The Bunyan Institute of Theological Studies (BITS)
One of the visions of our church has been to start a Theological Institute “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12). So, for the last few years, in addition to ongoing expository preaching and teaching, we began to conduct concentrated theological and Biblical counseling modules for the members of our church and any other interested persons. Qualified brethren from churches in the USA kindly consented to come and teach these modules.
In God’s time and will, we formally launched our Theological Institute with the name Bunyan Institute of Theological Studies (BITS). Pastor Sugrim Ramesar is leading this ministry in our Church, along with Brother Reynold Ramjattan, one of our Deacons. The Students meet every Tuesday to study under their guidance. BITS has its own dedicated room for classes and a well-stocked exhaustive theological library.
Our concern in theological training is not only for the present generation. We are deeply concerned for future generations and the succession of qualified leadership in our church. We earnestly desire to see the church always taught “the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints” (Jude 1:3). We want to see believers in Christ well-grounded in the truth, to be willing to stand for the truth and, if necessary to suffer for the truth.
Our prayer has been for God to develop BITS into a full-fledged theological program with students from other churches and even from other Caribbean islands. We are delighted to say that God has answered our prayer in His own way as we now have a partnership relationship with Covenant Baptist Theological Seminary in Owensboro, Kentucky. Pastor Akel Bowrin oversees the workings of this partnership. This partnership offers our students the opportunity to study and earn an accredited, reputable, and theologically sound degree/diploma from CBTS. Students who register with CBTS through BITS are given access to a tertiary-level theological education without having to leave the comforts of their homes.
At present, Pastors Sugrim Ramesar & Akel Bowrin are doing their MDiv with CBTS. Four young men and one young lady from our church and two young men from two other local churches are also studying with CBTS. In God’s will, two pastors from India joined the CBTS program in conjunction with our partnership with CBTS. One of these pastors has already graduated with the Master of Arts Reformed Baptist Studies degree (MARBS). The other pastor is doing the MDiv degree.
May the Lord glorify Himself in the work of BITS and our partnership with CBTS.
Evangelism and Missions
The resurrected Lord Jesus Christ said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” On this basis Jesus commanded His disciples, and by implication, every Christian, to “Go … and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matt.28:18-20. NASB). The first step in this great work of making disciples is the preaching of the gospel with a view to seeing sinners converted to Christ. (Acts 8:4; 1Tim.1:15). 1Cor.1:21 says, “God was well-pleased through the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe.” We must do the work of preaching the gospel and God must do the work of saving sinners.
At the Reformed Evangelical Church, we are burdened for the work of evangelism and missions and we have sought to faithfully obey our Lord in preaching the gospel and encouraging and supporting the work of missions. Over the years of our existence as a church we have preached the gospel in our regular Lord’s Day worship services and in special evangelistic programs. And we have rejoiced to see the Lord save sinners who are then baptized and added to the membership of our church.
As a church we have also used other means for the spread of the gospel. We have been freely distributing CDs with evangelistic sermons and evangelistic booklets and tracts to all who visit our church and also to various communities through our visitation programs. In recent times we have been using our church’s website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and WhatsApp to spread the gospel. Lastly, various members have been conducting evangelistic Bible studies with interested persons. All of our evangelistic activities are buttressed with earnest prayer to God, asking Him to bless us with the fruit of conversions. (Jn.15:16).
By God’s grace, we remain resolute in our goal to be an evangelistic and Bible-teaching church. It is not enough to see sinners converted to Christ. The Great Commission requires that we teach believers in Christ all that Christ commanded and teach them to obey all that Christ commanded. The example of the apostle Paul is worthy of our emulation. (Acts 20:20, 26-27). The faithful and sound teaching of God’s word will fill the minds of Christians with the knowledge of God’s word (Col.3:16); produce in them healthy spiritual growth (1Pet.2:2; 2Pet.3:18); guard their souls from false teachers and their false teachings (Eph.4:10-16); teach them how to deal with temptations (James 1:13-16; Matt.4:1-11); sanctify them and prepare them for their heavenly home and reward (Jn.17:17; 1Pet.1:13-16; 2Tim.4:7-8).
Over the years we have sought, by God’s grace, to get involved in the work of world missions. As best as we can, we have supported mission agencies, mission projects, missionaries and pastors. We have sought to provide training and books for pastors. In 1997 we got involved in supporting indigenous churches in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka. In 2016 our pastors began to visit India and Nepal to become better acquainted with the pastors and churches, to preach, and to conduct training seminars. This ministry has become our focused missions’ involvement. Our primary goal is to see Indian and Nepali pastors become theologically equipped to do the work God has called them to do.
The Lord Jesus Christ promised, “I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” (Matt.16:18). We earnestly desire to be actively involved in the outworking of this promise and to see the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ spread throughout the earth.
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost…. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” (Rev.22:17, 20).
Ladies Fellowship
Men's Fellowship
The main objective of our Men’s Ministry is to encourage our men to live Christlike lives. We seek to achieve this objective through the teaching of the word of God during our stated times of fellowship.
Whether we are having panel discussions centred around a specific topic or social gatherings filled with table talk discussions, food and board games, REC's Men's ministry strives to create an environment for our men to be comfortable in their manliness.
We desire to equip men to live a godly life as they serve in the family, church, and community.
The REC Men’s ministry seeks to empower men to:
- Grow and live in a Christ-like manner.
- Develop an effective prayer life.
- Effectively use their gifts to glorify God.
- Build closer personal relationships through social activities.
Our Men's What's App group chat is always buzzing with messages, as we share the word of God, prayer requests, articles and a good laugh from time to time.
We are dedicated to helping men understand biblical manhood.
Youth ministry
Leaders : Caleb & Sarah Willis.
At the core of The Reformed Evangelical Church Youth Ministry is a burning desire for the spiritual welfare of young hearts. We also aim to help them acquire necessary life and social skills in a fun, Christ-centred environment.
Meetings are held on a monthly basis and consist of enjoyable activities, Bible-based games, singing, and a short biblical lesson. The lesson is followed by a discussion session where members and guests can ask and answer questions related to the lesson. Youths are also given an opportunity through other messaging platforms to further discuss the lessons and any other matters throughout the week and to interact with each other on any given day.
Interspersed between these monthly meetings are special events such as hiking, country tours, game nights, conferences, and a variety of other outings. All these events are tailored towards our young people and we welcome all young people between the ages of 12 – 20. We can’t wait to have you with us!
Sunday School
Due to Covid19 restrictions, Sunday School Ministry will commence in 2021.
Vacation Bible School
Our church hosts our Vacation Bible School every year during the first week of the July/ August vacation period. We started off with approximately 30 children; now our VBS has grown to include 120 children, ranging from ages 3 years to 16 years. This week-long event includes activities in the areas of Singing, Craft, Storytelling, Skits and Games. The length of each day's program is 3 hours; starting at 9 am and ending at 12 noon.
Every year we use a different theme to educate kids about the Bible and to spread the message of the gospel. It is our prayer, as a church, that they would tell their parents about what they have learnt in their five days with us. We hope this would encourage their parents to also want to learn more about God's Word. Secondly, it is our privilege to plant gospel seeds in the hearts of each child who comes through our doors. We pray that every song sung and every verse learnt will resonate and someday bear fruit. Our volunteer teachers and helpers have expressed that their interaction with the children and their parents have truly been a blessing to their hearts and that it is indeed an honour to serve and glorify God in the building up of His kingdom.
Book Ministry
The Book Ministry of the Reformed Evangelical Church was established in 1984 with its goal being to supply the saints of God with a rich selection of theological resources and to help foster and develop the minds and hearts of those interested.
This ministry has grown over the years and presently consists of an expansive library and an ever-growing bookstore. Persons can sit, read and feed themselves on the resources available in our Library. The bookstore allows for purchasing of a wide variety of books. Both the Library and store are stocked with several hundred different titles respectively and we endeavour by God’s grace to continue to build upon each in tandem with the other many ministries of the church.
Some of the resources available are:
- Bibles in a range in translations ( NASB, KJV, and ESV)
- Study Bibles
- Systematic Theology Books
- Commentaries
- Biographies
- Christian living
- Encyclopaedias
- And much more!
Members and those interested can easily access these resources and can request titles that may not currently be in stock. Alongside the many books available, the church has also partnered with Ligonier ministries to make available the Tabletalk Magazine in Trinidad and Tobago. This magazine is a daily devotional series that is provided on a monthly basis and can be ordered through our church on an annual basis.
God has clearly commanded us to continually read, study, and interpret His word accurately so that we may understand it, grow in our knowledge of it, obey it, and grow in righteousness. Our church has endeavoured to provide the necessary resources to all of its members and visitors that they may accomplish these goals and bring glory to God through living for Him in this world.
