Archeologists have discovered a 1,500-year-old painting of Jesus they say is the oldest known depiction in Israel of Christ being baptized.
The painting was found inside a church in the Negev Desert of southern Israel and dates to the Byzantine empire. The church was located in the village of Shivta.
“The discovery of this painting is extremely important,” a paper in the journal Antiquity said. “Thus far, it is the only in situ baptism-of-Christ scene to date confidently to the pre-iconoclastic Holy Land.”
“In situ” means the painting is in its original place. The iconoclast period arose in the 8th and 9th centuries and involved the banning and destruction of images of Christ and the saints.
The painting, according to the journal, “can illuminate Byzantine Shivta’s Christian community and Early Christian art across the region.” It was found in the baptistry chamber of the church.
Jesus’ Face Uncovered at Ancient Church in The Israeli Desert
Archaeologists believe it was painted in the 500s.
“The location of the scene — above the crucifix-shaped Baptist font — suggests its identification as the baptism of Christ,” the paper said. “Thus, this face portrays the youthful Christ, while the face on the left is most probably of John the Baptist.”
Scripture says Jesus was baptized as an adult. The paper said, “Christ’s depiction as a youth corresponds to the symbolic notion of baptism as a rebirth.” The Jesus figure in the painting, the paper added, “has short curly hair, a prolonged face, large eyes and an elongated nose.”
Michael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor
All hands went up each time the miracles were mentioned to give glory to Almighty God for His manifest glory and beauty.
It is just the first day of the Healing Jesus Campaign in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania and yet praise is all that the awestruck crowd could offer.
Evangelist Dag Heward-Mills and the Healing Jesus Campaign have began the three day crusade in earnest.
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The Evangelist preached on the solution to man’s many problems emphasizing that people can have many nice things and still have problems.
Thousands of hands went up when Evangelist Dag made the alter call.
After the prayer the miracles rolled in one after the other, deaf in one ear and the ear opened, could not squat after childbirth and now can do so, after a month in coma and suffering stroke a gentleman could not walk, nor cross his legs on his own without holding his legs and yet the power of God made all possible.
Black Panther is nothing short of a phenomenon. The latest installment in the wildly successful “Marvel” movie series, it has become the second-highest grossing four-day opening in movie history, raking in $242 million.
But even more remarkable than box-office records and glowing reviews is the story behind actress Letitia Wright, who plays T’Challa’s little sister, Shuri.
T’Challa’s little sister, Shuri
She has revealed her faith in God, born out of a Bible study she decided to attend in 2015, helped her escape a “very dark place” in life.
Wright began her acting career in the early 2010s with smaller roles in tv shows, including Doctor Who and Top Boy. While she scored a few feature roles, Wright soon found herself battling depression throughout her early years in Hollywood.
In an article from Tribune Content Agency, Wright thought back to that difficult period: “I was putting so much pressure on myself. You get comfortable with the idea of thinking, ‘Maybe it’s OK to leave.’ [I was in] a very dark place.”
The actress made the decision to take a break from acting, as she felt that she “idolized it.” She opened up to FaithWire in a February interview, recalling her choice to temporarily step back from the spotlight:
“So I came off from it and I went on a journey to discover my relationship with God, and I became a Christian,” she mentioned. “It really just gave me so much love and light within myself. I felt secure, like I didn’t need validation from anyone else, or from getting a part.”
At the very depths of her depression, the British actress ended up coming to Christ after attending a London actors’ Bible study. So convinced that she had to put God first, she even turned down an acting role that would have set her alongside Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning.
“I remember God was like, to me, ‘Give up the job,’’ the actress said.
“I can give you more than that; I just need you right now. Give up the job.”
Then, after laying down her own ambition and looking to the Lord, she was offered this gigantic role in Black Panther.
Letitia Wright played Shuri
The 25-year-old star went on to explain she is now confident God — who led her out of a serious bout of depression — guides her to and away from the roles she now accepts, or declines.
“I pride myself on keeping it the same as when I came into acting, to not just change the lane and take everything, just because it may have a big name or a big budget,” Wright said. “Am I right for this part? Is this what I should be playing? If something feels off in my spirit, I know that’s God’s way of saying, ‘You shouldn’t do that.’”
The Chairman of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, has unveiled a new 5-year strategic vision of the Church (Vision 2023) dubbed “Possessing the Nations.”
Speaking at his first November Heads’ Meeting, which is a prayer and fasting meeting of all Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, National/Area Heads, Rector and Deans of the Church’s University and theological seminaries, as well as Ministry Directors at the Pentecost Convention Centre (PCC) at Gomoa Fetteh, on Monday, November 12, 2018, Apostle Nyamekye said Vision 2023 seeks to “equip the Church to transform every sphere of society with values and principles of the Kingdom of God.”
He indicated that the overall goal of the vision is to see a church where members go to possess their nations by transforming every worldview, thought and behavior with values, principles and lifestyles of the Kingdom of God and thereby turning many people to Christ.
“Building on what has been achieved by my predecessors, I foresee a refreshed church that equips and releases its members into ministry as agents of transformation wherever they may be,” he said.
Referring to a statement by Roger Helland, a Canadian Baptist Minister that, “an unrestricted vision causes havoc and that churches must be strategic in what wars they fight and when they fight them,” Apostle Nyamekye stated: “I have carefully examined this vision in the light of our church’s overarching vision, mission, core values and practices.”
In his gap analysis, the Chairman observed that in spite of the church’s impressive achievements over the years, there is a lot more to be done, saying, “Our societies are still influenced by worldviews, thoughts and arguments which contradict the knowledge of God.
2018 November Heads’ Meeting2018 November Heads’ Meeting
To ensure an effective and efficient implementation of the transformation agenda of Vision 2023, Apostle Eric Nyamekye revealed that members of the Church will be taught to understand the dual purpose of the Church, thus the church is called out of the world to worship God and sent back into the world to serve; equip the members with the knowledge of God’s word for ministry; create the awareness that whatever a person does in any aspect of life is an opportunity and a setting for ministry; deploy the members to transform society and take nations for Christ; further strengthen existing institutions and structures of the church and realign their activities to drive the vision; undertake structural adjustments to get the church system freed from crowded programmes in order to release members to witness and to serve; and to strengthen existing institutions and structures to continually assess the effectiveness of interventions aimed at achieving the objectives of Vision 2023.
Rick Warren, the pastor of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, and best-selling author of The Purpose Driven Life was hospitalized Thursday and underwent immediate surgery for an intestinal condition.
He is still in the hospital but is recovering.
Pastor Rick Warren
In an email sent to members of his church family Saturday night and obtained by CBN News, Warren gave an update on his condition:
“Dear Saddleback Family,
By now you may have heard that I needed an emergency surgery early Thursday morning. At about 7 pm on Wednesday evening while at home by myself, I suddenly doubled over in an attack of excruciating abdominal pain. Kay (his wife) was on a plane just taking off from LAX airport for a 10-hour flight to Northern Ireland where she was scheduled to speak at a conference.
Fortunately, my son, Josh, called me at the same moment of my pain, and he rushed over to drive me to an Urgent Care facility, where the doctor administered shots of antibiotics and a painkiller and advised me to get a CT scan the next morning. But as Josh and I were leaving, my body started shaking uncontrollably, so the Urgent Care doctor insisted that we immediately go to a hospital ER.
At the hospital, the staff got my CT scan which revealed that my intestine had perforated (torn) and was releasing infection into the abdominal area. So I quickly had emergency surgery and I am now recovering.
Thank you, everyone, for your prayers and love. I love you all back! God has been so good to me. FYI. I’ve been told that I will need a second surgery after Christmas. Bless you all!
Pastor Rick
Kay Warren was to be a special guest at the “Illuminate” conference in Coleraine, on the north coast of Northern Ireland. She was notified of Rick’s condition and upon arrival was able to take a return flight home.
Rick and Kay Warren
Earlier Saturday, Kay posted an update on Rick’s condition on the conference’s Facebook page.
She wrote: “Hello dear friends – just an update on Rick. He is much better today! The surgery went even better than expected and he will be released in a few days. Things were quite serious for a day but he is strong and tough and he is on the road to recovery! Thank you for your prayers for us! I am keenly disappointed to not be with you at Illuminate 2018; trusting that our sovereign God holds all things in His hands. I pray that what transpires in the lives of the women who attend will mark each one permanently – that unforgettable moments with Jesus and each other will take place. Until we meet in person, love to you all….”
A total of 509 souls surrendered their lives to Christ during a 5-day crusade held at Kpassa by the Nkwanta Area of The Church of Pentecost from October 22 to 26, 2018 at Kpassa JHS B Park.
The Crusade, which was jointly organised with Evangelism Directorate, was under the theme “Jesus Is The Answer” (John 14:6).
The main speakers for the event were Apostle James Kwabena Asare (Area Head, Nkwanta), Apostle Amos Jimmy Markin (Director, Evangelism Ministry) and Elder Ubor Stephen Tassan Konja VI (Paramount Chief, Kpassa Traditional Area)
Preceding the crusade was a well-attended “Jesus March” (floats) organized through the principal streets of Kpassa on Sunday, October 21, 2018, to create awareness for the event. This was followed with a Film Show on the Gospel of Jesus Christ at different locations in Kpassa and nearby communities by the Evangelism Ministry Cinema Van. The activities of the Cinema Van won a total of 95 souls, comprising 53 adults and 42 children, to Christ.
Nkwanta (Ghana)
During the crusade, a total of 412 souls yielded to the Lordship of Christ. These souls were made up of 275 adults and 137 children.
In all, a total of 509 were won at the end of the crusade, out of which 267 of them were baptized in water. In addition, 67 members also received Holy Ghost baptism to the glory of the Lord.
The power of God was also mightily felt during the sessions as many miraculous incidents were recorded; most notable amongst them was that of Brother Jayoon Michael, a member of Kpassa English Assembly of The Church of Pentecost and a second-year student of Kpassa Senior High Technical School, who received instant healing from blindness which had compelled him to drop out of school for months.
The event had massive turn out with the Friday Evening service alone recording a total attendance of 16, 486 people.
As part of activities for the crusade, a free medical screening was held for 341 residents of Kpassa. This was spearheaded by the Kpassa Pentecost Hospital. The 341 persons who participated in the screening exercise were examined for blood pressure, typhoid, and malaria, Hepatitis B, among others.
Nkwanta (Ghana) Map
By Overseer Benjamin Sylvester Afful, Sibi District
Thousands of Christians and gospel music lovers thronged the Black Star Square in Accra Friday night [November 9, 2018] to join renowned Ghanaian Gospel singer Elder Dr Emmanuel Kwasi Mireku to celebrate the goodness of God for seeing him through 40 years of successful music ministry.
The night of ministrations and impartation saw many dignitaries in the Christian community, notable among them were the Chairman of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye; the General Secretary, Apostle Alexander Nana Yaw Kumi-Larbi, and the International Missions Director (IMD), Apostle Emmanuel Gyesi-Addo.
Also present to grace the occasion were+: Hon. Esther Obeng-Dapaah (former MP and Minister of State), Apostle John Mireku (Trinity Presby Church), Apostle Solomon Oduro and Prof Kwame Kyei (Unity Oil), among others.
The event also featured celebrated gospel artistes and groups including Rev. Dr. Mary Ghansah, The Voice of Pentecost, Rev. Mensah Bonsu, Kwaku (the poet), Daughters of Glorious Jesus, E’m Praise Incorporated, Janet Aboagye, Oheneba Clement, and Asetena Pa Choir.
Others were SP Kofi Sarpong, Elder Francis Adjei, Yaw Sarpong, Uncle Ato, Rock of Bethel Choir, Jak Alolome, among many others.
With the combined effort of Bishop Dr Yaw Owusu-Ansah and Kwamena Idan, both of Adom FM, the MCs extraordinaire of the night, the about five-hour gospel mega concert started at 7pm with a ministration by Mary Ghansah, the veteran gospel diva. It was followed by different ministrations from the nation’s finest gospel artistes who put up splendid performances. The ministrations were interspersed with prayers and inspirational words.
The atmosphere got more charged and electrified when Elder Dr Kwasi Mireku and his lieutenant, Elder David Obiri, took to the stage. He started with thanksgiving song ‘Yeda wo ase a ensa da’ followed by a retinue of spirit-inspired worship and praise songs.
Citations were presented to the gospel music legend in celebration of his over 4 decade music ministry.
The patrons went home highly inspired, impacted and transformed, describing the night as a real encounter with God.
A grand thanksgiving service was held at the Bukom Boxing Arena to climax the 180th Anniversary of the Accra Diocese of the Methodist Church. Over 12,000 Methodists in the Diocese gathered to celebrate the Anniversary.
Dressed in their beautiful Diocesan cloth and organizational attires there was a glorious blend of beauty, devotion, dedication and love, with a firm conviction to continue the Birch Freeman’s legacy, on the theme, “180 years of Methodism in Accra Diocese, intensifying our teaching Ministry towards disciple making”.
The Service was graced with the presence of His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo, the President of the Republic of Ghana as the Special Guest. The Methodist Executive including The Presiding Bishop, Most. Rev. Dr. Paul Kwabena Boafo as the guest speaker, The Lay President, Bro. Bernard Clement Kwesi Botwe, The Administrative Bishop; Rt. Rev. Michael Agyakwa Bossman, Past Presiding Bishops, Past Lay Presidents, Past and present Lay Chairmen, The Bishop of Accra; Rt. Rev. Samuel Kofi Osabutey and his team including the Clergy and Laity of the Diocese.
The Presiding Bishop of The Methodist Church Ghana; Most Rev. Dr. Paul Kwabena Boafo preached the Sermon and touched on the theme ““180 years of Methodism in Accra Diocese, intensifying our teaching Ministry towards disciple making”.
He underscored that, Holiness is a key part of Christianity. He said we should know who we are, where we started from, where we are going and what we can make of the time ahead of us as a Diocese and Methodists. He challenged the Diocese to make good and resolve to do better in the next 20 years when the Diocese is 200 years.
Citing the John Wesley mandate of preaching the Gospel throughout the world as his parish. He urged the People called Methodists to go and do same in love. He again reminded the members of the Methodist Tradition of not only preaching the word, but transforming society through education, healthcare, capacity building, leadership and discipline.
Methodism has not deviated from the purpose of spreading Scriptural Holiness and transforming lives. That identity must be cherished and maintained.
In his address, The President; H.E Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo, was first grateful for the invitation and the opportunity given to address the Methodist family. He emphasized that he was very familiar with the Methodist Church and could trace a lot of contacts from infancy with the Church even as an Anglican.
He charged the Church to sustain their gains of effective stewardship to do whatever they could with enthusiasm to receive their rewards in Christ. He added that, Service to God and mankind is the sole mandate of stewardship.
He encouraged all memberships to rise to their religious responsibility to stimulate their responsibility towards dedicated services to the Church and Society.
The President also called on Ghanaians to support his Government to support the many initiatives for holistic growth, development at all levels. The hierarchy of the Church presented a Citation of Honour to the President for his support and oversight responsibility of Ghanaians.
The Citation encouraged him to continue with his Strides to develop Ghana.
Story by: Alexander Nii Odartey Lamptey (Content Manager-CPD)
Rick Joyner‘s The Final Quest, a MorningStar and Christian classic, is a supernatural vision of the struggle between light and darkness. It is a prophecy of the great army now being mobilized.
Extract from The FINAL QUEST
”I saw a demonic army so large that it stretched as far as I could see. It was separated into divisions, with each carrying a different banner. The foremost and most powerful divisions were Pride, Self righteousness, Respectability, Selfish Ambition, and Unrighteous Judgment, but the largest of all was Jealousy. The leader of this vast army was the Accuser of the Brethren himself. I knew that there were many more evil divisions beyond my scope of vision, but these were the vanguard of this terrible horde from hell that was now being released against the church.
The weapons carried by this horde had names on them: the swords were named Intimidation; the spears were named Treachery; and their arrows were named Accusations, Gossip, Slander and Faultfinding. Scouts and smaller companies of demons with such names as Rejection, Bitterness, Impatience, Un-forgiveness and Lust were sent in advance of this army to prepare for the main attack. I knew in my heart that the church had never faced anything like this before.
The main assignment of this army was to cause division. It was sent to attack every level of relationship-churches with each other, congregations with their pastors, husbands and wives, children and parents, and even children with each other. The scouts were sent to locate the openings in churches, families or individuals that rejection, bitterness, lust, etc., could exploit and make a larger breech for the divisions that were coming.
The most shocking part of this vision was that this horde was not riding on horses, but on Christians! Most of them were well-dressed, respectable, and had the appearance of being refined and educated…
Rick Joyner – Author – Final Quest
The Truth of Grace
After what seemed like several days, I opened my eyes. Another eagle was standing beside me. In front of him were three stones, one blue, one green, and one red. “Eat them,” he said. When I did, my whole being was renewed, and both a great joy and great soberness flooded my soul.
When I stood up, I caught sight of the same three stones set into the handle of my sword, and then on each of my shoulders. “These are now yours forever,” the eagle said. “They cannot be taken from you, and you cannot lose them.”
“But I did not finish this last one,” I protested.
“Christ alone will ever finish that test,” he replied. “You have done well, but you must go on now.”
“Where to?” I asked.
“You must decide, but with time getting shorter I will suggest that you try to get to the top soon,” the eagle replied as he departed in an obvious hurry.
Then I remembered the doors. I immediately started toward the doors that had been so appealing. When I reached the first one it simply did not appeal to me anymore. Then I went to another, and it felt the same. “Something seems to have changed,” I remarked out loud.
“You have changed,” the entire troop of angels replied at once. I turned to look at them and was amazed at how much they had changed. They no longer had the naive look they had before, but were now more regal and wise-looking than any of the angels I had seen. I knew they reflected what had also taken place in me, but I now felt uncomfortable just thinking about myself.
“I ask for your counsel,” I said to the leader.
“Listen to your heart,” he said. “That is where these great truths now abide”…
The Last-Day Church
I knew the short talk with Paul would have consequences that would take a long time to fully understand. In a way, I felt that I had received a blessing from the entire eternal church. We really were being cheered on by the great cloud of witnesses.
They looked at us like proud parents who wanted better things for their children than they themselves had known. Their greatest joy would be to see the church in the last days become everything the church in their day had failed to attain. I also knew I was still falling far short of what they had prepared for us to walk in.
“The last-day church will not be greater than Paul’s generation, even if she does greater works,” the Lord interjected. All that is done is done by My grace. However, I will make more of My grace and power available to the last-day church, because she must accomplish more than the church in any age has yet accomplished.
“Last-day believers will walk in all the power that I demonstrated, and more, because they will be the final representatives of all who have gone before them. The church will demonstrate My nature and My ways as they have never been demonstrated before by men. It is because I am giving you more grace, and to whom much is given much will be required.”
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