About Us
Our Mission, Vision and Theme
Zion Full Gospel Church
Zion Full Gospel Church is affiliated with the Assemblies of God of Singapore
Our Mission
To bring people to Christ with the full Gospel, develop them to Christlike maturity and empower them for ministry and witness.
Our Vision
To establish Zion Full Gospel Church as a church that GROW-GLOW-GO.
Our Theme For The Year
The Theme for Zion Full Gospel Church in 2013 is “ RISE UP TO RAISE UP” (2 Timothy 2:2)
v2And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
The quarterly focus will be :
| January - March | : | Receive The Charge (I Timothy 1-3) |
| Anchor verse : I Timothy 1:18 | ||
| April - June | : | Guard The Truth (I Timothy 4-6) |
| Anchor verse : I Timothy 6:20 | ||
| July - September | : | Pass The Baton (II Timothy 1-4) |
| Anchor verse : II Timothy 2:2 | ||
| October - December | : | Finish The Race (II Timothy 4:7) |
| Anchor verse : II Timothy 4:7 | ||
Our Logo
The Holy Spirit of God (the dove) upon Mount Zion anoints the Christian and empower them to bring the gospel to the nations of the world.
Significance of the signs
The dove signifies the Holy Spirit of God. The branch signifies the gospel of peace. The mountain signify Mount Zion and the circle signifies the globe.
Our History
The Arrival of the Finnish Missionaries in Singapore
The roots of Zion Full Gospel Church (ZFGC) reach back to September 1949 when the first Finnish
missionaries, having had to leave China, arrived on the shores of Singapore. Some of them
continued their journey to Japan, Taiwan and Thailand, whereas Sisters Nilja Nikkanen and Aira
Kolkka stayed in Singapore to become the first Finnish Missionaries in this city. The Lord
answered their prayers for leading them to find ways and means to share the Gospel with
Singaporeans.
The Mode of Witnessing of the Finnish Missionaries
The Lord impressed upon their hearts to go to the streets, and street corners to proclaim the
Good News and so they did. As the sisters stood at the street corners and played their guitars
and sang in Mandarin (which in those days was not a common language at all), people gathered to
listen to them and wondering who and where these people hailed from. By and by, some local
Christians and church leaders began approaching them and advised and helped them to get some
permanent work started.
In the beginnings they met in different parts of Singapore, especially in homes. One of the earlier meeting places was at the basement of an attap house along Grange Road.
Later on they moved to the Indus Square Alexandra area.
The Emergence of Lay Workers
The Lord then moved the hearts of the local people and soon they rented a small wooden shop
house in that area, which became a lighthouse in spiritual darkness. In that area, they met
with some Chinese Christian families. Those faithful believers later became great contributors
in sharing the Gospel. The families of Rev & Mrs William, and Rachel Lee, were the first ones
to help these foreign ladies.
Soon the sisters received more helpers from Finland when Sis Mirjam Paukku, Bro & Mrs Elias & Rachel Kossila and Sis Mirjami Rasi arrived by the end of 1959. As the number of missionaries increased, new areas were reached with the Gospel. Sis Aira Kolkka and Sis Mirjami Rasi moved to the Sembawang area. The Lord impressed Sis Rasi’s heart to reach those thousands of Tamils living in that area, whereas Sis Kolkka was engaged in reaching the Chinese population. Thus, ‘The Praise Evangelical Church’ got started.
Our First Full-Time Worker
Sis Nikkanen with some local sisters continued upholding the witness for Jesus and the Lord
honoured their labour of love and blessed their work. Then the Lord sent to them Bro Ong Hun
Siang who being a teacher by training gave his spare time and talents for the reaching the
people in that area of city. Soon he gave up his regular occupation to be fully engaged in the
Lord’s service.
Our First Church Premises at Tiverton Lane
On or about 1965, ZFGC, then known as Zion Centre, moved to a building of their own at 24,
Tiverton Lane, Tanglin. At about the same time, in conjunction with the move, Bro Joel
Ikonen from Finland arrived to add to the work force. This building was a product of financial
contribution of Finnish Christians living outside Finland, especially in the USA, Australia,
Sweden and of course, people living in Finland too. Sisters Hilja Nikkanen & Mirjam Paukku, Ps
Joel Ikonen and Rev Ong Hun Siang (the first local full-time pastor of ZFGC) worked together in
building up the church in the late sixties.
The Church at Queensway Shopping Centre
In the year 1971, the church moved to Queensway Shopping Centre, having acquired two
units of office space at level 3. In those days, Queensway Shopping Centre was one of the more
happening places in the neighbourhood. It was well-known for sports accessories and a haven
for jeans.More importantly, it was a fertile ground to reach out to non-believers. The church
grew from strength to strength at Queensway under the dynamic leadership of Pastor Joseph Ong
(who took over from the late Rev Ong Hun Siang). At its height, its congregation surpassed 200
worshippers. It was during this season that the leaders and members laboured long and hard to
raise funds for a new building to house the growing church. The adults collected old
newspapers, magazines and clothes day and night. The Sunday School children put in their fair
share too by selling ‘kilometrico’ pens to raise funds.
The Move to Our Present Premises at 44, Hoot Kiam Road
By the grace of God, and the labour of love by the leaders and members, in 1980, the church
moved to its present premises at 44, Hoot Kiam Road. It is a two-and-a half-storey
freehold property sitting on 10,000 square feet of prime land in the prestigious District 10.
Following the move, ZFGC was formally and legally registered as Zion Full Gospel Church. It
was extremely remarkable that the current property was purchased and paid in full without
having to dispose the office premises at Queensway Shopping Centre.
The Coffee House Ministry at Queensway Shopping Centre
Since the premises at Queensway Shopping Centre was then still owned by ZFGC, in the years
between 1985 to 1988, ZFGC ran a Coffee House Ministry every Saturday Night to reach out to
non-believers who were either invited by our members or were wanderers in the shopping
centre.Besides serving ‘Suzuki’ Coffee, the leadership arranged for live concerts every
Saturday Night to entertain the visitors. Guest performers include well-known local Gospel
artistes, and our very own home grown talents who are still worshipping in our church today!
After the concert, the Gospel was then shared by counsellors deployed to the various
tables.Praise the Lord for the souls reaped over the years from the Coffee House Ministry!
In the late 1980s and 1990s
On or about the late 1980s, Rev Charles Tan took over the pastoring of ZFGC from Pastor Joseph
Ong. Pastor Tan was no stranger to the folks at Zion. Prior to being Senior Pastor, Pastor Tan often came to minister to us as a Bible Teacher. He is fondly remembered for single-handedly
teaching courses such as Walkthough of the Old Testament, Walkthrough of the New Testament and
Seven Laws for The Teacher. Pastor Tan must also be credited for being the pioneer advocate of the witnessing tool ”Evangelistic Explosion”, affably known as EE. In recent years, the youths in our church have interestingly been equipped with EE for street witnessing.
Facelift and Upgrading at 44 Hoot Kiam Road
Due to wear and tear, in 1998, the church embarked on an ambitious major building project to
restore the church premises through an ‘Alteration and Addition’ (commonly known as A&A)
with funds from the sale of the premises at Queensway. The church was very blessed to be able
to sell the premises at the height of property prices in Singapore. The sale price was more
than sufficient to cover the A&A with enough to spare for the subsequent years of annual
maintenance.
The restoration was completed in March 1999 and we now enjoy spanking new facilities to worship and serve God in a more conducive environment. Praise the Lord! Indeed, one marvels at just how good the Lord has been to ZFGC all these years!
In its state of glory, after serving as a Senior Pastor of ZFGC for some fifteen years, Pastor Charles Tan decided to return to his former church to fill the vacancy of the Senior Pastor in 2000. He handed over the appointment of Senior Pastor to Pastor Randy Sing. Pastor Randy (as he is often known) pastored the church from 2000 to 2003 to continue to pursue the goals that were before him.
The Incoming of Rev Alfred Yeo as Senior Pastor, ZFGC
As the post of the Senior Pastor was then vacant, the Elders approached the Assemblies of God
(AG) of Singapore for assistance. The AG kindly agreed to release Rev Alfred Yeo to serve as
ZFGC's Interim Pastor for five months from July to November 2003, while the leadership waited
for the confirmation of the new senior pastor. Rev Yeo was then the full-time Executive
Director of the AG Singapore.
Thereafter, in lieu of Rev Alfred Yeo, Rev Peter Chng assumed the role of Interim Pastor of ZFGC from November 2003 to February 2004.
As the post of the Senior Pastor remained vacant with the departure of Rev Chng, Rev Alfred Yeo was then invited back to assist. This time round, Rev Alfred Yeo assumed the post of the Senior Pastor in April 2004, albeit, on a part time basis. In January 2005, Pastor Yeo assumed the full time pastorate till this day.
ZFGC becomes a part of the Assemblies of God, Singapore
In July 2004, the leadership having obtained the support of the congregation, ZFGC then became
the 49th church to be part of the Assemblies of God (AG) movement in Singapore.
Nothwithstanding the new affiliation to AG Singapore, ZFGC is always mindful of its birth
through the sterling commitment and sacrifices of the Finnish Missionaries and our early ties
with the Pentecostal Evangelical Mission (PEM) in Singapore.
The Inception of the Hokkien Congregation
In January 2005, we were very blessed with the inception of Pastor Joyce Kwek and the dynamic
Hokkien Congregation to be part of ZFGC. With this new congregation, the church has since run
three weekly Worship Services i.e. for the English speaking, Mandarin speaking and Hokkien
speaking.
Celebrating 40 years’ of God’s Faithfulness in 2005
On Saturday, 15 June 2005, ZFGC celebrated 40 years of God’s faithfulness of church history in
Singapore with a Gala Dinner at the Holiday Inn Atrium. Incidentally, 15 June is the
date of ZFGC’s legal registration.
In attendance were 350 members, guests and well-wishers to join the grateful hearts of the folks of Zion.
Recent Key Developments
Thereafter, under the leadership of Pastor Yeo and Pastor Joyce, by the grace of God, the
church has grown from strength to strength, in numbers and in faith. At its peak, the
congregation size (including the Sunday School population) was about 350.
The excitement was not only confined to the adults. At the Sunday School front, Pastor Yeo was instrumental in introducing the Royal Rangers curriculum to our Kids’ Ministry which continues till today.
In view of the critical spiritual development of our youths in Zion, Pastor Alfred Yeo personally supervises the Youth Ministry, also known as the Detonate, with the help of the Youth Committee.
The gradual growth propelled the leadership to move the English Congregation to Golden Village Hall No. 5 at Great World City to hold its weekly Sunday Services. With a seating capacity of 200, it was a strategic move to make room for the English congregation to grow even further
Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD Almighty.
Zechariah 4:6 (NIV)
Updated by Boon Heng and adapted from the writings of Rev Joel Ikonen and Rev Alfred Yeo
Our Church Constitution
The constitution of Zion Full Gospel Church can be accessed here.
The Church Board
| Pastors | : | Rev Alfred Yeo (Senior Pastor) |
| Pastor Joyce Yeo (Mandarin & Hokkien Congregation) | ||
| Elder | : | Tan Boon Heng |
| Honorary Secretary | : | Bernice Quek |
| Honorary Treasurer | : | Chong Lay Hong |
| Deacons | : | Nancy Ng |
| Lee Mei Ling | ||
| William Lim | ||
| Thomas Tay |