Our Story
Our History
Rooted in faith and guided by God’s grace, our history bears witness to our devotion to God’s calling. This heritage inspires us to press forward, building a firm foundation of faith centred on spiritual growth as we journey together into the future God has prepared.
1955-1970
Founding & Establishing
Newton Life Church began in 1955 as an offshoot of Tekka Life Church to address space needs, with land acquired at Newton Road. The first service was held in Teochew, later expanding to Mandarin and English. The English service, started in 1956, became an independent church in 1970; it was not until 2004 that we began our own English service again. Originally Presbyterian, the church became independent in 1965 and was renamed Newton Life Church in 1966. Governance began with the election of elders and deacons in 1956. Key early leaders included Rev David T. S. Yang, the first Moderator Pastor, and Rev Qiu Shao Hua, a pioneer in prison ministry who served as volunteer pastor until 1982. Their leadership laid a firm foundation for the church’s growth and mission.
1971-2004
Rooting & Building
From 1971 to 2004, Newton Life Church deepened its spiritual roots and expanded its ministries and infrastructure.
Pastoral Leadership
The church established nine key ministries and six fellowships, focusing on discipleship, care, and spiritual maturity. Regular visitations drew the congregation together, and the fifth Sunday of each month was set aside as Gospel Sunday for evangelistic outreach.
Ministry Growth
To expand the space available for ministry, the Main Sanctuary was rebuilt and completed in 1991, and the Annex Building was rebuilt and dedicated in 2004, providing space for worship, education, and pastoral housing.
Infrastructure Development
The Main Sanctuary (completed in 1991) and the Annex Building (dedicated in 2004) were major milestones, providing space for worship, education, and pastoral housing.
Through God’s grace and the faithful service of His servants, the church was firmly rooted and built up for future growth. All glory to God!
2005-2010
Life-Shaping
From 2005 to 2010, Newton Life Church entered its Life-Shaping period. In 2006, Rev Dr Abraham Lee was appointed senior pastor in 2006. Under his leadership, the church embraced Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven model, launching the 40 Days of Purpose and introducing the 5M structure:
- Membership
- Magnification
- Maturity
- Ministry
- Mission
A leadership team was sent to Saddleback Church in the United States for training, and on their return, church-wide discipleship courses (101–401) were established. In 2005, the church celebrated its Golden Jubilee, marking 50 years with 50 baptisms and 700 in attendance. In 2007, the “Reach One More for Jesus” evangelistic campaign encouraged every believer to lead one to Christ. Rev Dr Abraham Lee resigned in 2010 and returned to the United States. The bold initiatives and lessons of this season laid an important foundation for the church’s future direction.
2011-2019
Return to the Path of Righteousness
In 2011, with no senior pastor in place, Rev Choo Yee Kee was appointed Coordinating Pastor to guide the church’s direction. The theme “Be Right” (Romans 5:1) emphasised spiritual growth through a sermon series on Romans and Sunday School teaching. The church also celebrated its 56th anniversary and hosted Christmas outreach programmes.
In 2012, the church adopted a new vision: “To glorify God by making disciples of Christ.” A five-year plan was launched to focus on missions, equipping, and sending. Leadership training began, including a Counselling Seminar and Bible Conference, alongside an increase in the Mission Fund and the election of new elders and deacons.
2013 emphasised disciple-making with evangelism and missions courses such as “The Walk” and “Kairos.” The church held a retreat in Kuching, East Malaysia.
2014 adopted the theme “A Man After God’s Heart” and trained leaders for deeper discipleship. Major renovations began in preparation for the 60th anniversary while in 2015, the church embarked on a “Christ-Centred Journey,” continuing its discipleship and outreach efforts.
2016 and 2017 built on this with the themes “Christ-Centred Gospel-Driven Journey” and “Christ-Centred, Discipleship-Driven Journey.” During these years Rev Joshua Ting came alongside the church as pastoral mentor, and the church held a retreat, sent leaders overseas to learn, restructured its leadership, and appointed three new pastors.
2018 focused on “Living Discipleship – In Christ, By the Spirit, For the Gospel.” Pastor Vincent Lim was ordained, and the church celebrated its 63rd anniversary and Christmas with vibrant worship while 2019’s emphasis was “Blessed by Christ – Go bless for Christ.” New elders and deacons were elected to continue leading the church forward, and the year concluded with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing significant changes to church life.
2020
onwards
The Discipleship Period
From 2020 onwards, Newton Life Church entered its fifth spiritual milestone: the Discipleship Period. Under the continued mentorship of Rev Joshua Ting, we clarified our church’s core values: Faith, Life and Mission.
In 2020, our theme was “Listen to the God of Love, Listen to Others with Love” (Mark 12:29–31), which guided us through the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Despite severe disruptions, God realigned our thinking and led us to adapt and grow. Online platforms became vital as Sunday Services, small groups, classes and meetings moved online. On 29 March 2020, we held our first online service, transforming homes into places of worship. In 2021, we renewed our vision:
Building generations of a Christ-like family, faith is realised through life that is empowered by mission.
Ministry resumed physically in 2022 with the theme “Experiencing God’s Presence”, followed in 2023 by “Serving God with a Servant’s Heart”. In 2024, we embraced “Shaping the Next Generation”. In 2025, our theme was “Rekindle the Fire”, and in 2026, “ A Compassionate Heart. Caring like Jesus”. Through these years, God faithfully shaped our church into a disciple-making family church, rooted in Faith, expressed in Life, and committed to Mission.
Ordination of Pastors — On 26 July 2025, Rev Simon Ong was ordained, serving as Associate Lead Pastor of the Chinese worship ministry. On 26 October 2025, Rev Vincent Lim was installed as Senior Pastor of Newton Life Church, continuing to shepherd God’s people together with the pastoral team.
