February 2023 | WESTMONT, IL—IVP authors Trevin Wax, Alan Noble, Michael Kruger, and Gavin Ortlund were named to the inaugural fellows list for The Gospel Coalition’s new Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics. These award-winning, accomplished authors join twenty-two other Christian writers, teachers, and thinkers who will come together to create rich discipleship and evangelism content for the church. Through podcasts, videos, essays, and interactive online cohorts, the fellows will help pastors apply gospel truths, prepare seminary students for ministry, and aid Christians in finding effective strategies to share gospel truths with nonbelievers.
Of this recognition, IVP author Trevin Wax says, “I’m deeply honored and excited to be one of the inaugural fellows. This is a group I want to learn with and from. I’ve long admired many of the fellows for their skill in presenting Christianity in ways that showcase the beauty of the faith as well as the contradictions and challenges inherent in our secular age. . . . It’s the combination of pastoral sensibility and serious and sustained reflection on culture that I hope will be the hallmark of this initiative.”
Trevin Wax is vice president of research and resource development at the North American Mission Board and a visiting professor of theology at Cedarville University. A former missionary to Romania, Trevin is a regular columnist at The Gospel Coalition and has contributed to the Washington Post, Religion News Service, WORLD, and Christianity Today. He has served as general editor for The Gospel Project and has taught courses on mission and ministry at Wheaton College. He is the author of several books. His latest book, The Thrill of Orthodoxy: Rediscovering the Adventure of the Christian Faith, recently received The Gospel Coalition’s Award of Distinction for Christian Theology, and Christianity Today’s Book Award of Merit for Popular Theology.
Alan Noble is associate professor of English at Oklahoma Baptist University, cofounder and editor in chief of Christ and Pop Culture, and an adviser for the AND Campaign. He has written for the Atlantic, Vox, BuzzFeed, The Gospel Coalition, Christianity Today, and First Things. His first book, , won WORLD Magazine’s Book of the Year Award in Accessible Theology. His second book, You Are Not Your Own, received honorable mention recognition in TGC’s 2021 Book Awards. Of his forthcoming book, On Getting Out of Bed: The Burden and Gift of Living, Publishers Weekly calls it a “clear-eyed look at emotional suffering” and an “illuminating entry.”
Michael J. Kruger is president and professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. His recent publications include The Question of Canon and The Early Text of the New Testament, coedited with Charles E. Hill. The Question of Canon was listed as Preaching Magazine’s Best Book for Preachers in its 2013 Survey of the Year. It was also honored as Preaching Magazine’s Best Bible Reference. The Early Text of the New Testament received TGC’s Book of the Year Award in 2018.
Gavin Ortlund is senior pastor at First Baptist Church of Ojai in Ojai, California. He was previously a research fellow for the Creation Project at the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is the author of Finding the Right Hills to Die On, Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals, Anselm’s Pursuit of Joy, and Retrieving Augustine’s Doctrine of Creation.
“The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics is an exciting opportunity for Christian intellectuals to explore and respond to the challenges of the contemporary West. I’m looking forward to writing articles and collaborating with the other fellows,” noted IVP author Alan Noble.
IVP divisional vice president of sales and marketing Justin Paul Lawrence shared, “Tim Keller and his determination to make the gospel comprehensible to the cosmopolitan has been a model for IVP authors for the past twenty years. I am so pleased that these authors will have the ability to carry this task further on through the support of this important new venture.”
To see the complete list of TGC’s inaugural fellows, visit thegospelcoalition.org/thekellercenter/bios/. For additional IVP resources endorsed by The Gospel Coalition through the years, visit ivpress.com/award-winners/the-gospel-coalition-book-awards.
Contact: Tara Burns | 630.734.4059 | tburns@ivpress.com