Convention with a message titled "How God Emerges a New Generation," on May 29, 2006. | The Christian Post

Jack W. Hayford, a notable pastor, author, seminary chancellor and writer of the popular 1978 contemporary Christian worship song “Majesty,” died at age 88.

Hayford helped found The King’s University and Seminary in 1997 and served as the founding pastor of The Church On The Way in Van Nuys, California, for decades. He was also the president of The Foursquare Church from 2004 to 2009.

At the National Religious Broadcasters Convention in 2014, Hayford was inducted into the Evangelical media group's Hall of Fame for his distinguished televangelism career.

"I had the privilege of calling him a friend. He spoke into my life, always encouraging me to make room for the Holy Spirit," the Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, pastor and president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, wrote on Facebook.

"Pastor Jack did change the world. He demonstrated that the Spirit Empowered/Charismatic movement can be both prophetic and practical, innovative, and intelligent, anointed and artistic."

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