In my 2 previous posts, I had blogged about how Spotify provides a platform for hosting audio and video podcasts totally free-of-charge, and that I will be making available all 121 sermons that TRAC President Rev Reuben Ng preached during his 5-year tenure as the Youth Pastor of Paya Lebar Methodist Church ("PLMC"), from Aug 2007 to Jul 2012.
121 sermons over 5 years translates into an average of 24.2 sermons per year, or close to a sermon every other week. That regular feeding on God's unadulterated Word was sufficient sustenance for my wife and I to continue staying on in PLMC.
I did up a Pivot table, and what is pleasantly surprising is that he preached at the Main/Adult service as often as he did at The Next Generation ("TNG") Youth Service!
In fact, after Rev Dr Jonathan Seet was posted into PLMC in 2010 to replace Peter Koh as her Pastor-in-Charge, he made Holy Communion Sunday (ie. the 1st Sunday of every month) Service a combined one (ie. there would not be a separate TNG Service at PLMGS, but the youth would instead attend the Main service.
Rev Seet would also share the pulpit with his 3 fellow pastors, which meant Rev Reuben ended up preaching more regularly at the main service, and the numbers bear this out:
I have now uploaded 55 of his 121 sermons, together with AI-generated synopses. Happy feeding!
Oh ya, those who are sharp would have noticed that I have renamed the podcast to TRAC (The Reverend's Anointed Collection): Sermons by Reuben Ng, in acknowledgement of how God has fast-tracked him from a Member-on-Trial in Aug 2007 to President in Nov 2024. May God continue to lengthen his cords and strengthen his stakes. Amen?
When he become Bishop of the Methodist Church in Singapore, maybe the podcast will be renamed MCS (Marvellous Collection of Sermons) accordingly :-)
This post talks about how God challenges us to test Him regarding tithing.
A very recent post has bulleted into the top 5, which is also understandable, because in it I revealed publicly for the first time how I was initially fired, and then miraculously rehired, by that same employer 16 months later.
This was posted in reflection to a sermon preached by Bishop Emeritus Wee Boon Hup about Jesus being our Good Shepherd and contrasted Himself to hired hands who take no ownership of the sheep. My take was that there are pastors who are supposed to be shepherds but behave like hirelings in the way they relate to the flock.
This was posted during the time when there was lots of publicity about Ps Prince receiving a half million dollar salary, and I compared him to being the Master Chef of Christos Restaurant.
Well, he requested the Council to stop paying him a salary, and he now relies solely on his intellectual property, ie. his books, his sermons and subscriptions to his GospelPartner app for income.
I myself am an Unlimited subscriber, paying $49.98 every month (see above).
If there are just 1,000 of such subscribers like me, that would already be the equivalent to the $50,000 he was allegedly paid by the church.
I will not be surprised if there are at least 20,000 subscribers, so that translates into $1m of revenue each month for 22Media, the company that handles Joseph Prince Ministries. There are of course other overheads be paid such as rental, staff salaries, production costs, etc, but even after deducting all those, Ps Prince is definitely earning much more than before :-)
Because Ps Prince exalts, focuses on and honours Jesus so much in all his messages, God in turn has blessed Ps Prince with such a flourishing ministry. Like what Paul says in Eph 3:20, God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask or think. Amen?
The last 9 posts were about my 30+ year career, spanning more than half of my life, and what very much was used by society to define me as a person.
As you can see, it has been quite the roller-coaster ride with its ups and downs, mountain peaks and valley troughs. But through it all, I see the faithful hand of God's provision and protection.
Like what I mentioned in the very first post, man's identity is oftentimes tied to his profession.
In his Children's Day sermon on 4 Oct 2026, Ps Lawrence talked about how many parents hope their children grow up to become a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer (he did not mention accountants or architects, but you get the picture). But we should just be happy that they are our children, and wonderful gifts from God. As parents we should love them for who they are, just like how God loves us because of who we are.
Classic cassette
It was thus also so apt that just 2 days later, on 6 Oct 2026, the Gospel Partner app's Day & Night Devo was on the very topic about IDENTITY!The snippet for that day is from the sermon, "Your New Identity in Christ", a true classic, preached by Ps Prince on 7 May 2000.
A friend actually passed me the cassette version of his sermon to convert into MP3 format.
Ps Prince says it best, so I am reproducing the devotional in full below:
GP morning devo on 6 Oct 26
You Are More than Just What You Do
Let me ask you something that might catch you off guard.
If someone asked you, “Who are you?
Not what you do, not where you work, not what your title is, but truly, who are you?”
What would you say?
It’s harder to answer than it sounds, isn’t it?
What we do is so deeply woven into the way we relate to one another. We meet someone new, and within the first few minutes, it comes up: “So, what do you do?” And without even thinking, we hand them a label. A title. A function.
“I’m in finance.”
“I’m a stay-at-home mum.”
“I run my own business.”
“I’m in full-time ministry.”
Now, there’s nothing wrong with any of that. The Lord gives us our vocations for a reason. Just as He put Adam in the garden to tend it, not as a punishment but as a gift, the Lord designed us to find real satisfaction in meaningful work. He knows exactly how we’re wired and what will bring us a sense of purpose and fulfilment.
But if we are not careful, we can let the gift become lord over us. Many people strive their whole lives, trying to ascend that corporate ladder or attain that prestigious office overlooking the city.
And it’s not just in the corporate world. Even at home, a mother can let caring for her children weigh on her so much that every parenting mistake, every difficult season with a child, can land on her like a personal verdict. It crushes her sense of self.
That’s why I want to remind you today: Don’t tie your identity to what you do. You are not just what you do. You are so much more.
After all, you are a human being, aren’t you? Not a “human doing.”
Here’s what I’ve noticed. When our identity rests on what we do, we become fragile in ways we don’t expect.
We take criticism of our work more personally than we need to. We compare. We compete. We feel unsettled when someone else seems to be doing what we do, only better. We cling to titles and positions longer than we should, because letting them go feels like losing a piece of ourselves.
That’s not what the Lord desires for you.
Look at this piece of wisdom from the apostle Paul about what we choose to build our lives with in 1 Corinthians 3:12–13:
“Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.”
Paul captures it so well here. He talks about two categories of building materials: wood, hay, and straw on one side; gold, silver, and precious stones on the other.
Now, the wood, hay, and straw? That’s everything you accumulate and build on the outside. The titles, achievements, and roles you occupy. These things are purely temporal… and when the fire comes, they don’t hold up.
But the gold, silver, and precious stones? That’s what the Lord has already established in you through Christ.
Your identity as a son or daughter of the Most High. Your standing as a new creation. Your righteousness that’s been given, not earned. Your belovedness that’s not contingent on your performance.
These are things the fire cannot touch.
Now, I want you to believe this without reservation: The Lord absolutely wants you to flourish in what you do. He wants to give you skill in your vocation, wisdom in your decisions, and favor that opens doors you could never have pushed open on your own. He is not asking you to care less about your work.
But He doesn’t want you in a place that leaves you exposed and vulnerable. He wants the blessings in your life to endure and truly serve you.
A lady can say, “I am a mother,” but what happens when the children grow up and leave the nest? Will she know who she is when the house goes quiet?
What about the man who says, “I’m a banker.” What happens the day he leaves the bank?
Or consider the leader in ministry who has built their whole sense of self around their title. Who are they when the season of leading comes to an end?
Let me ask you this question.
When our position or our roles change… when the trappings of our fancy corporate titles are stripped away… who are we, really?
That’s the question the Lord wants to help you answer. Not just when the moment of crisis comes, but now, from a place of security and rest.
So today, whatever you’re walking into, whatever you’re carrying, will you take a moment to recalibrate?
You are not your job title. You are not your output. You are not the sum of what you’ve built or produced or led.
You are a son. A daughter. Loved before you did a single thing to earn it, and loved still on the days you feel like you’ve done nothing right.
That’s who you are. And that’s what will truly endure, even through difficult times.
And so dear friends, this is how we should identify ourselves. We are new creations, sons and daughters of God the Father, highly-favoured and accepted in Christ, the Beloved. That will never change, no matter what our station in life is. Amen?
Yesterday morning, in my enthusiasm to release my blog entry before making my way up to JB, I had made a claim about the word "disciple" not appearing in the epistles without first verifying it. Had this been shown to be otherwise, I would have lost whatever (little) was left of my credibility haha.
Today, after doing the morning devo, I was prompted by the Holy Spirit to do a Google AI search, and voila!
The word "disciple" (mathetes) is absent from the Epistles because it specifically described followers in Jesus’s earthly ministry (Gospels) or early church formation (Acts). Post-resurrection, the church was established, shifting the focus from "learning/following" to being "in Christ," with new covenant identities like "saints," "brethren," and "believers" taking precedence.
Key reasons for the shift in terminology:
A New Reality: The Epistles address a post-Pentecost, "in-Christ" reality where believers are joined to Him, making "student/teacher" language (disciple/rabbi) insufficient.
Identity Shift: The focus moved from followers of a teacher to being members of Christ's body. The term "saint" (holy one) or "brother/sister" (adelphoi) better reflects this new, intimate relationship.
"Disciple" as Foundational: The term "disciple" was mostly used in the Gospels and Acts to describe those following Jesus or the Apostles, a period when the church was being built on that foundation.
Synonymous with Christian: In Acts, "disciple" was used interchangeably with "Christian." As the church grew, "Christian" became the more common, widespread identifier.
While the term is absent, the reality of making followers of Jesus remains in the Epistles through teaching and mentorship.
Having settled my heart about the above, God then brought to mind the phrase "the disciple whom Jesus loved", and how John was so "thick-skinned" to refer it to himself in his own Gospel.
Yes, readers, I have verified this :-)
The disciple whom Jesus loved is widely identified by tradition and biblical scholars as the Apostle John, one of the twelve disciples and author of the Gospel of John. He is depicted as having a close, personal relationship with Jesus, reclining next to him at the Last Supper and standing at the foot of the cross.
Key details regarding this title:
Context: The phrase appears only in the Gospel of John (13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20).
Ps Prince has preached a sermon explaining the above by contrasting Peter and John. Peter boasted about his love for Jesus, even claiming that, as recorded in Mt 26:33, "If all these others fail you, I will not". John, on the other, boasted about Jesus' love for him. In other words, Peter proclaimed his love for Jesus, John proclaimed Jesus' love for him. The former's focus was on himself, the latter's focus was on Jesus.
So what lessons can we draw from the above, keeping in mind that we are now "sons and daughters" rather than "disciples"?
We proclaim that we are a child whom Jesus loves :-)
And fellow NewCreationers, we are so very blessed, because every single word of the lyrics of the following song entitled Whom Jesus Loves (hence the title of today's post) is from the very Holy of Holies.
Note how the lyricist uses the word "child" in place of "disciple". Did he depart from Scripture? Not at all. He had rightly divided the word because John used that phrase containing that word in his gospel, but not once in his 3 epistles nor in the book of Revelations.
In 3 Jn 1:2, he said "Beloved, I pray you to prosper concerning all things and to be in good health, just as your soul prospers."
And the lyricist used that word "beloved" in the song too!
I'm a child, whom Jesus loves Embraced by God above In mountains high and valleys deep I lean upon, Your love for me
On Calvary, You took my sin My soul, my life, set free I am the righteousness of God In Christ, I live forevermore
Your promises are certain You love me to the end You're with me in the fire But You won't leave me there Your miracles unfolding And blessings undeserved 'Cause I am Your beloved The child whom Jesus loves
Speaking of rightly dividing the word, I have lots and lots to share about that, so stay tuned!
Two of the most common criticisms that has been levied upon my church NewCre are as follows:
1) Lawlessness - that because of God's grace, we have now been given the "license" to sin
2) Laziness - that because of Jesus' finished work, we as believers can just rest and not do anything
I will address #1 in a future post :-)
But for today, let's talk about being a "lazy" Christian.
I recall conversations I had with members of other churches, and they would tell me about the many "discipleship" programs that they have, and how NewCre does not seem to have anything similar. They get the impression that because we place so much emphasis on how complete Jesus' work is that we can just laze around and do nothing. We have been accused of "easy-believism".
Now, let's look at the Hebrew word for "disciple". Here is the result of a Google AI search:
talmid (singular תַּלְמִיד) or talmidim (plural תַּלְמִידִים), which literally translates to "apprentice" or "student". It signifies a, devoted learner who follows a rabbi to learn their teachings, mimic their actions, and become like them.
Jesus Himself had 12 disciples, and they had initially followed him because He was seen by them as their good Jewish Rabbi who would one day be the Messiah promised in the Scriptures. Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve.
Now hold that thought.
John the Baptist was also held out as a Rabbi-teacher with disciple-students of his own. It is recorded in Mt 9:14 that John's disciples questioned Jesus as to why they had to fast, yet Jesus' disciples did not need to.
Now let's look at the Hebrew word for son / daughter. Google AI search returns the following:
son is Ben (בן), daughter is Bat (בת).
In the bible, we see names such as Benjamin (son of my right hand) and Bathsheba (daughter of the oath). Yup, contrary to popular belief, Bathsheba was not named such because she took a bath in front of King David :P
While we see the word "disciple" appear frequently in the gospels and in Acts, not a single time does the word appear in the Pauline, Petrine and Johannine epistles. They instead use words like sons, daughters, beloved, and saints. The apostles(!) had progressively received revelation of their identity as "heirs" rather than as "students".
I do admit that there are currently pew-warmers among the 50,000 who attend NewCre. But there are also thousands upon thousands of server-volunteers who on regular basis reach out to foreign workers, prisoners on death row, people with special needs and have been inflicted with "incurable" diseases like Parkinson's etc etc.
Having said that, I do miss the time when NewCre had midweek bible study, and I would be one of the students. I first became aware of this when a candidate for a managerial position told me when I was interviewing him that he "did not mind working late except on Thursdays because he wanted to attend bible study".
And just last Saturday, Rev Reuben Ng also mentioned about someone who worked in a large local bank being told by her boss, "Aren't you supposed to be going for bible study?" when she happened to be working slightly later one evening. That woman so excelled at her work that her boss took note and "gave in" to her request of not having to work late on Fridays. (It was the "vegetables and water" line that she held).
In conclusion, would you rather identify yourself as a "disciple" of Jesus like what Judas was? Or would you rather identify yourself as a "son/daughter" of God, and thus a co-heir of Jesus. You know my answer.
You can go back and read about the first topic by clicking on the hyperlink.
I apologise that due to the CNY festivities and other events, I got a little "off-topic". Having gathered my thoughts and put distractions aside, let us continue with the very sensitive, yet crucial topic regarding Rise and Fall.
"EVERYTHING RISES AND FALLS ON LEADERSHIP"
John C. Maxwell
Thanks to Google AI, the summary of the above quotation is reproduced in full below:
"Everything rises and falls on leadership," a principle famously coined by John C. Maxwell, means that the quality of leadership is the primary determinant of an organization’s, team's, or project's success or failure. It signifies that effective leaders elevate, while ineffective ones limit, potential, affecting culture, performance, and resilience.
Key Drivers of Success (The "Rise"): Organizations rise when leaders possess strong skills, good values, and foster a positive environment.
Key Causes of Failure (The "Fall"): Organizations fall or experience stagnant performance when leadership is weak, unsupported, under pressure, or fails to adapt.
The "Law of the Lid": Maxwell posits that a leader's effectiveness sets the maximum, or "lid," on a team's potential.
Focus on Growth: The principle emphasizes that increasing one's leadership capacity directly improves the success rate of their organization
We see examples of this throughout the Bible.
In the Context of a Marriage (negative example)
Observation: Adam failed to exercise his leadership in his marital union with Eve, allowing the snake to engage in ungodly chatter with his wife.
Result: The fall of man.
In the Context of a Family (negative example)
Observation: Lot failed to exercise his leadership over his wife and daughters.
Result: His wife was turned into a pillar of salt, while his daughters slept with him to produce Moab and Ben-Ammi, whose descendants (the Moabites and Ammonites) became a constant thorn in the side of the Israelites.
In the Context of a Clan/Tribe (positive example)
Observation: Gideon himself described the clan (Abiezer) and tribe (Manasseh) he was from to be the least of the least. But the Angel of the Lord declared him to be a "mighty man of valour".
Result: Gideon defeated the Midianites and rose up to become a Judge over the entire nation, the only one from his "kampung" clan to do so.
In the Context of a Nation (both positive and negative examples)
Observations: We read in Judges and throughout the 2 books of Samuel, Kings and Chronicles about Eli (bad priest), Saul (bad king), David (mostly good), Solomon (good initially), the kings of Israel (all bad), the kings of Judah (some good, some bad).
Results: Depending on the leader, the nation and kingdom/(s) would rise or fall. Ultimately, both kingdoms of the divided nation fell, and were brought into captivity and exiled by Assyria and Babylon.
"Aiya, bro, all that is Old Testament passages lah. Jesus was not yet come. It does not apply this side of the cross, under the New Covenant", I hear some of you saying already :-)
Well, let me give a passage that is not only New Testament but eschatological (end-times) too. Here, Jesus Himself is speaking to the 7 churches, but note something very interesting and consistent in His opening addresses to each of them...
Rev 2:1
"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:
Rev 2:8
"To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
Rev 2:12
"To the angel of the church in Pergamum write:
Rev 2:18
"To the angel of the church in Thyatira write:
Rev 3:1
"To the angel of the church in Sardis write:
Rev 3:7
"To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:
Rev 3:14
"To the angel of the church in Laodecia write:
Unfortunately, the original Greek word "angelos" used there is very much lost in (?non)-translation, so thanks again to Google AI, here is a better interpretation
The "angel" (Greek angelos, meaning messenger) in Revelation 2-3 refers to a figure representing each of the seven churches, with three main interpretations: human leaders/pastors, heavenly guardian angels, or personifications of the church's spirit. Most commentators argue for human leaders or messengers who delivered the letters.
Key Interpretations of the "Angel":
Human Leaders/Pastors: The most common view is that the angel is the pastor, elder, or bishop of the congregation, responsible for guiding the church.
We see very clearly here that leadership is lagi (that's Malay for "much more") important and crucial under the New Covenant. The entire church in Philadelphia was being praised by Jesus because of the exemplary leadership of its senior representative (pastor/bishop), while the other 6 were equally admonished because of poor leadership.
Having established the biblical basis for the above principle, I will continue tomorrow with very specific and concrete examples closer to home (my own situation included), so stay tuned for part 2!
I start off today's blog entry with a picture of a double-headed snake. Read on to know why.
Five days ago, I sent the following to various contacts on Whatsapp
Womenfolk, please don't crucify me. I'm merely the messenger...
A dear brother recently shared a "revelation" from Revelations regarding Christ and the church.
He said that whenever he had an argument with his wife, she would always quote Eph 5:25 to him about how he should love her as Christ loves the church blah blah blah.
Getting tired of being constantly nagged, he decided to quote back to her Rev 2-3, where Christ had some rather strong words of correction for 6 of the 7 churches.
He went further to tell her that the passage is not only New Covenant but eschatological (end-time) as well, which makes it doubly applicable.
He said Christ definitely loves His church, but the way He expresses that love may not be what the church expects or wants to hear...
His wife was left speechless initially. Then after a long pause, she said "You don't anyhow quote scriptures to me. Even the devil misquoted Ps 91 when he tempted Jesus in the wilderness."
Thankfully, both of them had a good laugh after that, and he was not banished from the bedroom.
Menfolk, do try out this experiment with your missus and let me know the outcome.
If you end up kana sleep outside in the corridor, I will pray for a pillar of fire to appear to keep you warm at night.
I received a couple of responses, which I reproduce in full below but with their identities masked for the sake of their own safety haha.
There was radio silence from the rest, for obvious reasons :p
Well, coincidentally, today's morning devotional was on the topic of "correction" and somehow it brought to mind Rev 2-3!
In summary, because God loves, He corrects.
I humbly submit to you that the marital relationship between a husband and a wife is a shadow and a mystery, the substance and revelation of which is the relationship between Jesus Christ and His bride, the church. The sooner wives understand that this is *THE* biblical design and foundation of a solid, godly marriage, the better. We are not "equals", or worse still, the wife is not the head of the husband.
There is a saying that "two heads are better than one". That is not found in the bible, and definitely does not apply in a marital union. Christ is the head of the Church => the husband is the head of his wife.
There cannot be two heads. Look at that picture of the double-headed snake above, and you will get my drift.
As husbands, we ought to love our wives as Christ loves the church, and yes, that includes gently correcting them with our words, like how Jesus corrected the churches.
Having said that, we as husbands must also understand the huge commitment and responsibility placed upon us as the head. God has put us "in-charge", as it were. He held Adam solely responsible for Eve listening to the serpent and partaking of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, even though he was passive throughout the entire engagement.
And this concept of being in-charge and responsible does not just apply to the marital relationship, but extends also to the offspring that come forth from that marital union. We, as fathers, have to be present and active in the lives of our children, especially during their formative years. Too many cases of rebellious sons and wayward daughters can be traced back to one thing and one thing alone: paternal absenteeism. Ps Prince himself attested to that in many of his sermons.
Having said that, those of us whose children have stopped attending church, or are mixing with bad company, please do not feel condemned. Continue to pray for them and know that God is more concerned about their spiritual well-being than we can ever be. Hold fast to Acts 16:31 where God promises that as long as one person in the household is saved, the entire household will be saved too!
Our God is a God of redemption and restoration. No matter what the devil has done, God can and will reverse it and cause all things to work together for our good. He will make all things beautiful in His time. Amen?
