Chris Bounds

Ministerial and Professional Background

Chris Bounds came to Indiana Wesleyan in the fall of 2002, after serving eight years as a pastor in Arkansas. As a pastor, a theologian, and a professor, he is committed to communicating Wesleyan theological distinctives to his students, contemporary Evangelicalism, and society. He is an Ordained Elder in The Arkansas Conference of The United Methodist Church, where he served as an associate and senior pastor for eight years.

He has published articles in popular and scholarly venues, including Aldersgate Papers: Theological Journal of the Australasian Centre for Wesleyan Research; Asbury Theological Journal; Catalyst: Contemporary Evangelical Perspectives for United Methodist Seminarians; East-West Church and Ministry Report; Expository Times; Good News Magazine; Religious Studies Review; Studia Patristica; Wesleyan Life: The Magazine of the Wesleyan Church; The Wesleyan Theological Journal; and Wesley and Methodist Studies.

He has also contributed chapters or articles to popular and academic books, including Creation Care: Christian Voices on God, Humanity, and the Environment; Dictionary of Everyday Theology and Culture; Encyclopedia of Christian Education; Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States; Leadership the Wesleyan Way; Recovering the Wesleyan Social Witness; ReThinking Wesleyan Theology; Straight Talk; Scholars Coming to Faith; and Treasure the Word: A Layperson’s Guide to Interpreting Scripture.

Chris has also co-authored three books: Holiness: The Power to Transform You, Your Church, and Your World with Jim Garlow, Christy Lipscomb, and Joann Lyon; Selecting Worship Songs: A Guide for Leaders with Constance Cherry and Mary Brown; Unholiness: Overcoming the Forces that Attack Your Soul with Jim Lo.

He presently serves on the Board of Trustees of One Mission Society (OMS) and The Francis Asbury Society. Previously, he served on the Board of Directors for Good News: A Forum for Scriptural Christianity in The United Methodist Church and the Manchester Wesley Research Centre.

He and his wife Tamara have been married for over twenty years. They have two children, a daughter, Maris, and a son, Morgan. Chris loves Arkansas Razorback basketball; Notre Dame Fighting Irish Football; and Ben and Jerry’s Heath Bar Crunch Ice Cream.

Degrees

• Ph.D. - Systematic and Wesleyan theology
  1997, Drew University
• M.Phil.
  1994, Drew University
  Focus in systematic theology
• M.Div.
  1991, Asbury Theological Seminary
  Emphasis in theological studies
• BA - Bible, Greek
  1988, Asbury College