PREACHING
The Foundation of a Mature Church
IT STARTS
As we look back on the ministry of our pastor and leader, Dr. John MacArthur, we see a theme in his 56 years of shepherding: focus on the depth, and God will take care of the breadth.
From his commissioning of The Master’s Academy International (TMAI), and for the past 21 years it has operated, this example has informed our own philosophy of ministry.
Our singular focus at TMAI is on resourcing, equipping, and training the next generation of men to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the nations. We aim to disciple and mentor these men to maturity, teaching them to rightly divide the Word of God and shepherd His church. All other ministries, opportunities, and efforts are in service to this primary call.
But—much like the reach of MacArthur’s ministry—God does far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or understand ( eph 3:20 ).
In the two decades of TMAI’s ministry, God has opened many doors: for dozens of nations eager for expository preaching in their languages, for the translation of
ABOVE Abraham R., faculty member at The Expositor’s Academy (TEA) in the Philippines
COVER Church plant in the Czech Republic led by faculty of Czech Bible Institute (CBI)
WITH THE PULPIT
Each of these opportunities has been born out of the primary focus and need— a sound, faithful pulpit.
Scripture and biblical resources to serve these believers, and ultimately for the establishment of the Center for Biblical Missions (CBM). As the natural next step for equipping pastors and churches, CBM brings together the wisdom and experience of nearly 80 missionaries and church leaders in one comprehensive text, Biblical Missions , to equip the global church in her missions efforts.
Each of these opportunities has been born out of the primary focus and need—a sound, faithful pulpit.
TMAI exists for the sake of strengthening the pulpit and raising church leaders. In God’s providence, He has used TMAI to strengthen local churches and provided opportunities to resource and equip these men—through translation, training, and beyond—to do what the Lord has called them to do.
The following stories share how God’s Word preached faithfully does not return empty but is the foundation for all ministry, and the heart of all work at TMAI. We pray together that, for God’s glory, His church will be led, strengthened, and matured from a faithful pulpit in every nation.
Until they all hear,
Mark Tatlock President
OUR MISSION
OUR CORE VALUES
TMAI is committed to fulfilling the Great Commission by training indigenous church leaders to be approved pastorteachers, able to equip their churches to make biblically sound disciples.
AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE
The inerrant and sufficient Word of God is our ultimate authority in all areas of life and ministry ( 2 tim 3:16).
CENTRALITY OF THE LOCAL CHURCH
The goal of training is to strengthen His church, the pillar and support of the truth ( 1 tim 3:15 ).
PRIORITY OF THE GOSPEL
We train men to accurately proclaim the true gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe ( rom 1:16 ).
VALUE OF RESPECT
We train with the goal of entrusting the training ministries into the capable hands of our co-laborers in other countries ( 2 tim 2:2 ).
IMPORTANCE OF INTEGRITY
We uphold God’s high standard of holiness and integrity for spiritual leaders ( 1 tim 3 ).
OUR DISTINCTIVES
LONGEVITY
TMAI’s commitment to indigenous leadership positions us for long-term ministry without the interruptions that plague foreign missionaries (like visa issues and diplomatic volatility).
MULTIPLICATION
Following the model of 2 Timothy 2:2, gospel witnesses are being multiplied exponentially. The training of one man touches countless lives as he shepherds his own congregation or even sends more men to be trained like he was.
IMPACT
Since TMAI graduates already know the local language, customs, culture, and people to whom they’ll be ministering, they’re often more effective at planting and pastoring churches than foreign missionaries.
STEWARDSHIP
TMAI provides a return on investment that is unmatched. It costs nearly $75,000 to bring one pastor to the United States for a year, but with that same $75,000, TMAI can provide one year of training for 30 students in their own country.
PRESENCE
Faculty members live in the area where they minister, making it possible to disciple and invest in their students, both in the classroom and in the context of their local church ministries. Full-time presence means full-time discipleship.
MATURITY
TMAI is committed to equipping pastor-teachers to accurately handle the Word of truth according to the biblical requirements for pastors ( 2 tim 2:15 ).
Conference for Slavic believers throughout Europe hosted by European Bible Training Center (EBTC), in partnership with other TMAI training centers
THE PREACHER IS A SERVANT
Wherever he is in Lilongwe, Malawi, Brian Dawa is usually serving. During the day, he’s setting up the library at Central African Preaching Academy (CAPA), TMAI’s training center in Malawi. At night, he’s shepherding his two young sons. On Sunday, he teaches believers at his local church. And on Wednesdays, he ministers to 40 village boys who ask him questions about Jesus—questions he once couldn’t answer himself.
Just a decade ago, Dawa was a successful accountant who only expected to be served by others. But this is the impact of learning Scripture: it reshapes us unto Christlike humility.
Dawa grew up immersed in Roman Catholicism—one of Malawi’s dominant religions. Engaging week after week with the clergy, he had decided to become a priest himself.
Dawa’s father put a firm end to that ambition. His son would go into accounting, rising in seniority over the next decade. Dawa developed an expectation for respect from others— at the office and in his home.
However, it wasn’t the priesthood, or accounting, that God was calling Dawa to.
In 2016, he came to a true understanding of the gospel when a Christian woman in his neighborhood confronted him. Though he had heard the gospel before, it wasn’t until that encounter that Dawa was convicted of his sinful life through passages like 1 Corinthians 6.
Four years after his conversion, he began to realize the abundant needs for biblical counseling and training around him. He wanted to shepherd others, but he didn’t have the tools.
When Dawa shared this desire with a close friend, he was encouraged to pursue biblical training.
This encouragement led him to TMAI: first to CAPA in Malawi, then to Christ Seminary (CS) in South Africa. Dawa boldly quit his job and entered CS’s three-year Bachelor of Theology program in 2022.
He describes his training as challenging—but rewarding.
The Word of God that saved him is the same word that he now passionately preaches each week.
“They just opened my eyes,” he says, “gave me skills to handle the Word of God.”
As he continued to study, he realized that the Bible’s transformative work needed to begin in his own heart, undoing attitudes that had characterized his financial career.
“I was holding a senior position, so people were serving us at the office,” Dawa recalls. “But going to seminary, we were taught the opposite—to say, ‘a pastor is a servant.’”
This focus changed Dawa’s relationship with his wife and their two young sons.
“It was the first time I was taught that my family is the first ministry I have,” he shares. “My wife comes first, even before my kids. She’s not my servant, so that means we do everything together—even kitchen duties.”
Faithfulness in his home has become the foundation for fruitful ministry.
This April, Dawa graduated from CS. Back in Lilongwe, he serves as faculty at CAPA and supports a local church, Grace Bible Church, led by another graduate of CS. The Word of God that saved him is the same Word that he now passionately preaches each week.
For those who know him, the change is startling—a man once set on pursuing his own advancement, now in complete service to others. But this is the natural outflow of a life transformed by Scripture. Like a jeweler carefully shapes a diamond, the Word is God’s greatest tool for refining our lives. As it is clearly preached, it will bear evident fruit: first in the life of the minister, then in those he ministers to.
Brian Dawa (second from right) with men from CS
UNLESS THE WORD IS PREACHED
When Fernando Jaimes came to Colombia in 2016, he had no fancy strategies. His approach was the simple call of Romans 10:14—to declare the truth so that others would hear and believe.
“Only preaching the Word,” he says. “It’s the only thing that really impacts people.”
More and more Colombians are seeking the true gospel after years of historic Catholic influence. The cities have become saturated with bustling churches—but many leaders are illequipped to meet this spiritual hunger.
“Most of the preaching is driven by emotion, personal opinion, by prosperity gospel teaching,” Jaimes shares. “Many leaders have never, never been trained.”
Jaimes and his wife, who grew up in Colombia, came face-toface with this need about a decade ago. Jaimes was studying at The Master’s Seminary, with no plans to return to his country. That all changed when he met a group of Colombian pastors through TMAI’s Spanish-speaking ministry.
These pastors had a heartfelt request: we need help to train more men.
Jaimes became convicted that he had to devote his life to this opportunity. He and his wife moved to the capital city of Bogotá and began a church and seminary.
Week after week, Jaimes faithfully expounded the Scriptures—in
What are candidate schools?
In addition to our 18 member schools, TMAI is also working with various training ministries in other countries who are pursuing formal membership with TMAI.
Right now, there are five candidate schools, including SEMDEX, that are working closely with our membership department to become TMAI member schools over the next few years. Our candidate schools are located in:
(french-language)
Bible classes on Saturday, then at church on Sunday.
The group of listeners grew beyond expectation. Today, the church is attended by over 500 people in multiple services. Seminario de Expositores (SEMDEX) is now a TMAI candidate training center with 150 students across two campuses.
And Jaimes doesn’t carry out this work alone. Ministry leaders all over Colombia have caught his fervor; two other missionaries are facilitating an extension campus in Cali. Graduates of SEMDEX plant and pastor churches in neighboring regions; others have returned from further training to join SEMDEX’s faculty.
Looking ahead, Jaimes hopes the seminary will be well-established as a model of obedience to the task of building up the church. There are still so many Colombians to be reached.
“This is the beginning,” he says.
canada
colombia
england
romania
uganda
Fernando Jaimes preaches at a church in Colombia.
Class at European Bible Training Center (EBTC) in Germany
“What I have been able to learn over the past year and a half has led me to a deeper understanding of my Lord and His Word. At the same time, it has shown me that I am only scratching the surface of the depth of His being and the treasures of His Word.”
STUDENT AT EUROPEAN BIBLE TRAINING CENTER IN GERMANY
FOR ALL TO HEAR RESOURCING THE PULPIT THROUGH TRANSLATION
Last year, the men of Central African Preaching Academy (CAPA) in Malawi embarked on an ambitious project—take robust, biblical resources and translate them into the local language.
This is a demanding endeavor, made challenging by the culture, language, and obstacles to even distribute these resources. However, the labor of this endeavor is far outweighed by its benefits.
As local men around the nation of Malawi hear this material taught to them for the first time in Chichewa and receive these resources in their language, the desire to know and study the Word of God has exploded. Expository Studying by Joel James was distributed through two rural training sites: Kasungu in the Central Region and Makanjira in the South, both of which are predominantly Chichewa-speaking areas.
This year, their work continues as enthusiasm grows.
Malawi is a nation that does not have a developed culture of reading. Universal primary education was only offered a mere 30 years ago—most of the over 21 million citizens did not grow up reading. And false teachers have taken advantage of this fact, flooding all media and radio with unbiblical lies.
Because congregations in local villages often rely almost exclusively on what they hear, the pastor’s preaching becomes all the more crucial.
“We want to make truth available to people who would not normally get solid teaching,” a CAPA faculty member stated. “We must counter lies with truth.”
And it begins from the pulpit.
How do you best strengthen and equip church leaders who do not have a culture of reading and do not have resources in their mother tongue?
This is a question that Martin Luther has already answered.
“It’s writing down things that creates a movement.”
In tandem with preaching, the ability to publish truth in the common tongue of the people was the major driving force behind Luther’s work in the Reformation—and it proves to be a potent and effective means 500 years later.
In a past conversation with Pastor John MacArthur about the Reformation, he recognized that written biblical resources are a powerful tool, “It’s writing down things that creates a movement.”
“If we’re going to provide material for other expositors and Bible teachers, and even just Christian people to really come to grips with the Scripture and the Word of God, they have to be able to read. Books are critical.”
Through TMAI’s support, CAPA is following this model. “We didn’t simply hand out the books,” CAPA faculty Felix Angasi shares, “We conducted training sessions to introduce the resource, equip pastors on how to use it, and encourage multiplication by training other church leaders.”
“For many, it was their first exposure to expository preaching and a biblical method of sermon preparation. It was both eye-opening and deeply appreciated.”
Today, books like Expository Studying and the nearly complete Chichewa translation of Fundamentals of the Faith are fueling expository preaching throughout the unreached corners of the nation. This is only the beginning—more resources will only fortify their foundational understanding of key doctrines and support their growth in teaching others faithfully.
And this is a reality in every TMAI training center around the world, as our centers are laboring with translators and publishers in 49 different languages across the world—all with the same goal of strengthening the pulpit to better serve His church.
God has spoken by His Son and by His Word. And so, the pulpit must be central, never silent, and strengthened to proclaim the truth—for all to hear, in Malawi, and to the ends of the earth.
CAPA hosted a class for church leaders and laypeople in Kasungu, where they taught students how to utilize the Expository Studying resource.
HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION
The foundational pillars of society—the individual, the family, and the church—derive their strength and stability from the Word of God.
As faithful men preach the gospel in their local churches, these pillars are reinforced. Scripture matures the individual, stabilizes the family, and transforms churches and communities who treasure it. Sound doctrine, faithfully preached from the pulpit, produces biblical ministries, missiology, and marriages.
This is the heart of TMAI.
TMAI exists to train and equip indigenous men to preach Christ—not for study’s sake, but that whole nations would be built up in the body of Christ, in knowledge, service, and unity ( eph 4:11–16 ).
As men are trained, their churches flourish in loving fellowship and fervor for Scripture.
In Spain, Berea Seminary (BEREA) has seen this firsthand.
Though serving in one of the most secularized nations in Europe, the churches of BEREA graduates are thriving. From faithful expository preaching flow biblical ministries, a love for the Bible, and trained men and women alike.
New conferences on biblical reconciliation and family, expanding seminary courses, and a vibrant women’s ministry all testify to the power of God’s Word at work.
BEREA faculty have seen how the teaching has had a profound and noticeable effect on the women in their graduates’ churches.
“During these last few years, we have seen how the women of our faculty, students and other women who belong to our graduate churches have benefited from the preaching of the Word,” faculty members share. This
From faithful expository preaching flow biblical ministries, a love for the Bible, and trained men and women alike.
year, more than 200 women are expected to gather at the next women’s conference from across Spain and the Spanish archipelagos—many pursuing further training at BEREA in biblical counseling to strengthen their homes and ministries.
The fruit of BEREA graduates proves the point: when the pulpit is strong, the church is strong. True foundational strength is built not in culture, but in the pulpit—when Scripture speaks, the church is sanctified, families are strengthened, and Christ is exalted. And at TMAI, this is the goal of all our effort.
And so, we affirm with the hymnist: “How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!”
Prayer during a women’s conference hosted by BEREA
A Class for laypeople at Hermeneia Bible Training Centre (HBTC) in England. HBTC is a developing training ministry working with TMAI to pursue formal membership.
B Man with copies of the Italian translation of The Word Became Fresh by Dale Ralph Davis
C Men pray during a conference hosted by Word of Grace Biblical Seminary (WGBS) held in Ixtlahuaca, a municipality in Mexico.
D Faculty member at Expository Preaching and Teaching Academy (EPTA) in Myanmar
LOOKING AHEAD
As we look with eager expectation towards the upcoming year, we are in awe of the opportunities the Lord has entrusted to us. Below are a few of the key areas where we hope to support our various training ministries around the world. If you are interested in financially partnering with us, visit tmai.org/donate or call 818.909.5570.
TRAINING CENTER SCHOLARSHIPS
Providing scholarships to support training at our 18 member schools amount needed: $2,800,000
TRAINING CENTER PROJECTS
Funding strategic initiatives such as capital upgrades, conferences, construction, and faculty/staff development amount needed: $2,000,000
FIELD STRATEGIC SUPPORT
Strengthening field programs through essential administrative infrastructure amount needed: $1,250,000
GLOBAL PUBLISHING INITIATIVES
Covering translation and publishing costs for key theological resources needed to train pastors and equip the local church amount needed: $250,000
DEVELOPING SCHOOLS’ ADVANCEMENT
Supporting the advancement of developing training ministries on their pathway to membership (15 training ministries) amount needed: $200,000
total: $6,500,000
PARTNER WITH US INTERCEDE
Jesus, after telling His disciples that the fields are ripe for harvest, told them to “beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers” ( luke 10:2 ). Prayer is still the greatest need today. We invite individuals and organizations to join us in praying for the Lord’s work through TMAI around the world. Sign up for prayer updates at tmai.org/subscribe
INVEST
Our ministry would not be possible without the generosity of our donors. For every pastor trained, resource translated, and conference held around the world, there are multiple supporters whose gifts have enabled that ministry. If you are interested in financially supporting this exciting global work, visit tmai.org/donate .
INTRODUCE
You can play a significant role in TMAI’s ministry by introducing us to others who share a passion to see Christ’s name exalted among the nations. Please contact the TMAI Home Office at info@tmai.org or call 818.909.5570 , and we will be happy to work with you to connect with any individuals or organizations you recommend.
Graduates of Grace Bible Seminary (GBS) in Ukraine
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