JUL 5

Romans 1:17
Memorise Romans 1:17b
“The just shall live by faith”

The first root of the Bible Presbyterian Church of Singapore is the French Protestant root. That is the root that traces back to the 16th century Reformation where our spiritual forefathers broke away from Rome to return to the apostolic faith. They fought for the Bible to be freely available to the believer (previously only the priests could read the Bible), as well as from an erroneous and wicked man-made system which hid the gospel of salvation from the people.

A sinner is made righteous or just by the righteousness of Christ imputed to him. No amount of good works or religious ceremonies can save a man. They are simply counted as “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). This is the teaching of the Reformed Faith that we subscribe to. John Calvin (1509- 1564), a French theologian and pastor, can be described as a champion and foremost theologian of the Reformed Faith. All Bible Presbyterians are advised to read the abridged version of “Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion” published by Far Eastern Bible College. There you will see the beauty and profound godliness of Reformed theology.

Calvinism is really Paulinism systematised. From Calvin we learn of God’s grand redemption plan, well encapsulated in the acronym TULIP. T stands for Total depravity of sinners; U for Unconditional Election; L for Limited Atonement; I for Irresistible Grace and P for Perseverance of the Saints. Understanding this will cause us to appreciate and cherish our salvation.

Dear teen, how about spending some time during your holidays reading up on the Reformation and the apostolic faith that Luther and Calvin fought for? If you do that, you will be richly rewarded. You will learn the rich heritage you have in the Protestant root. You will thank God that you did not fall into the clutches of an evil and corrupt system of works and not of faith. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8).

Thought: True wisdom consists of the knowledge of God and the knowledge of man.
Prayer: Gracious loving heavenly Father, may I read and meditate on the Word of God to increase in my knowledge of Thee and how I ought to live a godly life.