My first experience in Church of God academia occurred in 1978 at East Coast Bible College (Charlotte NC). My first class, Old Testament Survey, was taught by Dr. Ken Bell. I will never forget his first words: “This is not going to be a glorified Sunday school class.”
For the following 45 minutes, Dr. Bell introduced us to the canonization of scripture – how the Bible came to be. After he concluded the lecture, one of my fellow students exclaimed, “Oh my God, I wished I had never heard this!” My fellow student was being deconstructed. Apparently, he had been told that the King James Bible had been published in heaven and delivered to humans via some sort of angelic delivery system. To hear that the Scripture began as oral traditions that were eventually written down, copied, translated over and over again through the centuries was just too much for him to bear. On the other hand, Dr. Bell’s lecture constructed my faith. I found it amazing that the process of divine inspiration guided the words of sacred scripture through the centuries. In that one lecture, Dr. Bell gave me a firm foundation upon which I could build a sound theology of the inspiration of scripture. That same lecture crushed the preconceived and wrongly held notions of my fellow student. This experience demonstrates the purpose of Christian academics – to challenge misunderstandings and errors and help the student develop the gift of discernment in pursuit of the truth.
My time at East Coast Bible College was the most significant time in my spiritual development. Yes, sometimes my faith was deconstructed, sometimes it was challenged; but ultimately it was affirmed and established upon a solid rock. A few years later, I enrolled at Lee University to complete undergraduate studies. The professors at East Coast Bible College and Lee University introduced me to a world of academic excellence and prepared me to engage in the mission of God in a hostile world.
In 1999, I enrolled at Church of God Theological Seminary (now Pentecostal Theological Seminary) to begin graduate studies. For five years, I studied under the guidance of some of the most respected Pentecostal scholars in the world. Again, I found my faith challenged, sometimes deconstructed, but ultimately affirmed. Yes, there were times that I walked out of the classroom scratching my head, and there were times I disagreed with professors. But, there was never a time that I doubted the integrity of any professor. Since 1999, I have completed the Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degrees at PTS. I am presently enrolled in the Master of Theology (ThM) program.
In 2017, after thirty-seven years of pastoral ministry I was honored to join the faculty at Pentecostal Theological Seminary. I presently serve as Assistant Professor of Pastoral Ministries and chair of the practical theology faculty. For the last few years, I have had the opportunity to work alongside some really gifted men and women in the academy. I have come to respect them even more. Yes, I still sometimes have disagreements with some of them. But, I have never heard any of them teach anything contrary to the historic Christian faith, or contrary to the statements of faith of the Church of God.
Through the years, Church of God academics have published thousands of pages of essays, articles, and books. There is a very long and wide paper trail that can establish what Church of God academics believe and teach. I encourage those who are critical of Church of God academics to begin reading these works. I suspect that you will be stretched, challenged, enriched, and grow to deeply appreciate their work.
Also, it has been my profound honor to meet some of the brightest, sincere, and deeply committed men and women in the Church of God who are students at PTS. Our annual graduate assessments consistently score the work of PTS to be superior. Furthermore, PTS has been instrumental in training a sizable portion of Church of God leadership currently under appointment throughout the world.
It is frustrating to hear critics of Church of God educational institutions make unsubstantiated claims that are nothing less than bearing false witness. Those who have not attended PTS, who have not read faculty publications, and have not completed one of the degree programs have little standing to make such serious accusations.
I am deeply committed to the orthodox Christian faith; I remain faithful to the Pentecostal message, and I am honored to serve the Church of God at PTS. I believe in peer accountability, so I am happy to be held accountable. Hold me accountable for the life I live. Hold me accountable for what I preach and teach. Hold me accountable for what I publish. But, let the standard of that accountability be the Holy Scripture, the theological tradition of the Christian faith, and the statements of faith of the Church of God.
Please don’t make accusations that cannot be substantiated. False accusations slander honorable men and women who serve God as Spirit-anointed teachers. False accusations harm the reputations of men and women who have been diligent to study the word of God and have proved themselves faithful. These men and women are “worthy of double honor” (1 Timothy 5:17 ESV) and should be given the benefit of the doubt, and the benefit of substantiated witnesses (1 Timothy 5:19). If an accusation of false teaching can be demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt, then actions must be taken (1 Timothy 5:20). Those who persist in making unsubstantiated accusations are themselves acting contrary to the faith.
