“We are in the New Apostolic Church because we want to take part in the first resurrection and not the judgement.” In a festive divine service on New Year’s Day, Lead Apostle Ohene-Saffo reminded the congregation of why they are New Apostolic Christians.

The text word for the service was taken from Revelation 20:6: “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.”

Why do you worship God?
“There are two questions I would like to ask this morning,” the Lead Apostle began. “Why do you worship God? You have the option to worship anything else. The second question - why are you a Christian? There are other people who worship God but are not Christians, so why are you a Christian?” he asked. The Lead Apostle emphasised the need for the congregants to ask themselves these questions often to make sure they did not mix up the doctrines of other religions with theirs.

Understanding the truth
“The time has come for you and I to understand the whole truth, especially as the motto for this year is: ‘Serving and reigning with the Lord Jesus Christ,’” the Lead Apostle stated. “Do we understand Christianity? Do we read the Bible to understand what it says? Do we know why Christ came?” Christ did not come into the world because of miracles; He was sent into the world so we would be saved from our sins. “Let us take the truth of the doctrine with us throughout the year so we will be reminded of it everyday.”

The salvation plan of God
The salvation plan of God has often been misunderstood, because Christians tend to focus on judgement. There is no judgement for those who are part of the first resurrection. We need to look at the salvation plan of our Father in Heaven, and follow and live in that salvation plan so that when the Lord comes, He will not pass us by.

Be confident in your ministry
“If you are confident about your ministry, in the word of God, live in it,” the Lead Apostle advised. “Do not allow anyone or anything to deter you. If you are confident, surge on. This year, let us all surge on and remain resolute and confident in what we are doing, and the Lord will surely bless us. I believe that by the end of this year, we will count our blessings one after the other because we have remained loyal to God.”

The Lead Apostle was assisted by Apostle Asare, District Rectors Amoah and Owusu Ansah, Deputy District Rectors Hammond and George Sasu as well as Shepherd Anthony Afenyo