Stand to Reason 
The information on this page was last updated 12/5/2022. If you see errors or omissions, please email: [email protected]
Summary
Stand to Reason equips Christian ambassadors with knowledge, wisdom, and character. Stand to Reason teaches the value of using our minds to love God and share the Gospel.
We focus on the basics, the fundamentals of theology and ethics, and the fundamental tools of thought. We teach not just what to think, but how to think. While Stand to Reason may not be unique in the information we give, we are distinctive in the way we use the information.
Stand to Reason teaches careful reasoning and well thought-out answers so that Christians will be able to participate in public discussions (at home, at work, or at the university) and present the Christian worldview in the debate. We encourage Christians to develop coherent answers to questions that challenge Christianity so that their faith is deepened and thereby are emboldened to share the Gospel in a gracious and compelling manner.
Contact information
Mailing address:
Stand to Reason
1438 E 33rd St.
Signal Hill, CA 90755
Website: www.str.org
Phone: 562-595-7333
Email: [email protected]
Organization details
EIN: 330604522
CEO/President: Gregory Koukl
Chairman: William Bradford
Board size: 6
Founder: Greg Koukl & Melinda Penner
Ruling year: 1997
Tax deductible: Yes
Fiscal year end: 12/31
Member of ECFA: No
Member of ECFA since:
Purpose
Vision: Confidence for every Christian, Clear thinking for every challenge, Courage and grace for every encounter.
Mission statement
Stand to Reason trains Christians to think more clearly about their faith and to make an even-handed, incisive, yet gracious defense for classical Christianity and classical Christian values in the public square.
Statement of faith
Stand to Reason represents classical Christianity-orthodox Christian beliefs that have been affirmed since the first Christians.
The Bible, consisting of all the books of the Old and New Testament, is the Word of God, a supernaturally given revelation from God Himself, concerning Himself, His being, nature, character, will and purposes; and concerning man, his nature, need and duty and destiny. The Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are without error or misstatement in their moral and spiritual teaching and record of historical facts. They are without error or defect of any kind in the autographs. (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21)
There is one God, eternally existing and manifesting Himself to us in three Persons-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Isaiah 44:6-8; 45:5; Genesis 1:26-27; 3:22; Matthew 28:19; Luke 9:35; 2 Corinthians 13:14)
Our Lord Jesus was supernaturally conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, Mary, a lineal descendant of David. (Luke 1:26-37) He lived and taught and performed mighty works, wonders and signs exactly as recorded in the New Testament. He was put to death by crucifixion under Pontius Pilate. (Luke 23) God raised from the dead the body that had been nailed to the cross. The Lord Jesus, after His crucifixion, showed Himself to be alive to His disciples, appearing to them in the space of forty days. After this the Lord Jesus ascended into heaven, and the Father made Him to be head over all things, including the Church. (Luke 24; John 2:19; 1 Corinthians 15)
The Lord Jesus, before His incarnation, existed in the exact form of God, and of His own choice, laid aside His divine glory and took upon Himself the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men. He is a divine person possessed of all the attributes of deity and should be worshipped as God by angels and men. (John 1:1; Philippians 2:5-11) "In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." (Colossians 2:9)
By His death on the cross, the Lord Jesus made a perfect atonement for sin, by which the wrath of God against sinners is appeased and a ground furnished upon which God can deal in mercy with sinners. He redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse in our place. He Who Himself was absolutely without sin had our sin counted to Him that we might have His righteousness, the righteousness of God, counted to us. (1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 2:2; 3:4, Isaiah 53:4-6; 2 Corinthians 5:21; John 19:30)
The Lord Jesus is coming again to this earth, personally, bodily, and visibly. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Hebrews 9:28; Revelation 1:7)
The Holy Spirit is a person distinct from the Father and the Son, and possesses all of the divine attributes. He is God. (Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 3:16-18)
Man was created in the image of God, after his likeness, and therefore has transcendent, intrinsic worth. (Genesis 1:27) The unjustified destruction of any human being from conception to natural death (e.g., through abortion, embryonic stem cell research, cloning, doctor-assisted suicide, etc.) is wrong. (Exodus 21:22)
The whole human race fell in the fall of the first Adam. All men, apart from spiritual regeneration, are lost, darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, hardened in heart, morally and spiritually dead through their trespasses and sins. They cannot see nor enter the Kingdom of God until they are born again of the Holy Spirit. (John 6:28-29; 8:44; 15:5; Philippians 1:29; Romans 3:10-12; 8:7; John 1:13; 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:8-9)
Men are justified on the simple and single ground of the shed blood of Christ and upon the simple and single condition of faith in Him Who shed His blood, and are born again by the quickening, renewing, cleansing work of the Holy Spirit, through the instrumentality of the Word of God. These alone become children of God and receive eternal life. At death their spirits depart to be with Christ in conscious blessedness, and at the second coming of Christ their bodies shall be raised, transformed into the likeness of the body of His glory. (John 3:16; Romans 3:20-28; Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 4:1-6; Galatians 2:21)
All those who persistently reject Jesus Christ in this present life shall be raised from the dead, judged according to their deeds, and punished for their moral crimes and rebellion against God. Throughout eternity they will exist in a state of conscious isolation from God, in endless torment and anguish. (Matthew 8:12; Luke 16:19-31; Revelation 20:14-15; 21:8)
The Church consists of the host of the regenerate, wherever they may be found. It is the body and bride of Christ, which Christ loves and for which He has given Himself. (Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 21:2; 2 Corinthians 11:2)
There is a personal devil, a being of great cunning who can exert vast power only so far as God allows him to do so. He shall ultimately be judged and condemned, tormented day and night forever. (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6; Matthew 25:41)
We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life and to perform good works that are the necessary evidence of their genuine faith in Christ. Persistent, egregious sin (e.g., lying, stealing, witchcraft, active practice of sexual sin, including fornication, adultery, and homosexuality) is inconsistent with biblical teaching. (Exodus 20; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Galatians 5:19-21; Ephesians 5:3-6; Romans 1:18-32)
Biblical marriage consists only of a faithful, heterosexual union between one genetic male and one genetic female, and biblical marriage is the only legitimate and acceptable context for a sexual relationship. (Genesis 2:22-24; Matthew 19:4-6; Hebrews 13:4-7)
Statement of Faith on Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality
We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. (Genesis 1:26-27) Rejection of one's biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person.
We believe that the term "marriage" has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture. (Gen 2:18-25) We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. (1 Corinthians 6:18; 7:2-5; Hebrews 13:4) We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman.
We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God. (Matthew 15:18-20; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10)
We believe that in order to preserve the function and integrity of Stand to Reason as representatives of the local Body of Christ, and to provide a biblical role model to the Christian community who follow STR and in general, it is imperative that all persons employed by Stand to Reason in any capacity, or who serve as volunteers, agree to and abide by this Statement on Marriage, Gender, and Sexuality. (Matthew 5:16; Philippians 2:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:22)
We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and forsake their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. (Acts 3:19-21; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity. (Mark 12:28-31; Luke 6:31) Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture nor the doctrines of Stand to Reason.
Donor confidence score
Transparency grade
D
To understand our transparency grade, click here.
Financial efficiency ratings
Sector: Christian Growth
| Category | Rating | Overall rank | Sector rank |
| Overall efficiency rating | | 490 of 1085 | 28 of 58 |
| Fund acquisition rating | | 226 of 1088 | 13 of 58 |
| Resource allocation rating | | 854 of 1088 | 45 of 58 |
| Asset utilization rating | | 469 of 1085 | 29 of 58 |
Financial ratios
| Funding ratios | Sector median | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
Return on fundraising efforts Return on fundraising efforts = Fundraising expense / Total contributions | 6% | 3% | 4% | 6% | 5% | 6% |
Fundraising cost ratio Fundraising cost ratio = Fundraising expense / Total revenue | 4% | 3% | 4% | 6% | 5% | 5% |
Contributions reliance Contributions reliance = Total contributions / Total revenue | 82% | 99% | 98% | 96% | 96% | 95% |
Fundraising expense ratio Fundraising expense ratio = Fundraising expense / Total expenses | 5% | 4% | 4% | 6% | 5% | 6% |
Other revenue reliance Other revenue reliance = Total other revenue / Total revenue | 18% | 1% | 2% | 4% | 4% | 5% |
| Operating ratios | Sector median | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
Program expense ratio Program expense ratio = Program services / Total expenses | 82% | 75% | 75% | 77% | 78% | 81% |
Spending ratio Spending ratio = Total expenses / Total revenue | 94% | 67% | 95% | 96% | 92% | 95% |
Program output ratio Program output ratio = Program services / Total revenue | 77% | 50% | 72% | 74% | 72% | 77% |
Savings ratio Savings ratio = Surplus (deficit) / Total revenue | 6% | 33% | 5% | 4% | 8% | 5% |
Reserve accumulation rate Reserve accumulation rate = Surplus (deficit) / Net assets | 8% | 51% | 10% | 9% | 17% | 12% |
General and admin ratio General and admin ratio = Management and general expense / Total expenses | 12% | 21% | 21% | 16% | 17% | 13% |
| Investing ratios | Sector median | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
Total asset turnover Total asset turnover = Total expenses / Total assets | 1.01 | 1.01 | 2.03 | 1.98 | 2.00 | 2.43 |
Degree of long-term investment Degree of long-term investment = Total assets / Total current assets | 1.40 | 1.01 | 1.03 | 1.04 | 1.05 | 1.05 |
Current asset turnover Current asset turnover = Total expenses / Total current assets | 1.44 | 1.02 | 2.09 | 2.05 | 2.09 | 2.56 |
| Liquidity ratios | Sector median | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
Current ratio Current ratio = Total current assets / Total current liabilities | 9.25 | 58.66 | 44.19 | 17.82 | 27.63 | 29.40 |
Current liabilities ratio Current liabilities ratio = Total current liabilities / Total current assets | 0.10 | 0.02 | 0.02 | 0.06 | 0.04 | 0.03 |
Liquid reserve level Liquid reserve level = (Total current assets - Total current liabilities) / (Total expenses / 12) | 7.06 | 11.53 | 5.61 | 5.52 | 5.52 | 4.53 |
| Solvency ratios | Sector median | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
Liabilities ratio Liabilities ratio = Total liabilities / Total assets | 11% | 2% | 2% | 5% | 3% | 3% |
Debt ratio Debt ratio = Debt / Total assets | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Reserve coverage ratio Reserve coverage ratio = Net assets / Total expenses | 93% | 97% | 48% | 48% | 48% | 40% |
Financials
| Balance sheet | |||||
| Assets | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Cash | $2,003,236 | $1,041,867 | $967,166 | $842,448 | $679,113 |
| Receivables, inventories, prepaids | $70,468 | $76,861 | $72,033 | $75,493 | $75,919 |
| Short-term investments | $249,607 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other current assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current assets | $2,323,311 | $1,118,728 | $1,039,199 | $917,941 | $755,032 |
| Long-term investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Fixed assets | $33,924 | $34,925 | $33,187 | $44,437 | $40,594 |
| Other long-term assets | $0 | $42 | $3,262 | $0 | $0 |
| Total long-term assets | $33,924 | $34,967 | $36,449 | $44,437 | $40,594 |
| Total assets | $2,357,235 | $1,153,695 | $1,075,648 | $962,378 | $795,626 |
| Liabilities | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Payables and accrued expenses | $39,608 | $25,318 | $58,315 | $33,223 | $25,681 |
| Other current liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current liabilities | $39,608 | $25,318 | $58,315 | $33,223 | $25,681 |
| Debt | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Due to (from) affiliates | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other long-term liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total long-term liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total liabilities | $39,608 | $25,318 | $58,315 | $33,223 | $25,681 |
| Net assets | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Without donor restrictions | $2,235,765 | $1,085,531 | $980,916 | $822,853 | $673,115 |
| With donor restrictions | $81,862 | $42,846 | $36,417 | $106,302 | $96,830 |
| Net assets | $2,317,627 | $1,128,377 | $1,017,333 | $929,155 | $769,945 |
| Revenues and expenses | |||||
| Revenue | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Total contributions | $3,546,301 | $2,403,111 | $2,126,345 | $1,989,934 | $1,936,215 |
| Program service revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Membership dues | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Investment income | $111 | $6,975 | $6,477 | $4,620 | ($980) |
| Other revenue | $20,308 | $37,807 | $86,045 | $86,410 | $93,374 |
| Total other revenue | $20,419 | $44,782 | $92,522 | $91,030 | $92,394 |
| Total revenue | $3,566,720 | $2,447,893 | $2,218,867 | $2,080,964 | $2,028,609 |
| Expenses | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Program services | $1,781,990 | $1,753,067 | $1,645,716 | $1,493,328 | $1,563,419 |
| Management and general | $488,886 | $479,156 | $348,078 | $327,843 | $259,265 |
| Fundraising | $106,594 | $104,626 | $136,895 | $100,583 | $110,557 |
| Total expenses | $2,377,470 | $2,336,849 | $2,130,689 | $1,921,754 | $1,933,241 |
| Change in net assets | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Surplus (deficit) | $1,189,250 | $111,044 | $88,178 | $159,210 | $95,368 |
| Other changes in net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total change in net assets | $1,189,250 | $111,044 | $88,178 | $159,210 | $95,368 |
Compensation
| Name | Title | Compensation |
| Gregory P Koukl | President/CEO | $170,806 |
| Margaret Crowley | Executive Director/Secreta | $123,154 |
| Derek White | Treasurer | $123,023 |
Compensation data as of: 12/31/2021
Response from ministry
No response has been provided by this ministry.
The information below was provided to MinistryWatch by the ministry itself. It was last updated 12/5/2022. To update the information below, please email: [email protected]
History
Stand to Reason was founded by Greg Koukl in 1993.
Greg Koukl had been a teaching pastor at Hope Chapel in Hermosa Beach for several years and had begun broadcasting on KBRT radio in 1990. Greg had demonstrated a rich gift in teaching and education as he directed the adult education program at Hope Chapel.
In January of 1993, Greg was invited to teach at the Hindustan Bible Institute in India. Bobby Gupta, the visionary leader of that ministry, challenged Greg on that trip to expand his teaching opportunities by starting his own organization. When Bobby visited the U.S. in March of that year, he adamantly repeated his challenge to Greg over breakfast. Greg knew immediately he wanted to name the organization Stand to Reason. He presented the idea of STR to a group of people who'd been part of the prayer support for Greg's radio work on May 1 asking them two things: First, was this a good idea. Second, if it was a good idea, would they support it financially for a year? The response was enthusiastic and overwhelming. These people represented the "Founders" who gave their support to this new venture.
STR started at an extra desk in a crowded office at Hope Chapel. A year later, Greg left the staff of Hope Chapel to work fulltime for STR, and Melinda left teaching to join the staff of two, plus many volunteers who helped get STR going.
STR moved to larger free lodging at First Baptist in Lomita, CA in 1997. Scott Klusendorf joined the staff of STR in October 1997 as our second speaker focusing on bio-ethics. STR moved to its first real office space early in 2001, its current location. Scott has since started his own organization, Life Training Institute, and three other speakers have joined the staff to expand the work of STR: Steve Wagner, Brett Kunkle, and Alan Shlemon. STR's support staff has grown to five part-time and three full-time employees now, plus the volunteers that continue to help STR in vital ways.
STR's speakers teach hundreds of times each year all of the U.S., Canada, and globally. Greg continues to do the weekly call-in radio program. And STR's website has become a critical aspect of its work, providing training to over 100,000 visitors each month.
Program accomplishments
In 2021, Stand to Reason pursued its mission to equip Christian ambassadors. Some benchmarks of that activity include:
Distributed over 20,000 individual training resources to help Christians think clearly
Trained over 6,500 students and leaders at Reality Student Apologetics Conferences across 6 locations nationwide
Received over 1 million visits to STR.org and 3 million page views
Exceeded 47,000 email subscribers to online resources
Gained over 700,000 YouTube views on training videos
Grew our Strategic Partner community to over 1,900 people
Established over 173,000 total followers across all social media platforms
Produced 215 new podcasts, which were downloaded over 1,800,000 times from 178 countries