Germany & Beyond
An update from Jeff Purswell, Dean of the US Pastors College, Director of Theology for SG Churches, and Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville, US…
When most Christians think of Germany, they think of Martin Luther and the birth of the Reformation in Wittenburg. As precious as that history is, my own thoughts of Germany run first to the city of Hamburg and the Arche Church, led by my dear friend Christian Wegert and his remarkable pastoral team. In early May, after 3 long years of Covid-delayed fellowship, I had the great joy of returning to Hamburg to teach a course in their Pastoren Kolleg (Pastors College) and to participate in the college’s second graduation ceremony. Of the many trips I have taken there, I don’t recall a sweeter one.
The existence of this college grew out of the Arche’s passion to plant churches and, as they like to say, “to bring the gospel to the land of the Reformation.” Having sent two students to the US Pastors College in 2007 and 2011, the pastors of the Arche were keenly aware of the lack in Germany of training that is theologically sound, gospel centered, pastorally oriented, and local church centered. As a result, they launched the Pastoren Kolleg as a lengthy, part-time program in 2014, led by Markus Kniesel, a 2012 graduate of the US Pastors College.
The college graduated its first class of 12 students in 2018, with seven students from Germany, three from Russia, and two from the Ukraine. One can only marvel at that composition in light of the world events that have transpired in 2022—and it was the effects of these events that made this trip particularly poignant for me.
Of the 23 students who attended my course on Biblical Theology, 21 were from Germany and two were from Ukraine—both now living in Germany as refugees. Four more students joined us via livestream: two from Ukraine and two from Russia. The Arche has affiliated churches in both of these countries, although the Russian churches have had to break off all formal relationships due to government restrictions and surveillance. Despite this, the undaunted, unifying, and hope-giving power of the gospel was palpably present over my days in Hamburg.
I wish I could recount the harrowing stories I heard from the two Ukrainian students, along with our Russian translator, Marina, who has translated every course I’ve taught there. I wish I could introduce you to Michael Ostanin, a 2018 graduate of the Pastoren Kolleg and the pastor of Ark Church Dnipro, who remains in Ukraine, working around the clock to serve wave after wave of refugees with food, shelter, and the hope of the gospel. (SGC’s European fund has been a vital means of support for the work Michael and his church are doing).
More striking than the tragic details of these stories, however, were the heart-felt expressions of unwavering trust in Christ and hope in the promises of the gospel. As Marina told me, “We stand firm on the rock of the one thing they cannot take away.” I emerged from every conversation deeply humbled, but also inspired by the fortifying effects of God’s Word in the lives of these dear saints. It’s difficult to imagine a more rich context in which to explore the glories of Scripture together.
Sunday brought me the great privilege of participating in the college’s second graduation ceremony. Fifteen students graduated, hailing from nine different cities and 10 different churches in Germany. Two of these churches, in the cities of Stade and Hannover, are church plants from the Arche. Some of these men are pastors; others are exploring church plants with the Arche; all of them are delightful, devoted servants of Christ who are sacrificing to be equipped to serve the cause of the gospel.
As I stood on the stage with these graduates, along with Christian and Markus who were leading the proceedings, it struck me that all three of the Arche churches in Germany, along with the two affiliated churches in Ukraine, are led by PC graduates. Four of these churches have students enrolled in the current class of the Pastoren Kolleg. The wisdom of Paul’s instructions in 2 Timothy 2:2—entrusting the gospel and sound doctrine to faithful men who will be able to teach others—landed upon me with intensified force.
Please pray for our dear brothers in Hamburg: Christian Wegert, Markus Kniesel, and the rest of the Arche team, as they train men and plant churches in Germany and beyond, and support pastors and gospel labors in over 10 other nations. Pray for their associated churches in Stade, Hannover, and Görlitz, Germany. Pray, too, for our brothers in Ukraine—among them Michael Ostanin and Oleksandr Heiko—as they care not only for their churches but for devasted refugees with the hope of the gospel.
As I write these words, my mind goes beyond Germany to Dyonah Thomas in Liberia, Josh Pannell in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Jeffrey Jo in the Philippines, Brendan Willis and Riley Spring in Sydney, all of whom are training faithful men in Pastors Colleges and similar contexts. Let us pray for these men as well, whose strategic labors in pastoral training carry church--, city--, even nation-transforming potential.
