“I’m trying to influence the next generation of TMU science and engineering students, not necessarily missionary in the sense of bringing them the Gospel but trying to model for them what it means to be a Christian in a scientific community,” Dr. Joey Kim said.
Kim knows more about the sciences than most people ever will. He has a B.S., an M.S., and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering. He could be working a high-paying job that only people with his education could attain. Instead, he has chosen to become a college professor at The Master’s University (TMU), a small Christian college in Santa Clarita, California, where he can model Christianity to his students. Kim did not always desire to be a college professor. The Lord coordinated the right circumstances to bring Kim to where he is today.
When Kim was five years old, his family moved from South Korea to Pennsylvania so that his father could attend the University of Pennsylvania.
After getting his bachelor’s degree at the University of Delaware, Kim moved to California to earn his master’s degree and Ph.D. at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). During that time, he did research at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkley Lab) and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
When Kim began his education in Chemical Engineering, his reason was not to become a university professor but to be financially successful. Even though he thought he was a Christian and had “great respect for the church,” the love of money consumed his desires.
“I saw money as the ultimate source of solution, not God… So, when I began my university path, I was just interested in which major makes the most money. Well, it happened to be chemical engineering at that time because I googled it,” Kim said. “What I wanted to do was make as much money as soon as possible. … My plan was to go to Houston, work my butt off for four years, and they’ll pay me a lot of money very quickly, and as long as I just rough it out for a few years, I can save enough money so I can buy a few houses and then just live off … renting the house out because Houston was very cheap at that time.”
Kim went to church every Sunday and Friday, and on one of those Friday night services, the pastor spoke about how a young woman gave up the opportunity to attend MIT to become a missionary. That appalled Kim because he believed that the few Christians who can attend graduate school should share the Gospel in the secular scientific world. At that point, Kim no longer cared about money; he made a commitment to God that if he were given the opportunity to attend a school like MIT, he would share the Gospel with the scientific community. Afterward, the Lord opened the door for Kim to attend Caltech.
Ironically, Kim did not know what the Gospel was. Kim knew that Jesus died for the Christian’s sins, but he did not know why Jesus had to die or how wicked his sin was. As a result, Kim did not ask God to forgive his sins. The churches Kim attended proclaimed a “man-centered gospel.” For some of the churches in California, Kim said, “It’s literally just story time with the pastor.” Kim felt empty and desired to hear the Bible preached.
“And over in a course of two or three years, I felt I got spiritually drained, and I was getting desperate to the point I was going to two different churches, driving collectively an hour and a half, just trying to get fed somehow. I was just being spiritually starved,” Kim said.
Desperate to be spiritually fed, Kim listened to a Paul Washer sermon called “Examine Yourself.” After listening to it twice, Kim realized he was not saved. The next video he watched was Paul Washer’s presentation of the Gospel. After watching that video, Kim came to saving faith in Christ.
Kim was upset that none of the churches he attended shared the Gospel with him. He considered dropping his Ph.D. program to pursue a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) to preach the Gospel to the churches that did not. Nevertheless, he remembered his commitment to share the Gospel in the science community and finished his degree.
Kim continued listening to sermons from pastors like Paul Washer and John MacArthur. That was how he discovered TMU, where MacArthur was the president. Working there became his dream job. He applied in time for the school to begin its engineering program.
Kim currently teaches physics, chemistry, and engineering classes.
“One of the things Dr. Kim does usually at the beginning of a new year…, he will give us a little brief introduction on how to think through science from a biblical perspective and the proper use of science,” said Logan Lamar, a Biology student. “Science studied is to glorify God. While we’re studying physics, we’re studying God’s creation, and when we study physics and chemistry, we’re able to glorify God more deeply.”
“He’s very much a student-oriented professor and cares a great deal about students. … Feedback from students supports what I’m telling you as well that he just really cares about students and goes the extra mile to make his classes great and really get them interested in the classes,” said David Crater, the Chair and Associate Professor of Engineering and Computer Science.
While Kim continues to teach students at the college, theology is his primary interest. He is pursuing an M.Div. at The Master’s Seminary while continuing to help students at the university think critically in science and technology. Kim desires that people would understand the importance of Scripture.
“I hope my biggest contribution to the world would be [that the] Bible is important,” said Kim.
