422. Easter Conference 1926

We cannot point at God’s kingdom and say that it is here or there, for God Himself is present in every place where He is worshiped in spirit and truth. Yet we have special promises when we gather together in Jesus’ name even if there are only two or three. because He has promised to be there in our midst. We cannot say that God’s kingdom is in Horten more than in any other town. Neither can we say that it is not there, and during the conference days we received a full assurance that God’s kingdom is in Horten too! We clearly understood that the kingdom of God consists of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. It does not say grace, peace, and joy. We need grace, but grace is in vain if it does not chasten us unto righteousness so that we can live godly and wisely in the present age. So the Spirit of the entire conference worked toward “obedience to the faith.” For years we have understood that all Christendom is dangerously asleep because of disobedience to the faith, and we came to that conclusion again. For the rest of our lives here we shall live for the will of God; for God’s will is our sanctification. There are very few Christians who can be reckoned among the truly God-fearing.

Sisters Anna Holtze and Emma Hansen came from Copenhagen. Friends came from Kristiansand, Hallingdal, Hønefoss, and from the neighboring towns as well. Brother Even Evensen calculated that altogether about 170 people came. May God bless all of them so they can keep the Word in a noble and pure heart. We have never endeavored to win the masses, but God’s blessing makes rich in this area as well. Our work has always been to work with individuals. God endorses this work, so now it is really gaining ground. In particular, we have endeavored to preach the cross over all flesh, and this seems to work well. I think it can be said that most of the friends do not lift either hand or foot in defense of their flesh. The result of this is such a strong unity and spiritual love that the many new friends who attended the conference for the first time were astonished over the unity and the love for one another that pervade the friends. We have hardly spoken about love at all; rather, we have spoken much about death over all flesh. It seems that love thrives very well under the shelter of this preaching. The conferences have really become extremely significant for us, and the friends meet one another with heartfelt joy.

Unlike the world, we cannot say that the conferences are a success, but that they are blessed. For this we will honor and praise our dear Father in heaven who lets His rich grace rule among us through Jesus Christ.

Horten is centrally located, so it is easily accessible. Since we now have a big and beautiful meeting hall there, we intend to hold the Pentecost Conference in Horten also.

As it is not Skjulte Skatter’s task to describe our conferences in detail, we will just mention these few things so that the friends round about that did not have the opportunity to be there will know that all of us were especially blessed during the conference. Also, quite a few new friends received a true understanding of the Word of the cross and that it is the power of God for us who believe.