150th Anniversary of Assembly Testimony (Celebrated on May 28, 2005 in Penang) Celebrating Generations of God's Faithfulness |
A generation is commonly regarded, though not necessarily definitive, as a period of 40 years. Consider, too, the numerous occasions of forty days/years in scripture as periods of testing and probation. God’s Faithfulness is often seen in His raising up of Faithful men and women for His Cause and His Christ. The Gallery of Faith in Hebrews 11 is an example. The year was 1820 or thereabout when a Spirit-led movement inspired many Bible-loving believers to come out of established churches and denominations in the United Kingdom, Europe, America and all over…
It indeed was marvellous and in a sense miraculous that in one generation (1820-1860) the Gospel Light was relayed by the brethren in Bristol, England to the far-away shores of the Prince of Wales Island when modes of fast transport were foreign commodities then. A Swiss missionary by the name of Bausum, perhaps through his contacts with the brethren in Bristol, [Mr Bausum married the mother of the first Mrs. Hudson Taylor * , making him a relative of George Muller, elder of Bristol Bethesda Chapel] was already serving the Lord at 35 Farquhar Street in the Pinang of that generation in 1855 . [Assembly work commenced in 1855 in Pinang, when Mr. Bausum of Swiss assemblies began work here 1] Nothing much is known of this man except that he was serving with the London Missionary Society (LMS) and he stayed behind while his other colleagues left for China. In 1859 , Mr. & Mrs. John Chapman from Bethesda Bristol arrived to establish the initial work at Farquhar Street Mission House and Chapel. They had to leave in 1868 because of the debilitating poor health of his wife. Bausum and the Chapmans were the Faithful Pioneers of Assembly Testimony in Penang in their generation. Before the departure of the Chapmans, William MacDonald from New Zealand arrived in Penang to help the Chapmans in the expanding assembly in 1860. He was in Penang until called home on Dec. 31, 1911. William MacDonald was the Faithful Builder of Assembly Testimony in Penang for one whole generation. Many missionaries from all over then came to Penang and made it their base to reach out to other parts of the peninsula and Singapore founding assemblies as they did so. In 1921 SS Adams from Australia arrived to assist MacDonald and Arthhur Harwidge who came in 1915. Adams continued to serve to the next generation at Burmah Road Gospel Hall and Butterworth Gospel Hall. He returned to Australia for good in 1983. Adams was the Faithful Pastor visiting assembly members in Penang for nearly two generations of his life. He was over 80 years when the Lord called him home on May 1 st, 1985. Responsible for the local expansion of assembly work was Tan Wah Kim. He was God’s Faithful Visionary Elder and Building Project Developer in Assembly Testimony in Penang . He was a recognised elder at the young age of 28 in Farquhar Street Chapel and continued to Burmah Road Gospel Hall. He was responsible for the building of the BRGH Sunday School Annexe (1956), Butterworth Gospel Hall (1959), BRGH Mission House (1961), Christian Convention Centre (1963), Island Glades Gospel Centre (1970), Butterworth Mission House (1976), and Sungei Nibong Home and Centre (1982). One thing of note was that his homes were always open for the Lord’s work. 27 Free School Road was the starting point of the BRGH Penang Free School Prayer Group and 11 Circular Drive was where the Fettes Park Sunday School met. He went home to be with the Lord on May 31, 1983, having served the Lord well in the assemblies in Penang. Since 1983, can anyone else be singled out for special-mentioned Faithfulness as we celebrate the Generations of God’s Faithfulness for these 150 years? There are but because they are still living today, I shall not mention names. These are the Heroes and Heroines (the wives of these men of God, and other single sisters, played very important roles too) of Faith and Faithfulness of God’s Faithfulness through them throughout these generations. There were and are many more of the faithful workers of the Lord who worked behind the scenes in both the English- and Chinese-speaking assemblies (Yeoh Khiam Heong was a prominent example) in those early years. Their understanding, cooperation and unity made these two assemblies and the “daughter” assemblies what they are today. These latter assemblies have further reached out to establish the assemblies at Sungei Ara and Bukit Mertajam. The Challenge for all of us living in this generation as we celebrate the Generations of God’s Faithfulness in the 150 years of Assembly Testimony in Penang is to pray that our Faithful God will continue to give us:
Do we find these Faithful brethren in our assemblies today? Over 20 years have passed; can we detect men and women of such faithfulness in our generation? What will it be for our present and future generations? Brothers and sisters let us: Remember your leaders, who spoke the Word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:7, 8 * That The World May Know, Vol. 5 page 167 by Frederick A. Tatford published by Echoes Publications (1984) |