Hi, how are you doing during this COVID-19 ‘stay-at-home’ Circuit Breaker period? Although the physical congregated church that we are accustomed to has come to a grinding halt, thankfully many of us, the ‘distributed’ church, still meet online. But it’s not the same!
Perhaps we can fully appreciate how the psalmist felt when he said, “1How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! 2My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.” (Psalm 84:1-2 NASB).
Now that it is no longer ‘business-as-usual’ even for the church, what is church to you? This is an important question to answer because what we stand for as a church will greatly influence how we behave during this disruptive period. Some of us spend time listening to BMC online sermons and many other sermons that we have ready access to, instead of wasting our time away. This is commendable, but is church just about sermons? Do the sermons intentionally lead us to something deeper? What is BMC about?
BMC’s Vision & Mission
At BMC, our vision and mission are intrinsically based on (here’s a hint!) Jesus’ commandments and the Great Commission. Our vision is “To Be Disciples of Jesus Christ” and our mission is that “We Exist to Make Disciples Who Love God, Love One Another and Love the Lost”. Encapsulated in these two statements, we articulate BMC’s Core: Discipleship.
During this ‘stay-at-home’ period, if we binge on sermons from BMC and other churches, we must also allow the Word of God to transform us to be more Christ-like. It is not just listening for Word intake; it is about life transformation. Also, even though we cannot meet physically in our small groups, we must never allow the ‘out-of-sight, out-of-mind’ mentality to besiege us. Scripture extols us to “24and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24-25 NASB)
We do not want to be just disciples. We want to become disciple-makers and co-labourers in ministry with Christ. After all, discipleship is about “life transformation through the Word of God and in community of God’s people” making an impact on others wherever God has placed us.
In Christ,
Dr Ho Boon Tiong, LCEC Chairperson
on behalf of the Local Church Executive Committee (LCEC)
Visit bmc.org.sg/about to read our Statement of Faith, our Beliefs, and our 5-Year Plan.