Convicted Bali Nine drug smuggler Andrew Chan who turned to God after being handed a death sentence in Indonesia has been ordained as a Christian minister. After six long years of study inside Bali's Kerobokan jail, the 31-year-old was ordained inside the prison's chapel last month as he found out his and Myuran Sukumaran's plea for clemency from Indonesian president Joko Widodo had been rejected again. The Sydney man was ordained by Christie Buckingham, a senior pastor with the Bayside Church in Melbourne, who bought with her a letter of accreditation approving Chan as a Christian minister in Australia. Scroll down for video . Convicted Bali Nine drug smuggler Andrew Chan (left), seen here with Matius Arif Mirdjaja who he baptised, has now been ordained as a Christian minsiter . Five senior ministers from different denominations endorsed Chan after he spent years studying the religion and helping drug addicts within the prison. Reverend Buckingham told the Sydney Morning Herald: 'I have never experienced a student like Andrew, and probably never will again. He is extraordinary. He has such a determination to learn, in fact almost a desperation.' 'He is the real deal, and Myuran [Sukumaran] is as well. They are living proof that people can change, circumstances can change. Indonesia should be proud of the impact they are having,' she added. Sukumaran and Chan await transfer from Kerobokan  prison to the death island of Nusakambangan, where they are set to face the firing squad . Sukumaran (left) and Chan (right) are both said to be changed men since they were arrested in 2015 on heroin smuggling charges . Reverend Buckingham first met the pair in 2011 after her friend founded Indonesian charity group Yayasan Tangan Kasih (Arms of Love) which works in Kerobokan prison. In February, a former inmate of Kerobokan prison told Daily Mail Australia how he was baptised by the Bali Nine member. He said Chan helped him kick his 20-year drug addiction, and called on the Indonesian government to show the Australian mercy. When Matius Arif Mirdjaja first spoke to Andrew Chan in prison in 2011 he mocked him for his religious beliefs. The pair knew of each other from the previous three times Mirdjaja had been ordered to serve time but had never spoken. After Mirdjaja was baptised, he and Chan (second left) started up a Bible study group inside Kerobokan prison . It was not until Mirdjaja (pictured) personally witnessed Chan's devotion to God that he started to believe in Christianity . In 2011, the Indonesian - who is now 40 years old - was imprisoned for robbery. '[The first time we spoke] we had a debate about philosophy and Christianity,' Mirdjaja told Daily Mail Australia. 'At that time, I mocked him because I said that 'The Christian foundation is a really silly thing to believe. How do you as a Christian believe in someone who died on the cross and couldn't save his own ass and you expect him to save your ass?'' Mirdjaja said Chan did not get offended by this exchange and just smiled at him. After the first conversation, they continued their debates about religion, philosophy and history, which the Australian 'knows a lot about'. This photo taken in 2006 shows enforcer, Myuran Sukumaran (left) and mastermind Andrew Chan in a holding cell at Denpasar Court . Chan and Sukumaran admitted their roles in the Bali Nine drug ring as part of a appeal against their death sentences . Myuran Sukumaran (left) has been awarded his associate degree in Fine Arts, a cause for joy in his darkest days on death row . 'One day he came to me and said 'You can't fit God in your brain man, no matter how big your brain is, you cannot fit God in your brain because God is in your heart, so you have to fit God in your heart',' Mirdjaja said. 'He said that to me... at that time I had addiction to drugs inside prison still [to heroin]. 'During that period, he gave me a Bible but I just threw it away and again Andrew never got offended.' It was not until Mirdjaja personally witnessed Chan's devotion to God that he started to believe in Christianity. 'A spiritual encounter happened during that period [when Mirdjaja was still addicted to drugs], one of them was when Andrew helped me get through my addiction so he laid down and prayed on me and then he did it constantly,' Mirdjaja said. The pair are said have helped countless other prisoners during their time in jail . 'Andrew didn't intend to ask me to stop drugs at that time but how he approached me was helping [me to be] free from my addiction. 'I had my addiction for 20 years and that's when I stopped and I realised that he taught me a lot about Christianity. I made the decision to be baptised in prison, so Andrew baptised me.' After Mirdjaja was baptised, he and Chan started up a Bible study group inside Kerobokan prison. According to the Indonesian, this is one of many programs Chan and his fellow Bali Nine inmate, Myuran Sukuraman, have pioneered to help rehabilitate 'hundreds' of prisoners. Mirdjaja left prison in 2013 and has now started to preach at churches in south-east Asia, while trying to roll out rehabilitation programs started by the Australians to help others at 17 different prisons around Indonesia. Mirdjaja visits Chan five times a week when he's in Bali. Mirdjaja said he had witnessed Chan and Sukuraman change people's lives in prison and they deserved to be spared. 'These guys have love and compassion and a genuine heart. My life before I had seen so many lies, I've seen all the people speak the other way around with their behaviour,' he said. 'They do a good thing in their right hand but bad thing in their left hand. [Chan and Sukuraman's] message is simple - love and compassion. They never judge other people.' Last week Sukumaran was awarded his associate degree in Fine Arts, a cause for joy in his darkest days on death row. Sukumaran's mentor and friend, Archibald prize winner Ben Quilty, announced news of the degree from Curtin University on Friday. The news came as Sukumaran and Chan await transfer from Kerobokan to the prison island of Nusakambangan, where they are set to face the firing squad.
Andrew Chan, 31, was ordained by a Melbourne Reverend one month ago . Five senior ministers from different denominations endorsed Chan . He has been studying Christianity and helping others inside Kerobokan jail . The convicted heroin smuggler is awaiting execution in Indonesia . Fellow Bali Nine member Myuran Sukumaran awarded art degree last week . Both men are said to be reformed characters who have changed their ways .