The Biblical Wisdom Podcast

Dr. Manning is passionate about helping leaders in the church interpret and teach the Scriptures more faithfully and more powerfully. Gary studied at Talbot and Fuller, and focuses his studies on the Gospel of John, the Synoptic Gospels, and the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament. He is the author of Echoes of a Prophet: The Use of Ezekiel in the Gospel of John and in Literature of the Second Temple Period (T&T Clark, 2004). Gary has been involved in various kinds of Christian ministry for over thirty years, including youth ministry, church planting, and teaching ministry, and still maintains active ministry in the church. At home, Gary spends his time with his wife Barbara and their ten children.

Pete Wilson is former senior pastor of Cross Point Church in Nashville, Tennessee and is now a teaching pastor at Northridge Church. Born and raised in Nashville, Pete earned his Bachelor’s degree in Communications from Western Kentucky University and attended seminary at Southern Seminary in Louisville, KY. After planting his first church in Kentucky, Pete returned to his hometown of Nashville to start Cross Point in 2002.

Under Pete’s leadership, Cross Point grew to reach more than 7,500 people each weekend through its seven campuses located around the Nashville area, and online. As one of the fastest growing churches in America, Pete’s ministry has been focused on the idea that everyone is welcome, because nobody’s perfect but anything’s possible. He loves to share what he is learning about leadership, life, branding, and faith by speaking at both national and international conferences.

Scott Rae's primary interests are medical ethics and business ethics, dealing with the application of Christian ethics to medicine and the marketplace. He has authored 10 books in ethics including The Ethics of Commercial Surrogate Motherhood; Moral Choices: An Introduction to Ethics; Brave New Families: Biblical Ethics and Reproductive Technologies; Beyond Integrity: A Judeo-Christian Approach to Business Ethics; and Body and Soul: Human Nature and the Crisis in Ethics. His work has appeared in The Linacre Quarterly, Religion and Liberty, Journal of Markets and Morality, Southern California Journal of Law and Women's Studies, National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, and Ethics and Medicine. He is a consultant for ethics for four Southern California hospitals. He is a fellow of the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity and a fellow of the Wilberforce Forum.

Professor of Spirituality and Marriage and Family, Professor of Christian Ministry and Leadership, director of Talbot’s spiritual formation program, spiritual director, associate director of the Center for Spiritual Renewal, founder of Hilltop Renewal Center, B.A., California State University, Fullerton, M.A., Talbot School of Theology, M.A. in Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary, Ph.D. in Marital and Family Therapy, Fuller Theological Seminary, School of Psychology.

Judy TenElshof’s goal as the director of Talbot’s spiritual formation program is to have all Talbot students understand the nature, process and practices of spiritual growth and to have them experience deeper intimacy with God and others. Her expertise as a teacher and conference speaker is in helping individuals and families grow relationally, morally and spiritually.

Judy has established and directed counseling centers in churches and Christian schools and is founder of Hilltop Renewal Center for Christian leaders. She has co-edited Women and Men in Ministry, authored several journal articles, along with chapters in Foundations of Ministry: An Introduction to Christian Education for a New Generation; Short-Term Missions Boom: The Guide to International and Domestic Involvement; and the Christian Education Dictionary.

Kyle Strobel (Ph.D. University of Aberdeen) is a systematic theologian who teaches spiritual theology for Talbot’s Institute for Spiritual Formation and Spiritual Formation Focus programs. His areas of interest include systematic theology, Jonathan Edwards, spiritual formation and prayer. He writes both popular and academic books and articles, and is on the preaching team at Redeemer Church, La Mirada.

Dr. Tremper Longman III graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University, earned a Master of Divinity from Westminster Theological Seminary, and completed a doctorate in ancient Near Eastern studies at Yale University. He served as the Robert H. Gundry professor of biblical studies at Westmont from 1998 until he retired in 2017. He continues to serve the college as a distinguished scholar of biblical studies. He has written or co-authored numerous scholarly articles and more than 20 books, including interdisciplinary works, books with psychologist Dan Allender, works on history and historiography, and textbooks for both seminary students a lay people. He is one of the main translators of the New Living Translation and has served as a consultant on other popular translations of the Bible including the Message, the New Century Version, and the Holman Standard Bible.

Jean E. Jones is co-author of Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament, Discovering Joy in Philippians, and Discovering Hope in the Psalms. She blogs at jeanejones.net. Jean is a member of Women in Apologetics. She’s been a contributing writer for Crosswalk.com and has published in Today’s Christian Woman and Home Life. She’s happily married to her high school sweetheart, Clay, an associate professor of Christian apologetics at Talbot Seminary. They live in Laguna Niguel, California, and once were foster parents to three preteen/teen girls. Jean enjoyed rooster claws and century eggs in Asia.

Having grown up in a Christian home in Lewiston, Idaho, Paul Buttrey studied at Stanford University (English) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (M.Div.). After ministering to university students with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship for five years in the Los Angeles area, he and his wife went to Taiwan, where they served with OMF International as missionaries for 34 years. During that time in Taiwan he provided organizational leadership for up to 100 OMF International missionaries for several years and trained pastors in a Taiwan seminary. While involved in seminary teaching, he also became associated with International Training Partners, facilitating the “Sharpening Your Interpersonal Skills” workshop for the benefit of cross-cultural missionaries and national Christian leaders in Taiwan and other East Asian countries. He and his wife Mary Jeanne now live in retirement in Torrance, California. When he is not busy with other things, he enjoys baking bread.

Pastor Jim came to Peninsula in 1994, after spending nine years baking in the desert! Jim is a native Californian, who has a B.A. in History from Biola University, and a Th.M. from Dallas Seminary. Jim married his wife, Christie, while they were both school teachers at Brethren High School, then located in Paramount. Their desire is to serve the Lord together and let the world know that living God’s way is always best. Jim loves to travel to Israel (don’t get him started on that subject) and to teach the Scriptures. They have three great kids.

Mary Jeanne and her husband Paul met in the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship group at Stanford University. Though they became engaged shortly before graduation, the wedding was delayed for 3½ years as Mary Jeanne went to New York to attend Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. The following year, Paul matriculated at Gordon-Conwell Seminary. They came to know the roads between Massachusetts and New York well as they visited over weekends. They married before their final year of school as Mary Jeanne took elective courses in New England. After graduation, they moved to the Los Angeles area where Mary Jeanne had residency training in Internal Medicine at LA County Harbor General Hospital, while Paul served with InterVarsity. in 1980, they went to Taiwan as missionaries with OMF, the former China Inland Mission. Their daughter Gail was born there in 1983.

Ross Lokken earned his MDiv in Pastoral Studies from Western Seminary in Portland, OR. Ross completed course work for a DMin, as well. Further education has come from numerous conferences, seminars, and workshops, as well as, extensive reading in a wide variety of subjects relating to culture and the church. Most of his ministry has been in Baptist churches and recently with the Evangelical Free Church of America. Through his work with Hope Again, he has had experience interacting with churches across the evangelical spectrum.

He served as a senior pastor and as an executive pastor in Minnesota, Iowa, and California, plus serving as an interim pastor for three other churches. As a lay leader, he volunteered as a committee member and chairperson, junior and senior high ministry, adult ministries, and as advisor/consultant to church leadership personnel.

Ross’s passion is to lead churches to health and growth, helping the church to live to its full potential in the community. He is especially excited to work with churches and their leadership during times of transition. His love for connectively preaching the Word of God has been appreciated and affirmed in every church he has served. His personable style is relational expository preaching with a strong emphasis on application.

Ross also devoted ten years of ministry to work among the homeless in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles as the Executive Director of a Christian ministry known as Hope Again, Inc. With a budget of nearly $500,000, his responsibilities included fund raising, program development, staff oversight, and board recruitment and development. He networked with other nonprofit agencies involved in similar work. From time to time, he engaged the assistance of consultants in various areas of management and development. He worked in partnership with over 25 donor churches across the span of evangelicalism.

Dave Goss is the pastor of Light and Life Isla Vista church--a Free Methodist congregation.  Dave and his wife Tracey planted the church with nine other adults in 2007 after graduating from Asbury Theological Seminary with his MDIV degree. Five years after it’s founding the ministry began attracting students and the homeless from Isla Vista--the bedroom community/notorious party town for the University of California Santa Barbara--so they moved the church to their location of ministry impact. The last eight years have been full of joy, baptisms, transformed lives and the congregational shifts as students graduate and move on to adult life, the homeless become housed, the jobless employed, the at-risk and fragile now stabilized and independent.  LLIV meets either in a university lecture hall or in the adjacent park, making participation easier for visitors and the homeless community in particular (Not to mention the weather is always great!) 

Every Sunday service is accompanied by a meal share with the community.  In eight years, LLIV has served tens of thousands of free meals and built countless friendships, good will, and trust in the community.

Dave is the proud father of Noah (18), Caleb (16), and Micah (14).  Dave is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in Recovery Ministry from Fuller Seminary. Dave currently serves as the Asbury Alumni Association Council President.

Jean E. Jones is co-author of Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament, Discovering Joy in Philippians, and Discovering Hope in the Psalms. She blogs at jeanejones.net. Jean is a member of Women in Apologetics. She’s been a contributing writer for Crosswalk.com and has published in Today’s Christian Woman and Home Life. She’s happily married to her high school sweetheart, Clay, an associate professor of Christian apologetics at Talbot Seminary. They live in Laguna Niguel, California, and once were foster parents to three preteen/teen girls. Jean enjoyed rooster claws and century eggs in Asia.

Dr. Ron Lee Davis is the author of several best-selling Christian books, and has addressed audiences in Asia, Europe, Africa and throughout the U.S. Ron received his doctorate degree from Bethel University after concluding his undergraduate studies at the University of London, London, England. He later served as a spiritual leader for both the Minnesota Vikings and Oakland Athletics. Dr. Davis, a father and grandfather, lives in Santa Barbara, California where he enjoys playing with his four grandchildren, running on the beach, and writing and speaking on topics such as healthy aging, Christian parenting, and overcoming life’s greatest challenges. His monthly column “From the Pen of Dr. Ron Lee Davis” is read widely by thousands in the U. S. and other countries. Choosing Joy: The Pathway to a Life of Passion and Purpose is Ron’s tenth book.

Dr. Ron Lee Davis is the author of several best-selling Christian books, and has addressed audiences in Asia, Europe, Africa and throughout the U.S. Ron received his doctorate degree from Bethel University after concluding his undergraduate studies at the University of London, London, England. He later served as a spiritual leader for both the Minnesota Vikings and Oakland Athletics. Dr. Davis, a father and grandfather, lives in Santa Barbara, California where he enjoys playing with his four grandchildren, running on the beach, and writing and speaking on topics such as healthy aging, Christian parenting, and overcoming life’s greatest challenges. His monthly column “From the Pen of Dr. Ron Lee Davis” is read widely by thousands in the U. S. and other countries. Choosing Joy: The Pathway to a Life of Passion and Purpose is Ron’s tenth book.