Larry Christoffel was born in Aurora, Illinois in 1943, grew up in Virginia, attending public schools through high school. He then attended Columbia Union College in Takoma Park, Maryland, first as a pre-med student and shifting to theology in his fourth year, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theology in 1968.

He completed his Master of Divinity degree at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary in 1970. Ordained as a pastor in 1974, Pastor Christoffel has pastored churches in Ohio, Georgia and California. He served as an associate pastor at the Campus Hill Church in Loma Linda for 28 years. He also taught religion at Mount Vernon Academy in Ohio. From 1987 to 1997 and taught classes for the Loma Linda University School of Religion in Daniel and Revelation. Pastor Christoffel considers himself to be an Evangelical Adventist in the Protestant tradition in two respects:

(1) maintaining the Bible as our only basic rule of faith and practice; (2) emphasizing the doctrine of Justification by Faith through the Atoning Sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

He is married to Joyce Anne Brady Christoffel who has a BA in Elementary Education from Columbia Union College and a Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from La Sierra University. By the time of her retirement, she had 43 years of experience, 34 of which were at Loma Linda Academy in Loma Linda, California. She is known for her emphasis on creativity, multiple intelligences and helping students to determine their personality and learning styles. She provided an atmosphere for and avenues of expression for all learning styles so students could thrive in a rich environment tailored for individual learning needs. The couple have celebrated fifty-six years of marriage. They have three sons, Erik, Jeff and Greg and seven grandchildren.