Dr. Dustin Turner

Biography

Dustin Turner grew up in southwest Ohio, between Dayton and Cincinnati. Although he did not grow up in a Christian home, the Lord used his great-grandmother, Granny Dude, along with friends who faithfully invited him to church, to expose him repeatedly to the gospel. At age nine, during an Awana event, he trusted in Jesus Christ as his Savior. In eighth grade he sensed a call from the Lord into full-time ministry, and during high school, through intentional discipleship in a church plant called The Chapel of Miami Valley, that call was further confirmed and shaped.

Dustin earned a BA in Speech Communications from Miami University (Ohio). The summer before his senior year, he married his wife, Rachel, and the following year they moved to New Orleans. There he completed both an MDiv in Biblical Languages and a PhD in Theology. Within months of arriving, they connected with a new church plant, Vintage Church, where he joined the staff about a year later, became a pastor in 2011, and eventually served as Lead Pastor from from 2017 until 2026.

Dustin has always sensed a clear calling from the Lord to live with “a foot in both worlds”—the church and the academy. For the last fifteen years that calling has been lived out primarily as a pastor while serving as an adjunct professor. Now, however, that calling has shifted to serving as a full-time professor but always with the desire to serve the local church.

Dustin serves as Assistant Professor of Christian Studies at Bryan College. He and Rachel have two children, Gabriel and Emmalyn. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, strength training, and looks forward to getting to know more of Dayton and East Tennessee.

Publications, Research, & Editing

• Review of Jesus and the Law of Moses: The Gospels and the Restoration of Israel within First-Century Judaism, by Paul T. Sloan, Center for Pastor Theologians Journal, In progress.
• Review of Disability Theology and Eschatology: Hope, Justice, and Flourishing, ed. Preston McDaniel Hill and Aaron Bryan Davis, Journal of Biblical and Theological Studies, Forthcoming.
• Review of A Theology of Health: Wholeness and Human Flourishing, by Tyler J. Vanderweele, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, forthcoming.
• “The Truth of His Actions,” Vol 9, Unit 26, The Gospel Project for Adults.
• Review of Breaking Bread: The Emergence of Eucharist and Agape in Early Christian Communities, by Alistair C. Stewart, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 67, no. 3 (September 2024): 604–607.
• Review of It Takes a Church to Baptize: What the Bible Says about Infant Baptism, by Scot McKnight, Review and Expositor 116, no. 3 (August 2019): 377–78.
• Review of Death and the Afterlife: Biblical Perspectives on Ultimate Questions, by Paul R. Williamson, Trinity Journal 40, no. 2 (Fall 2019): 278–80.
• Review of Come, Let Us Eat Together: Sacraments and Christian Unity, ed. George Kalantzis and Marc Cortez, Trinity Journal 40, no. 2 (Fall 2019): 274–76.
• Review of “In Christ” in Paul: Explorations in Paul’s Theology of Union and Participation, ed. Michael J. Thate, Kevin Vanhoozer, and Constantine R. Campbell, Review and Expositor 115, no. 4 (2018): 302–303.
• Review of Engaging the Doctrine of Revelation, by Matthew Levering, Review and Expositor 115, no. 2 (2018): 302–303.
• Review of Representing Christ: A Vision for the Priesthood of All Believers, by Uche Anizor and Hank Voss, Trinity Journal 39, no. 1 (Spring 2018): 118–20.
• Review of Don’t Fire Your Church Members: The Case for Congregationalism, by Jonathan Leeman, Trinity Journal 38, no. 2 (Fall 2017): 289–91.
• Review of The Church: God’s Pilgrim People, by David Zac Niringiye, Southwestern Journal of Theology 59, no. 2 (Fall 2016): 248–49.
• Review of Going Public: Why Baptism Is Required for Membership, by Bobby Jamieson, Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry 11, no. 1 (Spring 2016): 153–55.
• Review of Introducing Easter Orthodox Theology, by Andrew Louth, Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry 12, no. 1 (Spring 2015): 55–57.

Conference & Workshop Presentations

• “Improvisational Ecclesiology in Acts: Learning from Early Church Polity for Contemporary Church Polity,” Accepted for presentation at the 2026 Houston Christian University Theology Conference, Houston, TX, April 16, 2026.
• “Soul Care for the Soul Physician: The Power of Counseling in the Life of the Pastor,” Presented at the Mental Health and the Church Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 31, 2023.
• “Symbol and Sacrament: The Relationship Between Spirit- and Water-Baptism among Baptists,” Presented at the National Evangelical Theological Society, Denver, Colorado, November 15, 2018.
• “Baptized Into Christ: A History of Baptism,” Invited lecture at Loyola University New Orleans, September 27, 2018.
• “Baptized into Christ According to Balthasar Hubmaier and John Calvin,” Presented at the National Evangelical Theological Society, San Antonio, Texas, November 15, 2016.
• “Joining the Church According to Paul: An Investigation of Paul’s Understanding of the Relationship Between Baptist and Baptist Church Membership,” Presented at the National Evangelical Theological Society, Atlanta, Georgia, November 18, 2015.