IT is always a good thing close to the end of the year to look back and examine where you have been, where you are now and where God wants you to be.
This advice came from Brother Ricardo Yarde during his sermon last Sunday morning at Elim Pentecostal Church at Bright Hill, Christ Church.
During a very passionate sermon, he told the congregation that they must cease from paying less attention to the things that matter most and stop holding on to things that are less important.
Yarde started his sermon on the heels of a beautiful praise and worship session and an inspiring dance and song by dancer Kelly Fields and soloist Denise Gooding.
He said: “For many this time of the year is a time for intense cleaning. We pull down things; throw out things and we even find things which we need.
Taking his main text from Colossians: 3 1-4, he said that as Paul penned this epistle to the Colossians the church was facing much hypocrisy, which Paul sought to address.
“Paul had to reiterate the fact that Christ is the centre of why we live and we cannot put this truth aside,” he said.
He said with the new year approaching there are some things which must be retained, released and remembered.
Yarde told his congregation that if they are risen with Christ they must seek those things which are above.
He told them among those things which must be retained was the revelation that they were new creatures in Christ.
To nullify Christ is to nullify your Creator. There is a spirit trying to minimise Christ, but Christ is established and is seated on the throne of God, so if you are seated with Christ, seek those things which are above. There must be a re-establishment of Christ in your life,” he warned.
He told the congregation they must release sexual promiscuity, which he said was rampant in the church and world at large.
He also pleaded with his listeners to mortify their members on earth and not become stained by uncleanliness, coveteousness, anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy and sexual sins such as fornication, homosexuality and adultery.
Christ’s death
He next advised that they must remember Christ’s death on the Cross.
“Remember that there is a death – that Christ died for us. Because He died for us, we must now die to sin. As a result of His death a deposit has been made. Going into the new year we must remember Christ dwells in us and we should have no excuse for being who we should be in Him”.
He added: “The world has developed a system where it is very easy to forget Christ. You must leave sin behind and remember that with Christ living in you, you can be overcomers.
Yarde’s altar call for those who needed prayer was followed by a baby christening before the service came to an end.
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