"May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." Galatians 6:14
Dr. Gene Wilkes is the Dean and Professor of New Testament for B. H. Carroll Theological Seminary at East Texas Baptist University. Prior to being dean at ETBU, Dr. Wilkes served as President and Professor of New Testament and Leadership of B. H. Carroll Theological Seminary from 2013 to 2024. Dr. Wilkes led the merger of the seminary with ETBU from 2022 to 2024. He has authored several books, including Jesus On Leadership: Timeless Wisdom on Servant Leadership and A New Way of Living: Practicing the Beatitudes every day. Dr. Wilkes received his Ph.D. in New Testament Studies (1985) and his M.Div. (1979) from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He graduated from Baylor University with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion and Greek (1975).
Dr. Wilkes served as Senior Pastor of Legacy Church, Plano, Texas, for 26 years prior to coming to Carroll Seminary. During his local church ministry, Legacy Church transitioned to become “a mission outpost where every member is a missionary in his or her mission field.” He remains part of the fellowship as Pastor Emeritus.
Dr. Wilkes teaches New Testament and has taught Pastoral Leadership and supervised doctoral candidates for B. H. Carroll. He taught Biblical Servant Leadership as an adjunct professor in the Gary Cook School of Leadership at Dallas Baptist University at both the Masters and Ph.D. levels. Along with his teaching ministry, Dr. Wilkes has written for various publications on topics from biblical commentary and Bible studies to devotionals and church administration/leadership issues. He speaks nationally and internationally on the topic of servant leadership and as a Bible teacher. Some of the international sites include Mexico, Cuba, China, Vietnam, Albania, Greece, Russia, Canada, Portugal, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Tanzania.
Dr. Wilkes lives in Plano, Texas, with his wife, Kim, of 50 years, and they have two married daughters and five grandchildren. Dr. Wilkes’ hobbies include trail running, hiking, mountaineering, cycling, and golf. He summited Mt. Rainier, Washington, (14,410 ft.) on his 60th birthday and Mt. Kilimanjaro (19,340 ft.) in 2020. He hiked the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim in two days in May 2024.