In 1973, the Session of Life Bible-Presbyterian
Church of Singapore agreed to purchase a corner terrace house
at Kulai Garden, Kulai Besar as a mission station in Malaysia.
In July 1973, Rev. & Mrs. Liew
Hong Seng were sent by Life Church to pioneer the work in
Kulai. However, they left in the same year.
From 1974 to 1979, students from Far
Eastern Bible College were sent here to conduct Bible study
and to organize meetings for the youths. Young people from
Life Church also came to help during this period.
After
many years, the first Sunday Worship Service was resumed on
the first Sunday of August 1980 led by Pastor Freddy Yong,
the first full-time worker at Kulai Besar B-P Church. In the
same year, a Church Committee was formed.
TRACING OUR ROOT
Kulai Besar Bible-Presbyterian Church
traces its roots to Life B-P Church, the "Mother Church"
of all the Bible-Presbyterian Churches in Asia Pacific and
India.
Life B-P Church began as the Life
Church English Service 144 Prinsep street on October 20, 1950
with Rev. Timothy Tow as the pastor. The motto of the church
is "Holding forth the Word of Life."
(Phil 2:16)
They belonged to the Synod of the
Chinese Presbyterian Church. In January 1955 Life Church withdrew
from the Chinese Presbyterian Synod because the Synod refused
to leave the ecumenical and liberal Malayan Christian Council.
The Church was renamed Life Bible-Presbyterian Church. This
was the beginning of the Bible-Presbyterian Church movement,
a strong uncompromising witness of the truth of God's Word.
OUR CHURCH CONSTITUTION
Our Church is governed according to a Constitution.
It details the Objects of the Church, the Doctrinal beliefs,
the Principles of Government, the Practices of the Church, Membership
and the Church government. Members have certain rights and must
accept certain responsibilities.
MEMBERSHIP
A Christian is admitted as a member of
the Church primarily through baptism. The following are the
pre-requisites for membership:-
He must show evidence of having received Jesus Christ
as his Lord and Saviour. His life must bear witness of his
salvation.
He must attend a catechism class.
He must satisfy the Session as to his Christian faith,
knowledge and manner of life.
He must accept the B-P Constitution and respect the authority
of the Session and the Church.
He must be 21 years of age. Parental consent for membership
is otherwise needed.
Members may be admitted by transfer from other churches.
Those who received baptism when they were infants need to
reaffirm their Christian faith before being members. This
process is called "Affirmation of Faith".
A communicant member is one who can participate in the Annual
Congregational Meeting. He is eligible to vote and stand for
election. He can partake the Holy Communion.
BAPTISM
After a person has accepted Jesus as Saviour
and Lord, he should seek baptism and become a full communicant
member of the Church. Baptism is commended by the Bible (Acts
2:38). In the Great Commission given by our Lord, He
declares the baptismal formula: "baptizing them in the
name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost."
(Matt 28:19). Our Lord Jesus
was baptized in the river Jordan by John the Baptist, He submitted
to baptism in order "to fulfill all righteousness"
(Matt 3:15).
Baptism is done once as an outward manifestation of inward
grace. At baptism the Christian publicly testifies of his
conversion and identification with Christ. Baptism is symbolic.
The mode of baptism by our Church is sprinkling (or pouring).
Our Church also believes in and practices infant baptism.
We believe that in the early Church when families came to
believe in Christ and were baptized, it would have included
children. Also there is the example of the parents of Jesus
who brought the eight-day old Jesus to the Temple for the
rite of circumcision (Lk 2:21).
Baptism is the New Testament equivalent of circumcision.
In infant baptism, the parents are required to take a vow
to bring up their children in the faith and to claim for them
the promise of salvation (Acts 16:31).
THE LORD'S DAY WORSHIP
Sunday is kept by our Church as the Lord's
Day for public worship. This is in keeping with the practice
of the Apostolic Church. They met on the first day of the
week to break bread (Holy Communion) and to hear the apostles
preach, (Acts 20:7). Sunday is
called the Lord's Day (Rev 1:10)
as it was the day our Lord Jesus rose from the dead. It is
therefore very meaningful for us to go to church as a member
of the visible Church for corporate worship. The Bible urges
us to keep this appointment faithfully every week (Heb
10:25).
The Sunday Worship that we have is called "Led Worship".
There is a definite structure and frequently it is led by
the pastor or chaired by a member of the Session. The opening
prayer is called Invocation of Call to worship. It is an act
of worship calling upon God to bless the whole worship. The
Bible is read as a responsive reading for congregational participation.
The offering is an integral part of the worship. It expresses
our love for the Lord and supports His work in a tangible
way. The preaching of God's Word is central to the worship.
The central position of the pulpit emphasizes that centrality.
The message from the pulpit is from the Lord. God's servants
speak with His authority. The worship concludes with the benediction
by the pastor. It is the Lord's parting blessing upon his
people.
The attire at worship must reflect the sacredness of the
occasion. It must be neat and decent, as one is in the presence
of God. Punctuality is expected. In fact, one should be present
before the Service begins to silently meditate and prepare
to meet the Lord.
THE HOLY COMMUNION
On the fourth Sunday of every month, Holy
Communion is served. It is also called "Lord's Supper"
and "Breaking of Bread". It is taken in remembrance
of the Lord Jesus till He comes again. The bread represents
the body of Jesus and the grape juice, the blood of Jesus.
It was on the cross that our Saviour's body was broken and
His blood was shed (I Cor11: 23-30).
The Holy Communion must be taken solemnly and with deep reverence.
We must prepare ourselves spiritually. We come to the Lord's
table in humility and repentance. We must have forgiven one
another and cease all bitterness at Holy Communion. If there
are bitterness and unconfessed sins, it is better to refrain
until we are right with God.
The Lord's Supper can be taken only by baptised Christians.
Children of believing parents baptised as infants must wait
till they are affirmed in the faith.
THE PRAYER MEETING
Public prayer as a body of the Church of God
is encouraged. Every Wednesday at 8.00pm, the Church gathers
for corporate prayer. Jesus promises that when two or three
gather in His name, He will be in their midst. He promises to
answer prayers when there is unity of purpose (Matt
18:19-20). The Spiritual life of the Church is seen at
the Prayer meeting. The work of the Lord needs prayer support.
The sick and weak are helped because the faithful prayed (Jam
5:15).
