Preaching and Preachers

*This episode was originally published on 3/11/2019.

This week on Preaching and Preachers, Dr. Joel Beeke joins me in a discussion on the pastor and Puritan preaching. Dr. Beeke is President and Professor of Systematic Theology and Homiletics at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary and a pastor of the Heritage Reformed Congregation in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

In this episode, Dr. Phil Newton joins Jared Bumpers and I to discuss pastoring. Dr. Newton began South Woods Baptist Church, Memphis, TN, in 1987 and concluded his 35 years of pastoral leadership in May 2022. He served as pastor of three other churches in Mississippi and Alabama prior to moving to Memphis, as well as serving on two church staffs as a college student. He received his education at the University of Mobile (B.A.), New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div.), Fuller Theological Seminary (D.Min.), and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (Ph.D.). Both natives of Alabama, he and his wife Karen met in Mobile, AL and married in 1975. They enjoy discussing biblical issues, reading, cooking, traveling, and interacting with their family. They have five children and six grandchildren. He has spent the past three decades training young men for the ministry and leading local church sponsored international mission trips. He authored Elders in Congregational Life, Elders in the Life of the Church (with Matt Schmucker), Conduct Gospel-Centered Funerals (with Brian Croft), Venture All for God: Piety in the Writings of John Bunyan (with Roger Duke and Drew Harris), 40 Questions About Pastoral Ministry, The Mentoring Church, and Shepherding the Pastor: Help for the Early Years of Ministry (released in 2023; with Rich Shadden). He has contributed to several journals including The Gospel Coalition and 9Marks e-Journal. Phil and Karen live in Germantown, TN. He is available to serve pastors and churches in the Pillar Network.

In this week's episode, Dean Inserra joins me in the podcast studio to discuss "Equipping College Students." Dean Inserra is the founding and lead pastor of CITYCHURCH, where he leads the vision and preaching. Dean was called to start a church in his hometown of Tallahassee when he was the Student Body President at Leon High School. He is passionate about reaching the city of Tallahassee with the Gospel, to see a worldwide impact made for Jesus. 

Dean graduated from Liberty University and attended Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. He holds an MA in Theological Studies from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and is pursuing a D.Min from Southern Seminary.   

Dean is married to Krissie, and they have two sons, Tommy and Ty, and two daughters, Sally Ashlyn and Marci. Dean likes baseball, wrestling, and the Miami Hurricanes. He believes Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback, and that everyone who disagrees holds the right to be wrong.

This week, Dr. Juan Sánchez joins me on Preaching and Preachers as we discuss his most recent book, which he co-authored with his wife, Jeanine, titled Reaching Your Child's Heart: A Practical Guide to Faithful Parenting. Juan Sánchez has served as senior pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church since August 2005. He is a graduate of the University of Florida and holds an MDiv, a ThM, and a PhD in systematic theology from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. In addition, Juan serves as a council member of The Gospel Coalition, co-founder and president of Coalición, and associate professor of Theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has authored numerous books, including 1 Peter for You and Seven Dangers Facing Your Church. Juan has been married to Jeanine since 1990, and they have five adult daughters.

*This episode was originally published on 3/4/19.

This week, we highlight a former episode with Phil Johnson on "The Preaching of John MacArthur." Phil is the executive director of Grace to You. He has been closely associated with John MacArthur since 1981 and edits most of Pastor MacArthur’s major books. Phil also founded several popular websites, including The Spurgeon Archive, The Hall of Church History, and the Pyromaniacs blog. He is an ordained elder and pastor at Grace Community Church. Phil and his wife, Darlene, have three adult children and seven grandchildren.

In this week's episode, Dr. Jared Bumpers is joined by Dr. Don Whitney to discuss "The Spirituality of Martyn Lloyd-Jones." Dr. Whitney is the Professor of Biblical Spirituality and the John H. Powell Professor of Pastoral Ministry at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

He served there in a similar position from 1995 to 2005, and then as Professor of Biblical Spirituality and Associate Dean at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, from 2005 to 2024.

He holds a M.Div., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; a D.Min., Trinity Evangelical Divinity School; and a Ph.D. in Theology from the University of the Free State, South Africa. He has authored nine books, including Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life and Praying the Bible, and is a popular conference speaker, especially on personal and congregational spirituality.

Dr. Whitney also serves as the founder and president of The Center for Biblical Spirituality. Prior to his ministry as a seminary professor, Don was pastor of Glenfield Baptist Church in Glen Ellyn, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago), for almost 15 years. Altogether, he has served local churches in pastoral ministry for 24 years.

Don lives with his wife Caffy in Kansas City, Missouri. She works from their home as an artist, muralist, and illustrator. The Whitneys have a married daughter, Laurelen, and five grandchildren.

In this week's episode, Dr. Jared Bumpers is joined by Dr. Geoff Chang as they discuss "The Spirituality of Charles Spurgeon." Dr. Chang serves as Associate Professor of Church History and Historical Theology and the Curator of the Spurgeon Library. He is a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin (B.B.A.), The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Ph.D.), where he wrote his dissertation on Charles H. Spurgeon’s ecclesiology. Prior to serving at Midwestern, Geoff worked as a database consultant until he discerned a call to ministry. Since leaving the business world, he has served on the ministry staff at Houston Chinese Church (Houston, Texas) and Capitol Hill Baptist Church (Washington, D.C.) and most recently as associate pastor at Hinson Baptist Church (Portland, Oregon).

He also serves the Book Review Editor for History & Historical Theology at Themelios, the academic journal for The Gospel Coalition. He has published articles for websites, journals, and magazines in the U.S. and U.K., including 9Marks, Evangelicals Now and Modern Reformation. He has also served as a speaker and instructor with T4G, Simeon Trust, and other national ministries. He is the volume editor of The Lost Sermons of C.H. Spurgeon Volumes 5, 6, and 7 (B&H Academic) and the author of Spurgeon the Pastor: Recovering a Biblical and Theological Vision for Ministry (B&H Publishing).

He is married to Stephanie, and they have three children. They enjoy music, good books, working around the house, exploring the outdoors, and serving their local church. 

In this week's episode, Dr. Jared Bumpers is joined by Dr. Tom Schreiner discussing "New Creation Millennialism." Dr. Schreiner is an Associate Dean for the School of Theology and the James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation and Professor of Biblical Theology. Prior to joining Southern, he taught New Testament at Azusa Pacific University. He also taught at Bethel Theological Seminary for 11 years. Schreiner is a Pauline scholar who has written extensively on this subject. He is married to Diane and they have four children. Schreiner is a member of Clifton Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky.

**This episode was originally published on 2/25/2019.

This week on Preaching and Preachers, we recorded our third mailbag episode. In this episode, I answered questions submitted by listeners on a number of topics primarily concerning the pastor and church culture.

In this week’s episode, Dr. Robert Smith Jr. and H.B. Charles Jr. join me as we discuss “Preaching in the African-American Tradition.” Robert Smith Jr. serves as Distinguished Professor of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School. Before Smith served as professor of Christian preaching at Beeson for more than 25 years and held the Charles T. Carter Baptist Chair of Divinity. Previously, he served as the Carl E. Bates Associate Professor of Christian Preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Smith is the 2017 E. K. Bailey Expository Preaching Conference Living Legend.

He is a contributing editor for a study of Christian ministry in the African American church, Preparing for Christian Ministry, and is co-editor of A Mighty Long Journey. Additionally, he has served as an editor of Our Sufficiency Is of God: Essays on Preaching in Honor of Gardner C. Taylor (Mercer University Press, Macon, Georgia: 2010) and Worship, Tradition, and Engagement: Essays in Honor of Timothy George (Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2018). He has written the book, Doctrine That Dances: Bringing Doctrinal Preaching and Teaching to Life (B&H Publishing Group, Nashville: 2008), which was selected as the winner of the 2008 Preaching Book of the Year Award by Preaching magazine and the 2009 Preaching Book of the Year Award by Christianity Today’s preaching.com. In 2010, Preaching magazine named Doctrine That Dances one of the 25 most influential books in preaching for the last 25 years. He also has written The Oasis of God: From Mourning to Morning—Biblical Insights from Psalms 42 and 43. His latest book is Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary: Exalting Jesus in Joshua (B&H Publishing Group, Nashville).

H.B. is the Pastor-Teacher at Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church of Jacksonville and Orange Park, Florida, where he has faithfully served since the fall of 2008. H.B. is also an author of several books, such as: On Preaching, On Pastoring, The Difference Jesus Makes, and It Happens After Prayer.

In this week’s episode, Dr. Robert Smith Jr. and H.B. Charles Jr. join me as we discuss “Preaching in the African-American Tradition.” Robert Smith Jr. serves as Distinguished Professor of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School. Before Smith served as professor of Christian preaching at Beeson for more than 25 years and held the Charles T. Carter Baptist Chair of Divinity. Previously, he served as the Carl E. Bates Associate Professor of Christian Preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Smith is the 2017 E. K. Bailey Expository Preaching Conference Living Legend.

He is a contributing editor for a study of Christian ministry in the African American church, Preparing for Christian Ministry, and is co-editor of A Mighty Long Journey. Additionally, he has served as an editor of Our Sufficiency Is of God: Essays on Preaching in Honor of Gardner C. Taylor (Mercer University Press, Macon, Georgia: 2010) and Worship, Tradition, and Engagement: Essays in Honor of Timothy George (Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2018). He has written the book, Doctrine That Dances: Bringing Doctrinal Preaching and Teaching to Life (B&H Publishing Group, Nashville: 2008), which was selected as the winner of the 2008 Preaching Book of the Year Award by Preaching magazine and the 2009 Preaching Book of the Year Award by Christianity Today’s preaching.com. In 2010, Preaching magazine named Doctrine That Dances one of the 25 most influential books in preaching for the last 25 years. He also has written The Oasis of God: From Mourning to Morning—Biblical Insights from Psalms 42 and 43. His latest book is Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary: Exalting Jesus in Joshua (B&H Publishing Group, Nashville).

H.B. is the Pastor-Teacher at Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church of Jacksonville and Orange Park, Florida, where he has faithfully served since the fall of 2008. H.B. is also an author of several books, such as: On Preaching, On Pastoring, The Difference Jesus Makes, and It Happens After Prayer.