GRADUATE BIBLE FACULTY
Dr. Mark Blackwelder (Director, Graduate Studies in Bible; Associate Professor of Bible and of Missions) – B.A. Freed-Hardeman College; M.Min Freed-Hardeman University; Ph.D. Regent University - mblackwelder@fhu.edu
Dr. Blackwelder is a graduate of FHU. He has been active in ministry including serving from 1992 to 1997 as a fulltime missionary in Bratislava, Slovakia. Since that time he has served as a full-time member of the faculty in FHU’s School of Biblical Studies. He also teaches courses in New Testament and in Missions and Intercultural Communication at the undergraduate level. He sponsors missions clubs and serves as a member of the Chapel Committee and the Annual Bible Lectureship Committee. Dr. Blackwelder is a minister for the Estes church of Christ. He conducts a number of Gospel Meetings each year and presents seminars on missions and cross-cultural ministry.
Dr. Billy Smith (Dean of the School of Biblical Studies; Professor of Bible) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. David Lipscomb College; M.A. Harding Graduate School of Religion; M.Th. Harding Graduate School of Religion; D.Min. Harding Graduate School of Religion – bsmith@fhu.edu
Dr. Smith is the Dean of the School of Biblical Studies and a minister for the Estes church of Christ. He was selected as a Distinguished Professor of Biblical Studies in 1996 and has been appointed to the E. Claude and Delorese Gardner Chair of Excellence in Biblical Studies. Dr. Smith sponsors the Preachers' Club, directs Horizons (Future Church Leaders Workshop), and serves on the Annual Bible Lectureship committee. He conducts ten Gospel Meetings each year, appears on lectureships, contributes articles to journals, and is a speaker for youth programs.
Dr. Ralph Gilmore (Professor of Bible and of Philosophy) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. David Lipscomb College; M.A. Harding Graduate School of Religion; Ph.D. University of Tennessee – rgilmore@fhu.edu
Dr. Gilmore is a Professor of Bible and of Philosophy. He is a graduate of FHC (A.A. in Bible); David Lipscomb College (B.A. in Biblical languages); Harding Graduate School of Religion (M.A. in apologetics); and the University of Tennessee (Ph.D. in philosophy). He was selected as a Distinguished Professor of Bible and Interdisciplinary Studies in 2001. Dr. Gilmore has served in a variety of faculty leadership roles. He has written for many brotherhood publications, has presented papers at professional academic organizations, and has appeared in several forums involving public discussion of Bible topics.
Dr. David Lipe (Director of the Annual Bible Lectureship; Professor of Bible, Philosophy, and Counseling; Distinguished Professor) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. Harding College; M.A. Harding Graduate School of Religion, University of Dallas; Ph.D University of Tennessee, University of North Alabama; M.S. University of Memphis – dlipe@fhu.edu
Dr. Lipe is currently a professor of Bible, Counseling, and Interdisciplinary Studies and Director of the annual Bible Lectureship. He has earned recognition as a National Certified Counselor. He serves as a minister for the Bethel Springs Church of Christ. In February 2003 he was selected for the rank of Distinguished Professor by the FHU Board of Trustees, an honor that is held for the following three academic years. He has been preaching since 1967 and has done local work in Mississippi and Tennessee. He holds several Gospel Meetings each year and gives lectures. He has participated in two public debates—one with a Presbyterian and another with a United Pentecostal. He conducts seminars on Christian evidences, Christian ethics, and church growth. His articles have been published in the Spiritual Sword, the Gospel Advocate, the World Evangelist, and other religious papers.
Dr. Steve Johnson (Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities; Professor of Communications) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. David Lipscomb College; M.A. University of Illinois; Ph.D. University of Illinois – sjohnson@fhu.edu
Dr. Johnson is Dean of the School of arts and Humanities and has filled a variety of roles in his 30 years of teaching at the university. He has been an elder at Estes Church of Christ for over ten years and preached for various congregations before becoming more actively involved at Estes. He is deeply involved in evangelism through his work with the Estes Hispanic Program, chairing the Estes missions committee, and international campaigns. Dr. Johnson has over 20 years experience in international campaigns, and has led campaign efforts to England, Scotland, Belgium, New Zealand, and several states in the U.S.
Dr. Clyde Woods (Professor of Bible) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. Abilene Christian College; M.A. Harding Graduate School of Religion; M.R.E., M.Th. Harding Graduate School of Religion; Ph.D. Hebrew Union College – cwoods@fhu.edu
A member of the FHU Bible faculty since 1965, Dr. Woods is also a veteran preacher with over fifty years experience and the author of several commentaries. In the graduate program, Dr. Woods teaches elementary and advanced Greek courses, as well as several seminars in Bible text. His extensive academic preparation, which focused on the Jewish New Testament world and on prophetic literature, qualifies him well for serious Biblical investigation.
David South (Instructor in Bible) – B.A. Freed-Hardeman College; M.A. Oklahoma Christian University; M.Div. Harding Graduate School of Religion; A.B.D. Trinity Evangelical Divinity School – dsouth@fhu.edu
In addition to teaching full time in the School of Biblical Studies, David South preaches for the Scotts Hill Church of Christ. Prior to coming to FHU, he served as a full-time preacher for churches in Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee. He has worked in evangelistic campaigns in Honduras and Ukraine, as well as in several U.S. cities.
Dr. David Powell (Assistant Dean of the School of Biblical Studies; Assistant Professor of Bible) – B.A. Freed-Hardeman College; M.Th. Harding Graduate School of Religion; D.Min. Harding Graduate School of Religion - dpowell@fhu.edu
Dr. Powell began teaching in the School of Biblical Studies in 1994. He worked with the Henderson Church of Christ for twelve years (1981-1986 and 1994-2000). Since May of 2000, he has served as Pulpit Minister for the North Jackson Church of Christ in Jackson, TN. This is his second time to work with them, having served as Associate Minister from 1988-1992.
In addition to these roles, Dr. Powell holds at least six Gospel Meetings per year and conducts mission trips to Honduras and Peru each year.
He serves as a co-sponsor of the Preachers’ Club and Horizons programs. He also serves on the Lectureship Committee.
He has appeared on a number of lectureships and he frequently writes for lectureship publications as well as the Spiritual Sword.
Dr. Terry Edwards (Associate Professor of Bible) – B.A. Harding University; M.A. Florida State University; Ph.D. Florida State University – tedwards@fhu.edu
Dr. Edwards has been part of the Bible faculty since 2003, having previously worked overseas (Italy, Greece) as an administrator of foreign programs for nearly 20 years. He has served in Christian education for 26 years, including five years as Chair of the Foreign Language Dept. at Harding University. He has conducted many groups on travels to sites in Greece and the Mediterranean "on the footsteps" of the apostle Paul. He was a vocational missionary to the churches in Florence, Italy and Athens, Greece. He currently heads the Study Abroad program in Italy.
Dr. Sam Hester (Professor of Bible) – B.A. Harding College; M.Th. Harding Graduate School of Religion; Th.D. New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary – shester@fhu.edu
Dr. Hester is a professor of Bible and Church History and has taught at FHU since 1979. He directs the Christian Training Series, FHU's summer lectureship held in July each year.
In addition to teaching, Dr. Hester also preaches for the Crooked Creek congregation in middle Tennessee. He owns Hester Publications, which publishes short-run books and booklets.
Stanley Mitchell (Assistant Professor of Bible) – B.A. Abilene Christian University; M.A. Abilene Christian University; M. Div. Pepperdine University; Fuller Theological Seminary – smitchell@fhu.edu
Stan Mitchell was born in Abilene, TX, the son of long time missionaries Loy and Donna Mitchell. He grew up in what was then Rhodesia, and returned when it became Zimbabwe to do mission work. He has also preached for the church in Glendale, California, and Borger, Texas.
He has published two books, The Wise Get Wiser, the Foolish More Foolish, a study on the book of Proverbs, and Give the Winds a Mighty Voice, a study on our worship in song.
Dr. Kevin L. Moore (Assistant Professor of Bible and Missions) – B.S. Freed-Hardeman College; M.A. Freed-Hardeman University; Ph.D. Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand – kmoore@fhu.edu
Dr. Moore is a graduate of East Tennessee School of Preaching and Missions, has completed Masters-level missions courses at Abilene Christian University, holds B.S. and M.A. degrees from FHU, and has completed the Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. He and his family served fourteen years as missionaries in New Zealand. He was Missionary-in-Residence at FHU before joining the full-time Bible faculty, teaching Bible and Missions courses. He has authored three books and has had a number of articles published in brotherhood papers. He serves as co-sponsor of Evangelism Forum and Missions Group and conducts annual campaigns to New Zealand.
ADJUNCT and NON-FULLTIME INSTRUCTORS
Dr. Earl Edwards (Adjunct Professor of Bible) – B.A. David Lipscomb College; M.Th. Harding Graduate School of Religion; D.Miss. Trinity Evangelical Divinity School – eedwards@fhu.edu
Dr. Edwards, a member of the faculty since 1982, is an experienced evangelist among churches of Christ, including sixteen years as a missionary in Italy. His experience in education includes serving as dean and director of the Florence (Italy) Bible School; and as Director of Mission Studies and Dean of the School of Biblical Studies at Freed-Hardeman, before becoming Director of Graduate Studies in Bible. He has written frequently in the Spiritual Sword, and Gospel Advocate, and has published chapters in many brotherhood lectureship books. He published a book, Protecting Our "Blind Side," in 2007. He is one of the preachers and an elder at the Finger, TN, church of Christ and preaches widely in the USA and abroad. He has likewise participated in several discussions and debates. He retired from the administrative duties of the director of the program as of May 31, 2008. He will continue to teach a course in the Fall and Spring semesters as adjunct.
Dr. Larry Mathis (Adjunct Lecturer in Counseling & Bible) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.S. Freed-Hardeman College; M.A. Southern Christian University; M.A.R. David Lipscomb University; M.Div. Southern Christian University; M.S. Southern Christian University; D.Min. Southern Baptist Theological Seminary – drlarrydmathis@juno.com
Dr. Mathis, a member of the faculty since 1997, served as an evangelist for churches of Christ for thirty years in the United States. He serves on the graduate faculty of FHU, Lipscomb University, and Amridge University (formerly Southern Christian). Mathis, in his role as CEO of African Christian Schools, travels to Europe and Africa. He has written for numerous publications and co-edited, Man of God, a book published by Gospel Advocate. This book is written to train men in preaching & ministry. In his work at the African Christian Schools Foundation, Dr. Mathis oversees two Christian colleges in Africa.
Dr. Kippy Myers (Chairman of the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies; Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies and of Bible) – B.A. Freed-Hardeman College; M.A. Harding Graduate School of Religion; M.A. University of Dallas; Ph.D. University of Tennessee – kmyers@fhu.edu
Dr. Myers began teaching at FHU in 1998. Before that, he was in full-time ministry in Texas and taught at Brown Trail School of Preaching, International Bible College, University of Tennessee at Knoxville and the University of North Alabama. He has written many articles in journals associated in churches of Christ and was Associate Editor of The World Evangelist. He is a member of the Evangelical Philosophical Society, the Society of Christian Philosophers and the co-sponsor of the West Tennessee Collegium of Philosophy and Theology.
Wade Osburn (Reference and Theological Librarian, Assistant Professor of Library Services) -- B.A. Harding University; M.L.I.S. University of Texas at Austin; M.Div. Abilene Christian University.
Mr. Osburn teaches our Introduction to Graduate Studies course. Because of the emphasis in this class on research, Osburn's library experience makes him a good instructor for this material.
Dr. Rolland Pack (Dean of the Honors College; Professor of Philosophy and of Bible) -- A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. David Lipscomb College; M.A. Harding University Graduate School of Religion; Ph.D. Georgetown University.
Dr. Roy Sharp (Professor of Bible) – A.A. Freed-Hardeman College; B.A. and B.S. Oklahoma Christian College; M.Ed. Central State University; D.A. Middle Tennessee State University; M.A.R. Harding Graduate School of Religion – rsharp@fhu.edu
Dr. Sharp began teaching at FHU in 1971. Before coming to FHU he taught school in Midwest City, OK. He has taught for the Department of Health and Human Performance and School of Biblical Studies, served as assistant basketball coach and head baseball coach, Director of Mid-South Youth Camp, Dean of Students, Vice-President of Student Services and a counselor for the University Counseling Center. He began preaching in 1965 and has preached for churches in Lake, Obion, McNairy, Gibson, Perry and Lewis counties in TN; Asher, OK; Brownsville Road Church of Christ in Memphis, TN; and for the last twenty years with the Estes Church of Christ. He conducts approximately eight Gospel Meetings each year, has been published in various religious publications and speaks routinely at seminars on marriage and family counseling.