J.I. Packer currently serves as the Board of Governors' Professor of Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. An ordained Anglican minister, he hold a D.Phil. from Oxford University. Dr. Packer's many published works include Rediscovering Holiness, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, and the best–selling Knowing God.
Dr. R.C. Sproul was founder of
Ligonier Ministries, an international Christian discipleship organization
located near Orlando, Fla. He was first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel in
Sanford, Fla., first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive
editor of Tabletalk magazine. His radio program, Renewing
Your Mind, is still broadcast daily on hundreds of radio stations
around the world and can also be heard online. Dr. Sproul contributed dozens of
articles to national evangelical publications, spoke at conferences, churches,
and schools around the world, and wrote more than one hundred books,
including The Holiness of God, Chosen by God, and Everyone's
a Theologian. He also served as general editor of the Reformation
Study Bible. Dr. Sproul went home to be with the Lord in 2017.
In 1948 God called Francis A. Schaeffer and his wife to leave their St. Louis pastorate and make their home in Switzerland. From this beginning grew the fruitful ministry of L'Abri Fellowship in the Swiss Alps. Philosopher, theologian, lecturer, author, counselor—but above all, apostle to the questioning youth of many cultures—Schaeffer is remembered for his unusual ability to communicate the truth to all who sat under his teaching.
Dr. Gene Wilkes is the president and professor of New
Testament and Leadership at B. H. Carroll Theological Institute in Irving, Texas.
Dr. Wilkes embraces the Institute's mission to "equip men and women called to
serve Christ in the diverse and global ministries of his church." He has
authored eleven books, including Jesus on
Leadership: Timeless Wisdom on Servant Leadership and A New Way of Living: Practicing the Beatitudes Every Day. Dr.
Wilkes received his Ph.D. in New Testament studies and his M.Div. from
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He graduated from Baylor University
with a bachelor of arts in religion and Greek.
Dr. Wilkes served as senior pastor of Legacy Church in Plano,
Texas, for twenty-six years prior to coming to Carroll Institute as Vice
President of Development. During his local church ministry, Legacy Church transitioned
to become "a mission outpost where every member is a missionary in his or her
mission field."
Legacy Church was a teaching church in the B. H. Carroll network
of teaching partners, and Dr. Wilkes was a resident fellow and Ph.D. supervisor
for Carroll from 2005 until his retirement from the church. Carroll seeks to
return theological education to the local church and restore the value of pastor/teacher
in local ministry. Dr. Wilkes has also taught Biblical Servant Leadership as an
adjunct professor in the Gary Cook School of Leadership at Dallas Baptist
University at both the master's and the Ph.D. levels. Along with his teaching
ministry, Dr. Wilkes speaks nationally and internationally on the topic of
servant leadership and as a Bible teacher. Some of the international sites he's
taught at include Mexico, Cuba, China, Vietnam, Albania, Greece, Russia,
Canada, Portugal, and Honduras.
Dr. Wilkes lives in Plano, Texas, with his wife, Kim. They have
two married daughters and three grandchildren. Dr. Wilkes's hobbies include
trail running, hiking, mountaineering, cycling, and golf. He summited Mount
Rainier in Washington on his sixtieth birthday.
Mark Mittelberg is the best-selling author of The Questions Christians Hope No One Will Ask (with answers) and The Reason Why Faith Makes Sense. He is also the primary creator of the celebrated Becoming a Contagious Christian curriculum, which has been translated into more than 20 languages and used to train 1.5 million people around the world. Mark was on the leadership team at the Willow Creek Association in Chicago for many years, and now co-directs (with Lee Strobel) The Institute at Cherry Hills in Denver, Colorado.
David Platt is the author of three New York Times bestsellers,
including Follow Me and Radical. He is lead pastor at McLean
Bible Church in metro Washington, DC; former president of the International
Mission Board (IMB); and founder of Radical, Inc., a resource ministry that
serves churches in accomplishing the global mission of Christ. Platt received
his master of divinity, master of theology, and doctor of philosophy from New
Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. He lives in Virginia with his wife and
four children.
Alister McGrath is Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and
Religion of the University of Oxford. In addition, he is Senior Research Fellow
at Harris Manchester College at Oxford and President of the Oxford Centre for
Christian Apologetics. Dr. McGrath is a bestselling author of more than 50
books and a popular speaker, traveling the world every year to speak at various
conferences.
Scott Sauls serves as senior
pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Previously, Scott
was a lead and preaching pastor for Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York
City, where he served alongside Dr. Timothy Keller. Scott has also planted two
churches—one in Kansas City, Kansas, and the other in St. Louis, Missouri.
Scott is the author of Befriend,
From Weakness to Strength, and Irresistible Faith and is a frequent speaker at
church conferences, leadership retreats, and to university students. Scott
currently lives in Nashville with his wife, Patti, and his daughters, Abby and
Ellie. Learn more about Scott on his blog at www.scottsauls.com
or by following @scottsauls on Twitter.
Pastor Charles R. Swindoll has devoted his life to the accurate, practical
teaching and application of God's Word. Since 1998, he has served as the senior
pastor-teacher of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas, but Chuck's
listening audience extends beyond a local church body. As a leading program in
Christian broadcasting since 1979, Insight for Living airs around the
world. Chuck's leadership as president and now chancellor emeritus at
Dallas Theological Seminary has helped prepare and equip a new generation of
men and women for ministry.
Alisa
Childers is
a wife, mom, author, podcaster, blogger, speaker, and worship leader. She was a
member of the award-winning CCM recording group ZOEgirl. She is currently a respected
speaker at apologetics and Christian worldview conferences,as well as the host
of her popular YouTube channel. Alisa's story was featured in the documentary, American
Gospel: Christ Crucified. She has been published at the Gospel Coalition,
Crosswalk, the Stream, For Every Mom, Decision Magazine, and the
Christian Post, and her blog post "Girl, Wash Your Face? What Rachel Hollis
Gets Right . . . and Wrong" received more than one million views.
Dr. Guillaume
Bignon was
born and raised in France, where he studied math, physics, and engineering
science. He currently works as a software engineering manager. After a wholly
improbable conversion from atheism to Christianity, Guillaume earned a master's
in biblical literature with an emphasis on the New Testament, and a PhD in
philosophical theology. His areas of interest include the metaphysics of free
will, natural theology, and soteriology. Guillaume is an executive committee
member of Association Axiome, a society of French-speaking Christian scholars.
He and his wife, Katherine, have five young (and adorable) children.
Sean McDowell is an associate professor of Christian apologetics at Biola University. He is the bestselling author, editor, or coauthor of more than twenty books. He speaks internationally on issues related to culture, apologetics, and Gen Z. He is the cohost of the Think Biblically podcast and has a popular YouTube channel. Sean and his wife Stephanie have two children and make their home in California. Visit Sean online at seanmcdowell.org.
Scot McKnight is the Julius R. Mantey Professor of
New Testament at Northern Seminary and a recognized authority on the New
Testament, early Christianity, and the historical Jesus. He is the author of
more than eighty books, including the award-winning The Jesus Creed as
well as The King Jesus Gospel, A Fellowship of Differents, The
Blue Parakeet, and Kingdom Conspiracy. He maintains an active
blog at https://www.christianitytoday.com/scot-mcknight.
He and his wife, Kristen, live in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, where they
enjoy long walks, gardening, and cooking.
As a young man, Josh McDowell considered himself
an agnostic.
He truly believed that Christianity was worthless. However, when challenged to
intellectually examine the claims of Christianity, Josh discovered compelling,
overwhelming evidence for the reliability of the Christian faith. After
trusting in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, Josh's life changed dramatically
as he experienced the power of God's love.
After Josh's conversion, his plans for law school turned instead to plans to
tell a doubting world about the truth of Jesus Christ. After studying at
Kellogg College, Josh completed his college degree at Wheaton College and then
attended Talbot School of Theology, where he graduated magna cum laude with a master
of divinity degree.
In 1961, Josh joined the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ International. Not
long after, he started the Josh McDowell Ministry to reach young people
worldwide with the truth and love of Jesus.
Well known as an articulate speaker, Josh has addressed more than 46 million
people, giving over 27,200 talks in 139 countries.
As he traveled to other countries, Josh quickly realized that where people were
sick, homeless, and hungry, words were not enough. In 1991, Josh founded
Operation Carelift to meet the physical and spiritual needs he discovered in
orphanages, hospitals, schools, and prisons in the countries of the former
Soviet Union. Since that time, Operation Carelift has delivered humanitarian
aid (food, clothing, and medical supplies) worth more than $46,000,000. Nearly
one million children have received school supplies, food items, hygiene items,
and toys from the volunteers that travel twice a year to share God's love with
them.
Josh has received two significant honors from the Russian people because of
these efforts. He is the only non-Russian to receive an honorary doctor of
pediatrics degree from the Russian Academy of Medicine—in recognition of his
work among the children of Russia. Also, Josh is the only foreigner to become a
member of the prestigious Russian Club of Scientists. Operation Carelift, which
has grown into one of the largest humanitarian aid organizations based in the
United States, is now a part of UNTO (formerly known as Global Aid Network).
In the United States, Josh and his team have created many cutting-edge live
events to help young people stand strong and firm in their faith in the face of
a rapidly-changing culture. These have often developed into full-blown
campaigns, such as:
Six Hours with Josh
Why Wait?
Counter the Culture
Right From Wrong
Beyond Belief
Since 1960, Josh has written or coauthored 151 books in 128 languages
including:
More Than a Carpenter—over 27 million copies distributed
Evidence That Demands a Verdict—named one the twentieth century's top 40
books and one of the 13 most influential books of the last 50 years on
Christian thought by World Magazine.
In addition to many other awards, Josh has been nominated 36 times for the Gold
Medallion Award and has received that award on four occasions.
In spite of all the honors and awards he has received, Josh will tell anyone
that his greatest joys and pleasures come from his family. He and his wife,
Dottie, have been married 50 years. They have 4 children and 11 grandchildren.
Josh McDowell Ministry is a Cru ministry (the US division of Campus Crusade for
Christ International).
