Derek Tidball is a British

British people

The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...

 theologian, sociologist of religion and Baptist

Baptist

Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...

 minister. From 1995 to 2007 he was the principal of the London School of Theology

London School of Theology

The London School of Theology is an English interdenominational evangelical theological college based in Northwood within the London Borough of Hillingdon. A second campus is based in Watford, 20 miles northwest from central London, known as the Centre for Missional Leadership...

.

Education

A graduate in sociology (University of Durham) and theology (University of London

University of London

-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...

), Tidball was awarded a PhD (Keele University

Keele University

Keele University is a campus university near Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as an experimental college dedicated to a broad curriculum and interdisciplinary study, Keele is most notable for pioneering the dual honours degree in Britain...

, 1981) for a dissertation entitled Evangelical Nonconformist Home Missions, 1796-1901.

Career

Tidball has served as minister of Northchurch Baptist Church, Berkhamsted

Berkhamsted

-Climate:Berkhamsted experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Castle:...

 and part-time tutor at London Bible College (1972-77); Director of Studies of London Bible College (1978-85); Senior Minister of Mutley Baptist Church, Plymouth

Plymouth

Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...

 (1985-91); Secretary for Evangelism and Mission of the Baptist Union of Great Britain (1991-1995); Principal of London School of Theology (the renamed London Bible College) (1995-2007) and is currently Visiting Scholar at Spurgeon's College

Spurgeon's College

Spurgeon's College is a theological institute of higher learning located in South Norwood Hill, London. It was founded by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, known as 'the Prince of Preachers' and in his time minister of the largest church in the world, the Metropolitan Tabernacle at Elephant and Castle...

, London.

Tidball has chaired, at various times, British Youth for Christ, The Shaftesbury Project, The British Church Growth Association and the Council of the Evangelical Alliance

Evangelical Alliance

The Evangelical Alliance is a London-based charitable organization founded in 1846. It has a claimed representation of over 1,000,000 evangelical Christians in the United Kingdom and is the oldest alliance of evangelical Christians in the world....

. He was President of the Baptist Union (1990-91) and is a Vice-President of the Evangelical Alliance.

Family

Tidball is married to the Reverend Dianne Tidball, Regional Minister for the East Midlands Baptist Association, England. They have one son.

Publications

• An Introduction to the Sociology of the New Testament (Paternoster, 1983) (published in 1984 in the US by Academie Books, a division of Zondervan, under the title The Social Context of the New Testament)
• "On Wooing a Crocodile: An Historical Survey of the Relationship Between Sociology and New Testament Studies", Vox Evangelica 15 (1985), 95-110.
• Skilful Shepherds: An Introduction to Pastoral Theology (Apollos, 1986)
• Using the Bible in Evangelism (Bible Society, 1986)
• "A Response to A Question of Identity" in (ed.) D. Slater, A Perspective on Baptist Identity (Mainstream, 1987)
• Who are the Evangelicals?: Tracing the Roots of Modern Movements (Marshall Pickering, 1994)
• "The Scandal of the Church in the Mission of God's people", in A. Billington, A. N. S. Lane & Max Turner (eds.), Mission and Meaning, (Paternoster, 1995)
• Builders and Fools: Leadership the Bible Way (IVP, 1999)
• The Reality is Christ: The Message of Colossians for Today (Christian Focus, 1999)
• The Message of the Cross (IVP, 2001)
• How Does God Guide? (Christian Focus, 2001)
• Discerning the Spirit of the Age (Kingsway, 2002)
• Thinking Clearly about the Bible (Monarch 2003)
• Wisdom from Heaven: The Message of James for Today (Christian Focus 2003)
• "The Pilgrim and the Tourist: Zygmunt Bauman and Postmodern Identity" in Craig Bartholomew
  Craig Bartholomew
  Craig Bartholomew is the H. Evan Runner Professor of philosophy at Redeemer University College. He has published a great number of works, and is involved in a number of different Academic communities...
  
   and Fred Hughes (eds.), Explorations in a Christian Theology of Pilgrimage (Ashgate, 2004)
• The Message of Leviticus (IVP, 2005)
• "Power - 'In' and 'Upon': A Moody Sermon" in Timothy George (ed.), Mr Moody and the Evangelical Tradition (2005)
• "The Social Construction of Evangelical Conversion: A sideways glance" in Christopher Partridge and Helen Reid (eds.), Finding and Losing Faith: Studies in Conversion (Paternoster 2006)
• "A Baptist Perspective on David Wright's, What has Infant Baptism done to Baptism", Evangelical Quarterly
  Evangelical Quarterly
  Evangelical Quarterly is an academic journal covering theology and biblical studies. It was establlished in 1929 by Donald Maclean and J. R. Mackay. The current editors are I. Howard Marshall, John-Paul Lotz, and John Wilks....
  
  78.2 (April 2006)
• Meeting the Saviour: The glory of Jesus in the Gospel of John (BRF, 2007)
• "Penal Substitution: a Pastoral Apologetic" in The Atonement Debate: Papers from the London Symposium on the Theology of Atonement, Derek Tidball, David Hilborn, Justin Thacker (eds.), (Zondervan, 2008)
• Ministry by the Book (Apollos, 2008)
• "Post-war evangelical theology: a generational perspective", Evangelical Quarterly
  Evangelical Quarterly
  Evangelical Quarterly is an academic journal covering theology and biblical studies. It was establlished in 1929 by Donald Maclean and J. R. Mackay. The current editors are I. Howard Marshall, John-Paul Lotz, and John Wilks....
  
  81.2 (April 2009)
• "The Radical Evangelical: A Critical Appreciation" in Pieter J. Lalleman (ed.), Challenging to Change: dialogues with a radical Baptist theologian. Essays presented to Dr Nigel G. Wright on his sixtieth birthday (Spurgeon's College, 2009)
• Signposts: A devotional map of the Psalms (IVP, 2009)