Letter from the President
When the first Christians gathered in Jerusalem at Pentecost, they were waiting for a promise. The Holy Spirit came with a sound of rushing wind and flames of fire resting over every disciple. Thus, the church was born as a Spirit-animated community, alive with divine power, united in Christ, and commissioned as a witness to the world.
The same pattern marks the people of God today; the Holy Spirit is still at work. Wherever the Spirit works, lives are changed, gifts are shared, and life is given. The Spirit does not merely stir private devotion, but creates communities centered on Christ, as the Third Person of the Trinity honors the Second Person.
Wheaton College was founded as more than just an academic institution. We are, by God’s grace and mercy, a Spirit-animated and therefore Christ-centered community. Our Community Covenant bears witness to this Christian identity, as does our motto: “For Christ and His Kingdom.” It is explicit in our mission statement, which begins, “Wheaton College serves Jesus Christ,” and it’s in the title of our curriculum, “Christ at the Core.” Wheaton College has an institutional relationship with Jesus Christ.
We believe that our Christ-centered identity is a clear sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit. I chose to focus on the Spirit during my chapel series this year to shed light on an often-neglected topic and to serve as a reminder to our community that the Holy Spirit is at work here. With Christ at our core, the Spirit is at work throughout the whole body. The Spirit glorifies the Son, draws hearts to faith, and empowers people of God for service. Thus, to be Christ-centered in any true biblical sense is to also be Spirit-animated.
One clear sign of the Spirit’s presence is generosity. In the New Testament, generosity is not treated merely as a financial practice or a personality trait; it is a work of the Spirit in the heart that reflects the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. In Romans 12:6-8, for example, the apostle Paul includes giving among the spiritual gifts. Various manifestations of the fruit of the Spirit—love, kindness, goodness, self-control—naturally ripen into open-handed generosity. Where the Spirit rules, people loosen their grip on possessions, time, and status so that others may flourish.
We see the evidence of the Spirit’s presence throughout the life of Wheaton College. Generosity appears in alumni who invest in future students and serve Christ throughout the world, in faculty and staff who pour wisdom into their work, and in students who offer their talents and education for the blessing of roommates, teammates, churches, and neighbors. Such generosity is not accidental; it is deeply spiritual—the result of the ongoing ministry of the Holy Spirit.
As a college animated by the Spirit, Wheaton is not only academically excellent but also full of service, humility, compassion, and joy. This is especially important in higher education, where achievement can easily become an idol. The Spirit redirects ambition toward vocation, teaching us to ask not merely, “How far can I go?” but “How can I serve when I go?” The spirit forms graduates who pursue engineering, ministry, business, education, the arts, and many other avenues of service as stewards of God’s callings rather than owners of their success. As we often sing in chapel, “Yet Not I, but Through Christ in Me.” Our hope is only Jesus, and all the glory, evermore, belongs to him.
As Wheaton continues to grow and adapt in a changing world, our deepest need remains the same as it was at Pentecost: the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. Academic programs may expand and change, ministry opportunities may multiply, and students may be sent into every field of service, but lasting fruit comes only from the life-giving Spirit.
May God therefore continue to make Wheaton College what our words have always proclaimed: for Christ and His Kingdom. By the Holy Spirit, may we be a generous and faithful community for a world in need of grace.
