Richard Langer

Richard Langer (PhD, University of California, Riverside) is professor of biblical and theological studies at Talbot School of Theology and director of the Office for the Integration of Faith and Learning at Biola University. Together with Tim Muehlhoff, he is the co-author of Winsome Persuasion, which received a 2018 Christianity Today book award in apologetics/evangelism. In addition to teaching and writing, they are co-directors of The Winsome Conviction Project, which seeks to introduce civility and compassion into our discussion of differences.

He specializes in the integration of faith and learning, and has also published in the areas of bioethics, theology, and philosophy. He has a passion for helping Christians of all ages understand the connection between the Gospel and all the diverse facets of the created order in which we live. Prior to coming to Biola, he served for over twenty years as a pastor at Trinity Evangelical Free Church in Redlands, California.

Affiliations Faculty, Student
Position Director, Office for the Integration of Faith and Learning
Position Professor of Theology
Degree Masters Divinity ('85)

Author's books

Winsome Conviction: Disagreeing Without Dividing the Church

We generally assume that those sitting around us in church share our beliefs. But when our personal convictions are contested by fellow Christians, everything changes. We feel attacked from behind. When other Christians doubt or deny our convictions, we don’t experience it as a mere difference of opinion, but as a violation of an unspoken agreement. Tim Muehlhoff and Rick Langer offer a guide to help Christians navigate disagreements with one another.

Winsome Conviction: Disagreeing Without Dividing the Church – eBook

We generally assume that those sitting around us in church share our beliefs. But when our personal convictions are contested by fellow Christians, everything changes. We feel attacked from behind. When other Christians doubt or deny our convictions, we don’t experience it as a mere difference of opinion, but as a violation of an unspoken agreement. Tim Muehlhoff and Rick Langer offer a guide to help Christians navigate disagreements with one another.

Winsome Persuasion: Christian Influence in a Post-Christian World

How are Christians to engage the broader culture? How might we be both persuasive and civil, and both challenge the beliefs of others and offer love and respect? The task of bearing faithful witness to Jesus is complicated by persistent—and not altogether baseless—cultural stereotypes. In our post-Christian society, thoughtful Christians are considering again how to engage the dominant culture as a minority, a counterpublic, amid varying perceptions and misperceptions. Tim Muehlhoff and Richard Langer’s Winsome Persuasion presents a model for cultural engagement that integrates communication theory, theology, and Scripture. Penetrating, wise, and relentlessly practical, this timely book includes test cases and historical examples, such as William Wilberforce and Harriet Beecher Stowe.