Mission and Model of The Master’s Academy International
The goal and mission of The Master’s Academy International is to fulfill the Great Commission of Christ in Matthew 28 by training qualified, indigenous church leaders. This model necessitates that students have discipleship with and teaching by approved, mature churchmen—a model seen in the early church and the ministry of the apostle Paul (2 Timothy 1:13, Philippians 3:17).
Importance of Role Models in Christian Discipleship
There is an essential need for a role model in Christian discipleship – someone whose Christian character, humble heart, and righteous behavior are to be emulated, as they seek to emulate Christ.
This means that the men teaching at TMAI training centers must also be qualified, humble men of integrity.
These are true churchmen who love God, their wives and families, and the local church they serve. These churchmen likewise train churchmen—men who love, are known by, and faithfully serve the body of Christ. This discipleship relationship grows the maturity of the men equipped by TMAI for their own ministry and is happening at each TMAI training center around the world.
One such professor is a man named Tan Molina, a professor at Berea Seminary, TMAI’s training center in Leon, Spain.
Tan Molina and Church Planting in Spain
A born and bred Spaniard, he was saved by grace at fifteen and immediately had a desire to serve in his local church. After years of studying the Bible and serving at his church in Leon, Tan quit his job as a schoolteacher and moved with his wife and children to California to study at a seminary. After nearly three years, he earned his M.Div and the Molinas moved back to Spain. With time, Tan would join the board of professors at Berea Seminary.
As he taught at Berea and preached at the church in Leon, plans were being made.
Due to the lack of sound churches throughout Spain, Tan sought an opportunity to plant a church—with many “nos” along the way. But, in November of 2019, a dear friend and fellow professor at Berea invited him to teach a Bible study in the city of Santiago de Compostela, four hours from Leon.
The budding church was small. Since there weren’t any other solid churches in the area, four families from this city had been driving for an hour to attend the study.
I depend on the Holy Spirit to do His work of conviction and sanctification as I preach and teach His word.
“That was it,” Tan shares. “The Lord grabbed my heart, and when I thought that my life was settled in Leon, He changed our plans!”
The church plant was started, yet came with many challenges.
Santiago de Compostela has been a stronghold of the Roman church for 1,000 years. The city is a top pilgrimage destination for Catholics, with nearly half a million pilgrims making the trip last year. The culture’s unbiblical emphasis on works-based forgiveness and pervasive worldliness only contributed to the difficulty. With all his hopes and prayers for the church, and his growing teaching and preaching schedule, Tan needed a fellow laborer.
He would soon be joined by a young man named Jonathan.
In 2018, a young family moved from Germany to Tan’s old church in Leon. Their desire was to eventually plant a church in Spain, and very soon after moving, they realized that the best idea was to join an existing effort. But before this could happen, encouraged by elders both in Germany and Leon, Jonathan pursued education at the Berea Seminary. There, he would build a friendship with and learn under Professor Tan Molina.
After he graduated with a Masters in Expository Preaching, Jonathan and his family joined Tan in Santiago.
Armed with his shepherding and preaching training from Berea, Jonathan now serves this young church under the guidance and shepherding of his professor. “He’s a great asset,” Tan notes, “They are a loving family that understands the joyful and sacrificial love that must be poured out in the local church.”
The solution is the faithful preaching and teaching of God’s word.
Thinking back on the hard work church planting, Tan reflects on lessons he’s learned along the way, “I have learned that I am absolutely unable to do this on my own. I depend on the Holy Spirit to do His work of conviction and sanctification as I preach and teach His word.”
The past two and a half years of the church plant have been a rollercoaster. The body is excited and has visitors often; yet at the same time, maturity and growth is still needed. “I want to move on building the foundations of the church on the rock, not on sand,” Tan states. “The solution is the faithful preaching and teaching of God’s word.”
And this dedication to Christ’s church and adherence to the authority of Scripture he models each day to Jonathan.
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The students of TMAI training centers will one day lead their own churches, shepherding flocks God entrusts to them. Their proper training and discipleship are vital.
It is essential that these pastors are trained by men who understand and live out that responsibility. Men whose knowledge is not theoretical, men who are active in church leadership, and who understand the needs of their people. Men like Tan Molina.
This is the legacy and work of the churchmen of TMAI: teaching God’s word and making disciples in the local church, to a national seminary, to all the nations.
