The ink is flowing on campus! Along with the tremendous and unprecedented growth at Midwestern Seminary and Spurgeon College has come a renaissance of literary endeavors. Faculty and staff alike have seen increasing opportunities in the world of Christian publishing, contributing an ever-growing series of serious contributions in service to the Church.
President Jason K. Allen, of course, has followed up his previously successful books Discerning Your Call to Ministry, Portraits of a Pastor, and The SBC and the 21st Century with a new book aimed at equipping new believers with a gospel-centered primer on whole-life discipleship: Being a Christian: How Jesus Redeems All of Life. Aimed at walking readers through the gospel’s impact on all facets of life, Being a Christian was published by Broadman & Holman, with whom Dr. Allen has also recently signed a contract for two more books in the near future.
Midwestern academic provost Jason G. Duesing has also followed up his recent 7 Summits in Church History with a new B&H title of his own, Mere Hope: Life in an Age of Cynicism, which offers a Christ-centered perspective on the suffering, fear, and injustice of contemporary life.
Samuel Bierig, newly appointed dean of Spurgeon College, has recently signed a contract with Rainer Publishing to produce a book on the “stewardship of words” promoting the gracious use of the tongue and pen by Christian brothers and sisters.
The “stewardship of words” is continuing to be well-administered by still more members of our growing roster of faculty authors as well:
Owen Strachan recently released a new edition in one volume of his previously published series of reflections (with Douglas Sweeney) on the life and writing of America’s greatest pastor-theologian. The Essential Jonathan Edwards was published May 1 by Moody. Dr. Strachan also has numerous projects in the works.
On the heels of his monumental volume Reformation Theology, Mathew Barrett will publish this May via Kregel Academic 40 Questions About Salvation. This book will help Christians who want to grow in their understanding of what the Bible teaches about salvation, covering the most common and difficult questions about election, the order of salvation, perseverance of the saints, and more.
John Lee recently released The Risen Lord Visits the Failed Disciple: 21 Reflections on John 21 from Korean-language publisher Jordan Press, which will also publish Dr. Lee’s The Gospel of Zacchaeus this December. In the fall, Mohr Siebeck will publish Lee’s (English-language) Christological Re-reading of the Shema in Mark’s Gospel. Lee has also recently signed a contract with Lexham Press for a book to be published in 2020.
Lexham Press will later this year publish Dr. Alan Branch’s book Transgenderism and Christian Ethics, adding a much needed word in this culturally relevant conversation.
Sung Jin Park recently authored Typology in Biblical Hebrew Meter: A Generative Metrical Approach, which was published by Edwin Mellen.
Thomas Johnston is set to release a new revision of his evangelism notes. All three volumes of Evangelizology will appear in August.
Rodney Harrison will be completing a three-book series co-authored with Glenn Miller and Jeff Klick on pastoral leadership with Navigating Conflict: A Pastor’s Guide, which will publish from The Institute for Church Growth in December.
And of course many of our professors continue to see short pieces appear in theological and ministerial journals, magazines, and web resources throughout the year. The For The Church website hosted by the seminary is also a great and ever-expanding repository of short pieces in the pastoral, practical, and devotional veins, further shaping Midwestern’s reputation for literary stewardship.
Midwestern Seminary staffers are also continuing to make forays into publishing. Sam Parkison, an admissions counselor at Midwestern and a worship leader at nearby Emmaus Church, recently signed a contract with Rainer Publishing to author a book on worship. Director of content strategy Jared C. Wilson also continues his prolific ways, following up his recent Supernatural Power for Everyday People (Nelson) with a book on leading gospel-centered church transition (coming Spring 2019) from Zondervan and signing a contract for another book with Nelson in the genre of Christian living to appear in 2020.
These are exciting days for Midwestern Seminary community, as the influence of and investment by the institution repeatedly resounds far and wide. And with more academic, practical, and literary contributions to come, these are great days for students to join the spiritual and intellectual resurgence taking place in Kansas City.