Doctrinally Sound Teachers

A Few Good Men, Again!: 10 Doctrinally Sound Male Teachers

Michelle Lesley

Sometimes we ladies fall for the mindset that if we’re going to pick up a Bible study book, read a blog, or listen to Bible teaching, it has to be from a female author or teacher. Not so! There are a lot of fantastic, doctrinally sound, male Bible teachers, pastors, and writers out there – far more males than females, actually – and you’ll really be missing out if you limit yourself to women teachers and writers.

In A Few Good Men, and A Few MORE Good Men, I recommended some of my favorite male pastors, writers, and podcasters. Here are ten more; and these lists are by no means exhaustive!

IMPORTANT REMINDER: Don’t take my (or anyone else’s) word for it that any ministry, podcast, book, or blog is biblical in its doctrine. You MUST do the work of comparing with Scripture everything you read and hear. If it doesn’t match up with God’s word (in context), chuck it.

1. A.W. Pink – “Biographer Iain Murray observes of Pink, ‘the widespread circulation of his writings after his death made him one of the most influential evangelical authors in the second half of the twentieth century.’ His writing sparked a revival of expository preaching and focused readers’ hearts on biblical living.”¹ Pink pastored churches in Britain, Australia, and across the United States. During that time (1922-1953), Pink published a monthly magazine, Studies in the Scriptures. Each edition contained several articles expositing Scripture. He also authored scads of pamphlets and books on a number of theological topics. Perhaps two of his best known books are The Attributes of God and The Sovereignty of God. You can read these and many others of Pink’s works online for free at CCEL and Chapel Library or buy a bound or Kindle copy at Amazon.  Facebook 

2. Tom Ascol – Tom has served as pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral, Florida for over thirty years and has taught theology courses at several seminaries. He is one of the founders, and current executive director of Founders Ministries, and a popular author, conference speaker, podcaster, journal contributor, and blogger. Check out Tom’s books Traditional Theology & the SBC and From the Protestant Reformation to the Southern Baptist Convention: What Hath Geneva to Do with Nashville?, read one of his excellent articles, listen to his sermons, or subscribe to The Sword and the Trowel podcast, which Tom co-hosts with his associate pastor, Jared Longshore.  Facebook  Twitter

3. Allen Nelson – Better known as “Cuatro” to his friends (because he’s Allen Nelson IV), Allen pastors Perryville Second Baptist Church in Perryville, Arkansas. You can hear Allen’s heart for the life and health of the rural church on the podcast he hosts with fellow rural church pastor, Eddie Ragsdale, The Rural Church Podcast (also on iTunes), and you don’t have to be a pastor or member of a rural church to benefit from listening in. You might recall reading a review here on the blog of Allen’s recently published first book From Death to Life: How Salvation Works (ordering info. included). It’s a helpful treatment of the ordo salutis in plain English for plain Bible Belt “Christians,” a discouraging proportion of whom do not understand the biblical gospel. Allen is also contributing writer and roundtable member of the Things Above Us blog and podcast, and don’t forget to check out his sermons, too!  Facebook  Twitter

4. James White – An expert in apologetics, textual criticism, and theology, “James White is the director of Alpha and Omega Ministries, a Christian apologetics organization based in Phoenix, Arizona. He is a professor, having taught Greek, Systematic Theology, and various topics in the field of apologetics. He has authored or contributed to more than twenty-four books…is an accomplished debater, having engaged in more than one-hundred sixty moderated, public debates around the world with leading proponents of Roman Catholicism, Islam, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Mormonism, as well as critics such as Bart Ehrman, John Dominic Crossan, Marcus Borg, and John Shelby Spong. [Dr. White] is an elder of the Phoenix Reformed Baptist Church.” Check out Dr. White’s many books and debates, his blog, and The Dividing Line webcast (also on iTunes).  Facebook  Twitter 

(A word of caution: Dr. White maintains a personal friendship and occasional ministerial partnership with Dr. Michael Brown, who, although doctrinally sound in many areas of his theology, has become a safe haven for the worst of the worst New Apostolic Reformation heretics. To my knowledge, Dr. White does not endorse this behavior of Dr. Brown, and certainly does not endorse NAR heresy. I strongly discourage you from following Dr. Brown.)

5. Tim Challies – Founder of one of the most widely read conservative Christian blogs on the web, Tim Challies has been writing on a variety of theological and “Christian Living” topics for over fifteen years. An avid book reviewer, Tim is also an author in his own right. Two fun features of Tim’s blog are his daily “A la Carte” column, a curation of articles and other resources from around the web, and Free Stuff Fridays, a weekly giveaway of books, conference tickets, software, music, and all kinds of other awesome Christian resources and materials. Catch Tim at a speaking engagement or on his YouTube channel, listen to his sermons, and take a look at his terrific products over at Visual Theology, and Tim’s publishing company, Cruciform Press.  Facebook  Twitter

6. Kevin DeYoung – Kevin is the senior pastor of Christ Covenant Church in Matthews, North Carolina, serves as board chairman for The Gospel Coalition, and holds the position of assistant professor of systematic theology at Reformed Theological Seminary. Kevin is the author of several books, including Crazy Busy and The Biggest Story, the story arc of redemption for children. Read Kevin’s articles at his blog, DeYoung, Restless, and Reformed, check out his books, tune in to his sermons and videos, or catch him at an upcoming conference like Faithful.  Facebook  Twitter

7. Darrell Harrison – “An expository Bible teacher with a passion for helping Christians understand what they believe and why they believe it,” Darrell’s love for God’s Word and God’s people is evident no matter which ministry “hat” he wears. Darrell is a faithful member of Rockdale Community Church in Conyers, Georgia, and is training to become an ACBC certified biblical counselor. But Darrell is probably best known for blogging and podcasting. At Just Thinking…For Myself, Darrell writes eloquently on a variety of theological topics and current events. “The Just Thinking podcast is an extension of the Just Thinking blog and is hosted weekly by Darrell Harrison and Virgil Walker. The mission of the podcast mirrors the mission of the blog: applying biblical truth to social, cultural, political, and theological issues in our world.”  Facebook  Twitter

8. Tom Buck – Tom’s no nonsense quips and keen insight into the current affairs of Southern Baptist life have made him something of a legend on Twitter, but Tom is first and foremost a pastor. “Tom has a strong passion for the local church and a desire to lead the church to be Word-centered in everything it does. He is committed to the expositional preaching and teaching of God’s Word” as senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lindale, Texas. Listen to Tom’s sermons online or on iTunes. You can read some of Tom’s compelling articles at The Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel (which Tom contributed to), Delivered by Grace, and Reformation 21.  Facebook Twitter

9. Costi Hinn – Costi is “the Executive Pastor of Mission Bible Church in Orange County, CA. He is passionate about equipping Christians to live boldly for Jesus Christ. Due to his background and expertise, he educates people around the world on strategies for dealing with the prosperity gospel.” Though not one to capitalize on the family name, much of Costi’s background and expertise that uniquely qualify him to address the blight of the prosperity gospel and New Apostolic Reformation, stem from his personal experiences as nephew and ministry assistant of NAR faith healer Benny Hinn. I highly recommend Costi’s excellent book on the NAR, Defining Deception: Freeing the Church from the Mystical-Miracle Movement (co-authored with MBC’s pastor, Anthony Wood) as well as his Truth & Transformation video series with Justin Peters. Check out all of Costi’s sermons, videos, and podcast appearances, and be sure to subscribe to his blog at For the Gospel.  Facebook  Twitter

10. Jerry Bridges – Jerry Bridges spent most of his professional career in parachurch ministry, serving in a variety of positions and capacities with The Navigators. He is remembered for his clear and easy to grasp writing style which has endeared to the hearts of millions his books The Pursuit of Holiness, The Practice of Godliness, Trusting God, and over twenty others dealing with topics in theology and discipleship. Get a list (with links) of all of Jerry’s books, listen to his sermons, talks, and interviews here and here, and watch his videos on YouTube.  Twitter

Also check out:
A Few Good Men: 10 Doctrinally Sound Male Teachers
A Few MORE Good Men:10 Doctrinally Sound Male Teachers

28 thoughts on “A Few Good Men, Again!: 10 Doctrinally Sound Male Teachers”

  2. Pingback: Favorite Finds Friday: 10-12-18 | A Narrow-Minded Woman

    1. Tim Keller is not someone I follow closely, but my understanding is that he is generally doctrinally sound on the gospel. However, I do not proactively recommend him due to his continuationist leanings, his views on theistic evolution, and things like the incident at his church a while back where he had male ballet dancers perform a “praise dance” during the worship service. Also, I read his tweets from time to time, and some of them have a nearly mystical quality to them.

      I follow DA Carson even less closely than Tim Keller, but my impression of him is that he has it more together, theologically, than Tim Keller does, despite the fact that he also has continuationist leanings. I’ve linked to a couple of his theological articles here on the blog.

      I’m not happy with the direction The Gospel Coalition has taken over the last few years, especially with the racial and political views expressed by Thabiti Anyabwile a couple of years ago, the constant comparisons between movies and the Bible, and some of the social justice positions TGC writers have espoused. However, there are still some solid bloggers at TGC, such as Kevin DeYoung, whom I recommend and appreciate.

      Hope this helps. :0)

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      1. Well, that was an interesting sad read about James MacDonald. Thank you for the link. I have a small group of women asking, “Where do we go to fellowship these days?” The more we delve into the Word, the more we see some very sad compromises within each of the churches we attend. We are all feeling like remnants of the Truth. Thank you Michelle for your continued dedication to bringing us faithful men and women we can listen and or read their materials without too much caution. I say that last part because we are seeing how the mighty are falling within the church, so anyone is capable of stumbling.

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    1. Hi Mandy- I haven’t listened to either of them, and I would probably disagree with Michael on various points of theology since he’s Presbyterian and I’m Baptist, but other than that, as far as I know, he’s doctrinally sound.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. I have read that Charles Stanley is OK with women as pastors (so for that reason alone I would not recommend him), and I’ve listened to portions of a couple of his sermons which I found generally OK-ish, but very shallow, biblically.

      This article may help as you research him.

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    1. I don’t know much about either of them, I’m afraid. I have read that Charles Stanley is OK with women as pastors (so for that reason alone I would not recommend him), and I’ve listened to portions of a couple of his sermons which I found generally OK-ish, but very shallow, biblically.

      This article may help as you research them.

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      Reply

  12. Hi Michelle. What are your comments on Max Lucado, CS Lewis, Myles Munroe, John Piper, Kris Vallaton, David Platt, Mark Driscoll, and Craig Groeschel?

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  13. Hello! Michael Reeves – Delighting in the Trinity. I have an odd feeling about this one. I don’t know much about him but would love your opinion!
    Thank you!
    Baby Christian here, needing guidance. 🙂

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    1. Hi Natalie- I have not read it, but it is endorsed by several doctrinally sound people and ministries I highly respect. If you have questions about it, I would recommend asking your pastor. :0)

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  15. Hello!

    Some videos by Bill Thrall/True Face has been making the rounds in our family. I had never heard of him before, and am trying to do some research on him. As new Christians, my husband and I try to spend a lot of time researching people. Any thoughts on this man, and his ministry, if you’ve heard of him?

    Thanks so much!

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  16. Hi Michelle,

    Can you please give me your thoughts on Michael Todd?

    Do you consider him to be a false teacher and if so, what specific examples of false doctrine can you highlight in his preaching? I have concerns but am wondering if it’s more about his style / delivery than content.

    Thanks in advance.

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    1. Hi M-
      Let’s set the label of “false teacher” aside for a moment. I know very little about Michael Todd, and I haven’t listened to any of his sermons, but from what little I do know, he’s doing some unbiblical things and no Christian should be following him (whether or not you choose to use the label of “false teacher” for him). The first time I heard about Michael was when he allowed Beth Moore to preach the Sunday sermon at his church. He apparently has a close relationship with Joel Osteen, and he allows his wife to serve as co-“pastor”. All of these things – violating Scripture by allowing women to preach/pastor, and yoking with false teachers – alone are enough to biblically (1 Timothy 3/Titus 1) disqualify him as a pastor, regardless of the content of his teaching/preaching. I suspect he also teaches false doctrine as I’ve never run across a pastor or teacher who violates Scripture in either/both of these areas who doesn’t also teach false doctrine.

      Here is a resource I hope you’ll find helpful as you further research him. I would also suggest you listen to some great preaching from the men under the “Recommended Bible Teachers” tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page. It will help you to develop an “ear” for what good, biblical preaching should sound like so that when you run across bad preaching, you’ll be able to quickly tell that it’s bad. (If you’re not familiar with any of the names there, I’d recommend starting with John MacArthur, Steve Lawson, Voddie Baucham, Josh Buice, or Gabriel Hughes. Just Google them or look for their sermons on YouTube.)

      Hope this helps. :0)

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      Reply

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