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Consequences, punishments and rewards
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It is Robert Ingersoll who wrote, “In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments, there are consequences.” One of the best known of nature’s consequences is the law of the harvest. As we sow so shall we reap. For some reason we as people are more willing to accept this law as it applies to plants and animals than to human nature. We spend time trying to beat the system rather than succeed within it.
Too often we hope for good health without following the lifestyle that can bring it. We pray for prosperity but practise poor money management. We envy great talent but forget the years of training that developed it.
Perhaps we don’t believe that natural laws operate in human affairs. It is easy to become cynical today when we see and read of people breaking laws apparently with impunity, laws which most of mankind have held as natural and needed for civilised society.
But, as Jacques Maritain wrote, “All this proves nothing against natural law any more than a mistake in addition proves anything against arithmetic.”
Natural and divinely enunciated laws do exist, and as Cecil B. DeMille said, “We cannot break the Ten Commandments, we can only break ourselves against them.”
Perhaps nowhere is the law of cause and effect more misunderstood and misapplied than in our pursuit of happiness. So often we forget that happiness is not a cause, it is an effect, the result of selfless service to others.
And the unhappiest people are those who demand that the world give them power and pleasure. They may temporarily satisfy their self-centred needs, but the natural law decrees that they will thus corrode their character and lose the very happiness they seek.
The peacemakers and the pure in heart, however, may be buffeted by the world, but if they endure it well, they will develop godlike characteristics which will bring them love and joy in this life and happiness in the eternities yet to come.
Sometimes the question is asked: Just how effective is the threat of punishment in keeping men from doing things they shouldn’t do? To this, we must frankly answer that often the mere threat of punishment doesn’t seem to be very effective—perhaps because so many men are apparently willing to gamble on the chance of avoiding punishment for their errors.
In contemplating some misdeed, they often weigh the supposed pleasures against the possible penalties, and then they weigh the chances of escaping the penalties and act accordingly. Especially would it seem that punishments which are postponed to a remote hereafter are often not very effective in causing men to give up the error of their ways.
Heaven sometimes seems so far away and what seems far away may hold little fear for the present. But quite apart from the prospect of remote punishment, it would be well to consider the absolute certainty of immediate punishment.
If we do something we shouldn’t do, even if no one else knows it, the gnawing accusation inside is one form of immediate and unavoidable punishment. The accusation of others is only intermittent, but our own inward accusation can be constant. There may be those who we may think have done some misdeed or participated in some malpractice without punishment, but if we think so, it is only because we don’t know what goes on inside them.
There is no misdeed which does not exact its own penalty. There is no kind of malpractice, the consequences of which are reserved wholly for the hereafter. We may gamble on outsmarting the law; we may gamble on the seeming remoteness of heaven and the hereafter; we may gamble on the leniency of men and the mercy of God, but there is nothing more certain in this world than the certainty that every thought and act of our lives has its impact upon us, whether it is known to others or not, and anyone who gambles against this fact has already lost his gamble.
By Samuel Enos Eghan
Email: samueleghan@gmail.com
On Sunday, August 13, 2026, the Church of Pentecost (COP) International, Finland, held an impressive church service in Helsinki in honour of and to welcome Prophet Benjamin Arthur as the new National Head.
The well-attended service formally ushered in Prophet Arthur who takes over from Apostle Francis Owusu Kwaah, who has been the National Head since November 2020 and whose tenure as the National Head ended last month.
Prophet Arthur arrived in Finland from the UK where he has held many positions in the church to replace Apostle Owusu Kwaah who moves back to the UK.
A touching welcome and powerful ministration
The church service was officiated by Apostle Seth Samuel Asante, the National Head of the Church of Pentecost, USA.
It was a touching welcome church service and ministration at a well-attended event. In attendance were many religious leaders from other churches or missions, as well as dignitaries.
Apostle Asante had the honour to introduce Prophet Arthur to the whole congregation as the new National Head in Finland. He was joined by other church leaders and officers from UK, USA, and Finland to pray for Prophet Arthur and handed him over to COP Finland as their new National Head to a huge applause.
Earlier, Apostle Asante delivered a powerful and touching sermon that highlighted a message of salvation and the importance of knowing, loving and serving God with one’s whole heart. He entreated the audience to love God and do His work to glorify his name.
Stirring up understandings from the hymns: “My faith has found a resting place…” and “Guide me O Thou great Jehovah…,” as well as a number of quotations from the Bible, the Apostle gave a powerful preaching on the need to build one’s faith in God.
Response from the new National Head
In response, Prophet Benjamin Arthur preached the power of prophecies and God’s plan for redemption. He entreated all to believe in God’s power especially through prophecies to save mankind. The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, he noted and add: “The blood of Jesus is not shed in vain”.
Surrounded by his beloved wife, Mrs Eugenia Arthur, and their three children, Prophet Arthur expressed gratitude to the members of the church for the resounding welcome they have accorded him as he starts to embark on his role and duty as the National Head.
He recognised the exploits and excellent leadership roles of his predecessors, Apostle Edmund Appiah (who was the first National Head) and Apostle Francis Owusu Kwaah.
COP’s future and growth in Finland
The Church of Pentecost in Finland was established over 25 years ago. It started in September 2000 as a prayer group with a small number of devoted persons in Helsinki (see www.copfinland.fi).
The group grew fast and there was the need to secure a new place of worship in the Helsinki area. The Church has grown and spread to other towns and cities in Finland.
Today, in Helsinki alone there are two branches of the Church. There is the Akan Assembly where worship is done mostly in the Twi language. The other branch is the English Assembly (or the PIWC) which is attended by other nationalities and African immigrants aside Ghanaian immigrants.
The COP Finland has become very formidable in the religious space in the Ghanaian community in Finland.
It has thus played a prominent role in the religious or spiritual existence of its members, as well as in people’s social lives as a key aspect of integration into the Finnish society.
The church continues to grow and, for example, it has been one of the major channels through which the Ghana Union Finland (GUF), an association for Ghanaian immigrants in Finland, has made more contacts with members of the Ghanaian immigrant community.
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
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Features
Responding to religious insults with faith, wisdom and restraint …The Prophetic Model for Muslim–Christian Peace and Coexistence(Part 1)
All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds. We praise Him, seek His help and forgiveness, and seek refuge in Him from the evil within ourselves and from our evil deeds.
May His Peace and Blessings be Upon the Noble Prophet Mohammed, his household, companions and all righteous people till the Last Day. Ameen
GHANA, WE MUST NOT ALLOW A MOMENT OF ANGER TO DESTROY DECADES OF PEACE
My dear brothers and sisters in Ghana.
Today I speak about something that should concern every Muslim, every Christian and every responsible Ghanaian.
Recent events involving controversial statements about Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the arrest of an Islamic cleric accused of making statements advocating violence, and the arrest of a Christian preacher over alleged derogatory comments concerning the Prophet (pbuh) have generated considerable national concern. The Ghana Police Service has said the matters are under investigation and that due process will apply.
And now, reports of an alleged assault on a detained pastor have added another troubling dimension to the matter.
Let us be very clear:
Ghana is not at war.
Muslims are not at war with Christians.
2 | P a g e
Christians are not at war with Muslims.
For generations, we have lived together, traded together, worked together, attended the same schools, built communities together and, in many Ghanaian families, even married across religious lines.
Therefore, we must not allow the reckless words or actions of a few individuals to destroy the peace built by generations.
WHEN SOMEONE INSULTS THE PROPHET (PBUH), WHAT DOES ISLAM EXPECT
FROM ME?
This is the question we must answer.
Not: “How angry am I?”
But: “What does Allah require from me?”
Not: “What can I do to my enemy?”
But: “What did Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) do when his enemies hurt him?”
This distinction is crucial.
Islam does not teach us to abandon our faith when we are provoked.
Islam teaches us how to behave because we have faith.
Allah says:
“Do not let the hatred of a people cause you to depart from justice. Be just; that is nearer to righteousness.” (Qur’an 5:8).
Notice the greatness of Islam.
Allah does not say, “Be just when people respect you.”
He says, be just even when you hate what they have done.
Therefore: An insult does not give me permission to become unjust.
The author is the Chief Imam of Katamanso Municipal and Certified Counsellor and Governance Expert
By Imam Alhaji Saeed Abdulai
