He also served on the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary faculty for 21 years, was chairman of the biblical division from 1992 to 1997, and was the Ernest and Mildred Hogan Professor of New Testament Interpretation from 1993 to 1997.
In addition to his administrative duties, Garland is a New Testament scholar, having authored, coauthored and edited 24 books, including commentaries on the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Acts, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Colossians and Philemon.
They coauthored several books including Flawed Families of the Bible: How God's Grace Works Through Imperfect Relationships (Brazos Press).
In 2017, the Houston Chronicle reported that a court filing revealed what Garland, as Baylor University interim president, stated in online communication with a school administrator.
Garland cited an NPR show in which the author chronicled alcoholism in college, saying that the piece "added another perspective for me of what is going on in the heads of some women who may seem willingly to make themselves victims.