O Worship the LORD in the Beauty of Holiness

NEW SEASON AND CLOSED CHAPTER

When we have lived through a difficult failure, it is common to say, “I have moved on to a new season” or “I have closed the chapter.” There is common wisdom to move on but it is also godly wisdom to understand how GOD wants us to move on from a season and chapter of failures. 

We must indeed move forward but it cannot be done merely by burying and ignoring the event. Rather, we are to close the chapter properly and move in the right direction. 

The sentiments in the above paragraph does sound like it could come from these words of Paul, “forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before…” (Philippians 3:13b) 

Paul’s Example 

Let’s unpack these words of GOD and learn from Paul what it means to move forward after a failure. 

In Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he was not afraid to remind himself that whatever his accomplishments were, he was far from perfect (Philippians 3:12). It is this thought - that he was far from perfect, even though he had accomplished much - that is the context and starting point for forgetting what lies behind and moving forward. 

We are given a hint of Paul’s failures in Philippians 3:6 where he mentioned how he persecuted the church. These failures of Paul were further emphasised in his first letter to Timothy. 

1 Timothy 1:13

(Paul) Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 

1 Timothy 1:15

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. 

We can see in the above verses that Paul explained his previously misplaced zeal as a pious Pharisee. He had sinned against Christ and His people when he viciously persecuted the flock of his LORD and Saviour Jesus Christ. Paul mentioned that it was done out of ignorance and yet he did not excuse himself of his sinful actions. 

Paul did not forget his past and as time when on, he counted himself as the chief of sinners. He saw himself as the worst or most vile of sinners. 

Moving Forward 

How did Paul move from one season of failures to the next chapter of success? How did he close one chapter of failures and move into the new life of servitude to the one he persecuted? 

First, from his letters to the Philippian church and to Timothy, he showed that he was humbled by his past failures. He was not self-righteous. He never denied his sinful action nor excused himself. He definitely did not blame others for what he did. 

He never blamed GOD for exposing his sinful actions and he took responsibility for his actions. This is what being humble looks like. 

Being humble was Paul’s first step towards a new season and a new life. We too are to humble ourselves if we are to close one chapter of failures and move on to a new season of growth and a new opportunity to serve GOD. 

Let us be humble when we fail, and not lie, give excuses and fight against GOD and the people whom GOD uses to expose our sins. 

Second, after acknowledging his sins and confessing them, his heart was able to be opened to see the love, mercy and grace of the GOD he persecuted. When we are humbled, we will also be able to see the goodness of those around us. 

Paul showed us this point in 1 Timothy 1:13, “I obtained mercy” and in verse 15, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief”. There is no moving forward to healing and growth without humility under the grace and mercies of GOD and the people we hurt. 

Beware of the temptation to jump straight into the pool of grace and the mercies of GOD. We want to skip over the humbling part. It is indeed most pleasant to bask in the grace and love of GOD in Christ Jesus and the love of the people we offended. 

Yet, we should not omit the first step of taking ownership of our sin. One reason why many of us fail in life, is that we fail to be convicted of our sin, so that we are humbled and have a broken and contrite heart. It is only with this poverty of spirit and mourning over our sin that we would then beg to be forgiven and ask, “What must I do to be saved?” 

We know that the answer to the above question is that we cannot do anything to save ourselves. We cannot do anything to make GOD or another person forgive us or accept us. We can only beg to be forgiven, and it is by the grace and mercies of GOD, and of the person we hurt, that we are forgiven. Forgiveness is a gift, not an entitlement. 

The way not to be entitled when it comes to our faults and failures against someone is not to jump to the grace and mercies of GOD first. We are to first humble ourselves and beg for forgiveness. 

Third, and there is a reason Paul put this point last in his writing to the Philippian Christians. To truly move past failures and into a new season and chapter of growth and service to GOD, there must be true humility and a proper understanding of the grace and mercies of GOD and those we hurt. 

These sentiments of Paul are best seen in his testimony to Timothy, “And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.” (1 Timothy 1:14) 

With humility and brokenness in his heart and forgiveness from GOD, Paul now writes Philippians 3:14 “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul could launch forward after his failures without guilt because he correctly understood what it meant to be forgiven. With that new-found love from the one he offended, Paul gave his all to the service and preaching of Christ. 

Conclusion 

All of us need to deal with personal and public failures in life. When the failure is our doing, meaning we are not innocent, Paul shows us GOD’s way for starting a new season and a new chapter. 

Our failures are not the end of our lives. They should be a gateway to experiencing the grace and mercies of GOD and those we have sinned against. 

When we are humble, we will then truly serve the King of kings and Lord of lords. Paul knew how to forget what lies behind and how he could press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of GOD in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14). 

So, I will end this chat the same way Paul ended his testimony on this matter with young Timothy: 

1 Timothy 1:17

Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

– Joel Seah

Appointments for the Week

Tuesday, May 28

        8.00 pm     Prayer Meeting (Bro Shawn Lim)

Thursday, May 30

      10.00 am     Ladies’ Prayer Group

Saturday, Jun 1

        9.30 am     Combined BP Youth Conference 2024

Sunday, Jun 2

  8.00 am     Jesus, the Mighty Saviour Zechariah 12:1-14 (Rev Charles Seet)

  8.00 am     Choir Practice

  9.15 am     Library (Sanctuary Balcony)

  9.40 am     Sunday School

10.15 am     Coffee Corner

11.00 am Jesus, the Mighty Saviour Zechariah 12:1-14 (Rev Charles Seet, with Holy Communion)

11.00 am Children’s Ministry

11.00 am Chinese Service (MPH)

12.15 pm Library (Sanctuary Balcony)

  2.30 pm Thai Service (LMH)

  4.00 pm Indonesian Service (Rm 1-6)

  4.00 pm Church Camp Briefing (MPH)

  5.00 pm In-Person Church Prayer Meeting

Announcements

Gospel Sunday 30 June 2024 (8am & 11am)

“In the fulness of Time” by Rev Bendick Ong

Life BPC Job Vacancies

1. Church Operations Manager (COM)

Responsibilities:

The COM provides active oversight and support in the mission, administrative affairs and general operations of the Church including Financial Management, HR, MIS Technology, Media Technology, Facilities and General Administration.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor degree or higher
• Minimum 5 years’ experience in operations or managerial positions
• Good interpersonal and communications skills

2. Estate Management Officer (EMO)

Responsibilities:

EMO plans, oversees and coordinates all property management and preventive maintenance activities associated for the church premises. Coordinates facilities usage for a range of Church activities and Church’s authorized users using the premises. The EMO reports to the Church Operation Manager.

Qualifications:

• Diploma or equivalent
• 5 years’ experience in real estate management and maintenance
• Certification in real estate management and maintenance is an added advantage
• Lifers are preferred

Candidates with relevant qualifications and experience may submit your application and CV to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Traffic Warden Service

We welcome all church members to join in this work. Our TW’s role is to provide godly service to facilitate worship. We need help in following time slots for Sunday: 7.30-8am or 10.30-11am with a frequency of once or twice a month. Please contact Dn Chan Yong or Bro Kelvin. 

Catechism Class for Anniversary Baptism on 20 October 2024

commences on 14 July 2024. Please pre-register by emailing to Church Office. Those seeking baptism, reaffirmation of faith and transfer of membership must attend the catechism class. Closing date: 7 July 2024.

Door to Door Evangelism

2 June 2024 Meet in Beulah Room 2-11, 12.30pm Contact: Desmond or Amos 

Holy Communion Elements Preparation

Lifers are invited to serve in the Holy Communion elements preparation, clean-up and washing. Those interested may contact Jenny or Wendy.

Mailbox Club Bible Correspondence Course (MBCC)

Another Church Outreach Ministry invites Lifers to register their young children, teens, or grandchildren with our MBCC. Those whose loved ones, friends or colleagues who are either young in their faith or being non-believers, are interested to know and explore more of Christianity, are also invited to register with us by filling in the registration forms which are now available at the Church front counter and post them to:

Life B-P Church

No.10, Gilstead Road

Singapore 309064

Attention: Mrs Ong Chuay Ying

Condolence

Our condolences to bro Ong EC on the passing away of his mother, Mdm Ng SS, on 21 May 2024.

Church Camp 2024 10-14 June

Church camp 2024. Very limited rooms are still available. You can register by emailing to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and allocation is on a first-come-first-serve basis. Love gift to defray the cost of the camp is welcomed.

Camp briefing will be held on 02 June, 4pm, at Beulah MPH. All who had registered for the camp are required to attend.

In-Person Church Prayer Meeting

2 June 2024, 5pm @ Beulah Rm 2-1

CALLING ALL YOUTHS & YOUNG PEOPLE! 

Registration for Combined B-P Youth Conference 2024 is now open till May 24.

Theme: Contentment in Christ

Date: 1^st June 2024, Saturday

Venue: Life B-P Church, 9A Gilstead Rd, Singapore 309063

Join us for a blessed time of learning, fellowship and games at CBPYC24. Please click this link https://tinyurl.com/cbpyc24signup to sign up. See you there!

LTF 37^th Anniversary

22 June, 3pm @ MPH “Running the race of faith well” by Dn Christopher Goh.

https://tinyurl.com/yya7pehs

Exploring Christianity

7 July – 14 August 2024, 9.30am – 10.45am @ Life B-P Church Beulah Centre.

What is the meaning of life? Why am I here? If there is a good and powerful God, why do we have global pandemics and unrest in this world?  The answers to these questions can be found in the Bible, which is God's word to man.
Exploring Christianity is a course that looks at how the Bible addresses these pertinent questions about life. It is a 5-part series and is suitable for (1) Non-Christians seeking God and (2) Christians who would like to learn how to evangelise
All Lifers are encouraged to bring their non-Christian friends and family members to this introductory course on the Christian faith. Register at https://tinyurl.com/ECJULY24

Men’s Ministry

The Life BPC Men’s Ministry would like to invite all our Christian brothers to join us for fortnightly Bible study starting from 12/13 July 2024. To register, please contact the Men's Ministry via our email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

YF Camp 2024 16 – 20 Dec 2024

The YF camp committee is happy to announce the dates for YF camp 2024. Although sign-ups have not opened yet, we highly encourage youths and their families to plan around 16-20 December, so that they can come for this camp and enjoy the sweet fellowship and spiritual feasting!

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