Brazilian Ordination Story

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

Benjamin Kreps:

Hey everyone. And welcome to the Mark Prater podcast, where our aim is to connect our global family of churches with our Executive Director. Mark, we're doing things a little bit differently on this podcast. You're gonna be asking the questions aren't you?

Mark Prater:

I am. Finally, I have an episode where I get to ask the questions. I'm really looking forward to that. It gives me the power Ben, and that's what I crave.

Benjamin Kreps:

It also gives our listeners a reason to hit eject on the podcast and delete the email at this point before moving any further. <Laughter>

Mark Prater:

Exactly. <Laughter> That's probably what will happen when this is sent out.

In the last episode, we talked about Regional Assembly of Elders, and you had your Regional Assembly of Elder meeting this week. In fact, you just got home last night. And before we recorded this podcast, you told me this wonderful story about the oral ordination exam that you did with Fabiano in Brazil, with Bert Turner who's a part of your region, translating from Portuguese into English, and then later the affirmation vote regarding his ordination. So I would love for our listeners to hear that story. So please tell it, Ben.

Benjamin Kreps:

It is a great story. We arrived a day early before the RAE to do the oral exam. That's typically our practice. And so we knew our committee was gonna be doing Fabiano's oral exam in an unorthodox way with him being in Brazil and a Portuguese-speaking man. So we had a big screen up with a Zoom call. I had met Fabiano before, he seemed like a good guy right off the bat.

And then Bert proceeded to, as he led us through this, put the questions up in the chat box so they were in front of him, and then put headphones in, muting Fabiano, while he gave his answers in Portuguese. And Bert is like a UN translator. So he can translate while you're talking. He doesn't have to wait until you're done. So we're seeing a muted, but animated Fabiano, answering the questions. And we hear Bert actually giving us the answers. And I didn't know how it was gonna go. I mean, "disaster" is possible because we're trying something different. But it was far from a disaster. It was an edifying and deeply encouraging experience. One of my favorite I've ever had on the Ord (ordination) committee. Fabiano did a fantastic job on that oral exam, passed with flying colors. And what was most wonderful for us personally in that experience was the feeling that we were being ministered to as he gave his answers. He gave an answer about corporate worship in the Sunday gathering and this meditation, essentially on Trinitarian worship, through the Spirit, Christ overflowing in the service to the glory of God.

And a couple of us just began weeping <laugh> silently. We just could sense God on his answers in this strange way with Bert speaking. You felt an anointing on it. And Fabiano is clearly a seasoned and wise pastor with deeply thoughtful answers. So theologically succinct and complete in his answers, but married with a deep pastoral sensitivity that we all could sense and appreciate. So we happily passed him and got to inform him that he did pass. So the the following day we voted in our region and approved Fabiano for ordination thereby making him the first Brazilian pastor to be ordained in Sovereign Grace Churches. So we got him on a Zoom call again, just for a couple of minutes to let him know and so that the region could cheer him on and express our appreciation for him. It was a wonderful experience and a sweet expression of what God is doing globally in Sovereign Grace. Isn't that right?

Mark Prater:

Yeah. I wanted you to tell the story. I wanted our listeners to hear it because it has so many features of partnership in Sovereign Grace: the relationship that Bert has built with Fabiano, the fact that God has given us Bert who can speak fluent Portuguese, and then for Fabiano to take an oral exam and communicate theological truths that we agree upon, even though he's in a different nation. And not just communicate, but communicate in a glorious way that affected your heart and some of the other guys on the committee. Here an American Regional Assembly serving a brother, an elder now, in Brazil, just another expression of our partnership.

So it was just a wonderful story that I wanted our folks to hear. And so thanks for doing the ordination exam, Ben, and thanks for the faith to do it, you know, to try something different, given the language barrier. But hey, you were also telling me about something else that happened at your regional assembly that was somewhat unique, I believe.

Benjamin Kreps:

Yeah. It was a powerful experience to hear a Brazilian man, in Portuguese, sharing the gospel that we share crossing universally across cultural, global barriers. I mean, just to hear it, it's the same gospel, it's the same glorious Christ, the same word of God that we share in common. So that was just wonderful to experience.

Yes, we did have something else happen. While we were finishing up the first day of the RAE, we were at a Lodge and Estate Park in Salt Fork, Ohio, we experienced a mighty rushing wind, Mark <laugh>. I think it was one of the most intense thunderstorms I've ever seen, whipped up suddenly and in this big lodge with these massive windows with half-inch thick glass, this wind and rain was so powerful and suddenly windows smashed out and cracked, the glass everywhere and the electricity went out and that concluded our first day at the RAE. And this reminded one brother of a scripture reference. Isn't that right?

Mark Prater:

Yeah. Yeah. It brings to mind 1st Kings 19 verse 11, which says this: "And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind."

Benjamin Kreps:

Hmm. Relevant. Yes. That we’ll preach <laugh>. It was eventful in all sorts of ways as our regional assembly typically is. So I just want to say too, thanks to Bert Turner for his work and for his labor in Brazil over the past number of years. I mean, he gave an update as well about a number of other pastors that are now moving towards partnership and even the pastors college next year, and things like that, that he's cultivating. So humanly speaking Bert was the pastor that shepherded our committee to that point where we had the oral exam. So just wanna shout out to Bert! We thank God for Bert Turner and his faithfulness. He is a rockstar, one of my favorite, favorite people. <Laugh>

Mark Prater:

Yeah. Thank you. Thank you Bert, thank you, Bert. 

Well, I think after this episode people will sort of be in protest that you go back to asking the questions.

Benjamin Kreps:

Yeah. Next time. That's quite enough. How long have we been doing this now, for like two years? Three years? Seems like an eternity. Maybe we can just wait another three and then try again. Well, thanks for reading or watching. Thank you, Mark, for asking about that story, a wonderful story that I got to relay. And we'll see you here again soon, Lord willing. There are some vacations and things coming up, so it could be that we might miss a week or two of the podcast, but we'll be back soon. So don't worry, don't fret, and we'll see you here next time. Bye for now.