O Worship the LORD in the Beauty of Holiness

DO YOU KNOW THE CONFESSION OF FAITH?

          In the fifth message of our recent Church Camp, we learned that one of the steps to discernment for the Christian is to strive for doctrinal clarity and theological precision. The Confession of Faith was mentioned as a useful means to identify and weed out half-truths and errors in our worldview. 

          This term ‘Confession of Faith’ originates from Romans 10:9,10 – “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” This probably refers to the verbal confession of faith that a person made at the time when he was converted, baptized, or affirming his faith. 

          Here are some examples: Peter confessed, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16) Martha confessed, “I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.” (John 11:27) The Ethiopian eunuch confessed, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” (Acts 8:37) 

          These confessions existed only in verbal form. There was at first no formal written confession. There may have been many different versions of it, some longer and some shorter. But for the sake of standardization it was soon committed into writing (e.g. the Apostles Creed). In order to remind believers about what they believed, it was memorized. Sometimes it was recited during worship services. 

          The entrance of false doctrines also played an important role in the formation of the historic creeds and confessions. Whenever God’s people had to deal with false doctrine, they often ended up composing an accurate statement of the truths they all believed in order to show the clear distinction between the true and the false. If any teacher refused to subscribe to this statement, he would rightly be called a false teacher. 

          Warnings against false teachers are found in the epistles of Paul, John, Peter and Jude. For example, in Jude 3 God’s people were exhorted to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” because of “certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation.” The apostle John refers to them in 2 John 9,10 – “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed.” In these verses, terms like “the faith” and “this doctrine” refer to a known set of truths that had been carefully defined and agreed upon. 

The Westminster Confession 

          The origin of the Westminster Confession of Faith can be traced to the 16th century Protestant Reformation. This was a movement to bring the Bible’s authority back to the church because the Roman Church had become corrupted both in its doctrine and church government. 

          The Protestants in Germany led by Martin Luther drafted the Augsburg Confession of Faith in 1530. This consisted of 28 articles of faith which instituted many important reforms in doctrine but not in church government. The Augsburg Confession found its way to England where it eventually influenced the archbishop Thomas Cranmer who broke away from the Roman church with King Henry VIII. Cranmer drafted the 10 Articles of Religion of the Anglican Church in 1536. This eventually grew to become the 39 Articles of Religion in 1563. Like the Augsburg Confession, the Anglican Church’s 39 Articles remained Episcopal in church government. 

          The Protestants in Geneva led by John Calvin instituted reforms both in doctrine as well as in church government. What they expounded on doctrine became known as the Reformed Faith, and what they expounded on church government became known as Presbyterian government. This reformation was therefore more thorough than that of the Lutherans and Anglicans. 

          However in 1553, Mary Tudor inherited the throne of England and started a persecution of Protestants which lasted for five years. 280 of them were burned at the stake. Thus, she is known in history as ‘bloody Mary.’ To escape from her persecution, about 800 English Protestants fled to Europe. A quarter of these exiles came to Geneva to study under John Calvin who had opened an academy there to teach the Reformed faith. There they adopted the Reformed faith and the Presbyterian form of church government, started their own English worship service in Geneva, and made a new English translation of the Bible. 

          Among these exiles were John Knox, Anthony Gilby, Christopher Goodman, William Whittingham, Thomas Wood and Miles Coverdale. After the persecutions in England ceased many of them returned to their homeland to continue the work of the Protestant Reformation. John Knox returned to Scotland and reformed the Church there completely. This became known as the Presbyterian Church. 

          Those who returned to England played an important part in starting a new movement to get rid of all the unbiblical rituals and forms that remained in the English church. They were called the Puritans. However, as this new movement gained momentum, it drew a lot of resistance from the Anglican Church. Unfortunately Queen Elizabeth I threw her weight behind the Anglican Church, and so did the kings who came after her. This brought about an interesting situation: The Scottish church was completely reformed, but the English Church was partially reformed, and the king of England stood in the way of the reforming process. 

          But in God’s providence, the situation changed favourably: The English Parliament became increasingly filled with Puritans, and as Parliament grew stronger, the king became weaker. This provided an opportunity in 1640 for the Scottish Church to propose unity in religion and uniformity in church government as a special means to promote peace between England and Scotland. This proposal suggested that there should be “one Confession of Faith, one Form of Catechism, and one Directory for all parts of the Public Worship of God in all the Churches of His Majesty's Dominions.” 

          The English Parliament responded by forming an assembly of 121 godly and learned men to meet at Westminster Abbey in order to provide advice on issues of worship, doctrine, government and discipline of the Church of England. They asked the Scottish Church to send their best representatives to be part of this assembly. When the Assembly started work in 1643 it was only supposed to revise and strengthen the existing 39 Articles of Religion of the Anglican Church. But two years later, it was directed by Parliament to draft a completely new Confession of Faith based only on the Scriptures. The Westminster assembly worked hard on this for 18 months, meeting every day and often until 10 or 11 pm. They set aside one day of each month for prayer and fasting. 

          By the end of 1646 it had produced the Confession of Faith, as well as a Larger Catechism and a Shorter Catechism, a Directory of Worship and a Form of Government. All these became known collectively as the Westminster Standards. These were presented to the English Parliament who only made one request – to add in the Scripture proofs for every article. This was done within three months, and after that it was officially approved by Parliament in June 1648. Then it was printed and distributed for use in all churches in England, Scotland and Ireland. 

          In Scotland the documents were so well-received that a law was made in 1649 to require every household to have at least one copy of the Westminster Confession. But in England, the political situation changed. In 1660 the King regained power and the Puritans lost their influence over the Church. Thus, the 39 Articles of the Anglican Church were restored in England together with the Episcopal form of church government. 

          But the Protestants who left England to settle in the new colonies in America took the Westminster Confession with them. And there it became the most influential doctrinal symbol in American Protestant history.

Impact on the World 

          For more than three centuries, various churches around the world have adopted the Westminster Confession and the Catechisms as their standards of doctrine. In 1896, a Canadian-born seminary professor named Francis R. Beattie wrote about their impact on the world: 

          “Two hundred and fifty years have passed away since the Westminster Assembly met and did its noble work. During these years the world has seen wonderful changes, and the human race has, in various ways, made remarkable progress. Civil liberty has in many lands been planted on a sure foundation, intellectual activity has gained much splendid renown, commercial energy has conquered many an unexplored region, and missionary zeal has reached out to the ends of the earth. How much of this is due to the silent and salutary operation of the Reformed doctrine, polity and ethics can scarcely be estimated. The verdict of history tells the splendid story. And today, the world over, there are many millions of people who accept the system of Reformed doctrine and Presbyterian polity of which the Standards are such a complete exposition.” 

          Since its founding in 1950, the Westminster Confession has been the doctrinal standard of Life Bible-Presbyterian Church, as stated in Article 4.1 of our Constitution: “The doctrine of the Church shall be in accordance with that system commonly called “the Reformed Faith” as expressed in the Confession of Faith as set forth by the historic Westminster Assembly together with the Larger and Shorter Catechisms.”  

          As we face many issues and the doctrinal confusion created by new groups and movements within Christianity today, the Westminster Confession and Catechisms can help us to discern where we should stand on them, and how far we can fellowship with each of these groups and movements. 

          But at the same time, let us be careful not to overemphasise the role of the Confession in our church. It is valuable only as far as it accurately reflects what is written in the Bible. The Word of God must always be our final authority in all matters. – Pastor 

Note: From this week onward, we will serialise the Westminster Shorter Catechism in the church weekly.

Shorter Catechism Question 1

Q: What is the chief end of man?

A: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever. 

Appointments for the Week

Tuesday, Jun 25

        8.00 pm     Prayer Meeting (Eld Peter Koy)

Thursday, Jun 27

      10.00 am     Ladies’ Prayer Group

Saturday, Jun 29

        3.00 pm     YLM

Sunday, Jun 30

  8.00 am     Gospel Sunday: In the Fulness of Time Galatians 4:4-5 (Rev Bendick Ong)

  8.00 am     Choir Practice

  9.15 am     Library (Sanctuary Balcony)

  9.40 am     Sunday School

10.15 am     Coffee Corner

11.00 am Gospel Sunday: In the Fulness of Time Galatians 4:4-5 (Rev Bendick Ong)

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)

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.

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 the family of Mdm Martha Ng Whye Lang (93 years old) on her homegoing on 18 June 2024.

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.

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

YAF Retreat 2024 22-24 Nov 2024

YAF would like to welcome all young adults and youth to YAF Retreat 2024! This will be our first overnight retreat since 2019 and we look forward to a sweet time of learning and fellowship in Christ. This year’s theme, “Growing Pains, Chasing Gains”, is centred on the challenges and uncertainties that young adults face as we attempt to navigate adulthood and parenthood, as well as seek God’s will for our lives. If you would like to join us from 22-24 Nov 2024, please sign up via the QR code.

LTF Camp 2024 2-6 Dec 2024

For ages 12-17 years old. Venue: Life B-P Church. Save the Date!

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