Pastor’s Welcome
Greetings to you in the marvelous Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ from Denver Salem Church of God. With a heart filled with gratitude towards God Almighty, I consider it as my privilege to pen a few words as the Pastor of Salem Church of God, Denver. God has made this spiritual community grow from a small prayer group to an established church through His miraculous ways. By God’s grace we too as a family got the opportunity to be part of what God has done in this church. All we can say is “This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes” (Psalms 118:23)
Paul says in 1 Corinthians chapter 3 about the decisive intervention of God with regard to the growth of any church. Paul planted the seed, Apollos watered, but God has been making it grow. So, Paul is affirming that it is neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. Our God chooses his people from different parts of the world and gives them vision and fills them with His anointing to work for the extension of His Kingdom. He has done that marvelously in the lives of each and every member of this church too. I thank God for those great men and women of God who are chosen by God by giving them the vision to plant a church here in the city of Denver. God’s promises and His strengthening Word and presence were there behind the growth of Salem Church of God. That very well proves the statement that Paul says, “It is God who makes this grow”, in regard to this church too.
The humbling truth of the verse above must not be missed. God gives the increase. The agricultural metaphor that Paul uses communicates perfectly. Human agency is necessary—God has made it so. Someone must plant, cultivate, and tend the seed. Without the agency of God, the seed will not grow. One may as well plant, cultivate, and tend a rock without the agency of God. Paul is speaking about the evangelism and spiritual formation. We would do well to humbly accept this truth. We can neither save nor sanctify anyone. Only God can. We shall not assume the place of God rather what we can do is to be sensible to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and develop our trust in God. God can make changes marvelously and that is what we have seen in the yester years of this church. We trusted in God and He has not let us down in any of the matters that we have brought to His presence in prayer in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
“Blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence.” (Jeremiah 17:7). Prayer has been the most powerful source of confidence behind this community in all the matters we have faced thus far even during this time of pandemic and the challenges related to that. Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” We have been given access to the very throne of God through prayer.
Our God who has brought us thus far will surely help to move forward and work for the extension of His kingdom in this place. We request your prayers as we move forward trusting in God and the promises, we have through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
– Pastor Benson Abraham
