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Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary has been
called into existence for the express purpose of preparing men for the New Testament
Gospel ministry. The curriculum has been structured to fulfill this purpose
and the faculty is unreservedly committed to this goal. Graduates will have
the necessary tools and content material to enable them to take leadership positions
and to fulfill their calling adequately whether it be in the pastorate at home,
establishing local churches on the mission field, or in Christian education.
The Seminary has many distinctives which justify
its founding and continued existence. It is committed totally to the primacy
of the New Testament church as God’s ordained instrument of witness and
work in this age. It thus trains its students in the ideology and function of
the local church. The School emphasizes expository preaching based on a study
of the Scriptures in the original languages. This characterizes the ministry
of its President, Dr. David M. Doran, at the Inter-City Baptist Church of Allen
Park, Michigan, the parent organization of the Seminary.
The Seminary holds to a dispensational approach
to the Bible and is thus premillennial and pretribulational in eschatology.
It is biblicist in theology and stands opposed to and engages in refutation
of the charismatic movement, Arminianism, and hyper-Calvinism. The School stands
firmly as Fundamentalist and separatist and is unashamedly Baptist.
The educational philosophy of the Seminary stems
from the authoritative, inerrant Word of God. Therefore, the learning process
pivots around a professor-centered classroom situation and the direct presentation
of truth. The School has earned a good reputation for its no-nonsense academics
because the teachers are exacting in their scholastic demands on students; Bible
truth dare not be handled in a smorgasbord, slovenly manner. There is a strong
emphasis on learning the original biblical languages followed by exegesis and
Bible exposition courses, all of which are coordinated in a coherent, unified
network of systematic theology. This is accompanied all the while by courses
in expository preaching, church history, Baptist history, pastoral theology,
and church administration. These academic demands and educational emphases will
not be diminished in an effort simply to attract students or shorten the time
of preparation. Students looking for an “easy” seminary do not knowingly
apply to DBTS.
The scholastic side of seminary life is not
at the expense of heart preparation for the ministry. A genuine desire to preach
and a tender-hearted concern for the souls of men are fostered as best as is
known how. A weekly ministry in a local church is required of all students.
The practical, pastoral side of the Lord’s work is emphasized in the classroom
as well as the academic. Not neglected is one’s personal relationship
of obedience to God through the Scriptures. While rejecting various forms of
pietism and mysticism, the Seminary nonetheless attempts to nurture the inner
man and enhance the maturing process that any correct exposure to the Word of
God will bring.
With such distinctives and philosophy the Seminary
puts forth a product that will meet the need for well-trained and qualified
workers in the Lord’s harvest field. Its faculty, students, and alumni
have been met with appreciative acceptance by Fundamental, separatist Baptist
people. Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary pledges uncompromising loyalty
to the Scriptures and remains totally committed to the thorough equipping of
men called of God into today’s and tomorrow’s ministry.
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About DBTS