Biography:Gavin Ortlund

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Short description: American Christian apologist and theologian

Gavin Ortlund
Born (1983-06-30) June 30, 1983 (age 42)
Scotland
EducationUniversity of Georgia (BA)
Covenant Theological Seminary (MDiv)
Fuller Theological Seminary (PhD)
Occupation
  • Christian apologist
  • professor
Spouse(s)Esther Ortlund
Children5
Theological work
Tradition or movementReformed Baptist[1]
Notable ideasTheological triage[2]

Gavin Rutherford Ortlund (born June 30, 1983) is an American Christian apologist,[3] Reformed Baptist theologian,[1] and author. Operating through his public ministry Truth Unites, Ortlund is known for defending theologically conservative evangelical Protestantism[4] from an irenic perspective, engaging with proponents of Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, atheism, and liberal Protestantism.

Ortlund is Theologian-in-Residence at Immanuel Nashville[5][lower-alpha 1] and Visiting Professor of Historical Theology at Phoenix Seminary.[6] He won Christianity Today's 2024 Book of the Year award for his work What It Means to Be Protestant: The Case for an Always-Reforming Church.[7]

Early life and education

Ortlund was born on June 30, 1983 in Scotland[8] to parents Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. and Jani Ortlund.[9][10] He was baptized as an infant in the Church of Scotland[11] and he is the youngest of 4 children.

In 2006, Ortlund earned a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Religion from the University of Georgia. In 2009, he earned a Master of Divinity from Covenant Theological Seminary. He went on to earn a Doctor of Philosophy from Fuller Theological Seminary in 2016, concentrating in historical theology.[12] From 2017 to 2018, Ortlund performed post-doctoral research at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School through the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding, where he conducted research on Augustine's doctrine of creation.[13]

Career

Pastoral ministry

After finishing his Master's Degree, Ortlund was on his way to become a minister in the Presbyterian Church in America. Due to concerns regarding pedobaptism, he was rebaptized and sought ordaination from the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference instead.[11][14] He served as an associate pastor of Sierra Madre Congregational Church[15].

From 2018 to 2023, Ortlund served as Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church of Ojai (American Baptist Churches USA) in Ojai, California.[16] In October 2023, he announced his departure from the pastorate to pursue full-time ministry through digital platforms and academic roles.[17]

Current positions

Ortlund currently serves as President of Truth Unites, a Christian apologetics and theological education ministry he launched in August 2020. He holds the position of Theologian-in-Residence at Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

Ortlund is a fellow of the Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics, run by The Gospel Coalition. In addition, Ortlund is a member of the Center for Baptist Renewal, and Credo, while maintaining membership in the St. Basil Fellowship of The Center for Pastor Theologians and serving as a Visiting Scholar at Reasons to Believe.

In March 2025, Ortlund was appointed as Visiting Professor of Historical Theology at Phoenix Seminary.[6]

In September 2025, The Gospel Coalition published the first version of its AI Christian Benchmark research project, of which Ortlund was a contributor.[18]

Views

  • Ortlund has defended the doctrine of divine simplicity and the Thomistic view of the beatific vision.[19][20]
  • Ortlund has defended the view that Noah's flood was a regional event and not a global event, arguing that such a position is consistent with "an effort to take seriously the meaning of the text, which involves what the original author meant the original readers to take from it in its original context."[21] This claim has caused controversy within Evangelicalism and ignited accusations of theological liberalism, which he has denied.[22][23]
  • Ortlund also holds to the position of biblical inerrancy. He identifies as a theologically conservative Christian in accordance with traditional historic Protestant positions. "I'm an evangelical Christian. I believe in biblical inerrancy. I think the Scripture is fully trustworthy. I think if people were to go down the line on...the average sort of testing issues of our times, they'd find me pretty conservative, pretty classically Christian in my instincts."[23]

Bibliography

Ortlund has written a variety of books surrounding various biblical, theological, and ecclesiastical studies:

  • 1–2 Kings: A 12-Week Study (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017)[24]
  • Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals: Why We Need Our Past to Have a Future (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019)[25]
  • Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2020)[26][lower-alpha 2]
  • Anselm's Pursuit of Joy: A Commentary on the Proslogion (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2020)[27]
  • Retrieving Augustine's Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2020)[28]
  • Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn't: The Beauty of Christian Theism (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2021)[29]
  • Humility: The Joy of Self-Forgetfulness (Wheaton, IL: Crossway 2023)[30][lower-alpha 3]
  • What It Means to Be Protestant: The Case for an Always-Reforming Church (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2024)[4]
  • The Art of Disagreeing: How to Keep Calm and Stay Friends in Hard Conversations (Epsom, England: The Good Book Company, 2025)[31]

Personal life

Ortlund is married to his wife, Esther, and they have five children.[5] He has two brothers: Dane Ortlund, author of Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers,[32] and Eric Ortlund, who serves as a Lecturer in Old Testament and Biblical Hebrew at Oak Hill College in London.[33]

Further reading

Notes

  1. ↑ Immanuel Nashville is a church in Nashville, TN.
  2. ↑ Co-published with The Gospel Coalition.
  3. ↑ Co-published with Union School of Theology.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Unthank, Kennedy (May 2, 2025). "Gavin Ortlund". https://www.pluggedin.com/youtube-reviews/gavin-ortlund/. 
  2. ↑ Greggsen, Caleb (May 21, 2020). "Book Review: Finding the Right Hills to Die On, by Gavin Ortlund". https://www.9marks.org/review/finding-the-right-hills-to-die-on-by-gavin-ortlund/. 
  3. ↑ Cline, Timon (October 14, 2024). "Gavin Ortlund's Apology". https://americanreformer.org/2024/10/gavin-ortlunds-apology/. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Ortlund, Gavin (August 20, 2024) (in en). What It Means to Be Protestant: The Case for an Always-Reforming Church. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. ISBN 978-0-310-15632-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=-ehO0AEACAAJ. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Shepherd, Josh (October 31, 2023). "Gavin Ortlund Leaving California Church To Be Full-Time Theology YouTuber in Nashville". https://julieroys.com/gavin-ortlund-leaving-california-church-theology-youtuber-nashville/. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Phoenix Seminary Appoints Dr. Gavin Ortlund as Visiting Professor of Historical Theology". March 25, 2025. https://ps.edu/press-release-phoenix-seminary-appoints-dr-gavin-ortlund-as-visiting-professor-of-historical-theology/. 
  7. ↑ "Christianity Today's Book of the Year". Christianity Today. https://www.christianitytoday.com/2024/12/christianity-today-book-of-the-year-gavin-ortlund-protestant-brad-east-letters-future-saint/. 
  8. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (April 21, 2020) (in en). Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. pp. 6. ISBN 978-1-4335-6742-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=iS0xyQEACAAJ. 
  9. ↑ Chamberlain, Dale (November 3, 2023). "Author Gavin Ortlund Leaving Pastorate To Become Full-Time Theology YouTuber". ChurchLeaders. https://churchleaders.com/news/461948-gavin-ortlund-leaving-pastorate-full-time-theology-youtuber.html. 
  10. ↑ Belz, Emily (December 12, 2022). "State Finds 'Substantial Evidence' for Retaliation Charge at Illinois Church". Christianity Today. https://www.christianitytoday.com/2022/12/illinois-investigation-eeoc-employment-ortlund/. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Why I Changed My Mind About Baptism" (in en). https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/why-i-changed-my-mind-about-baptism/. 
  12. ↑ Doverspike, William F. (April 15, 2025). "Religion Resource List". https://drwilliamdoverspike.com/files/psi_religion_bibliography.pdf. 
  13. ↑ "What Does Augustine Have to Do with Evolution & the Historical Adam?". May 15, 2017. https://henrycenter.tiu.edu/2017/05/what-does-augustine-have-to-do-with-evolution-and-the-historical-adam/. 
  14. ↑ "Congregationalism" (in en). https://truthunites.org/2012/06/30/congregationalism/. 
  15. ↑ "Gavin Ortlund" (in en). https://reasons.org/team/gavin-ortlund. 
  16. ↑ "Pastor quits congregation to minister to millions on YouTube". The Christian Post. November 3, 2023. https://www.christianpost.com/news/pastor-quits-congregation-to-minister-to-millions-on-youtube.html. 
  17. ↑ "Gavin Ortlund Leaving CA Church To Be Theology YouTuber in Nashville". Julie Roys Report. October 31, 2023. https://julieroys.com/gavin-ortlund-leaving-california-church-theology-youtuber-nashville/. 
  18. ↑ "AI Christian Benchmark: Evaluating 7 Top LLMs for Theological Reliability". September 21, 2025. https://media.thegospelcoalition.org/private/AI-Christian-Benchmark_20250921-2.pdf. 
  19. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (October 2014). "Divine Simplicity in Historical Perspective: Resourcing a Contemporary Discussion: Divine Simplicity in Historical Perspective" (in en). International Journal of Systematic Theology 16 (4): 436–453. doi:10.1111/ijst.12068. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ijst.12068.  See also this link for a possible additional web source.
  20. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (November 2021). "Will we see God's essence? A defence of a Thomistic account of the beatific vision" (in en). Scottish Journal of Theology 74 (4): 323–332. doi:10.1017/S0036930621000739. ISSN 0036-9306. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/scottish-journal-of-theology/article/abs/will-we-see-gods-essence-a-defence-of-a-thomistic-account-of-the-beatific-vision/9BAA85479C70DC24CA75F1691BC0BC3E. 
  21. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (2015-01-03). "Why A Local Flood?". https://truthunites.org/2015/01/03/why-a-local-flood/. 
  22. ↑ Quintanilla, Milton (February 27, 2024). "Theologian Claims Noah's Flood Was Regional, Not Global". https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/milton-quintanilla/theologian-claims-noahs-flood-was-regional-not-global.html. 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Hallowell, Billy (2024-02-26). "Noah's Ark Controversy: Theologian's Genesis Flood Claim Ignites Social Media Reaction" (in en-US). https://www.faithwire.com/2024/02/26/noahs-ark-controversy-theologians-genesis-flood-claim-ignites-social-media-reaction/. 
  24. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (March 31, 2017) (in en). 1–2 Kings: A 12-Week Study. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. ISBN 978-1-4335-5370-7. https://books.google.com/books?id=uka3jwEACAAJ. 
  25. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (October 29, 2019) (in en). Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals: Why We Need Our Past to Have a Future. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. ISBN 978-1-4335-6526-7. https://books.google.com/books?id=yq7CwAEACAAJ. 
  26. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (April 21, 2020) (in en). Finding the Right Hills to Die On: The Case for Theological Triage. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. ISBN 978-1-4335-6742-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=iS0xyQEACAAJ. 
  27. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin R. (May 1, 2020) (in en). Anselm's Pursuit of Joy: A Commentary on the Proslogion. Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press. ISBN 978-0-8132-3275-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=KQzoDwAAQBAJ. 
  28. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (July 14, 2020) (in en). Retrieving Augustine's Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic. ISBN 978-0-8308-5324-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=EinNDwAAQBAJ. 
  29. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (October 26, 2021) (in en). Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn't: The Beauty of Christian Theism. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic. ISBN 978-1-5409-6457-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=4Kk9zgEACAAJ. 
  30. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (January 10, 2023) (in en). Humility: The Joy of Self-Forgetfulness. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. ISBN 978-1-4335-8230-1. https://books.google.com/books?id=ypgtzwEACAAJ. 
  31. ↑ Ortlund, Gavin (February 20, 2025) (in en). The Art of Disagreeing: How to Keep Calm and Stay Friends in Hard Conversations. Epsom, England: The Good Book Company. ISBN 978-1-80254-140-3. https://books.google.com/books?id=SjjK0AEACAAJ. 
  32. ↑ Ortlund, Dane (April 7, 2020) (in en). Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers. Wheaton, IL: Crossway. ISBN 978-1-4335-6613-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=FzhUxwEACAAJ. 
  33. ↑ Shields, Brittany (February 19, 2022). "Suffering Wisely and Well". https://www.shelfreflection.com/blog/suffering-wisely-and-well. 



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