Mark Robinson

M.Div. General

As a teenager, Mark Robinson slept with a trumpet on his chest. His wishful sleeping never landed him a glamorous recording contract as a world-class trumpeter, but it must have done him some good—because he is now an accomplished classical and jazz pianist. He minored in music at Bob Jones University, where he earned a B.A. and M.A. in religion, and is now the music director of Cornerstone Presbyterian (PCA) in Allentown, PA.

Mark met Christ as a child through a bus ministry in Pittsburgh. “I was a ‘Chreaster,’” Mark says. “My family attended church around the holidays. It wasn’t until I attended the Sunday children’s ministry of another church that the Lord saved me.”

After college, Mark worked in the information technology industry. But “an undying thirst for spiritual and academic preparation for ministry” led him to pursue seminary training. “It seemed that most of the authors from whom I greatly profited had attended Westminster. Also, I was impressed with the ministerial depth of two of my former pastors, both of whom are Westminster graduates.”

So he enrolled in Westminster’s M.Div. program, where his classes have provided the spiritual and academic challenges he sought. “Old Testament Introduction has taught me the trustworthiness of the Bible, and that the baffling and sometime ‘messy’ nature of Scripture is not inimical to faith,” Mark says. “In New Testament Introduction, I’ve seen that Jesus is the solution to the puzzle of Scripture.”

Mark plans to graduate in May 2006. In addition to his music ministry, he preaches occasionally at Cornerstone and other area churches. In the future, he intends to serve as a full-time pastor and do some college or seminary teaching on the side. Undoubtedly, he’ll continue to pursue music, too. Perhaps in a few years we’ll see his CD of jazz trumpet arrangements based on Vos’ Biblical Theology ....