About GBTS

Our Purpose

The purpose of Grace Bible Theological Seminary (GBTS) is to glorify God in the church by educating and equipping the next generation of pastors, church planters, and missionaries to see churches established and strengthened across the globe.

History & Governance

Grace Bible Church (GBC) of Conway, Arkansas, was founded by Jeff Johnson in 2000, when a few families met in the living room of his apartment to start a church that would be established upon faithful exposition of Scripture and Christ-centered worship. In 2011, Johnson began an informal theology and ministry class on Wednesday evenings to train men within the church for various leadership roles. This class would be a small seed that the Lord would eventually grow into a seminary.

In 2016, Grace Bible Church hosted two courses in partnership with Reformed Baptist Seminary (RBS). In 2017, Grace Bible Institute was established, which would later be renamed Grace Bible Theological Seminary (GBTS). Classes were offered on a more regular basis and the variety of courses increased each year. In 2019, the seminary's first three students graduated, and the school moved into a new, on-campus facility that was provided by a generous donor.

In 2020, GBTS formally began a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) program, which serves as the flagship degree program of the institution. The seminary now offers three (3) degree programs (M.Div., MAPS, and Cert.) and has a teaching faculty comprised of eight (8) instructors/professors, along with two (2) staff members.

All school policies and decisions are subject to the seminary's confessional documents and statements of faith. As a ministry of Grace Bible Church of Conway, Arkansas, the seminary's employees and volunteers operate in a ministerial capacity and perform ministerial functions. The seminary is under the oversight and supervision of the elders of Grace Bible Church who comprise the Board of Directors ("Trustees") of the seminary.

Values

Grace Bible Theological Seminary's distinctives include the following:

a.) Confessional: While maintaining a primary commitment to the authority and sufficiency of Scripture, GBTS is a confessional seminary that holds to a historical summary of doctrine in accordance with what Scripture teaches. All faculty must affirm substantial subscription to the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689) as an accurate representation of biblical doctrine. An electronic version of the 2LBCF (1689) can be found at: https://www.the1689confession.com/.

b.) Church Based: Grace Bible Theological Seminary is a ministry of Grace Bible Church (GBC) of Conway, Arkansas, and is governed by the pastors/elders of GBC. GBTS was founded as a local church ministry of Grace Bible Church as an informal pastoral mentoring class. Although the Lord has developed and matured the ministry significantly, GBTS has not forgotten its roots. The seminary is founded upon a church-based seminary model, and its continual development will be thoroughly grounded in the local church. In addition to the seminary being in a church context, all current faculty and instructors are either actively involved in pastoral ministry (or eldership) or have had extensive experience in it.

c.) Pastorally Focused: GBTS delivers seminary instruction from the front lines of pastoral ministry. Teaching serves as an extension of our instructors' calling as pastors and elders. Our aim is to prepare men with eyes and hearts toward pastoral ministry, church planting, and missions. Our instructors are expected to exhibit a passion and love for the local church.