Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:53-54)
Greetings Brethren,
In the early New Testament church, the brethren often partook of what is called the “Agape Love Feast” or “Feast of Charity”. This ordinance was implemented by our Lord and Savior Himself on the night in which He was betrayed.
But after a while, it was attacked from within by some ungodly men who had crept into the church. (Jude 1:4) (Jude1:12). Then later, it was forbidden to be kept, and completely done away with by the Council of Laodicea, a regional synod (an Ecclesiastical council) of approximately thirty clerics from Asia Minor that assembled about 363–364 AD in Laodicea.
The major concerns of the Council involved regulating the conduct of church Members. The Council expressed its decrees in the form of written rules or canons.Among the sixty canons decreed, several aimed at: Maintaining order among Bishops, Clerics and Laypeople. It also outlawed the keeping of the Sabbath (Saturday) and encouraging rest on the “Lord’s Day” Sunday. And it forbade the churches from celebrating the Agape or love feast.
(Some in God’s church are familiar with Cannon # 29, concerning the Sabbath being changed from Saturday to Sunday; we’ll read that one first.)
CANON # 29:
“Christian’s must not Judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord’s Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ.” Meaning: excommunicated, banned and cursed.”
Some in God’s church are familiar with that #29 Cannon. But not too many are aware of Cannon #28.
CANON #28. (Word for Word)
“It is not permitted to hold love feasts, as they are called, in the Lord’s Houses, or
Churches, nor to eat and to spread couches in the house of God.”
Brethren, that was a sad day for the church, the removing of the Love Feast brought about the weak and sickly condition in the church of God that is spoken of in (1Corinthians 11:30) and has even caused many in God’s church in these end times to remain ill (and for some to even die) instead of being healed when being anointed for their illnesses.
Jude, the half brother of our Lord, earnestly urges us (yes us today) the end time church that has been exposed to many false teachings, to struggle with all of our might to get back to the faith that was once delivered (or entrusted) to the saints. (Jude 1:3). This all has to do with getting back to following Scriptural Truths; this includes partaking of the Love Feast which was implemented by our Lord Himself.
(There is a Scriptural study concerning the love feast titled: “Feast of Charity”. I highly urge you to study this important issue. (There is a link to it below.)
Let me turn our focus now on updating the conditions of our orphans, widows and impoverished brethren that you have been caring for. As I often mention, Kenya can be a very dangerous place. One of our orphans at Dauglas’ Getionko congregation was robbed and beaten this week. Young orphan Belden lives with his elderly Grandmother Kemunto. I received the following from Dauglas:
“Belden, a 13-year-old boy, lives with his elderly grandma who is unable to provide much due to her age. Unfortunately they were attacked and robbed last night. , Belden was beaten, possibly by starving individuals who wanted to steal his food. This is a heartbreaking situation, as both Belden and his Grandma are already struggling.”
(You are going to need a box of tissues before scrolling down to see Belden’s wounds.) I can’t stop crying every time I see this young innocent boy’s picture. How awful this world can be is mind boggling to me. How can anyone whip a child?
Thirteen year old Belden of the Getionko Congregation.
Dauglas brought Belden to the Hospital in Kisii Town where he was treated. We all have many things to pray for, but the top of our list needs to be “Thy Kingdom Come” because so many around this world are suffering and many horrendously.
I have now received another text from Dauglas concerning Belden:
“On behalf of Belden, an orphan from the Getionko congregation, I extend my deepest gratitude to our kind-hearted donors. Belden was attacked and severely injured by an unknown person, leaving him in a terrible condition. He is immensely thankful for your support. He says that without your help, he might not have survived. Your generosity has given him a second chance at life, and he prays that God blesses you abundantly for your kindness and love.”
Brethren, I don’t thank you donor’s enough for the assistance you give to our orphans and widows, it continues to help them so much. Life in these 3rd world countries can be quite difficult to say the least, with so much suffering, and so many starving. Every donation that comes in reaches our orphans and widows.
We also had a wonderful boost, from an Australian based establishment called “Life Nets” They reimbursed us for the school fees that we recently paid for the first term. That enabled the brethren to move forward by planting some large gardens, which hopefully will help ease the hunger.
We pray every day for us to be better stewards. And we continue to ask for your prayers, to be lead by His Spirit in everything we do. We need a strong hedge placed around us from our Heavenly Father to protect us (to protect all of us) from this evil untoward world in which we are living. The orphans pray for you donors every day. They appreciate all the love and care you are giving them very much.
Church Sweet Potato Garden At Bernard’s.
Church Sweet Potato Garden started at Dauglas’
Thanks to you donors, we were able to plow and plant a couple of more gardens. This is a big step in the right direction. Now we pray for sufficient rain to continue, as we wait about three Months for the potatoes to mature, and about two and one half Months for the Maize (corn) to mature.
Dauglas Sweet Potato Church Garden plowing.
Our brethren are peasant farmers who normally dig the dirt by hand with a “jembe” (Swahili meaning hoe.) But the gardens we just planted are approximately one acre each. Fortunately we were able to hire a tractor for a very small cost. But the brethren will spend plenty of time working in these gardens as the plants continue to grow.
Building the New Meeting Hall (Shade) For the Getionko Congregation.
The wooden posts that are in the ground have been treated.
The new hall will be a little larger, as the congregation continues to grow.
This hall will not contain mud, the roof and walls will consist of corrugated steel.
Once again we thank you donors for the love, the prayers, and the financial support you continue to give our brethren. May our Almighty Father bless each and every one of you abundantly.
Oh, one more thing before I end. We need your prayers. The house my wife Marie and I have been renting for the past fifteen years is being sold. We have to move, and be in another place by April first. So soon Kenya Hands of Hope will have a new address. But for now, the current mailing address is still good. We hope to keep you well informed of the upcoming changes.
Thank You.
Bill Goff
Website:www.khofh.org
Feast of Charity: https://khofh.com/feasts-of-charity/
E-mail:goffbto@aol.com
Phone: 843-447-0140