Spirit-filled living: Conversion stories of our 21 baptism candidates

The Church, family members and friends gathered to witness the baptism ceremony of our brothers and sisters. For some, that day felt like a graduation ceremony, a reunion with old friends and snapping pictures to remember such a significant day. But baptism is so much more than just a birthday celebration or another religious ritual. Our Lord Jesus Christ suffered death on the cross and rose again from the dead for our salvation. Baptism is the outward sign of all that God does for us in Christ. He unites us with him in his death, grants us forgiveness of sins for his sake and raises us with him to new life in the Spirit. Baptism is the proclamation of the gospel. The Church testifies to how the work of God took place in the hearts of these 21 people. Behind every baptism has a story of how the gospel was preached. 

Our emcee that day was our Elder Joel Lee .

After the guests were greeted and settled down. Together we sang “It’s your Grace” led by David Kuok and Joel Lo. 

This song “It’s Your grace” was fitting because it reminded our Church that we were witnesses of God’s grace. It helped us to recall God’s grace in our own lives. It was truly remarkable as a Church to remind ourselves that God is among us and that he truly is the Head of our Church.

After singing, our Founding and Lead Elder, Pastor Robin officiated the baptism.

All 21 of them were dressed in black attire to signify their old self lived in darkness. 

Our Founding and Lead Elder, Pastor Robin said to all those who were witnessing, 

“People of God, I have examined the candidates and found evidence of genuine new birth in their lives. The sign of this new birth is baptism.”

As a Church we have learnt from our Sunday gatherings that only those who are BORN AGAIN can enter the kingdom of God as Jesus said in John 3:5, 

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“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” 

From the Gospel according to John, Chapter 3 verse 5

One must be spiritually transformed first to enter God’s kingdom. We thank God for the gift of these 21 disciples of your Son.

Every candidate took their turn to publicly renounce the devil and all his work. As they did that, they affirmed their trust in the one true God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit and repent of their old lives that belonged to the devil. Shortly after that they were all baptized!

The baptism of all 21 brothers and sisters in Christ

Our newly baptized brother, Liew Yoon Roy, is 32 years old this year and has been working as a sales personnel for the past 13 years. Here is what being baptized meant for him, 

Here I am called to be in Christ because it is who I am called to be, “be holy for I am holy”. “I think many might have encountered this statement before, ‘I like your Christ but not your Christians.’ My thoughts on this is that since Christ is the perfect image of God and we are now called to be his disciple, are we NOT therefore to mirror the holiness of Christ? Actually, no one naturally will choose this path of a holy life. I chose to be committed to it anyway because I realized life is about God and this is what it means to be a Christian. This is why I chose to commit to a life of holiness and reflect my commitment in baptism.”

A picture of Liew Yoon Roy with his invited friends and Growth Group members.

Kok Hua attended Tertiary Growth Groups whilst still chasing after his own goals in life. Fortunately, he came to know God and trust in the gospel. He is currently working as a fund accountant at Sunway velocity. He shared his story in the following,

“By God’s mercy, I realised how sinful I was while participating in the bible studies. But seeing the work of Christ on the cross has shown me the REAL HOPE that is not found in this world but in the future with Jesus Christ. After that, it was no longer about what I can achieve in this life but about living a life completely for God himself. I am grateful that I can now live under God’s rule as His adopted son.”

Each of our baptized candidates put on a white shirt to signify that they have now entered a new life with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

We ended the baptism ceremony with prayers by Elder Mark Leong, Fionna and Samuel.

We hope that all our baptized brothers and sisters continue to persevere in this faith and hold fast to the gospel. As a Church, we also pray for the work of God to continue to be done in the Klang Valley.

As Jesus himself said to his disciples in Matthew 28:18-20, 

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All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of  the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

From the Gospel according to Matthew, Chapter 28 verse 18-20