Special Sunday & HOT-Adventure II

July 13, 2025

It is a great blessing to be able to keep growing in Christ. In the journey of learning God’s words in the New Testament, our souls are nourished.

Our special Sunday Service, “Understanding the New Testament Canon” started at 11:00am with our Refreshing Moment. Pastor Gavin, with interpretation by sister Ivy, shared on how God speaks and reveals Himself to God’s people that they will know the truth, and how He inspires the chosen ones to write down His revelation into the Bible. The journey of the Bible begins with the mind of God as seen in Hebrews 1:1-2 and Matthew 5:18. Even Jesus said, whatever He speaks, He speaks on behalf of the Father. Therefore, when we share the gospel, we always refer back to the Bible.

Brother Jun led all into high-spirited praise and worship, followed by the Holy Communion. There was a promotion for our 33rd anniversary, which would be on 3 August at 1:00pm at the church, themed “We are celebrating, glory to God.”

Sister Lydia shared a powerful testimony of how God was with her mother through her last days, how brothers and sisters supported and cared for her family along the way. She shared Isaiah 14:27, emphasizing the sovereignty of God, asserting that His plans are unchangeable and His actions are unstoppable.

Pastor Gavin continued with the sermon, with the first verse in the Bible, Genesis 1:1 and the last verse, Revelations 22:21. “Canon” means authorized and authoritative, endorsed as truth. The Bible is authorized as Jesus is alive, through the Holy Spirit, authorizing His words are authoritative. The New Testament begins with Jesus, it was written through inspiration of Holy Spirit as stated in John 14:26. We learnt from Acts 2:42 that people at that time fully accepted and were eagerly listened to the doctrine. The apostles had the power to teach the Word of God everywhere they went. All that was written by both the apostles and prophets was recognized by the people at that time. Evidences include the verses quoted by Paul in 1 Timothy 5:18 and quoted by Peter in 2 Peter 3:15-16. The 3 steps of development and history of the Canon were summarized as follows:

Inspired by God;
Recognized by men of God, and;
Collected and preserved by the people of God.

Pastor Gavin finally concluded that there was no vote for inclusion in the scriptures. If we want to know what God said, the truth of Jesus, or to be encouraged and blessed, all we need to do is to read the Bible.

HOT- Adventure
We proceeded after lunch with Q&A session. It started with a prayer led by sister Elaine and interpreted by brother Jun. Brothers and sisters shared how this morning’s preaching helped us deal with people who challenged the Bible’s truth. We agreed to dwell deeper into the Bible so that we will not be easily shaken. Pastor Gavin ended by adding key historical facts and encouraging the memorization of key Bible verses for our spiritual development.

The congregation gathered in groups to share personal stories of growth and meaningful Bible verses encountered during this Bible reading journey. We joyfully wrote down the blessings and growth we had experienced.

Afterward, sister Janelle guided us through the reading plan, starting in July till the next HOT-A on 26 October. It included the books of Daniel, Ezekiel, Job, and chapters1 to 26 in Psalms.

Thank God for choosing us to be His beloved children and nurturing us in our journey of growth. May God bless each and every one who seeks and roots in Him !