The General Secretary of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle Alexander Nana Yaw Kumi-Larbi, has challenged Christians to bear fruit in keeping with repentance, emphasising that true repentance must lead to a changed life.
The General Secretary said this today when he and his wife, Mrs. Rose Kumi-Larbi, joined the English and Central assemblies of the Achimota District to climax this year’s Officers’ Retreat (Apostolisation).
Delivering a sermon titled “Righteousness and Justice,” Apostle Kumi-Larbi, who defines repentance as a change of heart that leads to a changed-life, explained that anyone who has genuinely repented from their sins and accepted Christ as Lord and personal Saviour must show forth their repentance by leading a life of righteousness.
“When it comes to godly living, most contemporary Christians are quick to say that the ‘Lord sees the heart.’ But it is not enough to say that. We must also live it out for the world to see that we have truly repented,” he said.
Apostle Kumi-Larbi explained that despite all the moral decay in society, God has provided redemption through the finished work of Christ on the cross and His resurrection.
It, however, behoves humans to respond to the gospel message of Christ by turning from their wicked ways (ungodliness), to receive forgiveness of sin and the Holy Spirit in order to qualify them as sons of God with the capacity to live a life of righteousness and holiness, he added.
He said that God is righteous and, therefore, Christians, as subjects of His kingdom, cannot continue to indulge in ungodliness.
He identified Zacchaeus as a true example of repentance because he completely turned from his wicked ways when he surrendered his life to Christ (Luke 19:1-10).
Elaborating on bribery and extortion, the General Secretary was emphatic that “the Bible is clear that giving or receiving a bribe is evil.”
He explained that bribery is money, favour, or other consideration given in exchange for one’s influence against what is true, right, or just, while extortion is taking money from someone by violence, threats, or the misuse of authority.
Apostle Kumi-Larbi further noted that God is just and shows no partiality (Acts 10:34), and He perfectly exacts vengeance against those who take undue advantage over others.
By His very nature, God is just in meting out rewards for righteousness and equally just in meting out punishments for evil and wrongdoing (Hebrews 6:10, Colossians 3:25), he cautioned.
“If God punished Adam and Eve for disobedience, Cain for murder, Sodom and Gomorrah for sexual perversion etc., then we must also expect to be punished for the same misdeeds (evil) that He has punished others for. This is because God is just, and a false balance is an abomination to Him,” he said.
Apostle Kumi-Larbi, therefore, called on Christians, particularly Christian workers and members of the Church, to endeavour to uphold Kingdom values and principles such as honesty, truthfulness, hard work, diligence and contentment at the workplace as they seek to possess their spheres for Christ.
PENTECOST NEWS.
