“Souls in the beyond who have never heard of the gospel, never had their sins forgiven, and never received any of the sacraments find themselves in a condition of remoteness from God. This condition can only be overcome through belief in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice and by receiving the sacraments,” (NAC Catechism in Question and Answers, Question 544).
On 7th March, 2021, Apostle George Anum Nortey celebrated the Divine Service for the Departed with the Tutuka Congregation in the Obuasi District. The Apostle based his sermon on Psalm 22: 26, “The poor shall eat and be satisfied. Those who seek Him will praise the LORD. Let your heart live forever!”
In his elaboration of the text word, Apostle Nortey said that poor people are Christians who are eager and willing to follow Jesus Christ and His teachings despite the difficulties. They always seek and praise Christ in other to receive grace from Him. Their souls always need Christ. They try to imitate the lives of Jesus Christ and follow the Apostles’ teachings. They always choose to stay with the gospel.
For this reason, the world sees them as poor. The Apostle told the congregants that there is hope for those who are poor in Christ. As Jesus was preaching on the mountains, He told the disciples and the people gathered, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” This is what we are waiting for and we hope we will be satisfied when our Lord, Jesus Christ, returns.
The Holy Spirit never leaves us alone, He is here with us and the beyond. We must always prepare ourselves so that whether Christ comes or we depart from earth, we will also be counted among those who will be satisfied, the Apostle concluded.
Apostle Nortey also informed the congregants to prepare towards the visit of the Lead Apostle Samuel Oppong-Brenya on his visit to Obuasi District.