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OBU—Oklahoma Baptist University
Dr. Bobby Kelly
Dr. Bobby Kelly

Dr. Bobby Kelly

Ruth Dickinson Professor of Religion

Biography

Dr. Bobby Kelly joined the OBU faculty in 1997. He was named the Rowena Strickland Professor of Bible in 2000 and in 2004 he was named the Ruth Dickinson Chair of Bible. He received his PhD in New Testament Studies from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas (1998), where he also served as a teaching fellow for three years. He also received his master of divinity degree from Southwestern Seminary (1992) and his bachelor’s degree from Clear Creek Baptist Bible College in Pineville, Kentucky (1988).

Dr. Kelly contributes articles frequently to the Biblical Illustrator and the Baptist Messenger. He is currently working on The Story of the New Testament for the Hobbs College Library. He is also actively engaged in preaching and teaching in churches throughout Oklahoma. Kelly has served as interim pastor of fifteen Oklahoma churches since his arrival at OBU including Quail Springs Baptist Church and First Baptist Midwest City. 

Dr. Kelly has been recognized for excellence in teaching. He received the Promising Teacher Award in May 2000, an award given annually to a junior faculty member who demonstrates outstanding potential as a teacher. In May 2011 OBU awarded Dr. Kelly the Distinguished Teacher Award, the highest honor for OBU faculty members. This award is presented to a senior faculty member who has exemplified characteristics of superior instruction as acknowledged by former students, peers and current students. Dr. Kelly also received the Delta Epsilon Chi Award in May 2000, an annual award given to a distinguished alumnus as selected by the faculty, administration and trustees of Clear Creek Baptist College.

Dr. Kelly has been married to his wife, Angie, for twenty-seven years. They have two children, Luke and Levi.

Education

  • B.A., Clear Creek Baptist College
  • M.Div., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
  • Ph.D., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

Courses Taught

  • REL 1023: New Testament History and Literature
  • BIBL 3513: The Gospels and Acts
  • BIBL 2123: Biblical Hermeneutics
  • BIBL 2313: Elementary Greek I 
  • BIBL 3313: Elementary Greek II
  • BIBL 3323: Intermediate Greek I
  • BIBL 4313: Intermediate Greek II

Awards and Honors

  • Distinguished Teacher Award, Oklahoma Baptist University, May 2011.
  • Promising Teacher Award, Oklahoma Baptist University, May 2000
  • Delta Epsilon Chi Award, Clear Creek Baptist College, May 2000
  • H.C. Brown, Jr. Memorial Award, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1992.

Selected Publications and Lectures

  • The Story of the New Testament. Hobbs College Library. Nashville: Broadman and Holman. Forthcoming. 2020.
  • “To Have Disciples in the First Century.” Biblical Illustrator (Spring 2017).
  • “’I Am’ in John.” Biblical Illustrator (Spring 2016).
  • “Alpha and Omega.” Biblical Illustrator 41:4 (Summer 2015).
  • "Luke" in What The New Testament Authors Really Cared About: A Survey of Their Writings, 2nd Edition. Kregel Acacemic, 2015.
  • "The Family of Jesus" and "Women Followers of Jesus," in The Baker Illustrated Bible Handbook, ed. by J. Daniel Hays and J. Scott Duvall (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2011).
  • 2019 Barry Lectures at Clear Creek Baptist Bible College, Pineville, Ky.