“The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem: Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” (Eccl. 1:1-2). Thus begins the reflection of Qohelet, translated “Teacher” (NIV) or “Preacher” (ESV), on the meaning of life. Why does he render such a bleak conclusion that everything is meaningless? And is this…

When I reflect on the life of Jesus, I am amazed at his teachings, feats and most importantly, his commitment to the Father. At the same time, what equally amazes me is the way he relates to people, whether it is to heal a leper, raise the dead (Lazarus), celebrate in festivities, dine with sinners…

God’s ultimate plan for us is salvation through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Before Jesus carried out this divine mission, He fasted to prepare Himself. The devil stood in His way by tempting Him. God has His divine plan for each of us. But just as he tempted Jesus, Satan will always try hard to…

It is the start of a new year. How has your week been? As many among us begin to return to our workplaces and schools, furiously cranking up through the gears to try to match the increasing demands on our time, I am reminded of another Presbyterian pastor’s purposeful countercultural social media posts on slow…

The apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 1:16 that the Gospel is the power of God for salvation, for it reveals God’s righteousness. The amazing news is this: the righteousness of God, miraculously by God’s doing, becomes ours when we believe in Christ. How can this be? Zechariah’s song in Luke 1:68-69 reminds us that…

The Bible tells us that the first Christmas was experienced by the least-known, the lowly or the most unlikely of people—the shepherds; the 3 non-Jewish wise men; Mary and Joseph; and someone whose name is hardly mentioned in Christmas celebrations. In fact, this someone was not even there when Christ was born; yet, the wonder…

Today we celebrate our annual Lessons and Carols service and also the fourth Sunday of Advent—Love— for “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). In Jesus, we have eternal life, hope, peace, joy and love. As we respond in…

Have you ever counted the number of Christmases you have celebrated in church before? In last Sunday’s sermon, Pr Hui Ru pointed out that many of us have gone through quite a number of Christmases as Christians; we have sung the same old Christmas carols and heard the same old Advent passages read and preached,…

At our recent church Annual Ministry Meeting to engage our ministry leaders and members and renew our commitment to being an intentional disciple-making church, the importance of hospitality was raised. After all, to be intentional in reaching others with Christ surely must require hospitality both as a church and as individuals. Have we been practising…

Registering a child for primary education has always been a highly important exercise in a Singaporean family. It’s deemed as the first decisive key to the child’s future success. From then, clearing examinations will remain a highly tense and competitive affair, from childhood to young adulthood, as one strives to enter the most prestigious schools,…