January 24, 2021

Gethsemane B-P Church and Calvary Kuching B-P Church Joint Announcement

Written by:
Rev (Dr) Prabhudas Koshy
Date: 12 January

To:
Members and brethren of,
Calvary Kuching B-P Church
Gethsemane B-P Church, Singapore
All GBPC’s mission churches (in Ethiopia, the Philippines, India and China)

On behalf of the Committee of Calvary Kuching Bible-Presbyterian Church (CKBPC) and the BOE of Gethsemane Bible-Presbyterian Church (GBPC), we greet you all in the blessed Name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

We have the joy of announcing that by the Lord’s providence and leading, CKBPC and GBPC have come together in a spiritual and fraternal relationship with effect from 1 January 2021. With this union, GBPC will take on the complete oversight of CKBPC’s spiritual and administrative LEADERSHIP as one of GBPC’s mission churches. We are grateful in the Lord, that the BOE of Calvary Jaya BP Fellowship who previously provided this role joyously and well has confirmed their agreement.

We pray the Lord will be gracious to bless our two congregations as we co-labour and strive to extend and prosper the cause of the Gospel in Kuching, throughout Sarawak and beyond. Amen.

Bro. Jeremy Teo
Chairman, Committee
Calvary Kuching B-P Church

Pastor Prabhudas Koshy
Chairman, BOE
Gethsemane Bible-Presbyterian Church, Singapore


Proposed Amendments to the Constitution Questions & Answers

Q1: Why is there a need for the amendments?
A1: The current Constitution was approved on 13 July 1995 and over the past 3 decades many significant events have taken place in our Church, the Bible-Presbyterian movement in Singapore, Christendom as a whole and society at large. The current Constitution, for our spiritual and administrative guidance needs to be amended to give legal standing for the reaffirmation of our Church’s beliefs and practices which are according to Scripture, and the approved doctrines and practices of the Westminster Confession of Faith and Presbyterianism, to confront the newer attacks against the Lord Jesus Christ, Scripture and its truths. The amendments are also meant to further strengthen the leadership of our Church by making provisions for more God-given, spiritually qualified and gifted men to serve as leaders of the Church.

Q2: What are these amendments?
A2. The proposed amendments may be categorised as: a) Restating certain paragraphs and sentences in the Constitution to clearly explain and support the unchanged Scriptural foundation of our beliefs and practices. Hence, additional Bible references are included; certain words and expressions are changed to firm up the church’s biblical beliefs and practices. In response to attacks from various quarters in the increasingly sin-tolerant world and alternate life style practices against the Lord Jesus and His teachings as recorded in the Bible, certain parts of the Constitution are re-stated to make our original and unchanged doctrinal position clear.

b) Following the Biblical teaching and aligning with the Presbyterian practices regarding Church leadership. The Bible is clear that the Church is to be ruled by elders - pastors (who are teaching elders) and ruling elders. Deacons render their invaluable services unto the Lord in supporting functions, rather than ruling. The present constraint of only nine Session members allowable is removed to enable more God-gifted men whom the Lord would be pleased to call to serve as elders, deacons and preachers in our growing Church and into the future. The requirements and roles of preachers are also clearly defined.

c) Updating relevant sections to align with the proposed amendments in a) and b) above, for example replacing the word “Session” with “BOE”, and necessary administrative updates, e.g. the change of official address.

Q3. What is the process involved in amending the Constitution?
A3. The proposed Amendments can only be adopted after the Registry of Societies (ROS), Singapore has approved them. The steps are:
1. Develop the first draft of the proposed “Revised Constitution of Gethsemane BPC, 2021” incorporating the propose amendments (completed by the Review Committee, comprising Pastor Koshy, Elder Francis Lee & Elder Mah)
2. Endorsement of the first draft, incorporating other changes by the BOE, GBPC (completed)
3. Endorsement of the first draft, incorporating other changes by the Session, GBPC (completed)
4. Communicate with members, GBPC (ongoing, to be completed by 5 Feb 2021)
5. Endorsement of the first draft, incorporating changes by members, GBPC (at the Extraordinary Congregational Meeting [ECM] on 6 Feb 2021)
6. File the first draft with ROS (to be done on 7 Feb 2021)
7. Receive reply from ROS (likely with questions and required changes)
8. Study (7) above, develop the second draft, incorporating agreed changes together with accompanying explanations to ROS for not accepting certain changes
9. Endorsement of the second draft by the BOE
10. Reply to ROS, with the second draft and accompanying explanations.
11. Tasks (7)-(10) continue, with the updated third, fourth, etc revision(s), till the final draft (as suggested by ROS and acceptable to the BOE) is achieved
12. Communicate with members, GBPC
13. File confirmed version with ROS for approval.
14. Receive approval from ROS for the “Revised Constitution of Gethsemane BPC, 2021”
15. Communicate to members, GBPC. (End of Project) s

Gethsemane Bible-Presbyterian Church adheres to the system of faith commonly known as the “Reformed Faith” as expressed in the Westminster Confession of Faith together with the Larger and Shorter Catechisms.
Our Worship Address
SingPost Centre
Level 5 Auditorium
10 Eunos Road 8, Singapore 408600
(next to Paya Lebar MRT station)
Our mailing address
Gethsemane Media Centre
33 Ubi Crescent
Singapore 408584
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