Dr. Shackelford was born in Mississippi and raised in Arkansas. He received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in the First Baptist Church of Forrest City, Arkansas, while he was a junior in high school. He committed his life to vocational Christian ministry the following year in 1969.

He attended the University of Arkansas on voice, trumpet, and French horn scholarships and graduated with a degree in music education. While in college he worked two summers for the New York City Board of Education as a paraprofessional in the Teenage Performing Arts Workshop in New York City. While at the University of Arkansas, he met and married his wife Suzie.

Following graduation, he attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and then transferred to Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary where he earned his MDiv and PhD degrees. While a seminary student, Dr. Shackelford served as Minister of Music and Assistant to the Pastor in two local churches.

Upon graduation from Mid-America, he served as senior pastor for three churches and eventually joined the Mid-America faculty in 1988. He moved to Schenectady, New York, and served in the New Testament department until he moved to the Memphis area to teach on the main campus in 2000.

Dr. Shackelford and Suzie have four children and one granddaughter. He has one brother living in the Houston, Texas area.

Dr. Shackelford is professor and Chairman of the New Testament/Greek Department. He is a member of the Evangelical Theological Society and the Society of Biblical Literature. He has presented papers at the national and regional meetings of ETS. He is the author of a number of peer-reviewed articles for journals and several articles in the Holman Bible Dictionary. He has also revised and expanded a New Testament Beginner’s Greek Grammar.

Dr. Shackelford has served as a guest lecturer and participated in mission trips to a number of countries. His travels have included Russia, South America, South Korea, Indonesia, and Singapore.

Dr. Shackelford enjoys hunting, working on his farm, building furniture, and riding his motorcycle. Suzie works as a librarian in Mississippi and loves to read. They both enjoy visiting with their children and granddaughter.

ASK ME ABOUT:

  • New Testament
  • Bible Translations
  • Difficult New Testament Bible Passages
  • Greek matters (grammar, syntax)
  • Literal Adam/creation issues
David G. Shackelford, PhD

Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Greek

Education

MDiv, Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary; PhD, Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary.

Teaching and Administrative Experience

Teaching Fellow for Dr. J. Philip Allison; chief administrator for the Oakhaven Baptist Academy of Oakhaven Baptist Church, Memphis, TN.

Field Experience

Pastor of Oakhaven Baptist Church and Academy, Memphis, TN; Friendship Baptist Church, Marianna, AR; Calvary Baptist Church, Desoto, MO; Interim Minister of Music, Cherokee Baptist Church, Memphis, TN; Assistant to the Pastor/Minister of Music, Trafalgar Village Baptist Church, Memphis, TN; numerous associational committees in the Baptist associations where pastorates were held; interim pastorates and other preaching/teaching opportunities for numerous churches throughout the Northeast, South, and Southeast. Committee on Committees for the Baptist Convention of New York; various Bible conferences and local church seminars/workshops in both Bible studies and church music; guest lecturer in New Testament for PRO Missions—classes held at the International Academy for Modern Knowledge, Obninsk, Russia, 1994; Protestant Chaplain, Otisville Federal Correctional Institute, Otisville, NY; Worship Leader, Baptist Convention of New York, 1997; Trustee, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Missions Opportunities

Numerous missions trips to Russia, Indonesia, Peru, South Korea, and Singapore; numerous domestic missions opportunities.

Professional Organizations

Evangelical Theological Society; Society of Biblical Literature.

Other Papers, Articles and Presentations

“The Apostles,” in A Harmony of the Gospels. Kendal Easley and Steve Cox, eds. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2006; “The Beatitudes Then and Now,” Mid-America Theological Journal, 1992; “The Bible and Intoxicating Beverages.” Paper presented at the Baptist Distinctives Conference, Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary, 2005; “Binding and Loosing.” In Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Chad Brand, Charles Draper, Archie England, Gen. Eds. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2003; “Christology in the Gospels,” in A Harmony of the Gospels. Kendal Easley and Steve Cox, eds. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2006; “Church and State: Whatever Happened to the First Amendment?” Paper presented to the 4th Annual Bible Conference, Aberdeen, NJ, 1992; “Demons in the Gospels,” in A Harmony of the Gospels. Kendal Easley and Steve Cox, eds. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2006; “The Fall of Adam and Its Relationship to the Cross of Christ and the Fossil Record and Its Incompatibility with Theistic Evolution,” Creation Ex Nihilo Technical Journal by Creation Science Foundation, Ltd., Queensland, Australia, 1996. (Also published by its sister organizations in Asia, Africa, and Europe.) “Foundational Biblical Truths: Creation and the Fall of Man,” The Journal. Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. Spring 2014; “Genesis 1-3 in Light of Romans 5:12-14; 8:18-25; and 1 Corinthians 15:21-58,” paper presented at the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, San Francisco, CA; “Guidelines for Interpreting Jesus’ Parables” Mid-America Theological Journal, 1997; “Heaven,” paper presented to the 3rd Annual Bible Conference, Aberdeen, NJ, 1991; “Hell,” in Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Chad Brand, Charles Draper, Archie England, Gen. Eds. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, 2003; “Hermeneutics in Modern Translation Practice: How Much Is Too Much?” paper presented at the 46th Annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, Chicago, IL, 1994; “How Short Morning and Evening: A Response,” Creation Ex Nihilo Technical Journal by Creation Science Foundation, Ltd., Queensland, Australia, 1997; “The Husband of One Wife: An Exposition of 1 Timothy 3:12,” 2009; “The Incomparable Christ” (exposition of John 1-5), Mid-America Theological Journal, 1988; “Modern Ethics and Morality: An Analysis and a Proposal for Evangelical Response,” paper presented to Capital District Association of Evangelicals, New York, 1993; “Motivations in the Ministry” (exposition of 2 Corinthians 3-5), Mid-America Theological Journal, 1989; “‘Mystery’ in Ephesians,” Mid-America Theological Journal, 1996; “The Sabbath Day: Its Formulation in the Old Testament; Its Fulfillment and Function in the New,” The Journal, 3, 2016; “That We Might War a Good Warfare: The Nature of Our Spiritual Conflict,” paper presented to the 5th Annual Bible Conference, Aberdeen, NJ, 1993; “The True Nature of Our Spiritual Conflict and a Proposal for an Evangelical Response,” paper presented to the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, Washington, D. C., 1993. Published by the Theological Research Exchange Network, 1994; “Was Adam a UFO?” Creation Ex Nihilo by Creation Science Foundation, Ltd., Queensland, Australia, 1999.

Books

Editor, The Beatitudes: How to be Happy in an Unhappy World. Texas: Wahoo Publishers, 2013.

Beginner’s Grammar of the Greek New Testament by William Hersey Davis, Revised and expanded ed. by David G. Shackelford. Eugene, OR, Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2006; digital edition published by Logos Bible Research software, 2008.

Other Experiences

Paraprofessional teaching assistant and soloist for the Teenage Performing Arts Workshop in New York, NY, sponsored by the New York Board of Education. Classes held at Manhattan School of Music, summers of 1971 and 1972.

Honors

Community Leaders and Noteworthy Americans, 1980–1981; Personalities of America, 4th edition.