Kenneth E. Ortiz (M.Div.) recently joined the staff team at The Grove Church in Clermont, FL as a church planting resident in conjunction with Orlando Church Planting Network (OCPN) and Send Network. The plan is to plant a new church community in Central Florida in fall 2024.

Previously, Kenneth served as a professor and recruiter at Bethlehem College and Seminary in Minneapolis, MN and a pastor at Cities Church in St. Paul, MN and an adjunct instructor at Spurgeon College in Kansas City, MO. Kenneth is also a published author and the chief content creator and podcast host for Theology for the Rest of Us.

Kenneth has earned two undergraduate degrees, an M.Div., and has completed additional graduate coursework in various disciplines. He’s currently pursuing a Th.M. in Pedagogy and a Ph.D. in Historical Theology, both at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. His doctoral research is focused on the development of theological anthropology within the neo-evangelical movement of the twentieth century.

Kenneth has more than 15 years of vocational ministry experience. He has also been a successful entrepreneur. In addition to publishing content for Theology for the Rest of Us he has also written for Desiring God and Just Disciple. Kenneth also has a TEDx Talk called “How to be a Great Mentor.” It has been watched more than 100,000 times worldwide. Kenneth is a self-described Disney enthusiast, he loves board games, and he’s a big fan of Philadelphia and Villanova sports teams.

He is married to Malaina. She earned a B.A. from Bethany Global University with double majors (Intercultural Ministry Studies and Bible & Theology). She has also earned an M.A. in Intercultural Leadership from the same school. Kenneth and Malaina live in Bloomington, MN, they have one daughter and Malaina is currently pregnant with their first son (due September 2023).

2023-Present       The Grove Church

• Church Planting Resident, in conjunction with Orlando Church Planting Network and Send Network

2022-2023       Bethlehem College and Seminary

• Assistant Professor of History and Theology
• Associate Director of College Recruiting

2019-2023      Cities Church

• Serve on council of elders and engage in various ministerial duties as needed.
• Preach Sunday morning sermons 8-10 times per year.
• Served as part of vocational ministry team 2019-2022; transitioned into current lay pastor role in April 2022.
• Oversaw hospitality team and assimilation processes.
• Managed church-wide communications and periodicals.

2016-2022      Bethany Global University

• Dean of Online Education, Director of Strategic Initiatives, and Professor of theology and contemporary issues.
• Taught residential and online courses, both undergraduate and graduate level courses, in researching, writing, theology, ethics, missiology, preaching, and public policy.
• Oversaw and managed strategic partnerships.
• Created digital content for content marketing strategies; wrote and edited dozens of articles as part of the school’s ‘content marketing’ strategies.
• Created and taught online ‘enrichment courses’ offered to non-matriculated students.
• Managed the process of developing new programs including a midwifery program, online undergraduate offerings, an accelerated BA-MA program, and a post-graduation on-campus apprenticeship program.

2013-2016      Mosaic Church

• Served as Student Ministry Coordinator and Young Adults Ministry Coordinator.
• Helped manage church-wide periodicals.

2005-2013      Teen Mania Ministries

• Served as Director of Operations for “Acquire the Fire” youth conferences.
• Oversaw logistics for thirty-three youth conferences across North America (average attendance 5,000+ per conference); negotiated contracts with vendors, venue management, labor unions, merchandisers, talent managers, private security firms, and local law enforcement.
• Managed annual budget of more than $3million.
• Managed team of five full-time staff and 60+ interns.
• Served as coach/trainer for mission trip leaders.
• Preached/taught at missions training seminars and coached short-term mission trip leaders.
• Helped to lead 45+ short-term mission trips.
• Managed transportation and supply chain logistics.

2003-2012      Real Estate Entrepreneurship

• Self-employed landlord and real estate investor; frequently “flipped” residential properties and real estate secured paper assets.
• Launched and managed a successful property management company.
• Launched and managed a commercial mortgage brokerage and private/hard money lending firm.

2006-2008      New Foundations Charter School

• Associate Director of Extracurricular Activities
• Substitute Teacher
• Coached middle school basketball and flag football
• Taught SAT Prep classes

Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

• Ph.D., Historical Theology (in progress; anticipated 2024)
• Th.M., Pedagogy (in progress; anticipated 2023)
• Master of Divinity

Harvard Medical School, Harvard University

• Completion of coursework in Genetics via HMX Fundamentals program

Spurgeon College

• Bachelor of Arts, Biblical Studies

Warren National University

• Bachelor of Science, concentration in Organizational Leadership and Psychology

Berean School of the Bible

• Completion of two-years of coursework, completed all requirements for denominational ministerial credentials

BLAST Training Program

• Completion of apprenticeship program for authors led by best-selling author Shannon Ethridge

Theological terms that describe Kenneth Ortiz:

• Protestant
• Classic Theist
• Inerranist
• Augustinian
• Particular Baptist
• Credo-Baptist
• Cautious Continuationist
• Complementarian
• Congregationalist
• Partial-Preterist
• Optimistic A-millennial

Statements fully affirmed by Kenneth Ortiz:

• Canons of Dort (1618-1619)
• Abstract of Principles (1858)
• Lausanne Covenant (1974)
• Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (1978)
• Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (1988)
• Baptist Faith and Message (2000)
• Bethlehem Eldership Affirmation of Faith (2003)
• Nashville Statement (2017)

In addition to personal friends, parents, mentors, and pastors, there have been various personalities (historical and contemporary) that have been very influential on Kenneth’s theology, ideology, and missiology. Here’s a list of those influential personalities (listed in alphabetical order by first name):

• Albert Mohler
• Carl F. H. Henry
• Chuck Colson
• D. A. Carson
• Jeanne Mayo
• Jim & Elisabeth Elliot
• John Calvin
• John Piper
• Mark Dever
• Norman Geisler
• R. C. Sproul
• Shannon Ethridge
• Thomas Schreiner
• William Carey