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Exactly five hundred years ago, on 18 April 1521, Martin Luther uttered those words before an imperial council known as “Diet of Worms” (“Diet”: an assembly of princes or authorities in the Holy Roman Empire; “Worms”: a city south of Frankfurt, Germany).

This occurred about three and a half years after Luther nailed his Ninety-five Theses against the Roman Catholic Church’s doctrines and practices (on October 31st, 1517) on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenburg, Germany. Luther’s efforts to repudiate the errors of Romanism were condemned by Pope Leo X in June 1520 in the latter’s issuing a papal bull (a public decree by the Pope), named Exsurge Domine (“Rise up, O Lord!”). It outlined socalled forty-one errors of Luther. It also threatened Luther with excommunication, which in those days was far more severe than simply being shunned by the Roman Church. It was then carried out with the penalty of torture and death at the hands of the civil authorities!

Luther responded to the papal bull by publicly burning it, and declaring to his followers that in condemning his teachings the pope had condemned the Gospel itself. On January 3rd, 1521, the Pope issued the final ban on Luther. The Emperor Charles V was expected to arrest and stamp out Luther’s teachings, which could have led to his execution. However, Luther was spared by the intervention of Elector Frederick III the Wise of Saxony. Instead, Luther was summoned to appear at the Diet, held in Worms, before the Emperor Charles V and an array of powerful clergy and statesmen.

Martin Luther travelled 10 days to get to the Diet of Worms (south of Frankfurt) from Wittenberg (near modern Berlin). It was a 300-mile journey. He knew that his life would be in danger as he prepared to go to Worms. Though many discouraged him from making that journey, he still obeyed the summons to appear before the Diet of Worms, because it presented him a great opportunity to defend his doctrines before the authorities.

Luther presented himself at the Diet of Worms on 17 April 1521. The assembly asked him to confirm whether certain books published in his name (25 books in total) were truly authored by him. Luther acknowledged them as his books. When the council asked him to repudiate the content of his books, he requested time to think about that matter seriously. The emperor gave him a stay of one day – and it would be one of the most famous days in church history.

The next day, on April 18th, 1521, when Luther appeared again before the Diet of Worms, he refused their demand to repudiate his teachings in his books. He stated that he would retract his teachings only if he was convinced by Scripture or by reason that there was error in them. He was uncompromising in matters of doctrine and Christian practice. He stated that the Bible alone is the ultimate source of authority, and not the papal decrees and church traditions. Luther’s final words before the Diet of Worms have been famously reported:

“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of Scripture or by clear reason (for I trust neither pope nor council alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have cited, for my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, since to act against one’s conscience is neither safe nor right. I cannot do otherwise. Here I stand, may God help me.”

Luther stood before a powerful council with his conscience bound by the Word of God. He thus refused every bit to compromise his biblical convictions. It is that firm stand of Luther on God’s truth that gave rise to the Protestant Reformation, which sent the light of the Gospel all through Europe and the rest of the world. Today, it is our individual and collective duty to stand with conviction on the Word of God, that we may be instruments of God’s glorious purposes for our generation and the next.

Sermon Text: Selected Scripture Texts
Speaker: Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 18th April 2021

(Sermon starts around 1:02:41.)

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).

Psalm 46 has been known as “Luther's Psalm”. It was Martin Luther’s habit to dwell upon the Psalms when troubles engulfed him. In 1527, Martin Luther faced some of the greatest difficulties of his life. During this period, much of the European continent was affected by the Black Plague. Germany was also not spared from that epidemic. Luther’s son fell ill and was on the brink of death. Soon, Luther himself fell sick. In the midst of these personal conflicts and the great battle of Reformation, Luther would call unto his co-labourers, "Come, let us sing the 46th Psalm." He loved contemplating the promises of Psalm 46.

Luther’s heart was instructed by the words of Psalm 46 to put his confidence in God when dangers and disasters befell him. Like the psalmist, Luther too wanted his disheartened friends of the Reformation not to be weary and not to give up their fight of faith. He wanted his fellow men to find their confidence in God. So, he wrote his famous hymn, “A mighty fortress”, based on Psalm 46.

Psalm 46:1 serves as an instruction on how God’s people ought to possess an indefatigable faith in God, even when they are encircled by terrors and troubles. The psalmist is not only an example of unfaltering faith, but also an encourager who exhorts fellow believers to put their confidence in God. The psalmist’s confession of God’s goodness towards His people is remarkably invigorating. He teaches us to embolden ourselves in times of our trials by making three assertions about God.

God is Our Refuge

The first truth that we should affirm in the midst of our troubles is that “God is our refuge”. Some have built for themselves what appear to be well-fortified castles with tall, strong walls and thick iron gates, guarded by hosts of strong men with powerful weapons. Yet time and time again, such man-made refuge had been breached by enemies and are subjected to all kinds of perils. A far superior shelter is the LORD God for all who trust in Him. He is their impregnable refuge. Taking shelter in God is far better than running into man-made shelters. God is our safe shelter!

God alone is His saints’ unfailing shelter. Only in God can we find true security. He is our retreat beyond the reach of our adversaries. He is our hiding place. So, let us quickly run into Him. In prayer let us wait on Him. “The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27).

God is Our Strength

The second truth that God’s people must affirm always is that God is their “strength”. When they feel weak and defenceless, God is the source of their strength. They can come to Him, and renew their strength. God’s omnipotence provides His people with assurance and motivation to endure their troubles and accomplish all that God has called them to do. Let His people believe that God’s strength is their strength. Let them arise in confidence to fulfil all His good purposes, even when troubles assail them. God is our unfailing strength!

All who trust in the Lord’s strength can surely say, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). His saints may be troubled on every side, but they have no need to despair. The Lord’s word to us all is: “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” So let us joyfully say, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

God is Our Help

The third solemn truth that God’s people must affirm constantly is that God is “a very present help in trouble.” When trouble is near His people, God is nearer to them than the trouble. He never withdraws Himself from His troubled people. He draws near to His children in their trouble. God is closer to His people than their nearest and dearest family member or friend. He will be with them as their Help. His presence will be nearer than the trouble. He will never be absent from His people. Troubles confronting God’s people are not a sign of God’s abandonment of His people. Rather, they are an opportunity bestowed by God for them to experience the grandeur of His presence.

Come, let us sing the forty-sixth Psalm!

Brethren in our Mission Fields Affected by Covid-19

While we thank God for the improved Covid-19 condition in Singapore, we must uphold our brethren who live and labour for the Lord in many parts of the world where the infection is worsening.

In the past week, we have received news from our mission fields in Ethiopia and the Philippines that the spreading of Covid-19 is troubling the ministries, and some brethren have been afflicted by it. Pray that the Lord will grant mercy to those who have fallen ill, and also strengthen the servants of God to minister to His people in their respective mission fields.

An Email received (on 7^th April 2021) from Rev Ephrem, Ethiopia

Dear Rev. Koshy,

Greetings in our Lord's blessed name!

Praise God for the Gospel work which He has been accomplishing through you. It is our prayer that He will continue to bless all your labours for the cause of Christ. 

My wife, Gete, has been sick since last Sunday. She was checked for Covid-19, and when the result subsequently came out, we were told that she had tested positive. Now, my family is under house quarantine. God willing, all of us will go for Covid-19 test the next day.

Pray God that He may heal my wife and protect all of us. We trust in the mercies of God to carry us through. Please pray also that all our co-labourers will be safe. 

We closed GBI and the children’s ministry last Wednesday, as an added precaution. 

Please convey my regards to your family and the whole church. Have a blessed week of service.

Yours in Christ,
Rev. Ephrem 

Sermon Text: Selected Scripture Texts
Speaker: Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 11th April 2021

(Sermon starts around 50:00.)

Sermon Text: Selected Scripture Texts
Speaker: Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 4th April 2021 (Resurrection Sunday Service)

(Sermon starts around 50:25.)

“That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection” (Philippians 3:10a).

The deep heartfelt cry of the apostle Paul’s heart was that he may know Christ and the power of His resurrection. It should also be every genuine Christian’s paramount desire and daily pursuit.

Our initial saving knowledge of Jesus Christ must propel us to a lifelong pursuit of a deeper and profound knowledge of our Saviour. In particular, like Paul, we must desire to know the power of His resurrection.

The highest experience that Paul sought after was knowing Christ. He wrote, “I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ” (Philippians 3:8). Knowing Christ and His resurrection is not just having intellectual knowledge of the facts about Christ, but also experientially knowing Him in our lives and ministry. Such increasing personal knowledge of Christ must be most enthralling to every Christian.

Christ’s resurrection was the greatest display of His power that He had demonstrated during His earthly life. It proved His absolute power over both the physical and spiritual realms. According to Paul’s words in Colossians 2:15, by His resurrection, Christ “spoiled principalities and powers, … made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it”. By His resurrection, He has delivered us from the grip and bondage of Satan and his evil powers!

How thankful we ought to be this day that Christ’s triumphant resurrection power now works continuously as an active force in the life of every believer, so that he may attain spiritual transformation and growth as a Christian. We must daily pray that we will experientially know “what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1:19-20). It is Christ’s resurrection power that sanctifies us and enables us to defeat temptations and trials. By the power of His resurrection, we can now live boldly, fruitfully and faithfully. Let us yield in prayer to the power of His resurrection, and lead a holy life, boldly and fruitfully proclaiming the Gospel.

Testimonies of New Members

Jonathan Tay
By God’s grace, I grew up in a Protestant Christian family, and from an early age was exposed to Bible stories and the Gospel, whereby I realised that I needed to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to save me from my sins. When I was 10, my family was led to the sound preaching in Calvary Pandan B-P Church; while in secondary one, I underwent believer’s baptism as a testimony of my faith in Christ.

To my loss and shame, I did not take advantage of the ministries of the church to grow spiritually, but was drawn into many sins in my teenage and army years by worldly ambition, lusts and the desire to fit in with peers outside. The Lord was merciful not to leave me to perish in my ways, but He chastised me and brought me back to Himself during my university days, when I started attending Bible study in the Fundamental Christian Ministry. Though my spiritual growth since has not been without setbacks, God has continually given me a hunger for His Word, and a desire to serve Him.

I have been blessed by the preaching ministry of Gethsemane B-P Church through joining its church camps from time to time, and through listening to sermons online. While 2020 saw COVID-19 turn our usual routines upside down, it was also God’s avenue for me to receive great spiritual blessing by tuning in to Gethsemane’s online services more frequently, and even attending meetings of the Men’s Fellowship – which I would normally not have done so due to distance and timing clashes with other activities. I found myself growing spiritually through the teaching of the Word, and in strong affinity with the church’s commitment to gathering for worship, observing the sacraments biblically, and advancing God’s kingdom despite the logistical difficulties, as well as with her biblical teachings concerning roles in the family. As such, it is my conviction that the Lord has led my family and me to join Gethsemane B-P church, where I pray we will be spiritually nourished and continue to serve Him with His people.

Tay Su Ling
My twin sister and I were brought up by my mother single-handedly in a non-Christian home, having lost our father to cancer when we were 19 months of age. By the manifold mercies and provision of God, He led me to Calvary Pandan B-P Church through my secondary school friend. Since then, I thank God for the work of salvation He had wrought in my heart, and that He has not abandoned me to a reprobate mind and life. In my totally depraved condition, I would never have sought God, yet in “the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering” (Rom 2:4), God led me to repentance through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through His wonderful truths, I continue to be instructed in righteousness, to learn what it means to “yield [my] members servants to righteousness unto holiness” (Rom 6:19), and to live rightly before God. The sound preaching of God’s Word and the privilege of service have also been instrumental in my spiritual growth, and it is my prayer that God’s Word will continue to be my meditation all the days of my life.

I have been immensely blessed by the preaching ministry in Gethsemane B-P Church, and I especially thank God for the many practical instructions I have learnt from the course on “Theology of Prayer” through GBI, which have greatly helped me in my prayer life. In submission to my husband, we were led to join Gethsemane B-P Church, having been convicted in my heart also of the biblical teachings of the church, namely: (1) the resumption of worship services as soon as possible to allow for the assembly of God’s people; (2) the partaking of the Lord’s Supper biblically through God’s appointed ministers to the communicants, but to none who are not then present in the congregation; and (3) the role of young mothers as keepers at home, thereby giving themselves to the training up of children whom God has entrusted to their care, and to the Lord’s work. It is my prayer that through the preaching ministry in this church, God will make us more effective servants for Him.

Connie Ng Lai Wah
“It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not” (Lamentations 3:22). Salvation belongeth unto the Lord, “who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace” (2 Timothy 1:9).

I praise and thank the Lord for bestowing on me His great salvation, and for His boundless mercy, patience and longsuffering towards me even though I have been stiff-necked and wasted many years living in worldly pursuits and sinful rebellion against Him. I rejoice in the assurance of Jesus’ promise declared in John 10:28 – “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” By God’s providence, I was introduced to Christianity at an early age through my aunt who took me to Sunday school, and through my education in Catholic schools.

When I started working, I joined a colleague to attend a Charismatic church and was baptised there. Despite exposure to the erroneous doctrines taught in these churches, the Lord has been very gracious and merciful in preserving me and not giving me up to a reprobate mind concerning the faith. In the later years of my life, the mercy of the Lord led me to worship in a Reformed Baptist church in Johor Bahru, and then to Calvary Pandan B-P Church in April 2017. By His grace and mercy and through the sound preaching of God’s Word in these churches, as well as the Bible study lessons available in CPBPC, I began to develop a fear of God and a renewed zeal to seek God and His Word, and to serve Him. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10). Unfortunately, my ardent desire was somewhat dampened by some discouraging church matters after the homegoing of Senior Pastor Tow Siang Hwa in March 2019.

I thank God that during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, His Spirit led me to listen in to the livestreaming of worship services in Gethsemane B-P Church, and to attend some the Bible study meetings via Zoom. Thank God also for the opportunity given to me to attend the worship services held in GMC and Singpost. I have been greatly blessed and encouraged by the preaching and teaching of God’s truths delivered with apt illustrations and testimonies, as well as by exemplary lives of godliness, faithfulness and service in the leaders of GBPC which I can emulate. All glory and praise be to the Triune God!

Sermon Text: John 12:31, 32
Speaker: Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 2nd April 2021 (Good Friday Service)

(Sermon starts around 20:14 mark.)

Sermon Text: Selected Scripture Texts
Speaker: Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 28th March 2021

(Sermon starts around 44:22. We apologize that the sermon got cut off due to an unstable internet connection on that day.)

“Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:1-2).

The proper response to divine favours received is a personal commitment to bless the LORD. Thankfulness leads the beneficiary to worship the Giver, who is the LORD. In the previous verse, the psalmist has already exhorted his soul twice to bless the LORD. Now for a third time, he says, “Bless the LORD”. Such repetition denotes the earnestness of his desire to express his gratitude. Besides, he stirs up his soul to employ itself in grateful worship of the LORD. The worship of the LORD must arise from the inner man. It is a soul-work. Jesus reprimanded those who engaged in “lip-worship”. Citing Isaiah, He said, “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me” (Matthew 15:8; cf. Isaiah 29:13; Ezekiel 33:31). No worship exists when the heart is not sincerely and earnestly employed in praising the LORD.

In Deuteronomy 8:10-14, the LORD warned Israel against forgetting His benefits – “When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the LORD thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God …”

Recollecting and recognising the LORD’s help, guidance, rebuke, promises, spiritual blessings, physical provisions, strength, hope, etc. will provide genuine impetuses for the worship of His name. Grateful emotions make the soul yearn to bless the LORD. Recognition of the LORD’s blessings in his life causes the psalmist to cry out: “What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people” (Psalm 116:12-14).

In order to mould oneself to be a better worshipper of the LORD, one should awaken one’s memory to the benefits one has received from the LORD. Our memory is like a large storehouse. Recollection will bring to our present awareness those things stored up in the memory, producing powerful emotions of gratitude and worship in our hearts.

Greetings from Rev. Reggor Galarpe

Dear Pastor, the Church Session and all our beloved brethren at Gethsemane BPC-Singapore,

“I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:3-6).

It is with praise and thanksgiving to the Lord that I greet you a Blessed 33rd Anniversary!

By the grace and mercies of God, the church has weathered many challenges and difficulties, including the recent COVID-19 crisis. I remember well that it was in March last year when it was declared a global pandemic. Now a year after, we can testify as with the prophet Jeremiah, saying: “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23)!

Indeed, God is faithful in keeping the church, and sustaining (even flourishing) its ministries. Just when everyone thought that the recent crisis would hinder the ministry of the Word as churches would have to close their doors during the lockdown, the Lord has opened wide a great door of opportunity, that the Word would have free course not only among you, our brethren in Singapore, but also to all of us in the mission churches and to many others in different parts of the world. I thank the Lord for Pastor Koshy for his burden to organise many online meetings for the feeding and nurture of God’s flock in these most difficult and trying times. In addition to the regular weekly programmes, many have been blessed by the online fellowship meetings, Bible study, Bible conferences, and even the recent Bible Witness retreat. The Word of God is not bound!

Granted, the idea of online meetings and worship may not fit well as to what a church should be, that is, a gathering together or the assembling of God’s people together. Yet it has become the most viable means, especially in those times when mass gatherings were prohibited. No doubt, it was God’s providence that has brought about these so-called “virtual” meetings, so that even though we cannot meet and gather together physically, we still are able to gather together in His presence.

Now a year after, we rejoice together with you as you come together physically to offer praise and thanksgiving unto the Lord for the 33 blessed years of the church’ s existence. Just as the psalmist declared, “Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works” (Psalm 145:3-5).

On this happy occasion, I also would like to express our sincere appreciation for all your support and prayers. Please know that your burden of the Lord’s work has been a great blessing and encouragement to us.

May the Lord bless Gethsemane BPC (Singapore) with many more years of service unto Him, to the glory of His Name!

Yours in Christ,
Reggor B. Galarpe
Gethsemane B-P Church (Cebu)
Cebu City, Philippines

Sermon Text: Selected Scripture Texts
Speaker: Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 21st March 2021