Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

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Faculty

Midwestern faculty hold a diversity of degrees from the University of Aberdeen, Free University of Amsterdam, and Cambridge to the University of Memphis and Texas A&M to Southern, Southwestern, Southeastern, New Orleans and Golden Gate Baptist Theological seminaries, as well as Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and Hebrew Union College, among many more.

“The depth of our faculty’s educational background provides our students with a broad perspective of ideas and influences, rather than from a faculty educated from just one or two institutions,” said Dr. Phil Roberts, president of MBTS. “Our faculty have trained and been educated throughout the world. This gives our students a vast exposure to knowledge, both culturally and biblically, from which to draw.”

At Midwestern, you’ll not only find professors with solid educational backgrounds, but also find men who have real-world experience ministering to the lost and proclaiming the Word as pastors, missionaries, associational leaders and more.

“Our professors have been in the trenches, whether sharing Christ in Tanzania, or right here in Missouri, they know what it’s like to be a God-called man in today’s world,” Roberts said. At Midwestern, you’ll have an opportunity to be discipled and equipped by well-rounded men and women of God who have been where you’re going.“

Meet the Midwestern Faculty

  • Jim Anderson

  • Chancellor Pro Tem, Professor of Biblical Studies, Aviation

  • Anderson teaches biblical studies and aviation at Midwestern Seminary and serves as the Chancellor Pro Tem of Midwestern Baptist College, SBC.

    He received a Doctor of Theology from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary after earning his M.Div. there as well. He received his B.A. from Ottawa University. Anderson has been in the full-time ministry for more than 50 years having served as a pastor for 13 years, and brings with him 32 years of teaching experience.

    From 1996-1999, he was the president of Calvary Bible College and Seminary and has been honored with the Calvary Bible College Alumnus of the Year Award. He has led tour groups to the Holy Land and taught aviation classes, as a Certified Flight Instructor, to train missionary pilots.



    Anderson is currently involved in evangelistic meetings, Bible conferences, camps, revival meetings, Bible studies, and aviation – teaching, flying, ministry and mercy flights, and some test flights. His research interests include archaeology.



    He and his wife, Diana, have four children – Rebecca, Bill, Jonathan and Dan – and 10 grandchildren

  • Stephen J. Andrews

  • Professor of Old Testament, Hebrew and Archaeology, Director of Ph.D. Program

  • Andrews teaches Old Testament, Hebrew and archaeology at Midwestern Seminary and serves as director of the Morton-Seats Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology and director of the Ph.D. Program.

    He received both a Doctor of Philosophy and a Masters of Philosophy from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, and has earned a Th.M. from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, a M.Div. from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a B.A. from Carson-Newman College. Andrews taught Old Testament and Hebrew at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary for seven years before coming to Midwestern in 1998 and has pastored churches in Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio.

    Andrews co-authored the Holman Old Testament Commentary on I and II Samuel. He has also written Bible Study for Life curriculum for LifeWay and provided articles and book reviews to several scholarly journals. In addition, he has contributed material to LifeWay’s Biblical Illustrator, InterVarsity's Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch, the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, the Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, and the Mercer Dictionary of the Bible, among others.

    Andrews edits and contributes to a blog http://www.hebrewgold.com on biblical Hebrew, the Old Testament , and archaeology. In his teaching, Andrews draws from his experience on digs in Israel and Jordan.

  • Ben E. Awbrey

  • Associate Professor of Preaching

  • Awbrey teaches expository preaching at Midwestern Seminary.

    He received a Doctor of Theology in leadership from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and earned a M.Div. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He did graduate work at Talbot Theological Seminary and earned a B.S. from Central State University. 



    Prior to coming to Midwestern, Awbrey served as both pastor and adjunct professor of preaching at The Master’s Seminary in California, and he has also pastored in Oklahoma and Louisiana.



    Awbrey completed his dissertation on the expository preaching of John MacArthur.

  • J. Alan Branch

  • Assistant Professor of Christian Ethics

  • Branch teaches Christian ethics at Midwestern Seminary. 



    He received a Doctor of Philosophy and a Masters of Divinity at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Having a special interest in medical ethics, he titled his dissertation "The Challenge Posed by Autonomy in Medical Ethics." Branch earned a B.B.A. from Kennesaw State College. Prior to joining the Midwestern staff in 2001, he served as a pastor for eight years in North Carolina.

    Branch continues to serve as interim pastor in the Missouri-Kansas area.
His research interests include abortion, euthanasia, human cloning and embryonic stem cell research, and the ethics of Gnosticism.

    Branch and his wife, Lisa, have two daughters, Joy and Anna Beth.

  • Larry L. Cornine

  • Associate Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling

  • Dr. Cornine teaches Pastoral Care and Counseling classes at the graduate level and selected Christian Education and undergraduate classes. Along with his teaching responsibilities, Dr. Cornine directs the Master’s in Counseling (MACO) program.

    Dr. Cornine has earned four degrees in education. He earned his B.S.Ed., M.S.Ed., Ed.Sp. at the University of Central Missouri, and an ED.D. from the University of Kansas. Additionally, he has a M.A. in counseling from Liberty Baptist University and a Ph.D. in Psychology from Golden State University.

    Dr. Cornine began his professional career as a biology teacher in the North Kansas City School District at Oak Park High School. Interrupted by service in the U.S. Army, Dr. Cornine returned to the NKC District as a teacher, became an Assistant Principal at Oak Park High School where he served for 8 years, and became the Principal of Kearney High School. Leaving education, he established Diakonos Counseling Center, consulted with area in-patient psychiatric hospitals and retired from clinical practice in 2000. Dr. Cornine taught as an adjunct for many years and was elected to the faculty in 2008.

  • Eric A. Foley

  • Assistant Professor of Church Music, Director of Church Music Program

  • Foley teaches church music at Midwestern Seminary and serves as conductor of the Midwestern Singers (the MBTS choir).

    He received a Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting Performance from the University of Kansas and earned a Master’s of Music and a Bachelor’s of Science in Vocal Music Education from the University of Missouri - Columbia. 

    Foley is in demand throughout the region as a clinician and adjudicator. He enjoys spending his leisure time involved in Scouting with his sons and other outdoor related activities.

    Additional academic interests include vocal jazz and musical theater.

    Foley and his wife, Kathy, have two sons, Alan and Ryan.

  • Radu Gheorghita

  • Associate Professor of Biblical Studies

  • Gheorghita teaches New Testament and some Old Testament classes at Midwestern Seminary and serves as associate professor of biblical studies.

    He received a B.S. from the University of Cluj, Cluj-Napoca, Romania; a M.Div. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, Ill.; and a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, Cambridge, England.

    Gheorghita came to Midwestern from Emmanuel Bible Institute in Oradea, Romania. He continues to travel to Romania on a regular basis to teach in the master’s program at the University of Bucharest. A couple of years ago he initiated a series of biannual theological conferences for the pastors and lay leaders in the Baptist churches there.

    His field of research is Septuagint studies and the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament.  He is passionate about book-by-book memorization of the Scriptures, especially in the original languages.

    Gheorghita and his wife, Liz, have five children.

  • Robin D. Hadaway

  • Associate Professor of Missions, Director of Mission Atlas Project

  • Dr. Robin Hadaway has served as Associate Professor of Missions at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary since October of 2003. Previously, he and his wife Kathy served as missionaries with the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention for a total of 18 years.

    Hadaway served as a strategy coordinator, cluster leader, and church planter in a closed country in North Africa and earlier as a church planter in Tanzania. More recently, Hadaway was the IMB Regional Leader for Eastern South America, supervising over 300 missionaries in Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay.

    He also has been a senior pastor for churches in California and Arizona and attained the rank of captain in the U.S. Air Force, stationed in Alaska and Nevada. Hadaway holds graduate degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. Hadaway also attended Dallas Theological Seminary. His undergraduate degree is from Memphis State University.

    He is a native of Tallahassee, Fla., and is married to the former Kathy Baze of Phoenix, Ariz. They have three grown children.

  • Rodney A. Harrison

  • Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness, Associate Professor of Christian Education, Director of Doctoral Studies

  • Dr. Rodney A. Harrison serves as Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness, Director of Doctoral Studies and as an assistant professor of Christian Education at MBTS.

    He comes to Midwestern following a fruitful ministry in church planting and mission service in California, the Dakotas and Minnesota. Prior to coming to Midwestern, he served as the New Church Extension Associate for the California Southern Baptist Convention. Harrison is the author of two books on church planting and has written material for LifeWay Christian Resources and the North American Mission Board. Harrison holds a D.Min. in Mission Administration from Golden Gate Seminary and has done post-doctoral studies at Oxford University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

    Harrison and his wife, Julie, have 3 children, Joshua, Cassandra and Gabrielle.

  • N. Blake Hearson

  • Assistant Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew, Midwestern Journal Editor and Book Review Editor

  • Hearson has been appointed assistant professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at MBTS. 

    He earned his doctorate and a Master of Philosophy degree in Hebraic and Cognate Studies from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio.  He also holds a Master of Divinity degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Mass., and the Master and Bachelor of Arts degrees from Wheaton College, in Wheaton Ill. 

    He has served as an associate pastor of small groups at Crossroads Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, and been a member of the faculty at Columbia Evangelical Seminary. His research interests include: "sacred space in the Bible and Rabbinic Literature" and "the problem of evil in the prophetic literature."

  • Ronald V. Huggins

  • Associate Professor of New Testament and Greek

  • Huggins teaches New Testament and Greek and serves as associate professor of New Testament and Greek at MBTS.

    He received his Doctorate in Theology from Wycliffe College, Toronto School of Theology, University of Toronto, his Master’s of Christian Studies from Regent College, Vancouver, B.C., and his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Idaho.

    Huggins comes to Midwestern after eight years at Salt Lake Theological Seminary in Salt Lake City, Utah.  There he served as professor of historical and theological studies and as the director of the Master’s of Arts in Theological Studies program.  Prior to that, Huggins taught at Moody Northwest  in Spokane, Wash., and as a Latin teacher at private Christian schools in Spokane and at Couer d’ Alene, Idaho. 

    Huggins is the author of Roman Catholicism and the Evangelical Conscience (1981). His scholarly articles have appeared in a number of settings, including  the Journal of Biblical Literature, Westminster Theological Journal, Revue de Qumran, Novum Testamentum, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and the Eerdman's Dictionary of the Bible. His cartoons have appeared in Christianity Today and in the Wittenburg Door.

  • Jerry A. Johnson

  • Professor of Ethics and Theology, Vice President for Academic Development, Dean of the Faculty

  • Johnson serves as Vice President for Academic Development, Academic Dean, and Professor of Ethics and Theology at MBTS.

    He comes to Midwestern from Criswell College in Dallas, where he served as President and Professor of Theology and Ethics. Prior to Criswell, he was Dean of Boyce College at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and has over 15 years of pastoral experience in Texas, Colorado, and Kentucky. Johnson holds a B.A. from Criswell College, an M.A. from Denver Conservative Baptist Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Southern Seminary.

    Johnson’s leadership in the SBC includes chairmanship for both the Board of Trustees of Southern Seminary and the SBC Committee on Order of Business.

    He and his wife, Rhonda, have two children.

  • Thomas P. Johnston

  • Associate Professor of Evangelism

  • Johnston serves as Associate Professor of Evangelism at Midwestern.

    Johnston brings to Midwestern an emphasis in the practice of evangelism. He founded the Midwestern Evangelistic Team, going out multiple times a week in street evangelism and partnering with local churches for outreach. Johnston earned his Ph.D. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2001. His dissertation was published by Wipf and Stock Publishers in 2003 with the title Examining Billy Graham’s Theology of Evangelism. His current work, Book of Charts for a Theology of Evangelism, was released by Broadman Holman in 2007. He has published articles in the Trinity Journal, Perichoresis, Midwestern Journal of Theology, Preaching Magazine, and Decision Magazine.

    Johnston has taught evangelism in the U.S., Canada, and in Eastern and Western Europe since 1985. He has pastored churches in Quebec, Manitoba, Iowa, Minnesota, and Missouri.

    Among his current research interests are evangelism in 13th Century Southern France and from 16th Century Geneva, the Inquisition and Protestant martyrologies, and the Bible Society movement.

  • J. Craig Kubic

  • Librarian, Director of Library Services

  • Kubic serves as Director of Library Services at Midwestern.

    Kubic is President-Elect of the Church and Synagogue Library Association.  He is a regular columnist in “Church and Synagogue Libraries” journal called Downtime.  He came to Midwestern in 1987, having served as acting library director for Golden Gate Seminary.  He has the M.L.S. from Louisiana State University, the M.Div. from Golden Gate, and the D.Ed.Min. from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.  

    Additionally, he serves as Chaplain in the Civil Air Patrol (Truman Squadron, Independence, Mo.)

  • Thorvald B. Madsen II

  • Dean, Midwestern College, SBC, Associate Professor of New Testament, Ethics, and Philosophy of Religion.

  • Madsen serves as Dean of Midwestern College, SBC, and associate professor of New Testament, Ethics, and Philosophy of Religion.

    Madsen's rich academic background prepares him for this uniquely varied faculty position. He was first a philosophy major at Wheaton College. From Wheaton, he went on to earn the M.A. in philosophy at Western Kentucky University and to spend a year in the doctoral program in philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. With that base, he sensed God's leading into biblical studies, and he enrolled at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where he earned the M.Div. from Trinity. He then went to the University of Aberdeen, where he earned the Ph.D. in New Testament in 1998. His dissertation explores the relationship between the fact of the new life in Christ and the obligation of Christians to rise to that reality.

  • David M. McAlpin

  • Vice President for Student Development & Associate Professor of Biblical Interpretation

  • McAlpin serves as Vice President for Student Development at MBTS.

    He comes to Midwestern with over 25 years of experience as a senior pastor, having served churches in Tennessee, Florida, and Missouri. During his 14+ year tenure at the First Baptist Church of Harvester in St. Charles, Mo., he co-founded the Center for Christian Ministry Studies at Lindenwood University and also served as the Center's Executive Director from 2002 to 2006.

    As both pastor and academician McAlpin has been committed to interpreting the Bible with accuracy, and preaching it with passion and clarity. Helping those called into Christian ministry to develop those same gifts energizes and animates his life. McAlpin holds a B.A. from Berry College, an M.Div. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. He served on Midwestern's Board of Trustees from 1995 until 2000; additionally, he has served in various capacities on the state denominational level.

    He and his wife, Nanell, have two sons.

  • Michael D. McMullen

  • Professor of Church History; Director of Collegiate Program

  • Born in England, McMullen won, over stiff competition, a major British government scholarship for his doctoral work on Jonathan Edwards. He did the work at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, and at Yale University. He has pastored in Kirkintilloch, Scotland, and has served as a part-time lecturer at Aberdeen University, and as a distance tutor in at St. John's College, and the Open Theological College, both in England.

    He has authored several books, including Hearts Aflame (Triangle/SPCK), Clouds of Heaven (Triangle/SPCK), The Passionate Preacher (Christian Focus), The Prayers and Meditations of Susanna Wesley (MPH, London), God's Polished Arrow (Christian Focus), and The Unpublished Sermons of M'Cheyne (Banner of Truth). He is also Associate Editor (Church History) for Oxford University's New Dictionary of National Biography.

  • Tony L. Preston

  • Associate Professor of Pastoral Leadership; Director of Supervised Ministry

  • Preston teaches pastoral leadership at Midwestern Seminary.

    He received a Doctor of Ministry at Reformed Seminary and has earned a M.Div. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and a B.A. from William Carey College all while pastoring. Preston is a veteran pastor, having served for 22 years in churches in Alabama, Mississippi, Texas and Arkansas. He continues to pastor on a very regular interim basis.

    In addition to pastoral experience, he was Professor of Evangelism at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Mo., and served on the Christian Life Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.

    His research interests are all in the field of pastoral ministry and leadership.

    Preston and his wife, Brenda, have two grown children, Brandon and Angela.

  • David J. Richards

  • Registrar; Assistant Professor of Christian Education

  • Richards teaches Christian education at Midwestern Seminary and serves as registrar.

    He received a Doctor of Education in educational leadership and policy analysis from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and earned an M.A. in Christian Theology from Wheaton College and a B.A. from Moody Bible Institute. Richards had 14 years of prior experience as a registrar before coming to Midwestern. 

  • Gustavo Suarez

  • Director of the Nehemiah Center for North American Church Planting; Professor of Church Planting

  • Suarez teaches church planting and church growth at Midwestern Seminary and serves as the director for the Nehemiah Center for North American Church Planting.

    He received a Doctor of Ministry degree at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary and earned an M.Div. degree from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary and a B.S. degree in physical education from the University of Maryland. 

    Prior to accepting his position at Midwestern, Suarez was the executive director and treasurer for the Northwest Baptist Convention. He served in state conventions for 22 years and has been a North American Mission Board-appointed missionary for over 20 years. He served as a pastor and church planter in Buffalo, N.Y.; a language catalytic missionary for the Baptist Convention of Maryland and Delaware; a language missions director for the Baptist Convention of New Mexico; and director of the Division of Mission Ministries Baptist Convention of New Mexico.

    Suarez’s research interests include selected topics in the areas of cultural issues and the church.

    He and his wife, Diana, have two sons, Philip and Matthew.

  • F. Alan Tomlinson

  • Professor of New Testament and Greek

  • Tomlinson teaches New Testament and Greek at Midwestern Seminary.

    He received a Doctor of Philosophy from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and earned a Th.M. from Dallas Theological Seminary and a B.S. from University of Tennessee. Prior to coming to Midwestern, Tomlinson worked as an industrial engineer for Tennessee Valley Authority, was an office manager for a Certified Public Accountant and served as dean of men at a Bible college. 

    Tomlinson is currently a noted conference speaker and was named Professor of the Year for the 2000-01 academic year.

  • Rustin J. Umstattd

  • Assistant Professor of Theology

  • Umstattd is the assistant professor of Theology at Midwestern.

    He earned his doctorate and a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.  He also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Georgia Southern University and B.B.A. from Georgia Southwestern University.  Umstattd comes to Midwestern having served 15 plus years in student ministry, with the last 10 being served at Matthew Road Baptist Church in Grand Prairie, Texas.

    His research interests include the theology of both the Trinity and the Holy Spirit.

  • Charles E. Warren

  • Appointed Associate Professor of Theology

  • Warren serves as Appointed Associate Professor of Theology at MBTS.

    Prior to being called by God to teach theology at the seminary level, Warren was an applied scientist for 32 years, specializing in electrical engineering, having obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Auburn University (1961). The last 15 years of his engineering career were spent as co-owner of an electrical engineering and construction company in Dothan, Ala.

    Responding to God’s call, Warren obtained both a Doctor of Philosophy degree (2001) and a Master of Divinity Degree (1997) from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Warren joined Midwestern in 2002. Warren teaches Christian Doctrine, Christian Faith and Science, Philosophy, Introduction to Business and Finance, and Personal Finance.

    Having a special interest in the interface of science and theology, Warren did his doctoral dissertation on the doctrine of original sin in light of human genetic science. Entitled Original Sin Explained? Revelations from Human Genetic Science, the dissertation was subsequently published by the University Press of America (2002). His passion is to refute the theory of evolution, and he is currently working on the development of A General Theory of Biological Design.

    Warren and his wife Aileen have two daughters, five grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

  • Daniel R. Watson

  • Associate Professor of Old Testament

  • Watson has been appointed as Associate Professor of Old Testament at MBTS.

    He earned both the Ph.D. in Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and the M.Phil. in Hebraic and Cognate Studies from Hebrew Union, based in Cincinnati. He received the Th.M. from Grace Theological Seminary in Old Testament Language and Literature and the B.A. from Liberty University.

    He brings to the classroom his own ministerial experience and an interest in ancient civilizations. Prior to coming to Midwestern he taught Old Testament at Bethel Seminary in San Diego.

  • Terry Wilder

  • Appointed Research Professor of New Testament and Greek

  • Wilder serves Midwestern Seminary as Research Professor of New Testament and Greek.

    He earned the Ph.D. from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, a M.Div.BL. from Southwestern Seminary, and a M.A. from Dallas Baptist University. He is a prolific contributor of papers to theological conferences and has authored several articles and two books: Faithful to the End: An Introduction to Hebrews through Revelation (B & H Academic, 2007), and Pseudonymity, the New Testament, and Deception (University Press of America, 2004).

    He is passionate about canon and text, the biblical languages, and the need to interpret the New Testament in its original context. He often preaches and teaches in churches, leads mission trips, and speaks on ethical issues.

    Wilder also serves as Academic Acquisitions Editor for B & H Publishing Group in Nashville, Tenn., where he lives with his wife, Denise, and their two boys, Ian and Aaron.

Academics