Rev. Dr. Kirk Clayton specializes in Christian apologetics and is a passionate defender of the truth of Scripture and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

He studied for three summers at the International Academy of Apologetics in Strasbourg, France, under the guidance of Dr. John Warwick Montgomery and other leading scholars. He has been a frequent guest on KFUO Radio and Issues, Etc. and has presented at conferences and events throughout the United States. In 2025, he spent three weeks teaching apologetics in Australia, and in 2026, he served as an essayist at the LCMS Convention in Phoenix, Arizona, presenting on "Christ's Resurrection for You." At Concordia University Chicago, Dr. Clayton teaches systematic theology, directs the Pre Seminary Program, and leads the university's Apologetics Boot Camp.

Degrees

  • Bachelor of Music Education, Concordia University Chicago; River Forest, IL 
  • Master's of Divinity, CSL,
  • PhD, CSL, 

Previous Positions

  • Pastor, Grace Lutheran Church, Canton, IL, 2000-2005
  • Pastor, Zion Lutheran Church, Mascoutah, IL, 2005-2024

Areas of Research

  • Christian Apologetics
  • Response to the New Atheists
  • Defense of the Reliability of Scripture and the Reality of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

Notable Publications

  • Going to Church Does not Make You a Christian in Objection Overruled IV: Answering Arguments Against Christianity (Collinsville: Issues Etc., 2026)

  • Apologetics: Definition and Examples in Standing Firm Issue 1 (April 2025)

  • Dead Men Don't Come Back. They Stay Dead. But What If? in The Resurrection Changes Everything: Essays in Honor of the Rev. Dr. Herbert C. Mueller (St. Louis: CPH, 2024)

  • Review of Carl E. Braaten's A Harvest of Lutheran Dogmatics and Ethics: The Life and Work of Twelve Theologians in Concordia Historical Institute Quarterly 96, no. 2 (Summer 2023)

  • Christianity Is a White Man's Religion in Objection Overruled III: Answering Arguments Against Christianity (Collinsville: Issues Etc., 2023) 

  • The Bible Teaches Bigotry in Objection Overruled II: Answering Arguments Against Christianity (Collinsville: Issues Etc., 2022)

  • God Condoned War and Killing in the Old Testament in Objection Overruled: Answering Arguments Against Christianity (Collinsville: Issues Etc., 2020)

  • The Defense of the Resurrection in The Lutheran Witness (April 2020)

  • Future Scare or Future Promise in The Lutheran Layman (November 2012)

Notable Presentations

  • 2024: Keynote Speaker on Apologetics at CID/SID Fall Pastors Conference 

  • 2022: Guest Instructor on the topic of Apologetics for the Luther Academy in Riga, Latvia (via Zoom) 

  • 2025: Main Presenter on Varieties of Apologetics, 22 Sessions, Australia

  • 2025: Speaker at Hymns of the Church: Militant and Triumphant Hymn Festival at Hope Lutheran Church, Highland, IL 

  • 2026: Keynote Speaker on the topic of Apologetics for Tell the Good News about Jesus Convocation for the Wyoming District, LCMS

  • 2026: Keynote Speaker on the topic of Why Apologetics Matters in Lutheran Education at the 2026 SID Administrators Winter Conference 

  • 2026: Presenter and Panelist for Religious Violence: An Interfaith Conversation discussion at St. Louis Community College, Kirkwood, MO

  • 2026: Teacher at ReThink3:15 apologetics ministry on the topic of The Reliability of the Old Testament

  • 2026: Presenter at Higher Things Youth Conference on the topic of The Reality of the Resurrection

  • 2026: Essayist at LCMS Synodical Convention in Phoenix, AZ on the topic of Christ's Resurrection for You