Transcript:

Hi, it's Mark Prater. Welcome to episode two of my podcast where today I want to talk about peaceful separations.

Here's why: Yesterday I sent an email to all sovereign grace pastors announcing the resignation of Ian McConnell as our Director of Church Planting and Missions, a role that Ian has faithfully served in over the last six years. Ian's resignation from the leadership team is the implication of his local church's eldership's decision to peaceably separate from Sovereign Grace.

And even though this is sad news for us to receive, it does give us the opportunity to ask the question: What does peaceful separation look like going forward? So I just want to share a few thoughts with you. Even though we hope that separations are an infrequent experience in Sovereign Grace when done peaceably, they can actually honor God and his Word. And they can become a normal part of the gospel culture that we share in Sovereign Grace Churches.

As I think about peaceful separations, here are some of the markers of peaceful separations that I would think about. First of all, it would be to rejoice. It's a time to rejoice in the history of gospel partnership that we have shared over a number of years. In this case with Ian, we want to rejoice in the way that he has served us so faithfully over the last six years. Yes, it is sad news, but as Scripture talks about, we can be sorrowful yet always rejoicing (2 Cor. 6:10).

Another marker of peaceful separation is that of gratitude. There should be expressions of gratitude for the way that men and churches have contributed to our gospel partnership at Sovereign Grace. And so in my communications with Ian personally and in the email that I sent you yesterday, I just express my gratefulness to him for he how he has faithfully served us as our Director of Church Planting and Missions because of his labors.

We've been able to plant 18 churches over the last six years. And Ian's done a wonderful job by the way of not only creating church planning processes that now work within our polity and book of church order, but he's done a wonderful job of equipping our church planters to plant churches. And for that we are grateful.

Another way to Mark a peaceful separation is to commend each other and to commit to pray for one another. So we want to commit to pray for people and churches that leave Sovereign Grace. We want to commit to pray that God would bless them for future gospel ministry and mission and that God would bless it in a way that they would be fruitful.

Another marker of peaceful separation is that of commendation. And I think about the words that Paul uses when departing from Ephesus, when he is seeing the Ephesians for elders for the very last time where he says in Acts 20:32 "And now I commend you to God and to the Word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified."

So as Ian leaves, as Covenant Community Church leaves, we want to commend them to God and to his grace. Because it is the grace of God that has allowed us to share gospel ministry over the years. And it is the grace of God that will sustain us to continue in gospel ministry, although no longer in a formal partnership.

And as we live more in a post-Christian culture, let's be honest, we're going to need one another as Christians who bring light into darkness. So it's appropriate to commend them. It's appropriate to rejoice, it's appropriate to thank God for them.

So those are just a few thoughts about peaceful separation that I wanted to share and I hope become a regular part of our gospel culture in Sovereign Grace. Thanks for listening.

If you have questions or comments, Mark, would love to hear from you. For more videos like this, hit subscribe on YouTube or by email at markkprater.com.