Westminster Theological Seminary announces the appointment of the Rev. Dr. Rob Edwards to the position of Associate Professor of Apologetics and Pastoral Theology, beginning January 2025.
Dr. Edwards has served as Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology since 2019. In this position, Edwards’ teaching has principally focused on evangelism, missions, and preaching. Edwards was ordained in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) in 2000, and has served as pastor of Mercy Presbyterian Church in Forest, Virginia, for nine years. Additionally, Edwards led the Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) ministry at the University of Georgia for eleven years. Edwards has also served in various capacities on Presbytery and General Assembly committees. Rob and his wife, Angie, have three children: Emma, Lucy, and William.
Edwards first encountered the works of Cornelius Van Til as an undergraduate student at the University of Georgia. This early interest flourished in and through his time as an MDiv student at Westminster, and is now culminating in several articles and publications. Illustrative of Edwards’ apologetic skills include a variety of publications. Currently, Westminster Seminary Press is publishing his new book Persuasion Through Preaching: A Christ-Centered Apologetic for Gospel Proclamation, which further develops the work he did for his Doctor of Ministry degree at Westminster. He also published an essay in the Spring 2023 edition of Westminster Theological Journal entitled “Corporate Dimensions of a Covenantal Apologetic: The Life of the Church in Our Witness to the World.”
Dr. Edwards’ selection to serve as the leader of apologetics at Westminster comes with the full endorsement of his colleagues on faculty and the full support of the Trustees. Retiring Professor Dr. K. Scott Oliphint remarked, “I have the utmost confidence that Dr. Edwards will faithfully, skillfully, and pastorally carry on the biblical and theological tradition of a Van Tilian, Covenantal apologetic at Westminster.” Oliphint further affirmed, “I know that current and future students at Westminster will be delighted to take advantage of the unique gifts Dr. Edwards will contribute.”
While apologetics has been at the core of Edwards’ life and ministry, he recently remarked, “When I began my DMin studies, I had no idea that I would eventually join the faculty, let alone have the opportunity to teach apologetics.” He continued, “Looking forward, it is absolutely essential to maintain the work of those who have gone before in teaching apologetics at Westminster, while also making further application of that work to the questions and objections to the Christian faith in our day, demonstrating how ‘the faith that was once for all delivered’ (Jude 1:3) is sufficient to answer those questions and objections, and how this is to be done in the opportunities provided through the regular course of ministry.”
Join us as we give thanks to our mighty and sovereign God for the legacy of apologetics at Westminster, giving way to its stalwart continuation in the appointment of Dr. Rob Edwards.