SWJT names Thielman’s ‘Paul, Apostle of Grace’ 2025 Book of the Year

Paul, Apostle of Grace by Frank Thielman has been named the 2025 Book of the Year by Southwestern Journal of Theology (SWJT), Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President David S. Dockery announced November 25.

“The Frank Thielman book will serve this generation as F. F. Bruce’s great work on Paul, Apostle of the Heart Set Free has done for the past 40 years,” Dockery said of the Book of the Year. “We salute Professor Thielman on the publication of this excellent volume.”

For the sixth annual award of its kind, Dockery and Malcolm B. Yarnell III, research professor of theology and editor of SWJT, polled Southwestern and Texas Baptist College (TBC) faculty regarding their recommendations of books for 12 categories of various academic disciplines, including biblical studies, church history/biography, worldview and apologetics, Baptist studies, and others.

“We are very pleased with the large number of faculty members who participated in the process for the SWJT Book of the Year recognitions,” Dockery said. “Multiple faculty members from all five schools participated, which is greatly encouraging.”

The top book overall is awarded as well as the top choice in each of the categories. Honorable mentions are also recognized. Dockery pointed out that the books selected this year represented various publishers, including Baker, B&H, Crossway, Zondervan Academic, Eerdmans, Kregel, InterVarsity, Good Book, Cambridge, Broadside, and others.

“The texts chosen from across the seminary’s disciplines—from the biblical and theological to the practical and pastoral—represent many of the best Christian books published in 2025,” Yarnell said.

A volume co-authored by Coleman Ford, assistant professor of humanities at TBC, and an edited publication by Karen Kennemur, professor of children’s ministry, were selected as the top books in the categories of church history/biography and children and youth/counseling/Christian education. Several other Southwestern faculty and alumni contributed to the Children & Salvation volume.

Provost Madison Grace, Assistant Professor of Church Music and Worship Marc Brown, and Assistant Professor of Faith and Culture Daniel Darling each had works recognized as honorable mentions. Shapers of the Southwestern Theological Tradition, co-edited by Dockery, Yarnell, and Grace and published by Seminary Hill Press, was also named an honorable mention in the Baptist studies category.

Faculty were also involved in other volumes on the list, such as The Sing! Hymnal, for which School of Church Music and Worship Dean Joe Crider and professors Jon Duncan and Joshua Waggener served as advisors. Dockery wrote endorsements for six of the books and Southwestern alumni Scott Duvall and Heath Thomas both had books on the list. Current PhD student Sandra Peoples and former faculty member Stephen Presley also had books recognized.

Gregg Allison, recently named as the recipient of Southwestern’s 2025 James Leo Garrett Jr. Award for Christian Thought, authored Complementarity: Dignity, Difference, and Interdependence, which was named the top work of the applied theology/ethics category.

SWJT is the longest standing academic journal among Southern Baptists.

The full list of awardees follows.

BOOK OF THE YEAR

Paul, Apostle of Grace, by Frank Thielman (Eerdmans)

BIBLE REFERENCE/BIBLICAL BACKGROUNDS

Archaeology and the World of Jesus: A Visual Guide, and Archaeology and the Ministry of Paul: A Visual Guide, by David A. DeSilva (Baker Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Jesus and the Law of Moses, by Paul T. Sloan (Baker Academic)

Understanding Biblical Law: Skills for Thinking with and through Torah, by Dru Johnson (Baker Academic)

BIBLICAL STUDIES

Reading the Old Testament as Christian Scripture: A Literary, Canonical, and Theological Survey, by Mark S. Gignilliat and Heath A. Thomas (Baker Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Understanding Jeremiah, by Duane Garrett (Kregel)

The Theology of the Letter to the Galatians, by Bruce W. Longenecker (Cambridge)

THEOLOGICAL STUDIES

Union with Christ and the Life of Faith, by Fred Sanders (Baker Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Christian Life, by Kelly M. Kapic (Zondervan Academic)

A Theology of Revelation, by J. Scott Duvall (Zondervan Academic)

CHURCH HISTORY/BIOGRAPHY

Nicaea for Today: Why an Ancient Creed (Still) Matters, by Coleman M. Ford and Shawn J. Wilhite (B&H Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Biblical Theology in the Life of the Early Church: Recovering an Ancient Vision, by Stephen O. Presley (Baker Academic)

The Story of the Trinity: Controversy, Crisis, and the Creation of the Nicene Creed, by Bryan M. Litfin (Baker)

BAPTIST STUDIES

The Baptist Vision: Faith and Practice for a Believers’ Church, by Matthew Y. Emerson and R. Lucas Stamps (B&H Academic)

Honorable Mentions

A Unity of Purpose: 100 Years of the SBC Cooperative Program, co-edited by W. Madison Grace II and Tony Wolfe (B&H)

Shapers of the Southwestern Theological Tradition, co-edited by David S. Dockery, W. Madison Grace II, and Malcolm B. Yarnell III (Seminary Hill Press)

WORLDVIEW AND APOLOGETICS

The Gospel After Christendom: An Introduction to Cultural Apologetics, co-edited by Collin Hansen, Skyler R. Flowers, and Ivan Mesa (Zondervan Academic)

Honorable Mentions

The Steadfast Love of the Lord: Experiencing the Life-Changing Power of God’s Unchanging Attention, by Sam Storms (Crossway)

The Devil Reads Nietzsche: A Public Theology for the Post-Christian Age, by Michael McEwen (B&H Academic)

DISCIPLESHIP/SPIRITUAL FORMATION

Drawn by Beauty: Awe and Wonder in the Christian Life, by Matthew Z. Capps (B&H)

Honorable Mentions

Remember Heaven: Meditations on the World to Come for Life in the Meantime, by Matthew McCullough (Crossway)

Scrolling Ourselves to Death, co-edited by Brett McCracken and Ivan Mesa (Crossway)

CHURCH MUSIC/WORSHIP

The Sing! Hymnal, created by Keith Getty and Krysten Getty, co-edited by John Martin, Doug Kreider, Douglas Sean O’Donnell (Crossway)

Honorable Mentions

The New and Living Way: Invitation to Biblical Worship and A Worship Reader: Short Studies & Reflections on Biblical Worship, by Ron Man (Cascade)

Ponder Anew What the Almighty Can Do: 160 Years of Change in Worship Leader Training at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, by Marcus W. Brown (Wipf & Stock)

APPLIED THEOLOGY/ETHICS

Complementarity: Dignity, Difference, and Interdependence, by Gregg R. Allison (B&H Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Religious Freedom: A Conservative Primer, by John D. Wilsey (Eerdmans)

In Defense of Christian Patriotism, by Daniel Darling (Broadside)

MINISTRY/PREACHING/LEADERSHIP

A Life of Listening: Discerning God’s Voice and Discovering Our Own – A Memoir by Leighton Ford, by Leighton Ford (InterVarsity)

Honorable Mentions

Accessible Church: A Gospel-Centered Vision for Including People with Disabilities and Their Families, by Sandra Peoples (Crossway)

Preaching in a Post-Truth World: Recentering the Pulpit in a Chaotic World, by Mike Glenn (B&H)

EVANGELISM/MISSIONS/GLOBAL CHURCH

Understanding Evangelism: Biblical Foundations, Historical Developments, and Contemporary Issues, by J. D. Payne (Baker Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Prioritizing the Church in Missions, by John Folmar and Scott Logsdon (Crossway)

From the Rising of the Sun: A Journey of Worship around the World, by Tim Challies and Tim Keesee (Zondervan Academic)

CHILDREN AND YOUTH/COUNSELING/CHRISTIAN EDUCATION

Children & Salvation: Biblical, Theological, and Practical Considerations, co-edited by Karen Kennemur, Kelly A. King, Shelly Melia, and Donna B. Peavey (B&H Academic)

Honorable Mentions

Mission-Driven Colleges: Keeping First Things First in Christian Higher Education, by Richard Langer and Scott B. Rae (B&H)

Understanding Trauma: A Biblical Introduction to Church Care, by Steve Midgley (Good Book)