Thesis (D.Min.)--Liberty University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.R.E.)--Conservative Baptist Theological Seminary, 1963. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [88]-91).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 61-67, 76-80).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-142).

JOHN PIPER: THE MAKING OF A CHRISTIAN HEDONIST Justin Gerald Taylor, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2015 Chair: Dr. Michael A. G. Haykin This dissertation on noted pastor and author John Piper (1946- ) constitutes an early effort in the field of intellectual biography, tracing four key influences--in roughly chronological order--upon Piper's life and theology. Those with primary influence in Piper's formative years were his parents, William S. H. Piper (1919-2007) and Ruth Mohn Piper (1918-1974), who exhibited a unique combination of joyful fundamentalism. Piper's next major influence was C. S. Lewis (1898-1963), discovered during his undergraduate studies at Wheaton College, who introduced him to romantic rationalism. Piper's first teacher at Fuller Seminary was Daniel P. Fuller (1925- ), a hermeneutics professor who planted the seeds of Christian hedonism and who gave him a love for exegetical biblicism. It was during these seminary days and into his time of doctoral study that Piper discovered Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), whose affectional Calvinism would go on to shape Piper's theology more than anyone else. Piper's three primary venues of ministerial vocation--teaching, preaching, and writing--are all examined to reveal the ways in which each of these influencers played various roles in Piper's development of Christian hedonism and his distinct contribution to a theology of the Christian life. The dissertation concludes with two applications of the foregoing analysis, exploring how Piper uses Scripture and how he appropriates church history for pastoral ends. Also included is a comprehensive bibliography of Piper's published works (1971-2015).

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This study was concerned with the learning that takes place in the adult learning context of adult Sunday school classes in Southern Baptist churches. Using Lev Vygotsky's concept of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), a test of learning was created and administered to adults from ages 18 to over 65 in four geographically and socio-economically diverse areas of the United States who attended Sunday school at a Southern Baptist church between January and May 2011. Using descriptive and inferential statistics, the data gathered through the experimental protocol was analyzed to test for differences in the learning measured for control and test groups at each sample site. The results at two sample sites showed significantly higher posttest scores for the participants who took part in small group activities rather than attempting to learn alone. For the other sites, small sample sizes prevented significant results however, the data indicated that results were likely to match those of the other sites if sufficient sample data had been collected. Through multiple regression, the data was tested for a continuation of the relationship when age, gender, and education level were considered. Upon analysis it was found that only education level had a significant impact on the learning that took place. Participants who were more highly educated scored higher than those at lower education levels on the posttest. The variation is sample site was found not to be a significant factor in the scores. The study shows that the ZPD is applicable for adults, at least in the learning context of Sunday school. Additional research should consider adult learning in the ZPD in other learning contexts as well as testing other learning theories for adult learners.

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