Equipping Preachers for the Church

When Dr. Matthew Kim first entered seminary, he imagined a future as a New Testament scholar. Drawn to the beauty of biblical languages, especially Greek, he anticipated a life immersed in exegesis and the world of the early Church. By the end of his Master of Divinity, two mentors, Dr. Scott M. Gibson and Dr. Haddon Robinson, recognized in him the gift of preaching and encouraged him to pursue the study of homiletics instead. What began as a surprising shift has become a vocation of nearly three decades in the making. Since 1999, Dr. Kim has been both a pastor and a professor, devoting his ministry to the art and craft of preaching, while also expanding through his many publications the field of practical theology. His research has consistently aimed to fill gaps in homiletical literature, writing not only for scholars but also for pastors and churches, always with an eye toward strengthening the proclamation of God’s Word.

That vision now finds expansive expression in his forthcoming Baker Academic textbook on preaching, a project that exceeds 100,000 words and promises to shape the next generation of preachers. At its heart is a Trinitarian framework—the first of its kind for a comprehensive preaching introduction—inviting readers to consider how Father, Son, and Spirit uniquely inform the task of proclamation. The book calls preachers to prepare not only exegetically and theologically but also culturally, spiritually, and communicatively. This integrative approach responds to a need Dr. Kim has long recognized: preaching is not a mechanical act of transmitting information, but a deeply relational, contextual, and Spirit-led work. His textbook offers a vision of preaching that is at once theologically rich, pastorally sensitive, and practically grounded—a resource designed for Bible colleges, seminaries, and churches across North America.

This scholarship does not remain on the printed page; it pulsates through Dr. Kim’s classroom at Truett. He envisions his textbook serving not only as a required resource for Truett’s preaching courses, at both the master’s and doctoral levels, but also as a springboard for forming students as faithful interpreters and communicators of Scripture. By training would-be preachers for the preaching task both biblically and theologically as well as culturally and emotionally he hopes to equips students to preach in ways that resonate with the complexities of modern ministry. A number of other forthcoming works mirror this same integrative approach. In 2025 alone, he will release We Follow Christ: Helping Women to Discern God’s Call (Baylor University Press) and What’s God Saying Here?: How to Navigate Awkward, Troubling, and Bizarre Passages We Would Rather Skip (Zondervan Reflective). Both of these books embody his desire to address pressing needs in the Church with clarity, courage, and care. Looking ahead to 2026, projects like Becoming a Friendlier Church (Baker Books) and Ready to Preach (Baker Academic) show how his scholarship spans preaching, pastoral theology, and congregational life.

What emerges across Dr. Kim’s body of work is a scholar-pastor who bridges the academy and the pew, writing not from a distance but from the lived realities of ministry. His research continues to expand, even as he anticipates writing on emotional intelligence in preaching, Christian identity, and pastoral leadership. However, at the core of his work remains his commitment to raising up preachers who can faithfully and thoughtfully communicate the gospel. For Dr. Kim, homiletics is not merely a discipline—it is a vocation of forming disciples who declare the Word of God into the life of the Church.