Disciples Of McIntire TIMOTHY TOW Far Eastern Bible College Press Singapore, 2002 Disciples of McIntire © 2002 by Timothy Tow Published by Far Eastern Bible College Press 9A Gilstead Road, Singapore 309063 Republic of Singapore http://www.lifefebc.com ISBN: 981-04-6692-7 Cover Design by Charles Seet 2 Disciples of McIntire Dr. Carl McIntire, Faithful Servant All praise and thanks to Almighty God For Dr. Carl McIntire, faithful servant of the Lord, Who was raised up to stand against the apostasy And continue the Reformation in the 20th Century. At the funeral service in Collingswood, New Jersey, The Lord blessed mightily with thanksgiving and victory. To God be the glory, great things He has done For all who have believed in His Only Begotten Son. The highlight of Dr. McIntire’s funeral Was the faithful preaching of the Gospel, Just as this dear departed pastor had done so In this Bible Presbyterian Church many years ago. Remembrance is the hallmark of gratitude; We give thanks to the Lord for He is good. We pray that we too will be faithful To proclaim the Gospel and carry on the battle. For the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus. Let us persevere in the race set before us, For the defence of the Truth and for the pure Gospel Of our Lord Jesus Christ, the only hope of the world. — Dedicated to Dr. McIntire by the Three Musketeers through the pen of Lehia Paauwe, March 26, 2002. 3 Contents Preface ................................................................................................ 6 Chapter 1 The First Two................................................................................ 8 Chapter 2 Valiant In Fight By Dr. Tow Siang Hwa..................................... 11 Chapter 3 Two Young Bullocks .................................................................. 13 Chapter 4 Bishop Hits Out at Extremists .................................................... 19 Chapter 5 Another Disciple and We Became “The Three Musketeers” .....29 Chapter 6 The Three Musketeers in Manila and on the Home Front..........32 Chapter 7 “Lengthen and Strengthen” 1957-1962 ......................................39 Chapter 8 Dedication of the new Life Church ............................................55 4 Disciples of McIntire Chapter 9 A Dissentious Spirit 1968-1969 ................................................. 60 Chapter 10 ICCC Extends to Indonesia ........................................................64 Chapter 11 To Alma Mater Again 1978-1979 .............................................. 73 Chapter 12 Call to Korea for the Defence of the Faith .................................84 Chapter 13 Dissolution of Synod 1988 ......................................................... 91 Chapter 14 Death in the Pot ..........................................................................97 Chapter 15 50 Years of the Bible-Presbyterian Movement......................... 104 Chapter 16 Obituaries ................................................................................. 108 Beloved and Fiery Protestant Pastor Laid to Rest ................108 Carl McIntire, 95, Firebrand Pastor ......................................109 Chapter 17 McIntire Maxims ...................................................................... 114 Contents 5 Preface Dr. Carl McIntire, who was Dr. J. Greshem Machen’s disciple in the great fight with modernism and liberalism in the thirties became Machen’s successor. What Machen did for the United States, McIntire did for the whole world. I went to study in America in 1948 when the modernist churches were going to form a World Council of Churches and the fundamentalists were organizing as the International Council of Christian Churches. McIntire was President of the Board of Faith Seminary and he spoke to us students about the importance of a Twentieth Century Reformation. It is to preserve the fruits of the Sixteenth Century Reformation brought about by Martin Luther. I was of a graduating class of 20 and the only one, a Chinese, to become McIntire’s disciple. My heart became knit to his heart, like Jonathan’s to David’s. By God’s special grace, He used me to bring in another disciple to McIntire in Dr. K.C. Quek. When I returned from my studies to Singapore, yet another blue- blooded disciple joined the 20th Century Reformation in the person of Rev. Hsu Chiang Tai (C.T. Hsu). So we were called The Three Musketeers. We battled the whole of the modernist and liberal expatriate churchmen in Singapore. By seceding from the old Chinese Presbyterian Synod we established the Bible-Presbyterian Church. Today, after 52 years, the B-P Church has increased sixty-fold in Singapore alone. Though some younger leaders have left us and gone their way, other disciples have arisen to carry on the fight. They are 6 Disciples of McIntire taking the lead in the 21st century, which now centers on the KJB against the newly unravelled poison of Westcott and Hort hidden, e.g., in the NIV. “For we can do nothing against the truth but for the truth.” (II Cor. 13:8). Timothy Tow Singapore, 2002 Preface 7 Chapter 1 The First Two One wintry morning in January 1948, when I had settled down to study at Faith Seminary, there came a distinguished looking gentlemen in his early forties to speak at our chapel hour. His name was Carl McIntire. He was Pastor of the Bible Presbyterian Church, Collingswood, N.J. and President of the Board of Directors of Faith Seminary itself. (He was recently promoted to glory on March 19, 2002, age 95). He had an urgent message for us and he spoke impassionately for almost an hour. His topic was “20th Century Reformation”. As in the 16th Century there was a Reformation brought about by Martin Luther, so there is a need in our 20th Century. For there had risen an Ecumenical movement to reverse the glorious 16th Century Reformation by bringing all denominations together, modernist, fundamental or evangelical to form into a World Church with the view of returning to Rome. Soon, in August 1948 the Ecumenical movement would be organised as the World Council of Churches, in Amsterdam, Holland. To offset this Ecumenism Dr. McIntire called for all fundamental churches to separate from the World Council of Churches by forming an International Council of Christian Churches. This was to prevent the Protestant churches from sliding back to Rome, and to expose modernism and liberalism lording over the Protestant churches, which Machen declared was not Christianity but another religion. 8 Disciples of McIntire In the words of Wesley, my heart was strangely warmed. My heart was knit to his heart, like Jonathan’s to David’s. I became there and then McIntire’s disciple. I began to attend his church at Collingswood and became an assiduous reader of his 8-page tabloid weekly newspaper, the Christian Beacon. I followed every step he took around the world for the 20th Century Reformation. I took delight in his being elected President of the ICCC (International Council of Christian Churches) with representation from 29 countries. The ICCC was organised also in Amsterdam, Holland at the same time the World Council of Churches (WCC) was founded. We were like little David to challenge the Goliath of the WCC. In order to promote their nefarious purposes the WCC called for an East Asia Christian Conference to be held in Bangkok the next year, 1949. Immediately Dr. McIntire assembled a team of 14 church leaders to challenge this Conference, but were roped out when they arrived. Meanwhile, realising Bangkok was only one hop to Singapore, I wrote to my good friend Elder Quek Kiok Chiang in Singapore to receive Dr. McIntire and Vice- president Dr. T.T. Shields that they might witness to the truth. Dr. McIntire and comrade were introduced to the Chinese Inter-Church Union, but it received them with a cold shoulder. The Chinese Churches did not Quek Kiok Chiang want controversy. Nevertheless McIntire and Shields were warmly welcomed by Miss Leona Wu, successor to John Sung and principal of Chin Lien Bible School. A cordial welcome was also extended by Say Mia Tng, Life Church, Prinsep Street when Dr. McIntire spoke at its Christmas Service. The First Two 9 Quek became McIntire’s ardent disciple no less than me, and so there were two. When it was announced the ICCC would meet at its 2nd World Congress in Geneva, August 1950, he sold a small parcel of land in order to pay his way to Switzerland. Since I would have graduated by this time from Faith Seminary, Dr. McIntire invited me also to Geneva. The two McIntire disciples’ zeal for the defence of the Faith was increased tenfold at the Geneva Congress. On a cruise of Lake Geneva, Quek and I decided to start a bilingual quarterly named The Malaysia Christian to spread the 20th Century Reformation, in both English and Chinese. The pen is mightier than the sword. 10 Disciples of McIntire Chapter 2 Valiant In Fight By Dr. Tow Siang Hwa When Dr. Carl McIntire came to Singapore with Dr. T.T. Shields in 1949, he found the groundwork prepared and his words were as “good seeds falling on good ground.” The peril of “men crept in unawares” (Jude 4) had been well rehearsed in our ears by Dr. John Sung during his 1935-8 ministry. As a young believer I heard the Chinese evangelist denounce the apostate preachers in words which remain to this day: “Devil heads with Dr. Tow Siang Hwa devil brains preaching devil doctrines.” In our family both Grandfather and Father held fast to the Word of God and the great doctrines of the faith. Indeed, the Chinese Church, as a whole, was conservative and sound in doctrine,