Pastor welcomed and greeted the congregants in the name of Jesus Christ. Special numbers were presented by Mrs. Florence Sonkim and Choir from Baptist Dorcas Fellowship (BDF). Today being the first Sunday of the month, Pastor prayed a Pastoral Prayer for the congregants. Announcement was made by Upa Kam Suanthang regarding the ensuing Silver Jubilee of the Church which will be celebrated from 21 to 25 this instant. It’s an opportunity for the church members to generously contribute and donate for the celebration. If one misses this opportunity, no second chance will ever happen again.
As per schedule, the celebration will be started at the Church premises on June 21. Delhi’s Pastors’ Prayer Fellowship (PPF) will be leading the celebration on June 23 at 11am and in the evening there will be celebrations at various places simultaneously in big clusters as the church members are sparsely spreading over distant areas. On June 24 the main celebration will be hold at Siri Fort Auditorium. There will be two sessions of celebration on June 25th, first at 11am at EBCC, Dwarka and later at EBCC (Central Delhi) at 2pm which would be the last and final celebration. The Church is actively preparing for this auspicious occasion in various forms like Silver Jubilee Souvenir, Badge, Tee-Shirt and Promotional video clips, if to mention some.
Pastor N. Tuang Lang delivered his sermon on ‘Guided by the Holy Spirit’ based on the Scripture portions from Gal 5:16-27, Rom 8:13-14, and Acts 2:1. Pentecost Day has been observed even in the Old Testament times by the Israelites / Jews on the 50th day after the Passover as a celebration of wheat harvest. In the New Testament, the 50th day of Jesus Christ’ ascension to heaven is regularly observed as Pentecost Day. This day is significant because on this day the Holy Spirit filled the believers as was promised by Jesus. Believers began to speak whatever language the Spirit let them speak. Each believer needs the Holy Spirit for guidance and strength.
If our lives are not guided by the Holy Spirit we cannot have peace of mind. There could be emptiness, loneliness, enmity, conflicts and all sorts of problems in our lives in the absence of the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The hitherto abundant lives of Adam, Eve and King Saul transformed into lives of misery and sufferings as the Holy Spirit stops guiding them because of their disobedience to God. King Saul’s life was now constantly tormented by the evil spirit from the Lord. The family problems and other difficulties we face in life might be, in some way, a calling from the Lord. Let’s not just ignore it, but turn to Him. Let us invite the Holy Spirit, for He is a comforter and a guide.
Life could be miserable and pathetic if not guided by the Holy Spirit as seen in the lives of Judas Iscariot, Ananias and Sapphira. It could be just the opposite - a life of blessing and abundance as seen in the lives of Noah and Joseph, if guided by the Holy Spirit. The pre-requisite condition for receiving the guidance of the Holy Spirit is to lead a God-fearing life. To receive the blessings of the Lord, let’s turn back to God to be blessed.
Sumthanlian Suantak, Content Writer, EBCC Delhi.
