Bro. Bakht Singh’s vision for the church (I Cor.3.10)
Some salient features of the New Testament church that Bro. Bakht Singh preached and practiced are outlined below
1. The Trinity of the Godhead
God is a Person who has revealed Himself as a Trinity in unity – The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are three Persons and yet one God. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19; 1 Corinthians 8:6)
2. Jesus Christ: The Son of God
Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God, which is to say, that He is Himself very God; He took upon Him our nature, being conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary; He died upon the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice for the sin of the world; He arose from the dead in the body in which He was crucified; He ascended into heaven in that body glorified, where He is now, our interceding High Priest; He will come again personally and visibly to set up His kingdom and to judge the quick and the dead.
(Colossians 1:15; Philippians 2:5-8; Matthew 1:18-25; 1 Peter 2:24-25; Luke 24; Hebrews 4:14-16; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18; Matthew 25:31-46; Revelation 11:15-17;20:4-6, 11-15)
3. New Birth and Salvation
Salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received by personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins (John 1:12;Rom.10:9-10; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; I Peter 1:18-19) and that in order to be saved, sinners must be born again; the new birth is a new creation in Christ Jesus; it is instantaneous and not a process.
4. The Holy Bible as The Word of God
The Scriptures are inerrant, infallible, irrefutable and God-breathed (inspired); and therefore, are the final authority for faith and life, the complete and divine revelation of God to man. (II Timothy 3:16-17; II Peter 1:20-21)
5. Concept of the church (Ecclesia-called out)
The Church is an elect company of believers baptized by the Holy Spirit into one body; its mission is to witness concerning its Head, Jesus Christ, preaching the gospel among all nations; it will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. (Acts 2:41,42; 15:13-17; Ephesians 1:3-6; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Matthew 28:19-20; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)
(a) The Church includes only those who are called out of the world by Christ and those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and saviour. (Acts 2:47)
(b) God’s wisdom will be revealed through the Church – not through angelic beings but through the redeemed people of God (Eph. 3:9-11)
(c) True believers are already united in the “one body” when they are regenerated by the Holy Spirit according to (I Cor. 12:12,13) and therefore, one and all believers throughout the world and throughout the ages belong to each other.
(d) Two major aspects of the Church, viz. one the local or visible and the other universal or invisible. True believers assemble together under the headship of Christ.
(e) Every local church should be led by elders as seen in the book of Acts. According to I.Pet.2:9 the priesthood of all believers is practiced and any form of ecclesiastical order rejected.
(f) The functions of the Church are emphasized, based on Acts 2:41-47 which includes Baptism of new believers, teaching the word of God, fellowship and the Lord’s table, as well as prayers and worship on a weekly basis. The church must actively engage/involve in evangelism, discipleship planting of new assemblies thus ministering to the need of the believers.
6. Baptism
Baptism must follow repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; it cannot precede them in any form. Water baptism (by immersion) is not to be made a means of salvation or a method of joining the church. (Acts 2:40)
7. Laying on of hands :
We practice ‘laying on of hands’ following baptism. This is to express the existence of a relationship that comes into being when the church ‘lays hands’ up on those who have testified to their union with Christ in baptism: they are by virtue of their testimony in baptism members of the “one body” and they are not alone anymore in the body of Christ.
8.The Lord’s table
We practice the weekly observance of the Lord’s Table (I Cor. 11:25, Do this in remembrance of me). The Lord’s Table is placed at the centre to denote that all believers have equal access to the Table of the Lord. The Table is open to all believers regardless of their nationality and colour, caste, creed and status. However, all believers are exhorted to take part in the Table in a worthy manner.
9. Intercessory Prayer
Following the Lord’s Table, one of the brethren leads in intercessory prayer, reminding everyone that the broken pieces of bread which remain speaks of the members of the body worldwide.
10. Provision of shepherds
Every local church needs a shepherd to live among them and to help them in their growth to maturity. This is done in two ways: in small assemblies local brothers take care of the ministry and where there is no one to take up that role, a chosen brother is appointed for a period of time to meet the needs of those assemblies.
11. God’s servants or full time workers
Those who felt called of God to serve the Lord full time, both men and women, came trusting the Lord with no promise of salaries or human security. The primary purpose of God’s servants is to build up and help the local believers become mature so that local leadership could be chosen from among them to continue the work. God’s servants are sent wherever their help and ministry is needed.
12. Worship
One of the unique aspects of this ministry is to teach and practice Biblical worship. Believers – both men and women – are encouraged to worship the Lord audibly one by one. Specific time is set apart for worship. Worship service is preceded by a brief exhortation focusing on Christ.
13. Place of Worship
Every local church takes the initiative to construct an appropriate facility within their means. Every assembly is autonomous and self-supporting. However, the spiritual unity and fellowship of all scattered assemblies is observed. Normally, people sit on floor mats, native style and not on western style benches.
14. Love Feast
One of the salient features of the assemblies is the love feast following the Sunday worship service. The main objective is to provide an opportunity for believers to get together and hence fellowship with one another over a meal. This fellowship over a meal helps to break down barriers based on colour, language, caste or any other man made divisions and is a practical way of accepting each other in Christ.
15. Holy Convocations
This is the hallmark of Bro. Bakht Singh’s ministry. This is based on Lev. 23:4. (It is a concept of the corporate life, worship and devotion of God’s people found in the Old Testament.) This is held every year for a period of about 10 days and helps meeting of believers from all over India and abroad, thus helping the church to renew the vision and strengthen the fellowship.
16. Following the Great Commission: Gospel Raids and Gospel Processions
Following the injunction in Mat 28:19 “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost”, the church undertakes to evangelize and involve every believer of the fellowship in this endeavour. The church organizes Gospel raids on government holidays and other occasions to carry out the Lord’s command to preach the Gospel (Math. 28:19.20). On special occasions such as Holy Convocation, church anniversaries etc, Gospel procession is taken out locally with the permission of the authorities concerned.