In Memoriam Steven Chan
IN MEMORIAM Steven Chan Thian Kiat
(26 April 1956 - 1 September 2022)
By Yeow Chin Kiong
God's word tells us, "... The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance" (Psalm 112:6) and "The memory of the righteous is blessed..." (Proverbs 10:7). Besides appreciating the good that they do for others' benefit, the conduct of the righteous are worthy of our emulation, as are the examples of holy men when they imitate Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). Christians, too, need to be reminded that, "... God is not unjust to forget (our) work and labor of love which (we) have shown toward His name ... do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises"(Hebrews 6:10, 12).
Sadly, the many concerns and distractions of life make it easy for the living to forget the righteous deeds of those who have left us. In Memoriams of the faithful are a means to record for posterity the noble deeds of men and women just like us so that we may imitate those deeds, especially those which have explicit scriptural warrant (Colossians 3:17).
It has been four years since our beloved brother Steven Chan left us for Paradise. Baptized into Christ Jesus on 15 August 1971, he grew in faith from that day onward in his personal life, secular profession and his Lord's church. Even before he became one of the Klang congregation's elders, Steven did not shirk from "contend(ing) earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3).
Of the many instances when he drew the Holy Sprit's sword (Ephesians 6:17) against error assailing from within and without the Lord's church, one had left the brethren of two minds by the way it ended. When Steven terminated the lengthy doctrinal contention carried via internet debate, some brethren thought that he returned his sword to its scabbard too soon, allowing the teacher of error he had ably begun to oppose to hold on to his ground after Steven halted the debate. Knowing Steven, who was always careful not to do wrong even when defending God's truth, I hold a different view. Steven took a noble and scriptural,- though difficult,- step which we ought to imitate when faced with an identical situation.
Unbeknownst (or forgotten) by brethren who were following the debate online, our brother-in-error was so caught up in the debate that he threatened Steven with a civil suit in our courts for defamation or some other tort that he supposedly suffered as a result of the internet exchange.
Late in the day, Steven needs no defense for calling off the online debate; he did the only scriptural thing he could do as a Christian. We know of 1 Corinthians 6:1-8, which reads - "(1) Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law against the unrighteous, and not before the saints? (2) Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? (3) Do you not know that you shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life? (4) If then you have judgments concerning things pertaining to this life, do you appoint those who are least esteemed by the church to judge? (5) I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you, not even one, who will be able to judge between his brethren? (6) But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers! (7) Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated? (8) No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren!
Steven was just a man, a Christian just like us in the church. After laboriously presenting a strong case for the truth of scripture (2 Timothy 2:15-16; 4:2-5) for the brethren to judge from, Steven correctly refused to be dragged before a court of unbelievers who will be called to render a decision on a scriptural, brotherhood matter,- a clear embarrassment to the church of our Lord! Would that we remember Steven's examplery step in this matter, in memory of a brother for whom the law of Christ (1 Corinthians 9:21; Galatians 6:2) is law enough.