PERM – On September 6 through 8, the New Testament Church of Perm welcomed evangelical Christians from all over Russia at the Russian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith Conference. The key verse of the conference was Psalm 78:6 “That the generation to come might know”.
Among the preachers were Russian and foreign ministers of evangelical churches: the Head Bishop of the Russian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith Edward Grabovenko, the first deputy head bishop and senior pastor of Izhevsk Philadelphia church Pavel Zhelnovakov, senior pastor of the Word of Life church in Armenia Arthur Simonyan, evangelist and founder of the OneHope ministry Bob Hoskins, pastor of Christian Trinity center in Singapore Dominic Yeo, pastors from the US Gary Brothers and Chad Fisher, AG Area Director Robert Shipley, evangelist Mikel French.
Two international evangelists opened the conference. Mikel French called the church to learn to receive the blessings, awaiting them patiently. Bob Hoskins in his turn spoke about the need to pass on faith to the next generation. He emphasized that the responsibility for this belongs to parents.
The first service of day two was dedicated to the Word of God. Pastor Arthur Simonyan reminded that we should be keepers of the Word. Having placed the Word of God not only into our hearts, but into our minds as well, we will be able to stand firm during the latter days.
Worship team of Izhevsk Philadelphia church opened the second service. Senior pastor of Izhevsk church Pavel Zhelnovakov noted in his sermon how important it is to remember God’s blessings. Because only if we remember what the Lord has done for us we build up ourselves now and in the future.
Pastor from Singapore Dominic Yeo touched the topic of succession of generations. “We can be either a barrier or a jumping-off place,” – said Dominic. He emphasized that the new generation needs to see their fathers living in the revelation of the Word of God.
During the conference a series of workshops took place with Russian and foreign ministers participating. The participants of the conference had a chance to visit seminars such as “Reaching out to the next generation”, “What I wish I’d known 30 years ago”, “Overcoming difficulties”, “Being a leader who brings changes”, “Features of a missions church” and some others.
The evening service opened by gipsy music band “Halleluiah” from the Good News Church of Cherepovets. The senior pastor of Cape First Church, one of the fastest growing churches in Missouri, USA, Gary Brothers showed that the Word of God has power and practical application in life. His sermon had three keys to the break-through: 1. Do not let a problem identify who you are. 2. Have fellowship with those who support your faith, not your doubts. 3. If you experienced a miracle, do not stop, keep moving forward.
Three ministers shared the Word of God at the close of the conference. Area Director of the Assemblies of God for Russia and Belarus Robert Shipley preached that Jesus Christ is a friend to every sinner. Then pastor Chad Fisher shared his testimony and showed what power the young generation gain if they have a revelation from God.
At the conclusion, Head Bishop Edward Grabovenko took the floor. “Faith is not inherited by children from their parents – only through the blood of Jesus Christ the children attain faith” — was the key message of his sermon. He challenged parents to become friends to God to protect their children and to take care of their future.
Internship Program “One Year for Jesus Youth” was presented at the conference. 14 graduates of batch two (2018–2019) and 25 new participants who are going to be in training till September of 2020. Lead Pastor of the New Testament Church Edward Grabovenko thanked the graduates, shared words of counsel and inspired the young people to minister diligently and devotedly. The church prayed and blessed the young people for the great work for God.
2,000 guests came to Perm. Five church services and a series of workshops took place during the conference.
Videos of sermons at the conference are on the YouTube channel of the New Testament Church of Perm at: youtube.com/novizavet
The Russian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith
