Category: Uncategorized

The National Council of Singapore (NCCS) has been requested by the Registry of Marriages (ROM) to vet the applications of independent churches and to support the applications if they are in order.  Kindly note the following information:

The application for a New Licence to Solemnise Marriages in Singapore is an annual process.  The NCCS will accept digital applications from 16 December 2025 to 9 January 2026 for 2026’s issue of the Licences.  This application cycle is implemented by the ROM.  Please use this link to apply:

There is an administrative fee of $100 per application from churches that are not in the membership list of the NCCS.Kindly make your payment to the National Council of Churches of Singapore together with your digital application using one of the following 2 modes:

• PayNow: NCCS UEN: S61SS0118B
  Please indicate “LSM” and the name of the applicant.
• Bank Transfer: DBS Account No: 070-002355-5
  Please indicate “LSM” and the name of the applicant.

Please notify us at [email protected] when payment of the Administration Fee has been made.

Thank you.

(L to R) Rev Edwin Tan (陈永强牧师) NCCS Associate General Secretary, Elder Kevin Lee (李振财长老) NCCS Honorary Treasurer,  Bishop Anthony Loh (罗嘉俊会督) NCCS Vice President,   Rt Rev Dr Caleb Soo (苏立忠会正[博士]）NCCS Vice President, Bishop Philip Lim (林建隆会督)  NCCS President,  Rev Wu Wei（吴巍牧师）President of the China Christian Council/NJUTS Principal, Mr Zhou Xuebin（周学斌先生）NJUTS Staff Member of Overseas Relations Desk, Rev Huang Jinbin（黄金斌牧师）NJUTS Director of Students’ Ministry Office/Associate Professor of Church History, Ms Zhao Jingwen （赵静文女士）NJUTS Director of Research and Publication, Rev Tang Yongquan (唐勇权牧师) NJUTS Administrative Director,   Dr Zhang Lixia（张丽霞博士）NJUTS Lecturer of Chinese Church History

[Show slideshow]

[English version]

《在争战的世界里迎接那真正的和平之光》

亲爱的主内弟兄姐妹：

在这后疫情又处处充满动乱、 争战的日子里，我们再次迎接庆祝主耶稣基督的降生。每一年，当我们记念和平之君耶稣基督的降生，这提醒我们：真正的和平或平安不是来自充塞心机的罪人，而是来自那位愿意进入我们世界、进入我们生命的救主。

先知在以赛亚书:9:6说：‘’ 因有一婴孩为我们而生，有一子赐给我们，政权必担在他的肩头上，他名称为奇妙，策士，全能的神，永在的父，和平的君‘’。如今，世界仍充满动荡：疾病、战争、经济压力、家庭张力、心灵疲惫……但圣诞提醒我们：神没有撇下我们。祂不是在远方观看，而是亲自道成肉身，进入我们的混乱之中， 给我们带来心灵的安稳与真正的和平。

圣诞的信息，就是 神与我们同在（Immanuel）。祂与软弱的人同在，与孤单的人同在，与寻求方向的人同在,与在黑暗中的人同在。无论你在今年经历了怎样的挑战、流泪或重担，主都愿意在圣诞再次向你说：“不要怕，我与你同在。”

因此，这个圣诞，不只是庆祝，更是一个邀请：

— 邀请我们重新仰望基督，使疲惫得力；
— 邀请我们重新回到神面前，使迷失得找回方向；
— 邀请我们彼此相爱，使基督的光透过我们的生命照进社群与国家。

愿我们在忙碌的节期中，停下来聆听天使的宣告：“在至高之处荣耀归与神！在地上平安归与祂所喜悦的人！”（路 2:14）真正的平安，不是环境无风无浪，而是有耶稣的同在。真正的喜乐，不是拥有一切顺利，而是知道神永不离弃。

愿今年的圣诞节，使你的家充满爱，你的心充满盼望，你的脚步再次走在主的呼召中。让我们带着基督的光，成为国家中的祝福，成为社区里的平安使者，成为家庭中的希望之声。

祝大家：
圣诞快乐，恩典满溢，愿主的平安临到每一个家庭！

苏立忠会正（博士） 
新加坡基督教会理事会副主席

[English version]

亲爱的弟兄姐妹们：

愿天父和主耶稣基督赐予您和您的家人恩典与平安！

我们将于2025年11月30日进入将临期。将临期指的是耶稣基督曾经在两千年前降临人间，藉着祂的生、死、复活和升天带来救恩。如今基督徒也期盼基督第二次将临，届时祂将以肉身重返人间，迎接教会并审判万国。

作为基督徒，在将临期，我们纪念基督的第一次降临，并满怀期待地迎接祂的第二次降/来临。从这个意义上说，诗篇90篇12节中摩西的话语，为我们提供了如何满怀期待地迎接祂第二次降/来临的重要提醒: “ 求你指教我们怎样数算自己的日子，好叫我们得着智慧的心。（诗篇 90:12）

“数算自己的日子”可以理解为认识到生命的短暂。第12节是对前5节（第7-11节）的回应。前面的经文强调了上帝的愤怒、人的罪恶以及生命的短暂。上帝向人发怒是罪的后果，而罪必带来报应。死亡导致的短暂人生正是罪的后果之一。然而，现代人常常难以理解死亡与罪之间的联系。这正是罪的诡诈。我们往往不会将死亡与罪联系起来。我们需要明白这一点才能活出正确的生命。我们之所以会死，是因为我们得罪了上帝，而罪只能通过献祭来赎罪。在旧约中，这指的是持续不断地献祭牲畜来赎罪。在新约中，我们藉着上帝羔羊耶稣基督完美的献祭，得享罪得赦免。

因此，在这将临期，愿我们时刻谨记与他人分享耶稣基督福音的紧迫感，愿我们对耶稣的渴慕与日俱增。

愿主赐福给你，保护你。
愿主向你微笑，恩待你。
愿主向你显出他的恩惠，赐给你平安。

章剑文大主教 ( 博士 )
新加坡基督教会理事会副主席

[信函的中文翻译]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Grace and peace to you and your family from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ!

We will be entering the season of Advent on 30 November 2025. The literal meaning of the word “advent” is “coming” or “arrival”. The season of Advent refers to the coming of Jesus Christ to earth to provide salvation through his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. Christians now anticipate a second advent when Christ will return to earth in bodily form to receive the church and to judge the nations.

As Christians, in the season of Advent, we commemorate Christ’s first coming to earth and live in anticipation of his second coming. In this light, the words of Moses in Psalm 90:12 offer an important reminder on how to live in anticipation of his second coming.

 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12

“To number our days” can be interpreted as understanding the brevity of life. Verse 12 is a response to the 5 preceding verses (v 7 – 11). These earlier verses highlighted God’s anger, sin, and brevity of life. God’s anger towards man is the result of sin, and sin has consequences. The brevity of life, brought about by death, is one of the consequences of sin. However, the modern mind often struggles to comprehend the connection between mortality and sin. This is the deceitfulness of sin. We do not connect mortality with sin. We need to see that to live right. We die because we have sinned against God, and sin can only be dealt with through sacrifice. In the Old Testament, it is the ongoing sacrifice of animals for the atonement of sin. In the New Testament, it is through the perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, that we receive full forgiveness of our sins.

So, in this season of Advent, may we be reminded of the urgency to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others, and may our need for Jesus grow deeper day by day.

May the LORD bless you and protect you. 
May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. 
May the LORD show you his favour and give you his peace.

Abp Dr Titus Chung
Vice President NCCS

Seated (R – L)   Bishop Philip Lim (President); Bishop Anthony Loh (Vice-president); Elder Kevin Lee (Treasurer)
Standing (R – L)  Sr Pastor Sampath Vincent; Mr Jason Wong; Elder Timothy Chew; Mr Kelvin Lee; Pastor Joshua Marip; Mr Jeremiah Goh; Rev Dr Ngoei Foong Nghian (Gen Sec)

Dear Members and Friends of NCCS,

Every Sunday in church, we pray or sing the Lord’s Prayer.  It is an uplifting prayer and many Christians have learned it by heart.  Our Lord Jesus taught the people this prayer in order to explain that prayers are private conversations with God: “go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret” (Matt 6: 6).  He also taught them to avoid empty phrases for God knows our needs even before we express them in prayer (Matt 6: 8).

Christians would have heard countless sermons unpacking the meaning of the Lord’s Prayer and are quite familiar with the prayer items that touch on nearly every aspect of daily living.  In fact, this prayer is an exhortation to hallow the Name of God through our attitude, lifestyle, relationships and especially our trust in God’s divine providence.  

Yet, living hectic lives in Singapore often distract us from making daily decisions that could better reflect the theme of the Lord’s Prayer – ‘Hallowed be Thy Name’.  Indeed, each time we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are reminded to hallow God’s Name by thought, word and deed.  So let us resolve to focus on honouring God’s Name so that we may become more like Jesus who “increased in wisdom and in stature and in favour with God and man” (Luke 2: 52). 

In His Service,

Rev Dr Ngoei Foong Nghian

General Secretary

National Council of Churches of Singapore

[信函的中文翻译]

Dear Members and Friends of NCCS,

Greetings in the Name of the Lord!

Two months ago, we reflected on the meaning of “ordinary time.” Truly, God is at work in our everyday, seemingly mundane moments—wherever we are—if only we were attentive to Him. He speaks and teaches us about the kingdom of God through anyone, from adults to even the smallest of children.

I recall a touching moment when a young child reminded his parents, who were about to fall asleep, to read God’s Word to him before bedtime. Such a simple request from a child, yet such a profound reminder for us as adults—to end each day dwelling in God’s Word and resting in His presence.

In the Christian calendar, we are now in the season of Sundays after Pentecost, which will carry us through to December, just before the Advent season. And Pentecost reminds us that the third Person of the Triune God has come to us.

Ephesians 1:13 assures us that we are ‘sealed’ with the Holy Spirit, and Romans 8:15–16 declares that we have been given the status of sonship:  “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God”.  Without the Helper—the Holy Spirit, given to us as promised in Acts 1:8—we cannot live the life God has called us to.

The Holy Spirit, our Helper, empowers us to live both the ordinary and the extraordinary life in accordance with God’s Word and in the likeness of Christ, so that others may experience the beauty and aroma of Christ through us. As our inner life is transformed, the Spirit produces in us the fruit described in Galatians 5:22–23a: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”   Then the world will believe that Christ is alive and put their faith in Him, because they have experienced the “tangible Christ” through us. Truly, we are His witnesses today! (Acts 1:8)

But the question is: while we believe the Holy Spirit is in us, are we in the Spirit? Is He truly in control of our actions, our words, and our daily, seemingly mundane lives? For example—when we converse with our colleagues, our neighbours, our spouse, our family, or our cell group members—are we allowing Him to guide us?

In biblical terms: are we filled with the Holy Spirit, allowing Him to be the driver of our lives, enabling us to overcome temptations and the challenges of life? (Ephesians 5:18).  Have you begun walking with the Spirit today? If not, start now—it is never too late to begin.

May the new life God has given us radiate the aroma of Jesus today, so that our friends are drawn to Him and the church of Christ impacts nations, becoming a blessing to the world.

Yours in Christ,

Bishop Anthony Loh | Vice-President

National Council of Churches of Singapore 

尊敬的新加坡基督教会理事会成员与朋友：

愿主的名祝福你们！

两个月前，我们反思了“平常时间”的意义。确实，我们只要留意上帝，无论我们身在何处——神都会在我们每天看似平凡的时刻里工作。祂通过任何人，从成年人到最小的孩童，向我们讲述并教导关于神的国度。

我想起一个感人的场景：一个小孩在快要入睡时提醒自己的父母，在睡觉前给他读神的话语。对于一个孩子来说，这是一个多么简单的要求，却对我们成年人来说是一个多么深刻的提醒——每天结束时，都要沉浸在神的话语中，安息在祂的同在中。

按照基督教历法，我们现在正处于五旬节后的主日季节，这个季节会持续到十二月，也就是降临节前的时光。五旬节提醒我们，三位一体的神的第三位已经降临到我们中间。

以弗所书 1章13节确证我们受了圣灵的”印记”，而罗马书 8章15-16节宣告我们已被赋予儿子的身份：“你们所受的，不是奴仆的心，仍旧害怕；所受的，乃是了儿子的心，因此我们呼叫‘阿爸！父！’。圣灵与我们的心同证我们是神的儿女。”   没有那位助手——圣灵，正如使徒行传 1章8节所应许赐给我们的，我们就无法过神所呼召我们的生活。

圣灵，我们的帮助者，赐予我们力量，使我们能够按照神的话语、效法基督的样式，活出平凡与非凡的生活，以便他人能够通过我们体验到基督的荣美与芳馨香。当我们的内在生命被转变时，圣灵便会在我们里面结出加拉太书 5章22-23 上节所描述的果子：“圣灵所结的果子，就是仁爱、喜乐、和平、忍耐、恩慈、良善、信实、温柔和节制。”   然后，世人就会相信基督活着，并信靠祂，因为他们通过我们体验到了“有形的基督”。确实，今天我们是祂的见证人！(使徒行传 1章8节)

但关键问题在于：虽然我们相信圣灵在我们心中，但我们是否在圣灵里吗？祂真的在掌管着我们的言行，以及我们看似平凡的日常生活吗？例如——当我们与同事、邻居、配偶、家人或小组成员交谈时——我们是否允许祂引导我们？

用圣经的话说：我们是否被圣灵充满，让祂成为我们生命的主宰，使我们能够克服生活的诱惑和挑战？(以弗所书 5章18节)。你今天开始与圣灵同行了吗？如果没有，现在就开始——永远不会太晚。

愿神所赐予我们的新生命在今天散发出耶稣的芬芳，使我们的朋友被吸引到祂身边，使基督的教会影响万民，成为世界的祝福。

在主里与您同行的

罗嘉俊会督
新加坡基督教全国教会理事会副主席

[信函的中文翻译]

Dear Members and Friends of NCCS,

 SG60 is also a time for us to reflect on our multicultural Singapore for God has given the Church a unique blessing: in the same city, we have congregations that worship primarily in English, and others in Chinese, Tamil and many more.

 On the surface, this may seem like a simple language difference, but spiritually, it is a beautiful picture of diversity within unity.  Yet, if we remain confined to our own language circles without interaction or collaboration, we risk missing the blessing of the Body of Christ living as one. Our different language churches may be distinct yet they are complementary.  Each community carries a divine calling and unique strengths that the other needs:  “For the body does not consist of one member but of many.” (1 Corinthians 12:14).

 As a Chinese-speaking pastor, I believe that in God’s eyes, English and Chinese-speaking churches in Singapore are not two parallel worlds, but members of one Body, designed to complete each other. For instance, when English-speaking churches have fruitful experiences in marketplace ministry, youth work, or digital outreach, sharing these with Chinese-speaking congregations multiplies impact. Conversely, the cultural insights and family ministry strengths of Chinese churches can help English- speaking congregations serve locally with greater warmth and relevance.

 Thus when society sees the Church transcending language, culture, and generational divides, we embody Jesus’ prayer in John 17: “…that they may be one…so that the world may believe that you sent me.”

 Truly, the diversity of churches in Singapore is God’s gift. When we lay aside barriers, appreciate one another, and share our resources, we will fulfill the Great Commission more effectively and display the glory of Christ in our city.

 “May our Lord grant us humility and love, that all our churches may be one in Christ, so that the world will see God’s glory and give praise.”  Amen.

 Yours in Christ,

Rt Rev Dr Caleb Soo | Vice-President
National Council of Churches of Singapore

Aug 25 Newsletter