Interview with Dr. John Woodbridge on Biblical Authority

I recently had the privilege of interviewing one of my heroes. Dr. John D. Woodbridge of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School is a world-renown church historian and my former professor.

It’s hard to come across a more humble, kind, or encouraging man than Dr. Woodbridge. Instead of a typical introduction, I will share a list of bullet-points of why I consider Dr. Woodbridge, “The Most Interesting Man in the World” (or at least one of them):

• Woodbridge has published several books, including Biblical Authority (which will be rereleased at the end of this month), Church History, Volume Two, Renewing Your Mind in a Secular World, A God-Sized Vision: Revival Stories that Stretch and Stir (coauthored with Collin Hansen), Scripture and Truth (coedited with D.A. Carson), and Hermeneutics, Authority, and Canon (also coedited with D.A. Carson), and others.
• Dr. Woodbridge was a personal friend of Chuck Colson and spoke in his honor at the Evangelical Theological Society (read his remarks).
• Dr. Woodbridge’s father, Charles Woodbridge, was a pastor and seminary professor at Fuller who was mentored by J. Gresham Machen.
• Woodbridge’s father ministered to a World War II hero named Teen Palm. Palm gave Woodbridge’s father Hitler’s personal pistol which he stole from Hitler’s apartment while on an assignment to assassinate Hitler. John Woodbridge shared the story of the gun Palm’s life in Hitler in the Crosshairs: A G.I.’s Story of Faith and Courage (co-written with Maurice Possley).
• He is a descendant of Jonathan Edwards and his grandmother was President Woodrow Wilson’s first cousin.
• Woodbridge served as the chief editor of Christianity Today, the visiting professor of American History at France’s University of Toulouse, and the visiting professor of history at Northwestern University.
• In addition to being a world-class church historian, Woodbridge has composed music. As a graduate student at Michigan State, Woodbridge wrote a score titled “Sans Vous (Without You).” The score was used illegally by Paramount Pictures in a TV mini-series called, “The Winds of War”. After a long legal battle, Woodbridge won a settlement against Paramount for plagiarism.

I thought an interview with Dr. Woodbridge would be useful for Leadership Resources’ blog because we train pastors for expositional ministry and rely on Scripture’s power and authority for fruit in ministry. Below are links to the three-part interview series.

Dr. John Woodbridge on Biblical Authority

1. Talking Biblical Authority with Dr. John Woodbridge – Part One of the interview provides a definition of biblical authority and its history, along with why the “Scripture plus tradition” view doesn’t work.
2. Dr. John Woodbridge on Implications of Biblical Authority for Missions and Evangelism – Part Two shares Billy Graham’s secret to ministry and his impact on many, including Louis Zamperini.
3. Biblical Authority in Life and Ministry – Part Three mentions how we can “domesticate” Scripture and shares the secret for living a transformed life.

Other resources:

• Dr. Woodbridge’s Curriculum Vitae on Trinity’s Website
• The Importance of Knowing Church History: John Woodbridge’s Audio Interview with John Stonestreet
• Dr. Woodbridge’s Interview with Sovereign Grace Ministries
• Video of Dr. Woodbridge Speaking at the Carl F. H. Henry Centennial Celebration Hosted by Southern Seminary
• Clip of Woodbridge and Maurice Possley on Hitler in the Crosshairs
• John Woodbridge on Church History, Volume Two

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