The Methodist Church in Singapore (MCS) celebrated the launch of its 140th Anniversary as part of Wesley Methodist Church’s 140th Anniversary Service. The milestone anniversary is marked from the time Wesley Methodist Church was founded by Bishop William Oldham and Rev James Thoburn in 1885. After its early years at the first Methodist Chapel at Coleman Street, a new church building was built at Fort Canning, where it still stands today.
About 1,338 congregants were present at the 8.30 a.m. service, which included guests from the Methodist community such as the Presidents of the three Annual Conferences, Rev Reuben Ng, Rev Lek Yong Teck, Rev Saravana Kumar; Secretary of Trustees of MCS, Mr Guan Yeow Kwang; and Mr Anton Moses, Chairperson on the Council of Episcopacy. From the Methodist schools, several board chairpersons and principals were in attendance.
Bishop Philip Lim brought greetings from the connexional body of MCS to Wesley Methodist Church. “We cannot separate the two anniversaries,” he said, reminding the congregation of how the first Methodist sermon was preached by Rev Thoburn on the verse, Zechariah 4:6, “Not by might, nor my power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.”. On reaching this milestone anniversary, Bishop Lim said, “All this can only be the work of God, we are only his instruments.”
The traditional service incorporated familiar Wesleyan hymns and prayers for united community. An intergenerational prayer led by representatives from different generations thanked God for “guiding The Methodist Church in Singapore and Wesley Methodist Church through the ups and downs the past 140 years.”
Year-long events to celebrate MCS 140
Bishop Lim highlighted several events planned for a year-long celebration, such as the Church-wide Holy Week services from 14 to 16 April.
Bishop Lim also shared that MCS’ social concerns arm, Methodist Welfare Services (MWS), would be taking the lead in organising a large-scale volunteer initiative to rally Methodist church members to contribute 1.4 million hours (about 35 hours a person) to serve the community in any area of social concern. There will also be a fund-raising concert, “The Healing Nation” on 1 November 2025 at Star Performing Arts Centre, showcasing collaborations between our churches, agencies, schools, beneficiaries and Christian artistes. This concert will be another occasion to commemorate MCS 140 as we come together for a time of worship and celebration.
Love the Lord your God
Bishop Lim preached from Mark 12: 28-34 where a teacher of the law asks Jesus which commandment is the most important, and Jesus responds by stating that the greatest commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” and the second is to “love your neighbour as yourself.” Bishop Lim said that for this quadrennium, he wanted to go “back to basics” and re-orientate the focus of the Church towards loving God.
He shared three reflections on the passage:
- Our relationship with God
The covenantal relationship between God and his people means that loving God and being faithful to him would derive blessings. But if one acted contrary to that, one would have to “be prepared for destruction”. Bishop Lim cautioned that there was a danger of being so engrossed in loving our neighbour that God became second or third place. - Love must be performed with everything we have
Bishop Lim called on Methodists to examine whether our different demands consumed us until we had no more space for God, preventing us from loving God with our heart, soul, mind and strength. - A total devotion to God
“To love God fully means to devote 100% of our time and energy to him, not part of the time … or when we feel like it. Or worse, … only when we have gotten into trouble,” Bishop Lim said. He elaborated on what it meant to love God with our heart, soul, mind and strength and challenged the congregation with questions: Are we ready and willing to lay down our life for Jesus? Do we fill our minds with the word of God?
Bishop Lim concluded his sermon by asking the congregation if they were near the Kingdom of God, and encouraged them to to draw near to God by loving him wholeheartedly.
New corporate video
To commemorate 140 years of Methodism in Singapore, MCS produced a new corporate video. Watch below.
For more information about the video, please contact the Communications Department at communications@methodist.org.sg.
Lianne Ong is the Editor of Methodist Message. / Photos by MCS Communications