Grace Church

"What matters is not simply owning a Bible, or even merely reading and knowing it, but living by it and loving the one to whom it points: the Lord Jesus." —Alistair Begg

Read today's devotional: https://bit.ly/3xuqhg3

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. (Joshua 1:8, ESV)

I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds. (Psalms 77:12, ESV)

I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word. (Psalms 119:15, ESV)

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Philippians 4:8, ESV)

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16, ESV)

We hereby present to you the glorious, joyful, and yet the thrilling message that we wanted to share with you all! By the incomprehensible grace and wisdom of God, Pastor Boaz Prince got the opportunity to pursue Master of Divinity, a four years in-depth theological course, at Bethlehem College and Seminary , Minnesota.

For the past four years, one of our elders, Pastor Boaz Prince has been trying hard to get to BCS to pursue his dream of having a formal theological education. However, God never opened that door. Yet he didn’t lose heart. He trusted in the absolute sovereignty of God over everything and clung to the wisdom of God. He prayed and sought the Lord asking that He would make a way. Days went on and Pastor Boaz planted our church in January 2021 and he decided to apply to BCS for one last time. To our utter surprise, he got it this time!! He didn’t just merely get selected for the course, but he also got a full scholarship for the entire duration of the course that would also take care of his and his wife’s living expenses throughout the course!! He is BCS’s 2022 Alex Steddom Fund Grantee. BCS generously offers this scholarship to one international student per year and this year’s recipient of this scholarship is Pastor Boaz.

God opened all the doors wide open that He had closed earlier. There were many purposes behind God closing those doors back then, and we realize now why God closed them.

And on Monday, 20th June 2022, Pastor Boaz went from here to Bethlehem College and Seminary with his wife, Sister Steffi, to pursue Master of Divinity. We are deeply moved by the grace of God upon our church and we thank Him with grateful hearts for such a tremendous blessing. This is ultimately a blessing for our church as his goal is to finish his studies at BCS and return to our church and shepherd the congregation to develop faithful elders and ministers. God has given us faithful elders to serve the church while Pastor Boaz is in the seminary. Our Elders Prince Balakrishnan and Daniel Ford will shepherd our church and they have begun their work already. We are thrilled to behold what God has for us in the future! Moreover, we can see that God is working in our nation in unthinkable ways. And blessed to see the work of God in our nation! We pray that God raises men in our church and other churches of our nation who will preach the gospel faithfully to the unreached and stand for His truth at all times and all costs. We also pray that God’s name is honored through our church and the churches that God is building and raising. Soli Deo Gloria!

13/06. Yet another milestone in 2022 by the sovereign grace of God! It’s a little more than a year of planting our church and its growth is obvious. Four of our members just got baptized! It was such a glorious day! Those who got baptized are Bro. Abraham, Bro. Joshua, Sis. Christy and Sis Flora. The lives of these members have been watched and been paid close attention to and we could see God’s hands working in their lives. Based on their profession of faith, understanding of the gospel, continuous progression in their lives, and their personal salvation testimonies in front of the church, Pastor Boaz Prince baptized them that Sunday in a small village, about 20 minutes far from our church. It was a joyful time for all of us and we praised God for His grace and mercy upon us. And if God wills, we we would baptize many more in the days, months, and years to come. We pray that God’s name may be glorified through our church! Soli Deo Gloria!
#2022

//PART TWO//

The last day’s focus was on the local church’s mission and its vision for the future. The mission and vision of a local church is to love the Lord always, stay faithful to Him, serve His church, raise faithful men and plant many healthy and biblical churches everywhere and advance His kingdom by His grace.

Ethne Institute also distributed free books from the gracious giving of IX Marks Ministry (). These books will undoubtedly be resounding blessings for our church and we are forever grateful for their faithful ministry.

In essence, this workshop had been immensely edifying for us in various aspects, and we cannot be thankful enough. We also learned that although many churches have wandered away from the truth, God is sovereignly working in this country and building and sustaining His church and advancing His kingdom in unthinkable ways. It is a joy and mercy to be a part of this undeserved blessing! What else can we say except that God’s Name may be great in this nation! Soli Deo Gloria! (PART TWO)
The distinguished speakers of the workshop were Dr. John Piper (), Dr. DA Carson, Pastors John Folmar, Vijay Sastry, Karun Kumar, Shankar Babu (), Stephen David (), Joshua Jude, Samuel Boppuri, Harsh*t Singh () and Raksh*th Sardool (*th_s_kothapalli).

//PART ONE//

From 17th May to 20th May, the men of Grace Church had the privilege to attend one of the biblically faithful workshops in India - Ethne Institute’s Workshop on Ecclesiology in Hyderabad, India. This workshop had been so edifying and we befriended numerous brothers from different parts of the nation. We went looking for solutions to common issues that every church might struggle with and the brothers we met not only guided us with directions and provided solutions but surprised us with loving friendships and numerous more blessings.

This workshop focused on Ecclesiology, the study of the church. We were eminently blessed by the sermons and panel discussions of pastors and theologians from India and abroad. We were further blessed with new friendships and fellowships!

The workshop began on the evening of 17th May with a live recorded interview with Dr. John Piper (, ), interviewed by Bro. Vijay Sastry, an organizer of this workshop. Following this, Bro. Vijay described the present state of most Indian churches — as unhealthy and ignorant.

The following day began with a sermon on the foundation of the church — the gospel and went on with exegetical sermons by different speakers describing the meaning and purpose of the local church, including a live online session with Dr. DA Carson. Moving forward, there were sermons on the qualifications of church leaders, and its common issues were addressed. Furthermore, expositions on the importance of church membership, ordinances, counseling, discipline, and discipleship imparted a deeper understanding to all of us and cleared many of our questions.

**Please continue reading Part Two.**

15.05.2022. This day goes down the history of Grace Church. This day marks a milestone. Because Grace Church now has an address! Yes, you read it right! By the merciful providence of God, we now have our church building. It has been a year and we are stunned by how He guides and builds His church. Brother Prince Balakrishnan dedicated the church building and pastor Boaz Prince preached from John 14:15-24. Although the building is not fully ready yet, it is now ready for church functions.

The sermon summerizes that we are to obey the Lord and dedicate ourselves to Him. There is no point in dedicating the building but not dedicating ourselves to Him while claiming that we love Him. That isn’t love but hypocrisy. Instead, let us dedicate ourselves to loving the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and loving our neighbour and serving our church. This is our calling. This is our life. Soli Deo Gloria!

And now I ask you, dear lady-not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning-that we love one another. And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it. For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward. (2 John 1:5, ESV)

There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true, and the other is to refuse to accept what is true.

~Soren Kierkgaard

Scripture never instructs us to:

Rebuke our disease, cast out our problems, speak into our trials, claim our success, demand God to do something.

God is not your genie and the Holy Spirit is not your puppet.

~ Dustin Benge

“True Christianity will cost a man the favour of the world. He must be content to be thought of ill of by man if he pleases God. He must count it no strange thing to be mocked, ridiculed, slandered, persecuted and even hated.”
~ J.C. Ryle

// LATE POST //

This is a group picture from the Theology Matters Conference (in Tamil) that we conducted on March 12, 2022. This is Grace Church’s first ever conference since its planting in January last year. Pastor Boaz Prince taught in and through all the sessions of the conference, and our focus was exclusively on the Doctrines of Grace. This was followed by a Q & A session in which many doubts and common misconceptions were addressed.

Moreover, this conference not only elevated the understanding and knowledge of our members, but also instilled in our minds what a glorious, majestic and sovereign God we serve, and how unworthy we are in front of Him! All these endeavours accomplished by the grace of God makes us rejoice in His promise that He will build His church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it, exhorts us to love the Lord more zealously, worship him in spirit and truth and proclaim his glorious name. Soli Deo Gloria!

P.S. Many are missing in the picture.

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will sn**ch them out of my hand. (John 10:27-28, ESV)

By God's astonishing grace, mercy and providence, we are going to conduct our first theological conference, Theology Matters, on 12 March 2022. This year our focus is completely on Reformed Theology: Doctrines of Grace. In this conference, Pastor Boaz Prince will preach on each of the Doctrines of Grace, TULIP, in an expository manner, followed by Q & A session at the last. And this conference is going to be exclusively in Tamil.

In-depth knowledge of God's Word is indispensable for a Christian to worship the Lord in Spirit and truth, and to adore Him for who He is. So then, what are you waiting for? Register using the QR Code or the link, and join us this Saturday on 12 March, 2022. Don't miss this blessed opportunity to discover the precious God's truth being preached exclusively in Tamil. See you on Saturday, saints! Soli Deo Gloria!

Note: The registration fees per person is Rs. 250/- and lunch will be provided for everyone who attends the conference.

#2022

Greetings brothers and sisters! What a joy it is to study the doctrines in the Bible! In fact, the purpose of this study is to behold God's glory and worship Him for who He is and what He has done. In this next lesson on our Theological Foundations class, we are going to study the Penal Substitutionary Atonement of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In this lesson, which we will be studying for the next few weeks, we'll trace thr theology of atonement from the OT to the NT, study the substitutionary nature of the atonement and its definite nature. Hope you join us for this study and praise, honour and glorify Him for sending us His one and only Son. DM for link. Coram Deo! Soli Deo Gloria!

The only new year resolution that will make a lasting difference in your life is to love Christ more than ever and give your complete allegiance to Him

~Pastor Boaz Prince

//LATE POST//

A few pictures from meeting at Bro Prince Balakrishnan's house this December. It was a blessing to listen to Pastor Boaz Prince preach on 1 Samuel 5: It is easy for anyone to idolize anything like how the Philistines made the Ark of the Lord into an idol and forsook the Lord of the Ark. They had all chances to repent and trust in the true God and yet they rejected all their chances. They knew all the miracles that the Lord had done and they themselves witnessed signs one after the other. Inspite of them, they turned their backs on God. And rather than going to God for forgiveness, they tried to get rid of Him and His Ark. Isn't this what we do in our everyday lives? Only the circumstances are different. We reject God and idolise everything. By God's grace, may we repent of this gruesome sin. Instead of running away from the Lord let us run towards Him for forgiveness of sins, and He will forgive our sins for He has promised to. Repent and trust in the Lord and He will forgive your sins and will grant you eternal life. Soli Deo Gloria!

And here it is, the last Sunday of 2021! It was a blessing to listen to Brother Prince Balakrishnan as he preached on John 1:14-18! This year has been an incomprehensibly wonderful one through God's grace, mercy and providence. We are waiting on the Lord and His promises that He will finish what He has began and that He will build His Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. If you're in and around Sulur, Coimbatore, make sure to visit our Church.

What we celebrate at Christmas is not so much the birth of a baby, but the incarnation of God Himself.
-RC Sproul.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and may you rejoice in the hope, love and mercy in the Lord and may that lead you in worship and exaltation of the Lord, all the days of your life.

It's Christmas Eve, saints! And we're excited to invite you for our service today at 7pm! Join us this evening at our Church! Location and contact given on the post. Soli Deo Gloria!

A handful of pictures from yesterday's expository sermon by Pastor Boaz Prince on 1 Corinthians 3:18-23. He has been preaching on The Church, the Bride and the Body of Christ. This is a series and yesterday he preached a part on the Divisions in the Church. Specifically, we looked at the worldy wisdom inside the Corinthian Church, how it is relevant today, how to biblically avoid it and how must we live as believers knowing divine wisdom in an unwise world. In essence, the sermon was on Becoming Foolish that you can Become Wise. What a blessed sermon it was and what a wonderful time!