by Pastor Patrick Cho
This was a big weekend for Lighthouse Bible Church as Pastor J. R. Cuevas of LBC San Jose underwent his ordination exam for pastoral ministry. Many people from San Diego remember that Pastor J. R. served on staff before moving up with the church plant team about two and a half years ago. He and his wife Kathy have been faithfully serving alongside Pastor John and Angela Kim to provide leadership for the church plant.
The exam began on Saturday morning. It not only consisted of an intense four hour oral examination, but Pastor J. R. was also asked to put together a personal systematic theology project which ended up being about 350 pages! The ordination council consisted of Dr. Paul Felix of The Master’s Seminary, Pastor John Kim of LBC San Jose, Pastor Jim Kang of LBC East Bay, and me from LBC San Diego, and we were all pleased that after many months of diligent preparation and study, Pastor J. R. passed the exam with flying colors.
The exam was broken up into four parts: 1) personal life and testimony, 2) general Bible knowledge, 3) systematic theology, and 4) practical theology. In the first section, Pastor J. R. was asked to share about his Christian testimony and calling into ministry. He was also given an opportunity to talk about his family life and personal spiritual growth. In the second section, he was asked general questions about the Bible including key themes, outlines, chapters, verses, and people of all sixty-six books of the Bible. The third section covered the entire spectrum of systematic theology including Theology Proper (the study of God), Christology (the study of Christ), Ecclesiology (the study of the church), and Eschatology (the study of end times). The final section quizzed Pastor J. R. in the areas of biblical counseling and practical church ministry.
Some of the members of LBC San Jose were in attendance, and I’m sure being there was a great encouragement to them as they were able to witness Pastor J. R. walk through each section skillfully. Not only could they see that he was well-prepared and competent for the ministry he performs, but everyone on the ordination council confidently affirmed him as well. I’m sure when the exam was completed, Pastor J. R. felt like an enormous burden was lifted from his shoulders! But he wasn’t quite done.
On the following evening, LBC San Jose hosted an ordination ceremony on Pastor J. R.’s behalf. It was encouraging to see so many people come out to support him, including a good number of people who travelled up from San Diego. During the ceremony, the council walked Pastor J. R. through a condensed version of the exam. For half an hour, everyone could get a taste of what he had to endure the morning before. As we all expected, he did remarkably well once again. After several people shared a word of encouragement, Dr. Felix gave a solemn charge for ministry from Ephesians 3:8.
It was a tremendous blessing and privilege to be here this weekend for Pastor J. R. As Lighthouse Bible Church continues to push forward in ministry by the grace of God, we are blessed to have faithful and able men of God to help lead the way. Praise God for an encouraging weekend of worship and fellowship experiencing God’s continued goodness and grace. Congratulations to Pastor J. R. Cuevas for his ordination for pastoral ministry!