17/09/2019
CHARACTER IS KEY IN CHRISTIANITY –Apostle Dr. Alfred Koduah
The Area Head for Church of Pentecost, Teshie-Nungua Apostle Dr. Alfred Koduah has admonished Christians to critically consider their personal character in their walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. “The Character of a believer in Christ is more important than any other thing,” he said.
Apostle Koduah said this during the Sixth and Seventh Monthly Bible Schools in the Teshie Nungua Area held on Saturday, August 3, 2019 and continued on August 31, 2019 at the Fred Stephen Safo Temple, Nungua respectively.
The teachings were a continuation of ‘‘Notes on Pneumatology’’, which is the study of the personality and operations of the Holy Spirit.
He also explained that one of the most misunderstood issues in the church today is the gifts of the Holy Spirit. According to him, Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 12:1, ‘‘now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.’
“This means that whenever Christians become ignorant about spiritual gifts or matters concerning the Holy Spirit, they will be in serious trouble,” he explained.
According to Apostle Koduah, ‘‘As Pentecostals, the Holy Spirit is so important to us that we need to fully understand Him’’.
He said a critical study of 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; Ephesians 4:7-11 and Romans 12:6-8 will reveal that there are three main categories of gifts. These are spiritual, ministerial and grace gifts.
According to him spiritual gifts are given by God the Holy Spirit and it is theologically called ‘‘Pneumatikos’’. These nine spiritual gifts are word of wisdom, word of knowledge, discernment of spirits, prophecy and diverse kinds of tongues. Others are interpretation of tongues, faith, gifts of healing and working of miracles.
Apostle Dr. Koduah said the ministerial gifts also known as ascension or five-fold ministerial gifts are given by God the Son and are referred to as Domata by Theologians. These gifts include Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers.
‘‘It is important to note that the purpose of these gifts is not for boasting or self-aggrandisement, the Bible says that they have been given to prepare God’s people for work of service’’, he added.
On the other hand, grace gifts, theologically refers to as charismata are given by God the Father and they include serving, encouraging, generosity, leadership or administration, and showing acts of mercy and help.
The Area Head stressed that it is necessary to accept the fact that all the gifts work in harmony and co-operation, complementing one another for the building of the whole body of Christ. ‘‘Everybody must therefore respect the other person’s gifts, no matter how small it may be’’, he said adding, “Some operating in a particular gift may be tempted to lord it over those operating in other gifts.”
He admonished that those operating in the power gifts should be very careful they are not overtaken by the sensation and the crowd-pulling that goes with their gifts. ‘‘This is where many people have gone wrong’’, he said.
He also added that, ‘‘Above all, it is critical to emphasise the fact that no matter what gifts a person operates in, his or her personal character is of paramount importance to the Lord far more than any other thing’’.
Report by Erick Makafui Boatri