<strong>The</strong> D.M<strong>in</strong>. is an extension <strong>of</strong> your current m<strong>in</strong>istry, not a distraction from it. It’s about help<strong>in</strong>g church leaders improve what you’re actively do<strong>in</strong>g every day—faithfully m<strong>in</strong>ister<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> place you’ve been called. With pr<strong>of</strong>essors that are practitioners as well as scholars, you can be sure that every aspect <strong>of</strong> your education is designed to fully equip you for more faithful service.
Summer 2022. <strong>Vol</strong>. 90, No. 1. Copyright ©2022 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> Baptist <strong>The</strong>ological <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> <strong>The</strong> <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> Baptist <strong>The</strong>ological <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> from <strong>the</strong> editor JEFF ROBINSON Vice President <strong>of</strong> Communications: Dust<strong>in</strong> W. Benge Manag<strong>in</strong>g Editors: Jeff Rob<strong>in</strong>son and Stuart Hunt Creative Director: Stuart Hunt Production Manager: Evan Sams Graphic Designers: Benjam<strong>in</strong> Aho, Gareth Brady, Dust<strong>in</strong> Benge Photographer: Trevor Wheeker Contribut<strong>in</strong>g Writers: R. Albert Mohler, Jr., Kyle D. Claunch, Stephen J. Wellum, Andrew T. Walker, Dust<strong>in</strong> Bruce, Thomas R. Schre<strong>in</strong>er, Timothy K. Beougher, Timothy Paul Jones, Jeff Rob<strong>in</strong>son, Travis Hearne. Subscription Information: <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> <strong>Magaz<strong>in</strong>e</strong> is published by <strong>The</strong> <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> Baptist <strong>The</strong>ological <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong>, 2825 Lex<strong>in</strong>gton Road, Louisville, KY 40280. <strong>The</strong> magaz<strong>in</strong>e is distributed digitally at equip.sbts.edu/magaz<strong>in</strong>e. If you would like to request a hard copy, please reach out by email<strong>in</strong>g communications@sbts.edu. Mail: <strong>The</strong> <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> Baptist <strong>The</strong>ological <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong>, 2825 Lex<strong>in</strong>gton Road, Louisville, KY 40280 Onl<strong>in</strong>e: www.sbts.edu Email: communications@sbts.edu Telephone: 800- 626-5526, ext. 4000 @<strong>The</strong>SBTS @SBTS @<strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong><strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> About <strong>the</strong> Cover: “<strong>The</strong> Storm on <strong>the</strong> Sea <strong>of</strong> Galilee” is a 1633 oil-on-canvas pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g by <strong>the</strong> Dutch Golden Age pa<strong>in</strong>ter Rembrandt van Rijn. It was previously <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum <strong>in</strong> Boston but was stolen <strong>in</strong> 1990 and rema<strong>in</strong>s miss<strong>in</strong>g. <strong>The</strong> pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g depicts <strong>the</strong> biblical story <strong>of</strong> Jesus calm<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> storm on <strong>the</strong> Sea <strong>of</strong> Galilee, specifically as it is described <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> fourth chapter <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Gospel <strong>of</strong> Mark. It is Rembrandt’s only seascape. <strong>The</strong> door that led me <strong>in</strong>to <strong>the</strong> bookl<strong>in</strong>ed hallway <strong>of</strong> serious <strong>the</strong>ological study was apologetics. It began <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> mid-1990s. I was work<strong>in</strong>g as a newspaper journalist and had received some serious questions about my Christian faith as it relates to both reason and reality. In my Bible read<strong>in</strong>g, I had memorized 1 Peter 3:15 and wanted to obey God’s Word and present a faithful, well-reasoned rendition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> gospel to my <strong>in</strong>quisitive journalism colleagues. Some sharp bro<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>in</strong> my church turned my attention to books by Josh McDowell, Chuck Colson, and C. S. Lewis. <strong>The</strong>y <strong>in</strong>troduced me to R. C. Sproul and John Gerstner. Ano<strong>the</strong>r friend po<strong>in</strong>ted me to Greg Bahnsen’s big book on presuppositionalism, and he gifted me John Frame’s book on Van Til. I read Aqu<strong>in</strong>as’s five pro<strong>of</strong>s for <strong>the</strong> existence <strong>of</strong> God. <strong>The</strong>se were among <strong>the</strong> first serious m<strong>in</strong>istry books I owned, and those apologists helped me over my fear <strong>of</strong> evangeliz<strong>in</strong>g lost but bright co-workers. It didn’t take long for me to realize that <strong>the</strong>y didn’t have good answers to life’s ultimate questions, but God’s Word did. That <strong>in</strong>tensive study also opened an entire universe to me with constellations named systematic and biblical <strong>the</strong>ology, church history and historical <strong>the</strong>ology, biblical exegesis and homiletics, philosophy and ethics. Eventually, God used <strong>the</strong> seeds apologetics had sown to grow up <strong>in</strong> me a full-blown call to m<strong>in</strong>istry and <strong>the</strong>n to <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> as an eager student <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> th<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong> God. It all began with apologetics. And, really, <strong>the</strong> fundamental task has never changed. Though I’ve been teach<strong>in</strong>g, preach<strong>in</strong>g, and writ<strong>in</strong>g about church history, <strong>the</strong>ology, pastoral m<strong>in</strong>istry, <strong>the</strong> Christian life, and much else for <strong>the</strong> past 25 years, all those th<strong>in</strong>gs really boil down to one th<strong>in</strong>g: a defense and proclamation <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> glorious, sav<strong>in</strong>g gospel <strong>of</strong> Jesus Christ. That’s <strong>the</strong> foundational task for which <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> equips us all. I tell both my students and congregation members that <strong>the</strong> goal <strong>of</strong> any discipl<strong>in</strong>e I’m teach<strong>in</strong>g is always, at its base, evangelism. And <strong>the</strong> skeleton that upholds full-orbed gospel proclamation is apologetics—always be<strong>in</strong>g ready to give an account for <strong>the</strong> hope that lies with<strong>in</strong> us, communicat<strong>in</strong>g it with humility and <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> fear <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Lord. In this new edition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Sou<strong>the</strong>rn</strong> <strong>Sem<strong>in</strong>ary</strong> magaz<strong>in</strong>e, we <strong>in</strong>troduce readers to <strong>the</strong> discipl<strong>in</strong>e <strong>of</strong> apologetics. summer 2022 1
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