Questions people ask us

No, you do not need to be a member, and everyone is welcome at every service. You do not need to sign up or tell us in advance. You are free to come simply to see what we believe and how we worship, listen quietly, and ask questions afterwards.

True Jesus Church Bandar Mahkota Cheras is at No. 20 & 20A, Jalan Bendahara 24/7, Seksyen 7, Bandar Mahkota Cheras, 43200 Cheras, Selangor. The church meets in a shophouse in Seksyen 7. If you have trouble finding us, email bmc@tjc.org.my before your visit.

The main weekly services are Friday 7:30 to 9:15 pm (Sabbath Night Service), Saturday 10:30 am to 12:15 pm (Youth Service) and Saturday 2:30 to 4:15 pm (Sabbath Afternoon Service). On Saturday there are also choirs, religious education, adult fellowship and the Truth-Seeker Class from 5:00 to 6:30 pm. From Monday to Thursday, an Online Spiritual Nurture session runs from 9:40 to 10:00 pm.

Services are in Mandarin or English, and every sermon is interpreted into the other language. The language depends on the speaker that day. If the preacher speaks Mandarin, an interpreter gives the English alongside, and the other way round, so you can follow the whole service in either language.

Come as you are; most people dress neatly and modestly. There is no uniform and no one will judge you by your clothes. What matters most is that you come with an open heart.

Yes, street parking is available around the shophouse row where the church is located. The church is in a row of shophouses in Seksyen 7, Bandar Mahkota Cheras, so you can park along the surrounding streets and walk a short distance to No. 20 and 20A.

Yes, children are very welcome. During the Saturday afternoon service (2:30 to 4:15 pm), classes for children run at the same time: a nursery, a kindergarten class and a children's truth-seeker class. There is also a Children Choir on Saturday from 4:15 to 4:45 pm.

A service has hymn singing, prayer and a sermon from the Bible. When the church prays, members kneel and pray aloud together, and many pray in tongues, so it may sound different from what you expect. The sermon is interpreted between Mandarin and English. As a visitor you are welcome to sit quietly and simply observe.

Yes, True Jesus Church Bandar Mahkota Cheras is close to the UTAR Sungai Long campus. The church began in 2000 as the Sungai Long Evangelical Centre, and many of our members are UTAR students and graduates. Students often join the Youth Service on Saturday from 10:30 am to 12:15 pm, and the Saturday afternoon service.

No, visitors are never asked to give money. There is no fee to attend any service or class, and the Truth-Seeker Class is free. You are welcome to come and learn about God without any obligation.

Yes, you are welcome to come on your own. Let anyone at the entrance know it is your first visit, and they will be glad to greet you, help you find a seat and explain what is happening. You do not need to know anyone at the church beforehand.

Yes, True Jesus Church is a Christian church. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Word who became flesh, died on the cross for sinners, rose on the third day and ascended to heaven, and that He is the only Saviour of mankind. Our faith is based on the Old and New Testaments, which we believe are inspired by God.

True Jesus Church began in 1917 in Beijing, China. We believe the church was established by the Lord Jesus through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the last days, which the Bible calls the latter rain, to restore the faith and practice of the apostolic church. From China it has spread to many other countries.

Today True Jesus Church is found in many countries around the world, including Malaysia. In West Malaysia, local churches belong to the West Malaysia General Assembly, which True Jesus Church Bandar Mahkota Cheras joined in 2016. You can learn about the worldwide church at tjc.org.

The church began on 3 October 2000 as the Sungai Long Evangelical Centre, started from the True Jesus Church in Cheras. In December 2015 it moved into its own shophouse in Bandar Mahkota Cheras, joined the West Malaysia General Assembly in 2016, and was dedicated on 6 August 2017. Today it has about 80 members, including Malaysian Chinese, Malaysian Indian and Myanmar believers.

The word "True" points to the true God: the Bible says of Jesus Christ, "This is the true God, and eternal life" (1 John 5:20). Jesus called Himself the true vine (John 15:1), and a church that belongs to Him is named after Him. The name is not meant to condemn anyone, but to say whose church this is.

True Jesus Church seeks to keep the faith and practices of the apostolic church as the Bible records them. In practice this means we worship on the seventh-day Sabbath (Saturday), baptise by full immersion in natural living water in the name of Jesus, believe that receiving the Holy Spirit is evidenced by speaking in tongues, practise footwashing, and hold Holy Communion with one unleavened bread and grape juice. We also believe Jesus Christ is the one true God.

No, True Jesus Church is a separate church and is not part of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Both keep Saturday as the Sabbath, but the Adventist Church was formed in the United States in 1863, while True Jesus Church began in Beijing in 1917. We also differ in important beliefs: we baptise in the name of Jesus, believe speaking in tongues is the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit, and hold the Bible alone as our authority, with no additional prophetic writings.

No, True Jesus Church has no connection with Jehovah's Witnesses. The Witnesses began in the United States in the late 1800s, while True Jesus Church began in Beijing in 1917. Our beliefs differ at the centre: Jehovah's Witnesses teach that Jesus is a created being, while we believe Jesus Christ is the one true God who came in the flesh (John 1:1, 14).

We worship on Saturday because the Bible says the seventh day is the Sabbath, the day God blessed and made holy (Genesis 2:3; Exodus 20:8). Jesus and the apostles kept the Sabbath (Luke 4:16; Acts 17:2). We keep it under God's grace to remember His creation and salvation, and in hope of eternal rest in the life to come.

We baptise in natural living water, such as a river, the sea or a spring, because that is how Jesus and His disciples did it. Jesus was baptised in the Jordan River and came up out of the water (Matthew 3:16), and in Acts both went down into the water (Acts 8:38-39). Baptism is done in the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38), by full immersion with the head bowed.

Speaking in tongues is praying to God in a spiritual language given by the Holy Spirit, which the speaker and others do not understand. The Bible says, "he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God" (1 Corinthians 14:2). We believe it is the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit, as on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:4; 10:45-46).

We practise footwashing because Jesus washed His disciples' feet and told Peter, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me" (John 13:8). He also said, "ye also ought to wash one another's feet" (John 13:14). Footwashing gives us a part with the Lord, and reminds us to live in love, holiness, humility, forgiveness and service. Each baptised believer has their feet washed once in the name of Jesus.

We believe in one God, but we do not describe God as three persons. The Bible says God is one and God is Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4; John 4:24). We believe the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are one God, one Spirit, and that Jesus Christ is this one true God who came in the flesh: "in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:9).

We use unleavened bread and grape juice because Jesus instituted Holy Communion at the Passover, when no leaven was allowed (Luke 22:7, 19-20). In the Bible leaven often stands for sin (1 Corinthians 5:7-8), so the bread is made without yeast and the cup is unfermented juice, the "fruit of the vine" (Matthew 26:29). We use one bread, because "we being many are one bread, and one body" (1 Corinthians 10:17).

God cannot be put in a test tube, but there is good evidence that He exists. The universe had a beginning and needs a cause, and its order and design point to a wise Creator: "the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen" (Romans 1:20). Our conscience, the Bible's fulfilled prophecies, and answered prayer also point to Him.

The Bible teaches that God made the world good, but suffering entered when people turned away from Him in sin. Not every suffering is a punishment for a person's own wrong: Jesus said of a man born blind, "Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him" (John 9:3). Through trials, faith can grow (1 Peter 1:7), and God promises a day without tears (Revelation 21:4).

Yes, anyone can read the Bible, and it was written so that people may come to know God. Many first-time readers start with one of the Gospels, such as the Gospel of John, which tells the life and teaching of Jesus. If a passage is hard to understand, you are welcome to bring your questions to us.

The best way is to join our Truth-Seeker Class, held every Saturday from 5:00 to 6:30 pm. It is free and open to anyone who wants to study the Bible and learn what we believe, with no commitment needed. Just come, or email bmc@tjc.org.my and we will be glad to help.