The Christ Apostolic Church International (CACI) on Sunday held a flag raising ceremony as part of activities to mark its 100 Years Anniversary.

The centenary celebration, on the theme: “100 Years of Impacting the World through Pentecostalism,” has a year-long programme of activities throughout the local assemblies of the church to be climaxed in November.

Apostle Dr Stephen Kwame Ntow Amoani, the Chairman of CACI, called on Ghanaians to exhibit the fear of God in their daily lives to ensure the smooth development of the nation.

“We expect from every Ghanaian the fear of God, and with the fear of God, I do not think we will expect any wrong doing such as corruption.

“We should, therefore, live righteous lives, exhibit faithfulness and make sure we make a great impact in our communities and the nation as a whole,” he said.

The centenary celebration, which coincides with the Independence Anniversary celebration of Ghana, saw the Flag of Ghana being hoisted alongside the CACI Flag.

The tone of the ceremony was set with a rendition of the National Anthem composed by Dr Philip Gbeho.

Apostle Amoani, Apostle Dr Emmanuel Osei Kwabena Donkor, the Secretary of CACI, and Reverend Dr George Asante, the Residence Pastor, Osu Headquarters, hoisted the flags.

Apostle Amoani said the occasion marked a milestone in the history of the church and recounted its social responsibilities extended to the society.

He said the church had not only offered spiritual support for the people but had also extended education, health and social amenities to them.

He said as the church marked its 100 years of existence it would not forget to pay tribute to its forefathers, especially Apostle Peter Newman Anim, the Leader and Founder, whose role led to the spread of Pentecostalism in Ghana and abroad.

He congratulated Ghana as she marks her 60th anniversary and appealed to Ghanaians to help maintain the peace and continue to cherish the values of patriotism, enterprise, honesty and hard work as a people of “one nation with one destiny.”

The members of the church wore their beautiful centenary clothes and danced to the wonderful rendition by the Church Choir.

The centenary flag is designed in red, blue and white with a globe in the middle.

The red represents the redemptive Christ on the Cross, the blue indicates a conviction of going to Heaven, the white represents the righteousness of Christ whilst the globe urges Christians to impact the world with the gospel of Christ.

CACI, founded in 1917, began as a prayer group. Branded as the first Pentecostal Church in Ghana, it has many offspring such as the Apostolic Church and Church of Pentecost.

The population of the church, according to 2015 statistics, stands at 1,456 million.