The missionary work, which the BCCM began to do independently and in different places in Sabah, led to the establishment of local Malay-speaking congregations.

Its name is BCCM - Bahasa Malaysia (BCCM-BM); it represents 22,000 congregation members and is mainly present in central and west Sabah.

In the aftermath of the failed Taiping Rebellion in China, Hakka speaking Christians affiliated with the Basel Mission were viewed with suspicion by the Qing government as the leader of the rebellion, Hong Xiuquan, was himself a Hakka who claimed to be a Christian.

This resulted in an increase in the number of Hakka-speaking refugees travelling from China into the Southeast Asian region.

The Hakka Christians who came along with the other immigrants set up their own worship places on the west coast and other parts of Sabah.

[4] The first group of settlers consisted of ten families who arrived in Kudat and proceeded to found a settlement in Lausan.

Worship meetings were held on Sundays in one of the houses until the first attap roofed church building was built in the plantation of Lo Tai Hong in 1886.

During that time, 70 members of the church were murdered by the Japanese, and several hundred more died from indirect causes.

At that time, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) extended aid to the church in the forms of finances and manpower including teachers.

Active outreach towards the Bumiputra began in 1974, when two members from the congregation at Inanam, Chong Yun Leong and Paul Chung, first launched the campaign of "Preaching the Gospel to the Natives".

In June 1975, Gasin Guntidong, a young Kadazandusun, was engaged to do surveys in the villages and mission work was started in the Inanam and Menggatal areas.

In July 1975, the first Sunday service in Bahasa Malaysia was conducted at the old BCCM Inanam church building with an attendance of 16 people.

In 1978, Richard Angang, a half-Murut pastor, was posted to Sapulut with his family and a young Bible school graduate was sent to join him.

By this time, the BCCM Central Mission Committee decided to establish a center to provide basic training in Bible knowledge and leadership for the Bumiputra in Bahasa Malaysia.

Two old buildings of the Lok Yuk Secondary School were converted into classrooms, hostels, a dining hall, and teachers' quarters.

After the establishment of the Lausan Church, other congregations were organised in places and settlements including Kudat (1901), Papar (1903), Jesselton (1905), Sandakan (1907), Beaufort (1909), Tenom (1911) and Tawau (1913).

In 1967, the BCCM took over Dr G Christopher Willis’ mission work among the native people living along the Labuk River in Murok, Sandakan.

The Basel Christian Church of Malaysia became an official member of the Lutheran World Federation in 1973.

Sunway Kuala Lumpur and Kudat are two new congregations established in 2000 and 2001 respectively to cater the needs of church members of BCCM-BM who have migrated and work there respectively.

BCCM believes that, Under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, although the path is difficult, dangerous and with a lot of temptation, all will be overcome and the gospel shall be spread.

Signifies the fire of the Holy Spirit, full of love, faith, zeal, wisdom, boldly marching forth.

According to a census report, there were eight mission schools in Sabah (then known as British North Borneo) in 1910, but the number increased to 45 in 1934.

The representatives were encouraged, affirmed, and united by their common concern in improving their current high standards of education and providing the best opportunities for the children attending these schools.