Fundamentalism & Evangelicalism

Dear Friends and Fellow Followers of Jesus Christ,

In 1983 I moved from the local church ministry where I served to lead a ministry oriented to serving local churches. The heart of my burden was to help pastors and churches train servants for the Great Commission in a philosophy and approach to discipleship and ministry that would be shaped by Scripture and that would enable them to remain faithful to its teaching over time. When I came to Northland it was a Baptist Bible college committed to biblical authority and historic Fundamentalism. Almost three decades later, the Bible college still occupies the center of what has become Northland International University. Along the way, God sent many faithful servants to join hands in turning this vision into a reality. All of them came because they were attracted to the core philosophy that shaped Northland into what it is today.

In 2002, after I spent almost two decades at the helm, God brought Dr. Matt Olson to assume the presidency as I continued to serve with him and the team in the role of chancellor. For the past nine years, I have had the joy of helping him to carry out the vision and to implement the principles that have always been true at Northland.

I have been spending countless hours in discussion and prayer with Dr. Olson and with Northland’s administrative team. I do want to make one thing clear to you: what you might perceive as “news” about Northland is actually not really news at all. In recent days some are questioning whether Northland has departed from the original vision and historic position that shaped us as an institution. Though this does not surprise me, frankly, it saddens me.

As we have attempted to responsibly adjust the way the vision and philosophy is applied in certain settings at our institution, the foundational principles and historic theological positions to which we have always been committed remain unchanged. These adjustments reflect our desire to be faithful to a vision and to truth in ways that keep vision and truth in front of a new generation facing new challenges in ministry.

What we see happening at Northland is the realization of many years of teaching and concerns that many of us have had throughout our years of ministry. Northland has always been a Bible college at its core. It has always been committed to the authority and all-sufficiency of Scripture. It was true for Northland when I served as president. I’m excited to say that it remains equally true under Dr. Olson’s leadership today.

The entire “Now About Those Differences” series is available here.

Dear Friends in Ministry,

Thank you for your demonstration of true friendship over these past few months. So many of you have called, emailed, and written me. Yes, God has been doing great things. Yet, when He does, the pot gets stirred. Conflict often follows.

The entire “Now About Those Differences” series is available here.