Gavin Rutherford Ortlund^{[1][third-party source needed]} (born June 30, 1983^{[2][3][third-party source needed]}) is an American Reformed theologian pastor,^{[citation needed]} and Christian apologist.^{[citation needed]} As of December 2024, Ortlund had authored at least eight books, over 40 academic articles and book reviews, and many tens of articles for popular religious venues.^{[4][better source needed][third-party source needed]} He describes himself as President of Truth Unites, a ministry whose tagline is "promoting gospel assurance through theological depth".^[5] As of December 2024, Ortlund was listed as Theologian in Residence at Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee,^[6] and writes at TruthUnites.org.^{[5][better source needed] [7][dead link‍][third-party source needed]}

Gavin Rutherford Ortlund was born on June 30, 1983,^{[1][8][9][third-party source needed]}) to Mr. and Mrs. Raymond C. Ortlund Jr.,^{[clarification needed][10]} his father, the founding pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee.^[10] Gavin Ortlund is the grandson, on his father's side, of Ray and Anne Ortlund, noted earlier evangelical speakers and authors.^[11] Ortlund earned a B.A. in religion and philosophy from the University of Georgia,^[when?] an M.Div. from Covenant Theological Seminary,^[when?] and a PhD in historical theology from Fuller Theological Seminary.^{[when?][12][better source needed][third-party source needed]} Ortlund did a post-doctoral research fellowship at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois, at the Carl F.H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding, where he conducted research on Augustine's doctrine of creation.^{[4][better source needed][third-party source needed]}

Ortlund discloses in his writings that he came from and appreciated his Presbyterian background, writing

I was baptized as an infant in the Church of Scotland. After my family moved back to the United States, I was raised in various Presbyterian churches, eventually working at two Presbyterian churches during college and then attending a Presbyterian seminary. As I look back, I have nothing but gratitude for my time among Presbyterians; in fact, I often miss that world!^{[13][third-party source needed]}

He goes on to write that he was "propelled... out of Presbyterianism" because of the doctrine of infant baptism (paedobaptism), and that after a period of intensive study, his "convictions had solidified against [it], and I (somewhat reluctantly) changed my church affiliation and was baptized [again] (dunked in a river, to be precise)."^[13] He went on to receive his ordination from the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference.^{[citation needed]}

Ortlund served as an associate pastor of Sierra Madre Congregational Church.^{[when?][14][third-party source needed][12][third-party source needed]} Next,^[when?] he became Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Ojai (ABCUSA), in Ojai, California,^{[12][third-party source needed]} where he stayed until 2023.^{[citation needed][15][full citation needed]} As of December 2024, Ortlund was listed as a Pastor Emeritus, and as "Pastor to Pastors", at Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee.^[16]

Ortlund has debated Trent Horn (a member of Catholic Answers) on several issues, including purgatory and baptismal regeneration.^[17][18] He has criticized John MacArthur and others for oversimplifying matters in deciding how churches in California ought to respond to governmental COVID restrictions, where others described his position as arguing that MacArthur had "prioritiz[ed] worship over [a more submissive posture that included considerations of] loving your neighbor, obedience to government and maintaining a good witness".^[19][20][21]

Ortlund has written multiple books, including:^{[4][third-party source needed]}

• Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals: Why We Need Our Past to Have a Future (2019).^{[full citation needed]} The message here is that church history and the history of Protestantism are important today.^{[according to whom?][22][third-party source needed]}

• Finding the Right Hills to Die on: The Case for Theological Triage. (2020), Essential doctrines of the faith, non-essential doctrines, and prioritize doctrine.^{[full citation needed][23][third-party source needed][24]}

• In his book Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn't: The Beauty of Christian Theism (2021),^{[full citation needed]} Ortlund argues that the idea of the existence of God is "more satisfying to both mind and heart" than naturalism.^{[citation needed]} Ortlund has written a commentary on the work of Anselm.^[25] He has written on Christian unity, criticizing sectarianism as well as doctrinal indifference.^[26][27] Ortlund has opposed those who call for "an end to the Reformation".^[28][29]

• What it Means to be Protestant: The Case for an Always Reforming Church. Grand Rapids (2024), a defense of the Protestant tradition.^{[full citation needed]}

• Humility: The Joy of Self-Forgetfulness (2023), where Ortlund writes how humility is not an abstract virtue but a mark of gospel integrity.^{[full citation needed]}

• Retrieving Augustine’s Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy (2020). How Augustine of Hippo might understand Genesis 1-3.^{[full citation needed]}

• Anselm’s Pursuit of Joy: A Commentary on the Proslogion (2020). Commentary on Anselm of Canterbury's Proslogion.^[25]

• I and II Kings: A 12-Week Study. Knowing the Bible (Crossway, 2017), "A 12-week Practical Study Series on the Books of 1 and 2 Kings".^{[30][full citation needed]}

• Ortlund has defended the doctrine of divine simplicity and the Thomistic view of the beatific vision.^{[31][32][33][third-party source needed]}

• Ortlund has defended the view that Noah's flood was a regional event and not a global event, arguing that such a position is consistent with "an effort to take seriously the meaning of the text, which involves what the original author meant the original readers to take from it in its original context."^{[34][third-party source needed]} This claim has caused controversy within Evangelicalism and ignited accusations of theological liberalism, which he has denied.^[35][36]

• Ortlund has written many academic papers and online articles on a wide array of theological and Biblical topics.^{[4][third-party source needed]}

• Ortlund maintains a YouTube channel, to present the theological and Biblical topics from his organization, Truth Unites.^[37]

Ortlund has been an assistant and adjunct teacher at:^{[4][third-party source needed]}

• Western Seminary, 2024;^{[citation needed]}
• St. Anselm, Bethel College and Seminary, 2018, 2020;^{[citation needed]}
• Fellow, Credo;^[38]
• Member, The Center for Pastor Theologians (St. Basil Fellowship);^{[citation needed]}
• Visiting Scholar at Reasons to Believe;^{[12][third-party source needed]}
• Editorial Board, Themelios (2016-2021);^{[citation needed]}
• Evangelical Theological Society;^{[citation needed]}
• International Association for Anselm Studies;^{[citation needed]}

Gavin Ortlund is married to his wife, Esther,^[5] and they have five children.^{[7][dead link‍][third-party source needed]}

Ortlund has brothers that include Eric Ortlund, a professor at Oak Hill College in London,^{[citation needed]} and Dane Ortlund, author of the popular Christian book Gentle and Lowly.^{[citation needed]}

• Author Unknown (October 11, 2019). "Apologist and Pastor Gavin Ortlund on Whether or Not the Bible Supports Slavery". blackchristiannews.com. Retrieved May 4, 2022. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)^{[dead link‍]}
• Christian News Now Staff (August 4, 2020). "John MacArthur Appears on Fox News at Night; "We Are the Most Essential Reality in the World"". Christian News Now. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
• Robinson, Jeff (April 16, 2021). "Written to Christians or Almost Christians? Mohler and Schreiner Debate Warning Passages at TGC21". Archived from the original on April 16, 2021. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
• Dash, Darryl (August 3, 2021). 8 Habits for Growth: A Simple Guide to Becoming More Like Christ. Moody Publishers. ISBN 9780802499745.^{[page needed]}
• Lee, Justin (May 20, 2022). "Takeaways from the Debate over Tim Keller's "Third Way"". First Things. Retrieved August 14, 2022. In addressing the James R. Wood-David A. French debate, Ortlund tweeted, "[A]voiding tribalism and seeking winsomeness is NOT a strategy that can be discarded once we arrive in a ‘negative world,’ It is a biblical commandment" (as quoted here by Lee).
• Vincent, Benjamin (July 20, 2022). "Why We Shouldn't Practice Liturgy 'A La Carte'". Christianity Today. Retrieved August 9, 2022. Article discusses the Ortlund book, Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals: Why We Need Our Past to Have a Future.