When I moved to Talbot School of Theology at Biola University in 2023, I sensed that God had big things ahead for Talbot. Looking at the amazing faculty and history, things were already on the move. And it’s been amazing to see what God has done in these last few years.

And, the Lord has accelerated that in surprising ways.

And now, pending accreditation approval, Phoenix Seminary in Arizona is going to be joining with Talbot and Biola University and becoming Talbot Seminary Phoenix.

Phoenix Seminary has a strong history and a tremendous community of students, faculty and staff. So we’re thrilled about this opportunity for a number of reasons. We believe that God is moving through this process as we’re coming together to preserve what matters, strengthen what works and expand the reach of theological education.

Preserving What Matters: The Exciting Opportunities in Phoenix

I think the best days of evangelical theological education in Phoenix are ahead. Talbot Seminary Phoenix doesn’t plan to survive or tread water after the process is complete. We are aimed at flourishing for students, faculty, churches and the greater region in Arizona and beyond.

Phoenix Seminary has built something valuable, with a large, conservative evangelical seminary community of students, faculty and staff. This is something worth preserving, and we're committed to building on the legacy of this wonderful institution. This is going to allow Talbot to serve students in Phoenix and Arizona with greater stability and expanded opportunities.

Phoenix Seminary has already been known for its world-class faculty, and now we're thrilled to connect pastors and church leaders with Talbot Seminary Phoenix. I recently wrote that robust and deep partnerships with churches can be one of the key reasons that some seminaries are growing. Strong institutions create strong leaders, and strong leaders serve strong churches. And strong churches, in turn, send new students to seminary for training for the future.

It’s also worth noting that Phoenix is an attractive location for many people who might want to relocate for residential theological education, but who might find a move to Southern California and Los Angeles daunting. If Southern California and Los Angeles might be a stretch for some students, Phoenix is a place that could be more manageable.

Not to mention that though we still have room, our Southern California campus is filling with students — so Phoenix opens up room for equipping more students for the mission and calling God has given them. We can envision more and more students relocating from around the country and joining what God is doing through Talbot Seminary Phoenix.

And, like most places, Arizona doesn't need less theological education. It needs more.

Strengthening What Works: The Humbling Growth at Talbot

When I came to Talbot in 2023, our faculty told me that Talbot was the best-kept secret in theological education. I was called here, in part, to upend that secret and get the word out about Talbot. We want Talbot to be the worst-kept secret in theological education. As part of this effort, we got a Sprinter van, and I drove around the country hosting nearly two dozen pastors’ conferences on the Lead the Way Tour.

Along the way, we’ve seen tremendous and encouraging growth. We are now one of the largest seminaries in the nation, and one of the fastest-growing. Clearly, Talbot is becoming less and less of a secret all the time. We’ve opened new programs, hired new faculty and staff, and we’ve been launching modular hybrid cohorts through Talbot Embedded.

Talbot Embedded provides a unique opportunity for students to remain embedded in their ministry contexts while learning from faculty members who fly in from Southern California. We’ve already launched Talbot Embedded in San Diego and Seattle, with other cities coming soon. Phoenix was one of the first stops on the Lead the Way Tour, and has been near the top of our list of cities for Talbot Embedded.

And now we have an even greater opportunity for a growing and ongoing presence in this important location. The transition from Phoenix Seminary to Talbot Seminary Phoenix allows us to expand our vision for theological education in the booming Phoenix area.

Expanding the Reach: The Urgent Need of Multiplying Gospel-Centered Theological Education

Seminary students shouldn’t have to choose between theological conviction, excellent education and institutional strength. We need to multiply gospel-centered theological education now more than ever, in a way that actually meets the needs of students. Talbot brings scale and resources and a long-term commitment to biblical fidelity to what Phoenix Seminary has already been building. And I believe both institutions will be stronger together than either would be alone.

Of course, it doesn’t take more than two or three Google searches to see that some attempted recent seminary mergers haven’t worked. But when they’re done well, mergers can be a tremendous opportunity to accelerate the training of leaders for the spread of the gospel. We see the historical precedent for such an opportunity from the merger of Gordon Divinity School and Conwell School of Theology in 1969. With Billy Graham and others leading the way, they formed Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, which has served evangelical students for decades.

And now we have the chance to do something on an even bigger scale for the 21st century. We plan to invest and grow in Phoenix, as schools like Gordon-Conwell and Reformed Theological Seminary have expanded beyond their home states. Even so, as far as we can find, nothing of the size of Talbot and Phoenix has happened in theological education before. We’ll have staff on the ground in Phoenix, building on the institutional base that is already there. God is entrusting us with a tremendous opportunity to meet a growing need, and we’re prayerfully stepping into it.

As we do, we’re going to seek to embed the ethos of our mission at Talbot in Phoenix, because we’re committed to developing disciples of Jesus Christ who think, look, and live like Jesus, and who are committed to his mission and glory — in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and around the world.