Indonesia to Orlando: Celebrating Dr. Yohanes Halim’s RTS Graduation
A Joyful Day of Gospel Partnership, Perseverance, and Kingdom Leadership
By Steven Childers
From left to right: Randy Schwartz, Moses Han, Grace Han, Agnes Halim, Yohanes Halim
Today was a day of deep joy, gratitude, and celebration as Yohanes Halim graduated with his Doctor of Ministry degree from Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida.
After many years of faithful study, writing, research, and repeated long-distance trips from Indonesia to Orlando, Yohanes has completed this significant milestone in his calling to serve Christ and his church.
For me personally, this celebration carried special meaning.
Yohanes was one of my students at Reformed Theological Seminary many years ago while completing his Master of Divinity degree. Over the course of three years, he took all six of my seminary courses—evangelism, discipleship/spiritual formation, church planting, church renewal, missions, and leadership. Very few students were able to complete that full sequence.
Even then, it was clear that Yohanes possessed unusual gifts, humility, perseverance, and a deep love for Christ’s kingdom.
Today, those gifts are bearing fruit throughout Indonesia.
Yohanes now serves as a pastor (3,000–3500 members, 70-80% university students), presbytery moderator, and university chaplain, helping lead a dynamic movement that is raising up future church leaders across the country. His ministry is strategic not only because of his leadership gifts, but because of the enormous significance of Indonesia itself—the fourth most populous country in the world, with more than 275 million people spread across thousands of islands.
What God is doing there matters greatly for the future of the global church.
Yohanes and his wife Agnes are also working closely with Pathway Learning in a growing partnership that represents a powerful model of global collaboration for the advance of the gospel in the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation.
Church leaders Juwono Bong (far left), Yongki Saputera, and Andriyantao Kitti (on right) meeting with Childers, Yohanes, and Agnes in Chattanooga last summer to launch the Indonesia Project.
If you would like to learn more about this exciting partnership click here: Be Part of What God is Doing in Indonesia: A New Kingdom Partnership for the World's Largest Muslim Nation
Of course, no celebration would be complete without at least one unforgettable moment.
Before the ceremony began, Randy had been joking with me about whether RTS security might remove him from the graduation because he is a Reformed Baptist attending a predominantly Presbyterian seminary event. After the ceremony, this hilarious photograph arrived showing that Randy had apparently been discovered and was “in trouble.”
Thankfully, the RTS security guards were gracious enough to play along for the photo—perfectly capturing the moment by looking extremely serious as they reached toward Randy as if they were about to escort him out of the graduation ceremony.
Moses Han and Randy Schwartz after RTS security discovers a Reformed Baptist at the graduation ceremony in Orlando.
Today we thank God for Dr. Yohanes Halim, for Agnes, for their faithful perseverance, and for the growing work of the gospel in Indonesia.
Congratulations, Yohanes!
For the King,
Steve
ATTN: Don’t miss our newest Pathway Learning book in the Faith, Hope, and Love Trilogy by Childers and Frame: Click here
