CHAPTER 12

THE STATE OFJOHORThe Chinese name of “Johor” is transliterated

from the Malay name. The Malay word “Johor”

is itself derived from the Arab word “Jauhar,”

meaning “precious jewel”. “Johor” is also known

as “Ujong Tanah,” which means the southern tip

of mainland Asia.

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JOHOR – THE SOUTHERN GATEWAY

The state of Johor is located in the southern part of the Peninsular Malaysia and the southern-most part of the Asian continent. Facing the Straits of Malacca in the west and the South China Sea in the east, it has a very long coastline, many beautiful beaches and outlying islands. The state capital, Johor Bahru, is thesecond largest city of Malaysia. The city is linked to Singapore via twocauseways. About 200,000 people commute daily between the two cities using the Johor-Singapore Causeway and the Second Link, according to the statistics provided by the Johor Immigration Office. The population of Johor numbers more than 3.5 million, withMalay as the majority. The state attracts migrant labourers from manyparts of Asia – Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Nepal, in additionto the early settlers from China.

HISTORY

The history of Johor can be traced back to the 16th century.In 1511, after the Portuguese had occupied Malacca, Sultan MahmudShah fled for his life. Later on his descendants established the JohorSultanate in southern Malay Peninsula.

Johor-Singapore Causeway Nusajaya - A new developed economy belt in Johor

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In the 1840’s, the ruler of Johor, Temenggong Daing Ibrahim,desired to develop the state. He recruited Chinese settlers from Singapore to plant gambier and actively promoted the Kangchu System. The Kangchu System was a farming system in which the local ruler would issue official permits to the “Kangchu” (leader ofthe settlers) to develop the riverbanks. Apart from cultivating plantations, the Kangchu was responsible for the management of casinos and opium dens, tax collection and maintaining peace and order in the river settlement. The early dependence on waterwaysmeant that boats were the main mode of transport. Tebrau River wasthe most convenient waterway then. Chen Kai Sun, a Chinese leaderat that time, helped the local authority to subdue a riot in Muar and took charge of the local defence. The establishment of the Kangchu System thus contributed to the increase in the population in Johor. In 1862, Temenggong Abu Bakar succeeded his father as thehighest state ruler; he was crowned the Sultan of Johor with the support of the British in 1885. During his thirty year reign, hecontinued to collaborate closely with the Chinese, and ushered in a new mode of transport – the steam trains, – to stimulate the agricultural and export sectors. Gradually, he transformed Johor Bahru from a fishing village into a new town. In addition, he introduced a state constitution and adopted western-styled administration to govern his state. These unprecedented moves won

Gambier processing centre in the early day

Sultan Abu Bakar

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him the title of “The Father of Modern Johor”. Sultan Abu Bakaralso instituted the first royal military force; to date, Johor is the onlyMalaysian state that has its own army. Johor’s increasingly strong leadership helped laid the foundation for Malay nationalism. In 1946,Pergerakan Melayu Semenanjung, the precursor to UMNO (United Malay National Organisation), was founded in Batu Pahat. From 1957 when Malaya gained her independence until now, UMNO hasremained the largest political organisation of the country.

ECONOMY & DEVELOPMENT

Most of the agricultural land in Johor is used for the cultivation of pineapples, coconuts and oil palms. Johor is a rich andprosperous state today. The state government has also developed many light industrial districts. In 2006, a large economic developmentproject called “Iskandar Malaysia” was launched. The purpose of this project is to provide financial and commercial investment opportunities for both local and foreign investors. The five flagshipzones of the project include Nusajaya, Tanjung Pelepas, Pasir Gudang, Johor Bahru and Senai. It is hoped that through the holisticdevelopment of these zones, each will become a hub with facilities

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for administration, industries, logistics, port, education, medicine, leisure and residence, eventually reaching the stature of a sustainable international city.

MISSIONS IN JOHOR

In order to reach out to the new Chinese immigrants in Singapore and Malaya, the Presbyterian Church of England sent theirfirst missionary, Rev. John Cook, to Singapore in 1881. Since he wasto shepherd the flock who came from Swatow, he first went to Swatowlearn the Teochew dialect. In 1885, the London Missionary Society sent Rev. Lamont to assist him. Then, Rev. Cook went to Johor Bahruin 1886 to shepherd the flock there. However, he lacked manpower and resources. Through the timely assistance of a British merchant,Dato. James Meldrum, Sultan Abu Bakar of Johor granted them three acres of land. Meldrum also provided all the timber needed to build the very first Chinese Presbyterian church, known as the Holy Light Presbyterian Church today, which served as a base for outreach andevangelism. Besides operating a sawmill and developing the timber trade,Meldrum was actively involved in many businesses. He could be

Rev. John Cook, the first missionary sent to Singapore & Malaya by the Presbyterian

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considered one of the chief contributors toward the development of the state. The Sultan of Johor awarded him the title of SPMJ (First Class Order of the Crown of Johor) in recognition of his contributions. Later, the state government also named two roads, Jalan Meldrum and Jalan Sawmill, in his memory. During the 43 years of Rev. Cook’s ministry in Johor Bahru, he witnessed the establishment of 16 branches of the Presbyterian Church, a testimony to his zeal for mission and evangelism. In 1892, the Living Water Church in Muar came into existence. The Presbyterian Church planted churches in Batu Pahat, Yong Peng, Kluang, Kota Tinggi, Mersing and Pontian at different times during the 20th century. The church began to focus on the new village ministry when the Emergency was proclaimed in 1951 and madeconsiderable headway in its outreach work. Currently, there are 51 Mandarin speaking churches and preaching stations, and 14 churcheswith Malay and English services in the state of Johor. God worked through other denominations as well. Seeing thegreat harvest field in Johor, the Anglicans, Methodists, Christian National Evangelical Commission (or better known as CNEC), Fundamental Presbyterians, Brethrens, Baptists, Full Gospel and SIB (Sidang Injil Borneo) all came, and the work of outreach and evangelism continues to spread. The Anglican Church received a piece of land from the Sultan

Johor Bahru Chapel was the first Chinese Presbyterian church in Johor

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in 1927 with which they used to build a church. It is known as St. Christopher’s Church today. Thus far, the Anglicans have built sevenchurches, with worship services in English, Mandarin, Tamil andother languages. As for the Methodists, they have founded 14 Chinese speaking churches in Johor. Besides these, there are also the TamilMethodist Church and the English speaking Wesley Methodist Church. In the 1950’s, CNEC, also known as Partners International, came from China to Malaya. They planted preaching points in newvillages like Kampong Plentong, Kampung Pandan, Masai and Ulu Tiram, bringing the gospel to the rubber estate workers. The CNEC Church started with 15 Sunday School students in 1960. Its name waschanged to Johor Bharu Vision Church in 1982. The focus of their ministry remains evangelism, church planting and mission. From 1982 until 2000, the church reached out to the people of Johor Bahru and Skudai, particularly the workers. They also planted churches there. From 2002 onward, CNEC has given staunch support to the Orang Asli ministry as well as the Indian and migrant workerministries. In addition, they collaborate with the local churches to extend their base to include every ethnic group in Malaysia. To date, CNEC has planted 14 churches in Johor. In the late 1970’s, the Assembly of God experienced a

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tremendous revival and many churches were established in differentparts of Malaysia. The Calvary Charismatic Centre of Johor Bahruplanted at least 15 churches within a ten-year period. At present, theyhave about 39 churches in Johor which conduct worship services in English, Mandarin and Tamil. They are also reaching out to the Vietnamese, Nepalese and Burmese speaking groups. Moreover, theAssembly of God is actively involved in community outreach such as Children Care to orphans and underprivileged children. In order to unite the Chinese churches in Johor Bahru, God raised up a group of leaders to start an interdenominational organisation called the “Johor Bahru Chinese Churches Association”in 1983. Through this organisation, pastors from different churches have been able to meet on a regular basis, praying for each other and blessing the community. They even began a 24 hour prayer ministry in 2009. Faced with the gospel needs and challenges of the 21st century, we need to call upon our heavenly Father to revive the churches and believers in Johor so that they will continue to be the salt and light for Him on this earth, and a channel of blessing to the people around them.

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Prayer for Johor

1. Pray that the state government will treat the traditions, cultures andbeliefs of the different ethnic groups with respect and fairness. Praythat the government will make serious effort to maintain peace andorder within the state.

2. Pray for church unity: ask the Father to work through combinedprayer meetings and through interdenominational cooperation, as thechurches seek to serve the community with one heart and mind.

3. Pray for the mission field: ask God to give good strategies to thechurches so that they are able to proclaim the gospel to people fromevery tribe and nation.

Profile of Johor

Area: about 18,987 square kilometers

Capital: Johor Bahru

Total population: more than 3.5 million Malays (53%), Chinese (33%), Indians (7%), non-citizens (5%) and indigenous people (1%)

Religions: Islam (59%), Buddhism or Taoism (32%), Hinduism (6%), Christianity and Catholicism (2%)

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