By Rev. Allan Ng Kae Khai
It has been a long 3 years since I last stepped into Yishun Christian Church (Lutheran) as a worshipper on 11 June 2023, after the first Church Council interview two days earlier. Before I knew it, things moved at a rapid pace, after the second EXCO interview in late June. I became their Parish Worker on 15 July, installed as LCS Preacher on 1 March 2024, then went through 2¼ years of an intensive ordination process which included “Lutheranism I and II”, “Worship and Liturgy” lessons at Trinity Theological College, “Law and Gospel Preaching” and “Sacramental Pastoral Ministry” internal modules, followed by writing my thesis on “A Reflection of Luther’s Theology of the Holy Spirt and Its Implication on Daily Living.”
All in all, it was a Macedonian call from a previous church I was in, and it took me 40 days of fasting and prayer before I felt God’s peace to go through the formal interview at YCCL. It was a call unlike ever before through it was my second time, because it meant uprooting myself from where I worshipped with my immediate family comfortably. Having come from different church denominations in nearly 2 decades of full-time ministry before YCCL, adjustment was never easy. It took me 7 months of intensive returning to the Scriptures on a clean page, leaving all my past denominational practices and theological biases behind. By the Holy Spirit’s conviction and illumination from God’s word and the Book of Concord with dialogues with fellow LCS Co-workers, I internalized and finally believed what Luther stood for as the true interpretation of Scripture. The “Middle Way”, adherence to Word and Sacrament and proper Law/Gospel distinction finally convinced me that Lutheranism had better answers for many aspects of Christian salvation and sanctification, including suffering.
Pastoral ministry at YCCL and LCS has been enjoyable and edifying, thanks be to God! Of course, past good ministry practices do help and add value to pastoral visits, counselling, prayer, evangelism, discipleship, teaching and preaching. The only initial challenge was shifting from preaching exegetical word-aligned sermons to Law/Gospel centric sermons with proper exegesis, and it took about 1.5 years to slowly transit comfortably. By mid-2025, some YCCL members commented that I am becoming so much more Lutheran! Still, I pray that God will help me to continue to stay relevant to our members in my preaching and teaching.
I praise God and deeply thank all my past and present LCS Co-workers, YCCL colleagues, ministry leaders, Council members, and members who add value and give constructive feedback so that I can further grow in ministry and overcome my areas of improvement. Full-time ministry, of course, comes with its share of challenges but the constant returning to God’s call for this final lap of ministry keeps me in the faith and helps me persevere to the end even after ordination. Positive testimonies of God’s goodness and transformation abound even in YCCL together with my fellow partners in ministry, whether lay or full-time capacity. All glory unto our God and King!
四十天、三年，与一次忠心的呼召
吴基凯牧师
转眼间，距离我上一次以敬拜者的身份踏入义顺基督教会（信义会），已经整整三年了。那是在2023年6月11日，也就是我第一次在教会執事会面试之后的第二天。没想到，接下来的事情发展得如此迅速。继六月底第二次在总会执行委员会（EXCO）面试之后，我于2023年7月15日被委任为堂会的同工，并于2024年3月1日被按立为新加坡信义会传道。随后，我经历了为期两年又四分之一年的密集式按牧装备过程。这段装备期间，包括在三一神学院（Trinity Theological College）修读“路德宗神学（一）与（二）”及“崇拜与礼仪”等课程，也完成了信义会内部培训课程，如“律法与福音的讲道”以及“圣礼牧养事工”。最后，我完成了论文：《反思路德关于圣灵的神学及其对日常生活的意义》。回首这段路程，我深深感受到上帝一步一步奇妙的带领。这是一段出乎意料，却满有恩典的学习、也是塑造与事奉之旅程。
总括来说，这是一个来自我之前所属教会的“马其顿呼声”。在决定接受义顺基督教会（信义会）的正式面试之前，我经历了四十天的禁食祷告，直到内心真正得着从上帝而来的平安。今次呼召与以往截然不同，虽然这是我第二次回应全时间事奉的呼召，却意味着我将要离开与家人一起敬拜的教会生活。
在加入义顺基督教会（信义会）之前，我曾在不同宗派的教会中参与将近二十年的全时间事奉，因此，适应并不容易。我花了七个月的时间，密集地重新回到圣经面前，如同在一张白纸上重新开始，放下过去不同宗派的实践方式与神学偏见。借着圣灵的光照与感动，通过上帝的话语、《协同书》（Book of Concord），以及与信义宗同工们不断的交流与讨论，我逐渐内化并真正相信路德所坚持的灵命觀，才是对圣经真实而正确的诠释。以中庸的态度来坚守圣道与圣礼，并正确地区分律法与福音，最终使我确信：信义宗对于基督徒救恩、成圣，甚至苦难等许多层面，都提供了更完整而扎实的答案。
在义顺基督教会（信义会）以及新加坡信义会（LCS）的牧养事奉，是一段充满喜乐与造就的经历，感谢上帝的恩典！当然，过去良好的事奉经验，也确实为探访、辅导、祷告、传福音、门徒训练、教导与讲道等各方面带来了宝贵的帮助与经验。开始的时候，最大的讲道挑战是从以“经文释义（exegetical）”为主、及紧扣经文内容的讲道方式，转变为以“律法与福音”为中心、并兼顾正确释经的讲道模式。这种转变大约花了一年半的时间，才逐渐适应并能够自然地掌握。到了2025年中，一些义顺基督教会（信义会）的弟兄姐妹甚至评论我说：“你越来越像一位真正的信义宗牧者了！”然而，我仍然祷告，求上帝帮助我在讲道与教导上，继续与会友们的实际需要保持连结，并能切合时代的需求。
我感谢上帝，也深深感激过去与现在所有新加坡信义会（LCS）的同工、义顺基督教会（信义会）的同事、事工领袖、理事会成员，以及众弟兄姐妹们。他们给予我的支持、鼓励与建设性的意见，都成为我继续成长、改善不足的重要帮助。当然，全时间事奉也伴随着不少挑战，但每当我不断回到上帝对我这“最后一程”事奉道路的呼召时，祂就坚固我的信心，使我即使在按牧之后，仍能持守信仰、忍耐到底。在义顺基督教会（信义会）里，我与许多同工伙伴——无论是平信徒还是全时间事奉者——都不断见证上帝的恩典与生命更新的美好见证。愿一切荣耀都归于我们的上帝与君王！
