‘You Could Go to Seminary!’
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“You could go to seminary!”
I will never forget those words from my wife Lynnette—and she won’t either.
They were uttered as we were eating lunch one day in the spring of 1994, watching The Coral Ridge Hour from Dr. D. James Kennedy and Coral Ridge Ministries. The segment at the end of that particular episode highlighted the new Knox Theological Seminary, which Dr. Kennedy had begun and was promoting to his national television audience.
I was ending the second year of my first pastorate, in a small church in a small town in northwest Illinois, and had completed two graduate classes during that school year.
Lynnette’s words shocked me—and, I think, her as well. They also changed our lives forever.
At that moment, I knew I wanted to, and needed to, go to seminary, and began to look at the possibilities. These were the days before the Internet—the “information superhighway” which, we were told, would change our lives, as well. We did not even own a computer. Nor did we have the money or means to take cross-country trips to visit the schools of our dreams.
However, I did know that I did not want to move to a big city. I also knew that I did not want to simply follow my college classmates and friends to the same seminaries they were attending. I was willing to break new ground—and I wanted at least a slightly different perspective than I had received in college.
I was probably more open to differing viewpoints than even I realized at the time, but deep down I was intrigued by—even if not yet committed to—the traditional dispensational viewpoint that I had already learned from many beloved teachers, both those near to me, and also far, by means of books and media.
I had heard of Faith Baptist Bible College in Ankeny, Iowa, from just a few different sources—so I decided to call them.
“Do you have a seminary?” I asked innocently.
“Yes, we do,” the voice on the other end reassured me.
Faith Baptist Theological Seminary was eight years old at the time, and within a few days a packet of information from the school was in my mailbox.
The minute I read it, I was pretty much hooked. I could not believe how many degrees these professors had—and the impressive list of schools where they had obtained them!
But one item jumped off the page at me: Dr. John C. Whitcomb was going to be teaching a week-long module in the seminary in September! I could not envision myself being anywhere else but there by that time.
I believe that God led me providentially to attend the seminary at Faith. I cannot think of a way that another seminary anywhere could have met my needs at a deeper level than Faith did. The opportunities that I had to study there—with such amazing professors, in such an intimate academic setting—could never be duplicated. These men were my teachers and my mentors, and they became my friends.
This is not to say that the whole experience was one great, happy, rosy time. Going to seminary—and going through seminary—were easily some of the hardest things I have done in my life. I can testify, however, that I could not now imagine my life without that experience. I must say that I would likely never have gone, and could never have made it through, without Lynnette’s help—and I am eternally indebted to her for that.
Perhaps you can relate my story to other difficult but worthwhile endeavors that you have undertaken, or are considering. Maybe there is even someone reading this article who has been on the fence with regard to their confidence in their own ability to attend seminary. There are certainly many more options now than there were in 1994, especially with the plethora of online programs. I would say to you what Lynnette said to me back then: “You could go to seminary!”
I returned to Faith this month for the first time in 10 years—since we were there in 2011 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Genesis Flood with Dr. Whitcomb and his family. I exhibited at this year’s Refresh Conference, and was able to engage in some additional ministries in the college. It was a time of reminiscing and reflecting for me, as well as a very productive opportunity for ministry outreach.
Faith celebrates its 100th anniversary during this year of 2021, and I am humbled to have been a part of the last 27 years of that history.
May God, in His grace and mercy, continue to bless this school for many more years to come, until Christ returns—for the good of many more students.
Paul Scharf 2019 Bio
Paul J. Scharf (M.A., M.Div., Faith Baptist Theological Seminary) is a church ministries representative for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, serving in the midwest. He also assists Whitcomb Ministries and writes for “Answers” Magazine and Regular Baptist Press. For more information on his ministry, visit foi.org/scharf or email pscharf@foi.org.
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and it is worth noting that some of the current trends in education regarding expediting the process end up short circuiting the full development spiritually and professionally of the man. You learn theology differently, even more incompletely at the undergrad level. You tend to study to get by, or study to the test content, rather than fully integrate or do the work of biblical understanding or synthesis. Not saying that it doesn’t happen, nor am I throwing younger students under the “you have to wait until you are older” bus either. Much of this is due to the fact that a young man does not really hit his intellectual stride and integrative capacity until around the age of 25. It is good to hear it multiple times, from different angles, because what is covered in local church Sunday school and youth group is the “what” you are to believe, while seminary especially should be covering the “why” as well as the comparatives to other schools of thought. I too tested out of basic seminary intro Greek, but still had a steep learning curve to catch up because the seminary prof had different emphases than my college profs. Cedarville and CSU both offer accelerated M.Div., but not sure about FaithBBC. ~ Jeff
[TylerR]A seminary can’t possibly teach the practical outworkings of these things. If one is concerned with practical ministry, the church must handle that. The seminary can provide the academics.
Tyler, I think they can…. If nothing else, make it an optional evening for couples in the seminary.
You would be amazed—and probably more than slightly amused—if I shared a list of some of the things I have seen covered in either chapel or practical theology sessions. Mercifully, some of them are forgotten.
Surely we have time to cover a few of the basics I have listed above!
The first time I remember sharing this line of thinking was in seminary. I replied to a survey and said that everything that was presented to us was wonderful, but I wished they would invite Larry Burkett to come and do a special seminar for seminary students on finances. I still to this day think that was a great idea.
Blessings!
Church Ministries Representative, serving in the Midwest, for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry
Speaking for myself, it’s almost impossible now to look back and say “I wished I’d learned that at seminary.”
- First, I don’t remember everything I learned, so maybe we did cover it. I often look back at my course notes and am struck by something amazing I apparently didn’t remember or appreciate at the time.
- Second, I might not have been able to use or appreciate it if I did learn it. Experience comes with age … and scars.
- Third, some lessons just can’t be learned in the abstract, so covering it in seminary might have been a waste of time.
- Fourth, the seminary isn’t the local church, so it should major on academics. The church is the place to handle practical implementation.
- Fifth, a seminary education is a solid base from whence to sally forth into ministry. It can’t possibly be a encyclopedia for all things you must know. Not possible, and we’d be talking a lot more than 96 credits!
That’s my two cents. My seminary education was excellent. I’ve moved away from some emphases in the intervening years, but that’s not the seminary’s fault. People are supposed to grow and spread their wings a bit. But, the education and base I received from Maranatha Seminary was first-rate. It did what it was supposed to do. It couldn’t possibly cover it all. But, it gave me the fundamentals. That’s more than good enough.
I’m also enjoying the DMin at Central Seminary right now. I sometimes wonder if I should have opted for a ThM instead, but the dye is now cast. I’ll grab the ThM next …
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
It strikes me that the items Paul mentions are very good seminar topics. I remember a series I attended in grad school in engineering, one of which was about copyrights. I still use what I learned from that seminar, as many of my fellow engineers are not terribly good about adhering to intellectual property laws. (my favorite response is to point out that engineers get paid really for what they know, so to refuse to follow copyright laws is to say “I really shouldn’t be paid”)
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.
I shall now relate a common story of woe; one that will be instantly familiar to any pastor with experience. This happened just this morning. Here’s the catalyst for this - we had a wedding between two Christians as the worship service this past Sunday. A private reception followed,to which some (not all) church members were invited, along with bride and groom’s guests. Here’s the complaint I received from a church member this morning:
- The music during the private reception desecrated the building.
- Dancing desecrated the building.
- The sound company was a bad testimony because the name of the company was “Sound Dragon,” this name appeared on the side of the truck, and it was parked in our parking lot for the wedding.
- We blasphemed God by not having a worship service.
Of course, a whole host of questions immediately come to mind. Is the building a sacred temple? Is dancing during a private reception a sin? Is playing secular, easy-listening music during the reception an unholy activity? I will add that the groom twirled his 91-year old mother’s wheelchair around as he “danced” with her during the reception. Is a wedding “as the service” a sin? We presented the gospel twice during the service.
I explained my reasoning, and she said she disagreed. I asked where that leaves us. She said she be praying about it, which is Christian code for “I’m outta here soon.”
This would be a good “what if” scenario for a young seminarian, in a practical course. But, his answers would entirely depend on his particular ecclesiastical tradition and the context of his own congregation. But, it would be a great scenario to force young guys to ponder as they sit in seminary. Particularly the interplay between pragmatics, the “book answer,” the weight to give unbiblical tradition, and how to determine how much deference one ought to give to personal opinions and tradition.
For my part:
- The church is not a temple, so I don’t care if a private reception has dancing. It’s just a building. Nothing sacred about it.
- Dancing is fine. But, I can’t dance and won’t. I’m too stiff.
- “Sound Dragon” as a bad testimony? Not sure why that would be!
- If a wedding forces you to leave the church, then it’s probably for the best.
This individual is a nice lady, but she’d be happier at a more “traditional” church (though ours is pretty darn traditional!). She’s been unhappy and complaining for a long while, and nothing has calmed her down. She has been implicitly waiting for a reason to go. It was going to happen sooner or later.
But, one could argue I should have not done it, in deferrence to her. But, it is worth it to run scared? In this case, she would have left anyway about something. I knew she would go, and I decided to do it anyway because I didn’t want to run scared. And, to be blunt, I can’t think of anything more God-honoring than to have a bride and groom celebrate their Christian marriage in front of their church family, with many unsaved guests present. Why should I push it to a Saturday? Thus, I did not.
A great practical exercise to walk young guys through, to be sure! Several years ago I would have taken an entirely different, safer course of action.
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
I don’t have a problem with duplication of content per se—particularly if the duplication if from a slightly different perspective. I took Bible Doctrine 1 and 2 covering the basics of the major doctrines and then took Systematic Theology 1-4 covering those same doctrines at the graduate level. I also had an instance of inverse duplication: I took a hermeneutics course on the graduate level before taking Biblical Interpretation on the undergraduate level. My Greek classes, however, have not been duplicates. The advantage of a language is that every semester builds on the previous semester. My advisor told me early on that if I planned to take three years of Greek, I should take them continuously. I’m so thankful for that advice.
At Maranatha, quite a few Bible classes are offered at both the undergrad and graduate levels. Each of these classes is the same for either level, except that the graduate level has increased requirements. But the lectures, etc., are the same.
I am not diverting this thread, but 5 minutes before Tyler posted his wedding example post complaining about dancing, I read Jer 30-31 while studying the New Covenant.
Jer 31:4 “Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel! Again you shall adorn yourself with tambourines and shall go forth in the dance of the merrymakers.”
Some people are going to be SHOCKED in heaven!!
I was involved in a serious auto accident while in training, and was unable to attend classes for about two weeks. I had no difficulty with any courses except Greek. I couldn’t seem to get caught up. I managed to make a passing grade (C, as I recall), but knew that I really wasn’t ready for the next semester. I requested permission to re-take the same class before moving on. That proved to be the right decision, and I did well in my remaining Greek courses.
G. N. Barkman
I shall now relate a common story of woe; one that will be instantly familiar to any pastor with experience.
This would be yet another good reason to separate churches and pastors from weddings.
I am opposed to shortening or combining degrees. I don’t know what you would leave out as unimportant.
I had a BA in Bible with a minor in public speaking. I got an MA right out of college, followed by three years of staff ministry, followed by a return to seminary for two years to complete the MDiv (taking 62 hours in two years). The benefit of this is that when I went back to seminary, I had ministry experience that gave a new context to learning. I have said that I got the MA for the degree. I got the MDiv, ThM, and DMin for the education. The downside is I did three years of ministry from an untrained mind.
If I were to do it again, I would do my undergrad in something else.
Having now almost thirty years of experience, I am more than ever inclined to say that the rush to skip seminary to get out and do actual ministry is extremely misguided. First, you should be doing actual ministry in seminary. Second, after about 2 or 3 years in “actual ministry” after seminary, that extra year or two or three of training will be nothing. After 30 years, you will likely wish it had been more time. I remember Dr. McCune quoting the proverb about plow your fields first and then build your house. In other words, do the work on the front end. Pay the price first before you pay the price later. Any man who wants to skip seminary in order to get into vocational ministry faster raises a red flag for me.
Expense is a big thing. So choose a cheaper but well-respected seminary. Work two jobs, sleep less, eat Mac and Cheese and hot dogs, don’t go on vacation, etc. Live cheap. But get it done, not for the degree but for the education.
I don’t think a seminary education is absolutely necessary for a successful ministry, but for a young man in preparation, I think he should try to get all he can and if possible complete a seminary program. Not everyone is cut out for the academics, and the academics aren’t essential, but one way or another, everyone should get all the education he can. As we used to say:
get all you can, can all you get, and sit on the lid
Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3
I agree with you. Well said.
Tyler is a pastor in Olympia, WA and works in State government.
I don’t think a seminary education is absolutely necessary for a successful ministry,
I would want to clarify that the degree is not absolutely necessary, but the skills and the knowledge are. It is possible to get that apart from seminary, but more difficult, IMO.
I am not sure I agree with that. I’ve known many a man who served successfully without the seminary “skills and knowledge.” They are useful tools, and I am glad I have them. Just think how bad I would be without them!! But God gives gifts to men who never had and could never have or acquire the seminary skill and knowledge. He seems to use them in his church regardless what the experts think.
Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3
I’ve known many a man who served successfully without the seminary “skills and knowledge.”
By “seminary skills and knowledge,” I mean basic exegetical and theological skills and basic preaching and teaching skills: the ability to analyze and explain a passage in light of its literary context (both its near context and larger context), its place in the Bible as a whole, in light of systematic theology. The ability to trace an argument through a passage; to present it in a way that people can understand it and see it, etc.
I can’t imagine a successful pastor who can’t do those things to at least a fair degree. I think we have seen the result of men who can’t do those things and it isn’t pretty. Of course, God can do whatever he wants and uses men (and women) who are ill-prepared, but as a general rule, pastoring and preaching requires a certain skill set that must be developed, IMO.
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