You then, my son

“You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:1-2 NIV).

My son, Jonathan David Combs graduated from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary today with a Masters of Divinity degree. I am very proud of him. Southeastern is my alma mater and I was especially pleased that he got to study under a couple of my former professors.

I owe a great deal to Dr. Wayne McDill, Emeritus Professor of Preaching. He taught me the value of “text-based” preaching. I still remember being in his class and hearing him say, “Gentlemen, you’ve got to discover what the text says and then let the text speak for itself!”

I still strive to do that today. I don’t want to add or subtract to the meaning of God’s Word. Rather than bringing my thoughts and opinions to the Word, I want it to shape my thinking and preaching.

When Jonathan started at SEBTS I told him to make sure to take Dr. McDill for preaching. I’m glad he was able to get at least one class with him before he retired.

Today, after graduation, I was so happy to get a chance to talk to Dr. McDill and to let him know how much I appreciated him. When I told him that I was teaching lay preachers how to study and preach using his method, he encouraged me to email him for a new tool he has developed to train young preachers.

I also got a chance to talk to Dr. Daniel Akin, President of Southeastern. However, when I attended seminary, he was still a professor. He is only a year older than me and I used to just call him “Dr. Danny.” I took Christology from him. He was always one of my favorite professors. I still use his study notes (he gave out huge amounts of structured notes).

Our family enjoyed a beautiful day on the campus in Wake Forest, North Carolina as we stood and watched Jonathan graduate. We’re all very proud of him.

Now, you then, my son, be strong, and go and teach others.