Father Wounds, Intertextual Whispers and the Preaching of the Protomartyr

In this episode of the Expositors Collective Podcast, Mike sits down in person with Dr Bob Franquiz at our St. Pete training event. Bob reflects on his journey from a shaky first devotion at Bible College to 25 years of preaching and pastoring at Calvary Fellowship in Miramar, Florida.

Together they explore:

• Why you can be called to ministry but still need to grow in gifting.
• How humour, stories, and illustrations can both serve and sabotage preaching.
• What Stephen’s sermon in Acts 7 teaches us about Old Testament depth, “apologetic reconstruction,” and what Bob calls a masterclass in intertextual whispers.
• The role of fatherly voices in the church, and how many preachers carry unaddressed father wounds into ministry.
• How decades of walking with God and pastoring the same church change a preacher’s tone, insight, and perspective.

Bob’s insights remind us that faithful preaching does more than explain texts - it both comforts and challenges, offering what people want and, more importantly, what they need.

About Dr Bob Franquiz

Dr Bob Franquiz (Ph.D., Liberty University) is the Founding and Senior Pastor of Calvary Fellowship in Miramar, FL. He is the author of seven books, including Pull: Making Your Church Magnetic and Begin: First Steps for the Journey of Faith. Before pastoral ministry, Bob played guitar for the Christian hardcore band Strongarm, often recognised as one of the best Christian metal bands of all time.

He previously served as an assistant pastor at Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale, one of the largest churches in the U.S. Bob holds a Ph.D. in Bible Exposition from Liberty University and a Master’s degree in Theological Studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.

Bob and his wife Carey (his “just out of high school” sweetheart) married in 1997, and together they are raising three children: Mia, Alexander, and Olivia.

Resources & Links

• Calvary Fellowship Miramar :  https://mycalvary.com/
•  The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth: The Role of the Temple and Mission in the Expansion of the Church as Seen through Stephen’s Sermon in Acts 7 :  https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/7281/

• Bob’s book: Pull: Making Your Church Magnetic : https://www.amazon.com/Pull-Making-Your-Church-Magnetic/dp/080101560X
• Joel Turner on Humor in Preaching: https://cgnmedia.org/podcast/expositors-collective/episode/the-power-of-humor-in-preaching-joel-turner

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