Ambrose Thomson
Registrar and Director of Student Services, Assistant Professor of Old Testament
Ambrose joined McMaster Divinity College in 2024. He lives in Hamilton with his wife, Melissa, and their three daughters. In his faculty role, he has a passion for teaching believers about the Old Testament foundation of Gospel faith. His dissertation focused on the Old Testament’s theology of Yahweh’s presence with Israel and how it informs Paul’s teachings about the Spirit in the life of the Church. Currently, Ambrose is working toward launching a YouTube channel that aims to take particular contributions in biblical and theological scholarship and make them public and accessible to a wider audience of ministry leaders and educated lay people in the Church.
Practical Ministry Experience
From an Episcopal acolyte to a Baptist preacher, Ambrose has served in a variety of lay leadership roles in various local congregations. He spent six years as an Elder in a C&MA congregation, has led bible study and worship ministries in multiple traditions, offers lay-level seminar-style biblical education in his home church, and preaches occasionally in different pulpits around Southern Ontario, and beyond.
Research Interests
What is the Gospel?
Biblical Theology
Old Testament in the New Testament
Current Projects
Popular Theology YouTube Channel
Papers Presented
| 2023 | “‘I Will Make Your Name Great’: The Name of Humanity and the Better Name of Israel,” Paper: Evangelical Theologica Society (San Antonio, TX). |
| 2023 | “A Predictable Promise: The Call of Abraham and the Primordial Problem of Presence,” Paper: Evangelical Theological Society, North East Regional Conference (South Hamilton, MA). |
| 2019 | “Presenting God: Ecclesiology and Corporate Identity in the Old Testament,” Paper: Evangelical Theological Society (San Diego, CA). |
| 2018 | “Voiceless Idols, Speaking People: 1 Corinthians 12–14 and the Accessibility of Divine Presence,” Paper: Institute for Biblical Research (Denver, CO). |
| 2017 | “Righteousness, Repentance, and the Recovery of Divine Wealth: A Discourse Analytic Approach to Luke 15:11–32,” Paper: Canadian Society of Biblical Studies (Toronto, ON). |
| 2016 | “Dwelling Among Them: The Tabernacle as a Confession of the Redemptive Presence of Yahweh,” Paper: Canadian Society of Biblical Studies, General Session (Calgary, AB). |
| 2015 | “Covenant of Presence: The Provenance of Biblical Covenants and the God-Israel Relationship in Exodus,” Paper: Canadian Evangelical Theological Association, Fall Conference (Toronto, ON). |
| 2015 | “The Priority of Divine Presence in Exodus,” Paper: Canadian Evangelical Theological Association, General Session (Ottawa, ON) |
Publications
| 2020 | “Voiceless Idols, Speaking People: 1 Corinthians 12–14 and the Accessibility of Divine Presence.” Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters 10, 72–90. |
| 2017 | Review of Rethinking Holiness: A Theological Introduction, by Bernie A. Van De Walle. Canadian-American Theological Review 6 (2017) 130–33. |
Accreditations
Recent Publications
| Title | Professor Name | Year | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Journal for the Study of Paul and his Letters, Volume 10 | Stanley E. Porter, Editor, Christopher D. Land, Associate Editor, David I. Yoon, Associate Editor, Ambrose Thompson, Contributor | 2020 |