BEFORE THE NEXT BLASPHEMY KILLING

Last week Thursday, a mob of self-appointed God avengers lynched a woman to death for 'blasphemy' in Kano. A lot of outrage has followed that act of terror. But to mourn Bridget Agbaheme properly would be to address the context that empowered her murderers to make her the latest of the many casualties of precipitate indignation against 'blasphemy': To grieve over her meaningfully requires the transformation of the tragedy of her violent execution into a platform for a secular, nationwide campaign for the decriminalization of ‘blasphemy’ in Nigeria.

Governor of Kano state, Abdullahi Ganduje, reportedly condemned the killing and "promised to unmask the perpetrators of the dastardly act." That’s a deceptive gesture of lip service. He didn’t mean a word of that vow. Ganduje celebrated a blanket death sentence handed down in another case of ‘blasphemy’ one year ago. He "expressed satisfaction" when an Upper Sharia Court sentenced nine people to death for ''blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).''

The so-called blasphemers were Muslims. They were followers of the Tijaniya sect. They were alleged to have insinuated that the Senegalese founder of their denomination, Sheikh Ibrahim Niasse, "was bigger than Prophet Muhammad."

The notoriously excitable Kano mob didn’t even judge the ‘infidels’ worthy of the protocol of a Sharia court trial. They lusted and angled to kill the sinners extrajudicially. The fanatics were so desperate they burnt down a section of the court building in a failed attempt to retrieve their pet peeves for street execution. The judges were faced with a fait accompli. They hurriedly condemned ‘the blasphemers’ to death.

It was this crowd of jungle justice agitators that Ganduje sought to ingratiate himself with when he said that he ‘’appreciates the patience and calmness with which the general public allowed the law to take its course despite the unwarranted provocation.’’

He would even proceed to warn that "this will serve as a deterrent to those who feel they can come and cause a breach of the peace…" and to promise that he would request the state house of assembly to pass a law authorizing the policing of religious preaching in Kano State.

The folks who hacked Bridget to death were the same bloodthirsty set of people that Ganduje hailed as peacemakers for trying to kill 'blasphemy' suspects last year.

To be fair, though, Kano has a history of ‘blasphemy’ holocaust that dates back twenty years.

In December 1995, a Kano mob beheaded Gideon Akaluka, an Igbo trader, and paraded his head on a spike throughout the streets. The police had arrested and imprisoned Akaluka following allegations that his wife had used the pages of the Koran as toilet paper for her baby. Muslims broke into his cell, killed him there, and escaped with the trophy of his blood-dripping head!

In August 2008, a Kano mob besieged the house of a 50 year old Muslim man in Sheka Aci Lafiaya quarters and beat him to death for allegedly ‘blaspheming’ the Prophet.

In November 2012, in Bichi, 30 kilometers from Kano,  a mob capitalized on a literal slip of tongue to steal and kill. A Christian tailor, who was obviously yet to attain conversational level of proficiency in Hausa language, mispronounced the name of a dress while chatting with his Muslim neighbor, and uttered words that transliterated to, ‘’the Prophet has come to the market.’’ The mob punished that error with the looting of shops and the killing of four people!

Kano is Nigeria's capital of 'blasphemy' killing. But it has some competitors.

A week before Bridget’s murder, some Muslim fanatics killed Methodus Emmanuel, a 24 year old trader based in Padongari, Niger state, for ‘blasphemy’. They also killed three officials of the National Security and Civil Defence Corps. The Civil Defence men earned damnation for attempting to stop the soi-disant defenders of the faith from executing judgment on ‘God’s behalf.’

Of course, Kaduna gave us the mad Miss World riots of 2012. A 21 year old Thisday fashion journalist, Isioma Daniel, had written what she thought was a punch-line that could amuse Muslims who were against Nigeria's hosting of the global beauty pageant. Her innocuous wisecrack was construed as ‘blasphemy.’ A sitting deputy governor went on air and urged any Muslim who sees her to kill her. 58 churches were destroyed. 215 people were slaughtered.

President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the killing of Bridget and prayed God to grant her husband Pastor Mike and her family ''the fortitude to bear the loss.'' That's a condolence message too balmy to pass for a presidential response. It was too evasive for a cowardly crime that could have sparked a combustible mix of religious and ethnic wars.

President Buhari skirted the heart of the matter. The problem -it's the elephant in the room! - is the presence of 'blasphemy' laws in Nigerian jurisprudence and the popular perception that those laws license Muslims to function as volunteer jury and executioners when there is news of violation in their neighborhood. Nigerian laws enables this continuing pattern of 'blasphemy' killings.

The two parallel legal codes that the Nigerian justice system stand on criminalize ‘blasphemy’ even though the Nigerian constitution guarantees all Nigerians the freedom of thought, conscience and religion and the right to freedom of speech. This contradiction means that a supposedly secular Nigerian state approves religious xenophobia and provides for your prosecution and punishment if some other person invents a charge of "insult to religion" against you.

In some parts of the North where the Saudi import of Wahabbism has taken root and reconfigured the people's concept of the Prophet's teaching and tradition, the accusation of 'blasphemy' leads to instant murder ...as surely as night follows the day. This makes everyone a fair game. All you need to be killed in cold blood is to have the misfortune of having a drunk fellow mutter ‘blasphemy’, like a holophrastic child, while pointing at you. A mob of demons will coalesce around you in no time and savage you until you become an ugly log of meat!

One of the prevailing orthodoxies in that region is that a ‘blasphemy’ alarm obligates all pious Muslims within earshot to rally and kill 'the accused'. Nobody is required the substantiate the particulars of the so-called 'blasphemy.' The claim of 'blasphemy' is its own evidence. And when the mob appears, they have to kill the suspect like a black snake: With so much fervor and fury!

To prove the point: what Bridget said that made Kano apoplectic remains unknown days after her murder. Nigerian newspapers reported conjectures as the precursor to her killing. This suggests that she was probably lied against and wasted.

It’s possible that that wife of a Deeper Life pastor was as peaceable and quiet as serious members of Nigeria's foremost ultra-purist, otherworldly church. She may have been an unlucky victim of envy or hate. A rival trader may have invoked that charge to eliminate her.

'Blasphemy' killing is a dumb atrocity. It is a man taking a putative transgression against God personally. It is a mortal appropriating God's prerogative to judge in eternity. It is  human being answering a misdemeanor with an infinitely greater iniquity.

‘Blasphemy’ laws make killings like Bridget's legal. In a multi-religious society like ours, they make persecution permissible and acceptable. They energize bullies who consider themselves practitioners of the stronger religion to plead that one 'blasphemy' provoked them.

'Blasphemy' laws vest in some adherents the luxury of affecting offense when they experience a persuasion that differs from or contradicts their own scripture. They incentivize people to instrumentalize violence in asserting their monopoly of faith. They sanction the use of coercion in forcing religious uniformity.

Moreover, ‘blasphemy’ is a vague, ambiguous word. It is a fluid, elusive notion. Like beauty in the eyes of the beholder, it is fraught with potential for countless interpretations. Any hearer is at liberty to decide or define the reality or otherwise of his encounter with it.

For example, if this son of a pastor verbalizes one of the elementals of his faith, he can be held as guilty of ‘blasphemy.’ If I declaim, in Sokoto, that Jesus Christ is the son of God, a Muslim might take offense if he is intolerant of or ignorant about Christianity. If he is instinctively violent, he might rush for a machete because he heard an allusion to 'the trinity', a trite theological construct in Christendom, but one that is at variance with the Koran's characterization of Allah.

And if I was raised to be touchy and defensive of my faith, I would take umbrage when a Muslim jokes that Jesus was entirely human, that He had a high libido, and impregnated the prettiest of his female disciples. I may hasten to reply that trivialization of God with an action that matches the gravity of that 'blasphemy.'

We must collectively discredit terrorism in all its guises. That Kano mob killed Bridget as cruelly and gleefully as Boko Haram or Daesh would have killed her. And it's a shame that we count as citizens individuals who are capable of such  inhumanity!

God is not an endangered species. He doesn't need 'blasphemy' laws or killings to survive . 'Blasphemy' does not impact or diminish Him. The word actually means nothing. Those who kill in defense of God, those who project Him as a petty, peevish, puny Being, are terrorists with an excuse!

 By Emmanuel Uchenna Ugwu 

immaugwu@gmail.com
@EmmaUgwuTheMan

BACK TO THE TRENCHES AGAINST RELIGION OF INSANITY

I cant really control my tears writing this especially after going through the write up by Declan. And any time i try so hard to wrap my head around any religion so that people will like me, the more i see reasons not even to shake hands with a religious person. Religion is so full of evil that we suppose to avoid any religious person like a plague. And when i say religion i mean also that your own version of Christianity, or whatever nonsense you may call it. When our late Brother Ikechukwu Anigbo was killed because of 10 Naira most you people prayed thus: God we need your intervention! Did He intervene? We pray against untimely death! Is that prayer working? God save your children! Is it working? What happened to all these over recycled prayers everyday? Because we are wasting our time talking to a God that is not even thinking about us and that is why He is so imaginary. And now we are facing again an untimely death of a beautiful man full of hope for grater survival, all because of a grand delusion called Islam (The Religion of Peace) Remember that the people that killed him are not Boko Haram, they are moderate Muslims who are very peaceful and they just reacted peacefully because somebody insulted their Mohammed (Nonsense Peace Be Upon Him NPBUH). And if you think they are just doing it because they are Muslims go and read your Bible, the two books was copied from the same source and Christians now claim to be peaceful just because we have decided not to take the Bible seriously. In Matthew 5:17 Jesus said ""Don't misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. So, no mater how foolish you are don't tell me that is old testament. In Deuteronomy 13:12 If you go to any City and they are worshiping other god, kill everybody in that city and burn all their properties and the Town should remain ruined forever. Also in Det 13:6 if your own brother, sister, daughter, wife tells you about any other God kill them with your own hands. Imagine what the world will be like if we listen to this kind of instruction coming from a Holly Book. Our sense of morality predates any religion, i am not doing good because of i am afraid of hell or to go to heaven, i do good for the sake of humanity. Even when the supposed Jesus Christ told His disciples that they should eat His flesh and drink His blood. His disciples started running away from Him because that is an insult to humanity. In John 6 51 "I’m the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he’ll live forever. And the bread I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” 52 Then the Jewish leaders debated angrily with each other, asking, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” ...And in John 6: 66 "As a result, many of his disciples turned back and no longer associated with him. I have gone through the wall post of Blessing Emmanuel, Our late Brother Chimaije called her and asked her to pray for him, which she did and also asked him to pray. What happened to those prayers? Is our own Almighty God playing the victim? The name Chimaije means God knows my movement, is our own God not aware that Chimaijem was targeted by people who claim to be protecting their own version of God? The whole religion is totally nonsense and we will continue to waste time calling on the imaginary God again to do something when it is already late, but then we can always foolishly console ourselves by saying that God will keep Chimaije in heaven which i also pray for. But if such God exists this is the moment He supposed to show that He is God, and unfortunately He was on sabbatical leave as always! As i say Goodbye to a Brother with tears, feeling what he must have felt when the enemy was so close to him and imagining the kind of prayers he must prayed to God frantically with tears and cry begging God to show His power and save his life, Asking the Mighty Man in Battle to prove His worth, shouting for the God that aswereth by fire to show His face,but our so called loving God is so wicked by abandoning His own follower to die in this circumstance. And please preach whatever nonsense you have to yourself and swallow your foolish claims in your numb skulls to protect your God. I am very happy living happily without Him or Her. ‪#‎ReligionIsSoFullOfShit‬

Odoh Nwaobodagu

HOLDING CAPTIVITY CAPTIVE: HOW GOD DECEIVED THE DECEIVER

It was not so much that the devil deceived Eve as that God deceived the devil into deceiving Eve. I know you were taught that the devil deceived Eve at the dawn of creation. But that is because our time-worn teachers have not grasped the full import of what happened in the Garden of Eden. It was not so much that the devil deceived Eve as that God deceived the devil. God deceived the devil into deceiving Eve. One of the biggest mistakes the devil ever made was to deceive Eve. If Eve had not been deceived, the devil would not have received God’s death sentence: “(Her descendants) will always be (your) enemies. One of hers will strike you on the head, and you will strike him on the heel.” (Genesis 3:15). Hunger for God The scriptures are a litany of people thirsting and hungering for God often without knowing it is God they need. Collectively, they are one long, persistent and incessant cry for salvation. Accordingly, Paul cries: “What a miserable person I am. Who will rescue me from this body that is doomed to die?” (Romans 7:24). It is God himself who was the architect of man’s predicament. He put yearnings in the heart of man that the world could not meet. Once Adam sinned, God unfolded a plan of salvation designed to teach us an eternal lesson. This plan included sending the seed of Abraham into Egypt where they would be in bondage for over four hundred years. Then God sent a deliverer in Moses who succeeded in giving the Israelites tests they did not pass and commandments they did not keep. There came many other saviours. There were saviours who helped to keep the Philistines at bay; saviours who helped to deliver the Jews from the hand of their enemies. There were saviours of all kinds and descriptions. But these saviours were mere men and therefore severely limited. These saviours also needed salvation. These saviours could heal the body but not the soul. These saviours could neither save from life nor save from death. Finally a Saviour is born, whose coming had long been foretold by the prophets, and whose arrival was heralded by angels. What would be the big deal about this particular Saviour? Why would his arrival bring “good tidings of great joy” not only to the Jews, but also to all people? (Luke 2:10-11). Why are we still be talking about this very Saviour today, 2000 years later? It is because this Saviour is no mere mortal. This Saviour is Christ the Lord. This Saviour is Jesus; the only begotten Son of God. Stumbling stone Nevertheless, Jesus himself turns out to be the biggest trap of all; not only for men but also for Satan. The bible had prophesied about him: “He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble; they shall fall and be broken, be snared and taken.” (Isaiah 8:14-15). In this regard, the crucifixion of Jesus was the outcome of a monumental set-up by God. Time and again, the devil tried to get Jesus killed, but he always managed to escape. When Jesus was born, the devil caused Herod to kill all the children in Bethlehem from two years and less. But before this heinous act could be executed, the angel came and told Jesus’ “parents” to flee with him to Egypt. Much later on, the devil tried to get the Jews to throw Jesus down from the brow of a hill, but he easily escaped by passing through the middle of the crowd. This hide-and-seek continued, leading the devil to the conclusion that all he had to do was to kill Jesus in order to short-circuit his ministry. And then one day, Jesus allowed himself to be arrested. Then he allowed himself to be killed. And suddenly, the devil discovered that he had been suckered into working for God all along. Suddenly, he discovered it was always God’s plan for Jesus to be killed. Comeuppance The wisdom of God meant that the greatest defeat of the devil was in the very victory he sought. Thus Paul says: “We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. (1 Corinthians 2:7-8). The devil and his cohorts killed Jesus and they ended up with one, two, many “Jesuses” in the form of regenerated believers. They killed the Lord of glory, but in the very killing was the redemption of mankind. God used the plans of the devil against him and to his comeuppance. Everything the devil did against Jesus turned out to be for the benefit of Jesus’ ministry. Thus, Jesus’ apostles would later testify to God in prayer: “For truly against your holy Servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever your hand and your purpose determined before to be done. (Acts 4:27-28). It is not surprising therefore that Jesus himself encouraged Judas to go ahead and betray him without delay. (John 13:27). Judas’ betrayal was treacherous, but it was intended. His betrayal was heinous, but it nevertheless fulfilled the purpose God purposed for the salvation of mankind. Through it, the devil, like Haman, was hoisted on his own petard. Redemptive honour God has been more honoured in man’s redemption than would have been the case if there had been no fall of man. Through the redemption, the Lord displayed the majesty of his justice and the glory of his grace: “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God.” (Ephesians 3:10). Forgiven and regenerated, under the moulding influence of the Holy Spirit, the believer is now capable of virtues to which we could never have attained had we never sinned. Adam could not have hated sin with the same abhorrence as today’s man or woman with a renewed heart. Thanks paradoxically to Adam’s sin, we now behold with open faces the redemptive glory of God. God in Christ did not dwell in Adam. But now Christ is in us, and he is our hope of sharing in the glory of God. (Colossians 1:27). Thanks to Jesus, death; the penalty for Adam’s sin, has now become our means of escape into the bosom of our heavenly Father. If Eve had not been deceived, we would not have become partakers of God’s divine nature. If Eve had not sinned, we would not now be blessed with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ. If Eve had not been deceived, we would have remained marooned in a garden. Redeemed, we are now enthroned in a city; the city of God. If Eve had not been deceived, a man would not now be in heaven, seated at the right hand of God. This man, Christ Jesus, is bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh.

BY Femi Aribisala

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/05/holding-captivity-captive-god-deceived-deceiver/

SLIPPERY SLOPE OF CHURCH-MARKETING

The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. 

When Jesus multiplied loaves to feed the multitude, many concluded he was just the pastor they needed. As a result, they went to great lengths to relocate to his “church.” Some got into boats and crossed over from the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum in order to see him. But these people were not hungry for God. They came because they wanted bread. They came bringing their own five loaves and two fishes as offering in order that they might be multiplied. 

But Jesus is not one to encourage vain worship: “Jesus answered them and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labour for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal on him.’” (John 6:26-27). 

For good measure, Jesus then preached one of the most spiritual messages in the bible. He told them he is the bread of life and insisted they must eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to obtain eternal life. When he said this, he lost the church. Virtually the whole congregation left. Even many of his disciples concluded he was no longer the type of pastor they were looking for: “From that time many of his disciples went back and walked with him no more.” (John 6:66).

 Attracting the crowd 

How different Jesus’ position is from that of many pastors today. Rather than discourage those who only see godliness as a means of worldly gain, many pastors are determined to attract such people by even claiming they have a special calling or anointing to make people rich financially. 

Why would Jesus preach a message knowing full well many would not understand it and leave? Jesus tells his audience they would have to eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to have eternal life. Many found this unacceptable. But instead of simplifying his message, Jesus compounds it by telling them he is going to ascend to heaven. (John 6:61-62). When many of his disciples left in protest, he then turns to his core twelve disciples and invites them to leave also. (John 6:67). 

In short, Jesus adamantly refuses to sugar-coat the gospel. It might sometimes be a bitter pill to swallow; nevertheless it has to be swallowed because it is the only way to spiritual healing. The gospel is inevitably offensive to the world. Jesus himself is described by Isaiah as a “rock of offence.” (Isaiah 8:14). But pastors repackage the gospel to make it attractive to the world. They see Jesus himself as a commodity to be marketed. As a result, they end up with a self-serving gospel.

 Made-to-measure Christianity 

Churches now do telemarketing surveys, asking: “What would you like in a church?” In effect, many churches are made to measure, according to the greatest demand and not according to God’s prescriptions. They even have surveys now asking church-members what kind of messages they would like to hear. This is standard operating procedure in the world of business marketing where you find out what your potential customers want and give it to them. But it is totally inappropriate with regard to the kingdom of God which is based on the will of our Father in heaven. 

Churches have become the jack of all trades. They use such non-spiritual activities as gymnastics, rock n roll, comedians, and a host of other gimmicks to entertain their congregation. The church service is often a carefully crafted and choreographed production designed to please and impress man and not God. Many churches put on shows with worldly celebrities to increase their numbers. 

Now we see the next logical step in the process of marketing the church to the world: offer a free inducement to get them into your establishment. Put on a show, offer a free trial, give away something of value, and entice them with things to get them in the door. Today it is a regular practice for churches to offer some sort of inducement for newcomers.

In one American church, they offered to pay for a portion of the visitor’s petrol in exchange for visiting the church. Another preacher offered non-members a certain amount of money for just sitting through a Sunday morning service. I suppose you might call this “avant-garde evangelism.” 

The worldly church 

The modern-day pastor is determined to change man’s perception of God and to make him more desirable and appealing; all in the interest of expeditious church growth. The flesh hates holiness therefore many pastors do all they can to make the church more like the world. Frankly, holiness is hard on the numbers and it has a way of offending the profane. 

The choice is now towards promoting a casual, even cavalier, atmosphere in churches so as to make people feel more comfortable and relaxed. The truth, however, is that we cannot entertain men into the kingdom: but we can convict them. 

In this regard, the “purpose-driven churches” are true to their names. They are purpose-driven but their purpose is neither Christ nor the gospel. Their purpose is to fill the pews. Their purpose is to collect as much money as possible. Therefore they sacrifice the gospel on the altar of pragmatic purpose. Since they are keen to attract the world, inevitably they become worldly. 

As a result, we have today “church for people who don’t like church.” That is like saying “Jesus for the people who don’t like Jesus.” What is the point of a Christ-less church? A lady spelt out the evangelistic objectives of her church. She said: “We want to attract the world but in an unworldly way.” This is a contradiction in terms. 

The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. Once we try to market a church, we go off the rails. Somebody out there needs to spell it out to Pastor Zerubbabel that the building of Christ’s true church is not by power or by might but by my Spirit says the Lord. (Zechariah 4:5). 

Counter-productive evangelism.

It is counter-productive to try and attract people to church. The question is for what purpose would we want them to come? God warned Isaiah that no matter what he does, the people would not listen to him. (Isaiah 6:9). Jesus also confirmed this. He says the people will not hear and they will not understand. (Matthew 13:13-15). Indeed, according to his teachings, God is not in the churches but in our hearts. (John 4:21-24). 

Therefore, true evangelism should not be embarked upon in order to bring people to church. Churches have been more effective in misleading people by showing them the highway leading to destruction instead of the narrow way leading to salvation. Today, pastors are the blind leaders that Jesus railed against. All they do is lead people into the ditch. (Matthew 15:14). The objective of true evangelism is to bring people to Christ, and no man can come to Christ unless the Holy Spirit draws him. (John 6:44)

By Femi Aribisala

By Femi Aribisala The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. When Jesus multiplied loaves to feed the multitude, many concluded he was just the pastor they needed. As a result, they went to great lengths to relocate to his “church.” Some got into boats and crossed over from the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum in order to see him. But these people were not hungry for God. They came because they wanted bread. They came bringing their own five loaves and two fishes as offering in order that they might be multiplied. But Jesus is not one to encourage vain worship: “Jesus answered them and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labour for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal on him.’” (John 6:26-27). For good measure, Jesus then preached one of the most spiritual messages in the bible. He told them he is the bread of life and insisted they must eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to obtain eternal life. When he said this, he lost the church. Virtually the whole congregation left. Even many of his disciples concluded he was no longer the type of pastor they were looking for: “From that time many of his disciples went back and walked with him no more.” (John 6:66). Attracting the crowd How different Jesus’ position is from that of many pastors today. Rather than discourage those who only see godliness as a means of worldly gain, many pastors are determined to attract such people by even claiming they have a special calling or anointing to make people rich financially. Why would Jesus preach a message knowing full well many would not understand it and leave? Jesus tells his audience they would have to eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to have eternal life. Many found this unacceptable. But instead of simplifying his message, Jesus compounds it by telling them he is going to ascend to heaven. (John 6:61-62). When many of his disciples left in protest, he then turns to his core twelve disciples and invites them to leave also. (John 6:67). In short, Jesus adamantly refuses to sugar-coat the gospel. It might sometimes be a bitter pill to swallow; nevertheless it has to be swallowed because it is the only way to spiritual healing. The gospel is inevitably offensive to the world. Jesus himself is described by Isaiah as a “rock of offence.” (Isaiah 8:14). But pastors repackage the gospel to make it attractive to the world. They see Jesus himself as a commodity to be marketed. As a result, they end up with a self-serving gospel. Made-to-measure Christianity Churches now do telemarketing surveys, asking: “What would you like in a church?” In effect, many churches are made to measure, according to the greatest demand and not according to God’s prescriptions. They even have surveys now asking church-members what kind of messages they would like to hear. This is standard operating procedure in the world of business marketing where you find out what your potential customers want and give it to them. But it is totally inappropriate with regard to the kingdom of God which is based on the will of our Father in heaven. Churches have become the jack of all trades. They use such non-spiritual activities as gymnastics, rock n roll, comedians, and a host of other gimmicks to entertain their congregation. The church service is often a carefully crafted and choreographed production designed to please and impress man and not God. Many churches put on shows with worldly celebrities to increase their numbers. Now we see the next logical step in the process of marketing the church to the world: offer a free inducement to get them into your establishment. Put on a show, offer a free trial, give away something of value, and entice them with things to get them in the door. Today it is a regular practice for churches to offer some sort of inducement for newcomers. In one American church, they offered to pay for a portion of the visitor’s petrol in exchange for visiting the church. Another preacher offered non-members a certain amount of money for just sitting through a Sunday morning service. I suppose you might call this “avant-garde evangelism.” The worldly church The modern-day pastor is determined to change man’s perception of God and to make him more desirable and appealing; all in the interest of expeditious church growth. The flesh hates holiness therefore many pastors do all they can to make the church more like the world. Frankly, holiness is hard on the numbers and it has a way of offending the profane. The choice is now towards promoting a casual, even cavalier, atmosphere in churches so as to make people feel more comfortable and relaxed. The truth, however, is that we cannot entertain men into the kingdom: but we can convict them. In this regard, the “purpose-driven churches” are true to their names. They are purpose-driven but their purpose is neither Christ nor the gospel. Their purpose is to fill the pews. Their purpose is to collect as much money as possible. Therefore they sacrifice the gospel on the altar of pragmatic purpose. Since they are keen to attract the world, inevitably they become worldly. As a result, we have today “church for people who don’t like church.” That is like saying “Jesus for the people who don’t like Jesus.” What is the point of a Christ-less church? A lady spelt out the evangelistic objectives of her church. She said: “We want to attract the world but in an unworldly way.” This is a contradiction in terms. The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. Once we try to market a church, we go off the rails. Somebody out there needs to spell it out to Pastor Zerubbabel that the building of Christ’s true church is not by power or by might but by my Spirit says the Lord. (Zechariah 4:5). Counter-productive evangelism It is counter-productive to try and attract people to church. The question is for what purpose would we want them to come? God warned Isaiah that no matter what he does, the people would not listen to him. (Isaiah 6:9). Jesus also confirmed this. He says the people will not hear and they will not understand. (Matthew 13:13-15). Indeed, according to his teachings, God is not in the churches but in our hearts. (John 4:21-24). Therefore, true evangelism should not be embarked upon in order to bring people to church. Churches have been more effective in misleading people by showing them the highway leading to destruction instead of the narrow way leading to salvation. Today, pastors are the blind leaders that Jesus railed against. All they do is lead people into the ditch. (Matthew 15:14). The objective of true evangelism is to bring people to Christ, and no man can come to Christ unless the Holy Spirit draws him. (John 6:44)

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/slippery-slope-church-marketing/

The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. When Jesus multiplied loaves to feed the multitude, many concluded he was just the pastor they needed. As a result, they went to great lengths to relocate to his “church.” Some got into boats and crossed over from the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum in order to see him. But these people were not hungry for God. They came because they wanted bread. They came bringing their own five loaves and two fishes as offering in order that they might be multiplied. But Jesus is not one to encourage vain worship: “Jesus answered them and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labour for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal on him.’” (John 6:26-27). For good measure, Jesus then preached one of the most spiritual messages in the bible. He told them he is the bread of life and insisted they must eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to obtain eternal life. When he said this, he lost the church. Virtually the whole congregation left. Even many of his disciples concluded he was no longer the type of pastor they were looking for: “From that time many of his disciples went back and walked with him no more.” (John 6:66). Attracting the crowd How different Jesus’ position is from that of many pastors today. Rather than discourage those who only see godliness as a means of worldly gain, many pastors are determined to attract such people by even claiming they have a special calling or anointing to make people rich financially. Why would Jesus preach a message knowing full well many would not understand it and leave? Jesus tells his audience they would have to eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to have eternal life. Many found this unacceptable. But instead of simplifying his message, Jesus compounds it by telling them he is going to ascend to heaven. (John 6:61-62). When many of his disciples left in protest, he then turns to his core twelve disciples and invites them to leave also. (John 6:67). In short, Jesus adamantly refuses to sugar-coat the gospel. It might sometimes be a bitter pill to swallow; nevertheless it has to be swallowed because it is the only way to spiritual healing. The gospel is inevitably offensive to the world. Jesus himself is described by Isaiah as a “rock of offence.” (Isaiah 8:14). But pastors repackage the gospel to make it attractive to the world. They see Jesus himself as a commodity to be marketed. As a result, they end up with a self-serving gospel. Made-to-measure Christianity Churches now do telemarketing surveys, asking: “What would you like in a church?” In effect, many churches are made to measure, according to the greatest demand and not according to God’s prescriptions. They even have surveys now asking church-members what kind of messages they would like to hear. This is standard operating procedure in the world of business marketing where you find out what your potential customers want and give it to them. But it is totally inappropriate with regard to the kingdom of God which is based on the will of our Father in heaven. Churches have become the jack of all trades. They use such non-spiritual activities as gymnastics, rock n roll, comedians, and a host of other gimmicks to entertain their congregation. The church service is often a carefully crafted and choreographed production designed to please and impress man and not God. Many churches put on shows with worldly celebrities to increase their numbers. Now we see the next logical step in the process of marketing the church to the world: offer a free inducement to get them into your establishment. Put on a show, offer a free trial, give away something of value, and entice them with things to get them in the door. Today it is a regular practice for churches to offer some sort of inducement for newcomers. In one American church, they offered to pay for a portion of the visitor’s petrol in exchange for visiting the church. Another preacher offered non-members a certain amount of money for just sitting through a Sunday morning service. I suppose you might call this “avant-garde evangelism.” The worldly church The modern-day pastor is determined to change man’s perception of God and to make him more desirable and appealing; all in the interest of expeditious church growth. The flesh hates holiness therefore many pastors do all they can to make the church more like the world. Frankly, holiness is hard on the numbers and it has a way of offending the profane. The choice is now towards promoting a casual, even cavalier, atmosphere in churches so as to make people feel more comfortable and relaxed. The truth, however, is that we cannot entertain men into the kingdom: but we can convict them. In this regard, the “purpose-driven churches” are true to their names. They are purpose-driven but their purpose is neither Christ nor the gospel. Their purpose is to fill the pews. Their purpose is to collect as much money as possible. Therefore they sacrifice the gospel on the altar of pragmatic purpose. Since they are keen to attract the world, inevitably they become worldly. As a result, we have today “church for people who don’t like church.” That is like saying “Jesus for the people who don’t like Jesus.” What is the point of a Christ-less church? A lady spelt out the evangelistic objectives of her church. She said: “We want to attract the world but in an unworldly way.” This is a contradiction in terms. The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. Once we try to market a church, we go off the rails. Somebody out there needs to spell it out to Pastor Zerubbabel that the building of Christ’s true church is not by power or by might but by my Spirit says the Lord. (Zechariah 4:5). Counter-productive evangelism It is counter-productive to try and attract people to church. The question is for what purpose would we want them to come? God warned Isaiah that no matter what he does, the people would not listen to him. (Isaiah 6:9). Jesus also confirmed this. He says the people will not hear and they will not understand. (Matthew 13:13-15). Indeed, according to his teachings, God is not in the churches but in our hearts. (John 4:21-24). Therefore, true evangelism should not be embarked upon in order to bring people to church. Churches have been more effective in misleading people by showing them the highway leading to destruction instead of the narrow way leading to salvation. Today, pastors are the blind leaders that Jesus railed against. All they do is lead people into the ditch. (Matthew 15:14). The objective of true evangelism is to bring people to Christ, and no man can come to Christ unless the Holy Spirit draws him. (John 6:44)

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/slippery-slope-church-marketing/

The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. When Jesus multiplied loaves to feed the multitude, many concluded he was just the pastor they needed. As a result, they went to great lengths to relocate to his “church.” Some got into boats and crossed over from the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum in order to see him. But these people were not hungry for God. They came because they wanted bread. They came bringing their own five loaves and two fishes as offering in order that they might be multiplied. But Jesus is not one to encourage vain worship: “Jesus answered them and said, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labour for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal on him.’” (John 6:26-27). For good measure, Jesus then preached one of the most spiritual messages in the bible. He told them he is the bread of life and insisted they must eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to obtain eternal life. When he said this, he lost the church. Virtually the whole congregation left. Even many of his disciples concluded he was no longer the type of pastor they were looking for: “From that time many of his disciples went back and walked with him no more.” (John 6:66). Attracting the crowd How different Jesus’ position is from that of many pastors today. Rather than discourage those who only see godliness as a means of worldly gain, many pastors are determined to attract such people by even claiming they have a special calling or anointing to make people rich financially. Why would Jesus preach a message knowing full well many would not understand it and leave? Jesus tells his audience they would have to eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to have eternal life. Many found this unacceptable. But instead of simplifying his message, Jesus compounds it by telling them he is going to ascend to heaven. (John 6:61-62). When many of his disciples left in protest, he then turns to his core twelve disciples and invites them to leave also. (John 6:67). In short, Jesus adamantly refuses to sugar-coat the gospel. It might sometimes be a bitter pill to swallow; nevertheless it has to be swallowed because it is the only way to spiritual healing. The gospel is inevitably offensive to the world. Jesus himself is described by Isaiah as a “rock of offence.” (Isaiah 8:14). But pastors repackage the gospel to make it attractive to the world. They see Jesus himself as a commodity to be marketed. As a result, they end up with a self-serving gospel. Made-to-measure Christianity Churches now do telemarketing surveys, asking: “What would you like in a church?” In effect, many churches are made to measure, according to the greatest demand and not according to God’s prescriptions. They even have surveys now asking church-members what kind of messages they would like to hear. This is standard operating procedure in the world of business marketing where you find out what your potential customers want and give it to them. But it is totally inappropriate with regard to the kingdom of God which is based on the will of our Father in heaven. Churches have become the jack of all trades. They use such non-spiritual activities as gymnastics, rock n roll, comedians, and a host of other gimmicks to entertain their congregation. The church service is often a carefully crafted and choreographed production designed to please and impress man and not God. Many churches put on shows with worldly celebrities to increase their numbers. Now we see the next logical step in the process of marketing the church to the world: offer a free inducement to get them into your establishment. Put on a show, offer a free trial, give away something of value, and entice them with things to get them in the door. Today it is a regular practice for churches to offer some sort of inducement for newcomers. In one American church, they offered to pay for a portion of the visitor’s petrol in exchange for visiting the church. Another preacher offered non-members a certain amount of money for just sitting through a Sunday morning service. I suppose you might call this “avant-garde evangelism.” The worldly church The modern-day pastor is determined to change man’s perception of God and to make him more desirable and appealing; all in the interest of expeditious church growth. The flesh hates holiness therefore many pastors do all they can to make the church more like the world. Frankly, holiness is hard on the numbers and it has a way of offending the profane. The choice is now towards promoting a casual, even cavalier, atmosphere in churches so as to make people feel more comfortable and relaxed. The truth, however, is that we cannot entertain men into the kingdom: but we can convict them. In this regard, the “purpose-driven churches” are true to their names. They are purpose-driven but their purpose is neither Christ nor the gospel. Their purpose is to fill the pews. Their purpose is to collect as much money as possible. Therefore they sacrifice the gospel on the altar of pragmatic purpose. Since they are keen to attract the world, inevitably they become worldly. As a result, we have today “church for people who don’t like church.” That is like saying “Jesus for the people who don’t like Jesus.” What is the point of a Christ-less church? A lady spelt out the evangelistic objectives of her church. She said: “We want to attract the world but in an unworldly way.” This is a contradiction in terms. The world is sold on worldliness, so how can it be attracted to godliness? Moreover, godliness cannot be marketed. Once we try to market a church, we go off the rails. Somebody out there needs to spell it out to Pastor Zerubbabel that the building of Christ’s true church is not by power or by might but by my Spirit says the Lord. (Zechariah 4:5). Counter-productive evangelism It is counter-productive to try and attract people to church. The question is for what purpose would we want them to come? God warned Isaiah that no matter what he does, the people would not listen to him. (Isaiah 6:9). Jesus also confirmed this. He says the people will not hear and they will not understand. (Matthew 13:13-15). Indeed, according to his teachings, God is not in the churches but in our hearts. (John 4:21-24). Therefore, true evangelism should not be embarked upon in order to bring people to church. Churches have been more effective in misleading people by showing them the highway leading to destruction instead of the narrow way leading to salvation. Today, pastors are the blind leaders that Jesus railed against. All they do is lead people into the ditch. (Matthew 15:14). The objective of true evangelism is to bring people to Christ, and no man can come to Christ unless the Holy Spirit draws him. (John 6:44)

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/04/slippery-slope-church-marketing/

RELIGIOUS INSANITY: THE TRUE FACE OF MISPLACED PRIORITY IN MY HOME TOWN

The reason I am embarking on the voyage of looking into this religious matters is that when any believe system negatively affects other people, certainly we must rise against it. You can believe in a stone provided you don’t throw it at me and others. And it is in line with this understanding that we are doing our best to stop Boko Haram at all cost.

My Home Town Aku, have the highest number of academic Professors and legions of Associate Professors in Enugu State, and as such Education is our pride but the way things are going we may well be living in the past as other Towns will soon take our position.
To be fair, I just willfully decided to use four pictures above to buttress my points because if I try to present the true picture of the hospitals in my Town, the entire internet space may crash. We have Eight (8) Parishes in Aku and the two buildings at the top of the picture are just two parish houses. And there is an intense competition for other parishes to complete their Parish houses as soon as possible. So, within 2 years we will have 8 magnificent buildings all to the Glory of God while the parishioners languish in penury and abject poverty.
The house at the lower left side of the picture is Secondary School while the other is Primary School. What you are seeing outside is just the best look ever, because going inside will shock you to the marrows. These are few of the places we churn out students that will represent us at the University level. Most of the students will finish as science students without seeing a conical flask before because what supposed to be laboratories was just parking stores for petty traders in the school. There is no functional library for those that have the luxury of reserving a room as library while in most of the Schools there is nothing like library. If I continue to give graphic illustrations of what the Schools actually look like, this brief write up will be the size of Encyclopedia Britannica.
The Bible instructed Men of God in 1 Peter 5:2-3 “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing DISHONEST gains, but eager to SERVE; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being EXAMPLES to the flock”. What example are the Priests showing to the Parishioners by hoodwinking them to build such house? How can a Priest live in such house and tell you that Jesus is coming soon and you believe him? If you know that you are parking out soon to Heaven, why are you then wasting time and money to build a castle instead of managing ordinary tents temporarily?
How can our Community leaders, lead us into this spiritual and existential abyss all in the name of God? I doubt if any reasonable God of love will support the destruction of the future of our children for the comfort of His Men when He is a great provider Himself. Jesus said In Mark 9:37 "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me." Are we benefiting more from the churches than on our own children and good health? All these Reverend Fathers are under Private Health Insurance but they keep telling us that God will heal us. Is it not reasonable for Priests to manage modest apartments that are in sync with the financial capacity of the Parishioners? In Luke 5:16 “Jesus frequently withdrew to the wilderness to pray”. If Jesus can pray in the wilderness why can’t the Men working for him live happily in more humble houses?
I know that some people will misinterpret my position as if I am fighting the "Men of God" No, far from it. My position is that we have more pressing needs to sort out at the moment and if we abandon that responsibility to the advantage of the "Men of God" we are mocking God. If we solve the problem that is making everybody uncomfortable in our Home Town we can then plan and even create our own Vatican City, but at the moment it is a clear case of misplaced priority.
How can we afford the luxury of outsourcing what we can even do for ourselves? We can do our prayers on our own for now and take care of our immediate problems. The Bible made it clear in Matthew 18:20 “For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them." The Bible did not say where two or three are gathered and a Priest or Pastor is among them. Also in Psalms 145:18 “The LORD is near to ALL who call on him, to all who call on Him in truth”. The Bible did not say those who call on Him with the help of Pastor or Priests. And in John 14:13 “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son”. And finally in Psalm 5:3 says” In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly”. My point is that we can pray to our God directly without any immediate need for the middle men for now, if they cannot respect themselves and live humble life.
How are we even sure they are working for God? The Bible told us in Matthew 7:22-23 “On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.” So, you can see that even when a Pastor or priest performs miracles, cast out demons and prophesy, they may still not be working for God and we must be careful. Assuming we discover that these people are not working for God on the "last day" how can we explain to God that the reason we destroyed the future of our Children is because we believed the con men without using our brains. In San Diego USA the dioceses paid more than $198 million to 144 abuse victims. This was not sexual abuse as we know it but Priests molesting altar boys (Crude Homosexuality!). So we have practical evidence that most of these people are misbehaving and may not be working for God, then why are we gambling for their comfort at our own Peril?
If we convert these magnificent buildings to hospitals and use the daily offerings and donations to employ 4 doctors within 3 months our town will turn to Mecca for hospital tourism. We have the key to our own survival but we desire to put our scarce resources in the bottomless pit and blame the government for everything when we have the capacity to help ourselves.
If we collectively fail to be creative and look for a way to make our children fit properly into the society, with the basic training to take care of themselves and others, we better start now to look for another place to call Home because if we keep mass-producing charlatans with the pace we are going, our Town will likely be called scene of the absurd soon. I am just writing about the buildings for now, i am not in any way talking about the physical cash they are gathering for themselves and their Roman slave Masters.
Let us all bear it in mind that if the churches are truly creating positive impact in the society, there is no way the churches will keep growing and the crime rate keep increasing at the same time. Something is wrong somewhere and until we discover the anomaly, we will keep ruminating in the dark. Every positive thing starts from the foundation. The only thing that is built from the top is grave! Let us unite and give our children the future we desire by channeling our donations and resources to make their future brighter. The money spent on these buildings can transform all the Schools in our Town. It is unfortunate that our fore fathers awarded Scholarships in 1945, but now we have battalions of professors, and catholic of Elites nobody is talking about Scholarship again even when those who benefited from the 1945 Scholarship are still with us. To cross a bridge and destroy it is part of man’s inhumanity to man. Matthew 7:5 “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye”. Thanks for your time!

Yours in the Lord,
Evangelist Odoh.

CHRISTIANS ARE CALLED TO SUFFER IN NIGERIA

A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has peace in Christ. A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has trouble in the world. 

Jerry Brown-Johnson took his young son, Jedidah, to a children’s hospital. When he got there, he was told Jedidah would have to be given an injection. Because it is often difficult to find a vein in children, the injection would have to be inserted through his head. 

Jerry had to hold down Jedidah while a vein was provoked by slapping him repeatedly on the head. Then a needle was inserted. You can imagine how painful this must have been for a boy barely two years old. But Jerry was pleased for his son to go through the ordeal in order to prevent him from the greater agony of sickness and death. 

Trusting God 

The truth is that Jedidah needs to be taught to trust his “old man” in pain as well as in pleasure. Even though he might not understand why he had to be given the injection, the presence of Jerry while the pain was being inflicted on him should be sufficient as a source of reassurance. 

Job said of God: “Though he slay me, yet will I trust him.” (Job 13:15). He asked a telling question of his wife who wanted him to curse God when he fell into adversity: “Shall we receive only pleasant things from the hand of God and never anything unpleasant?” (Job 2:10). This shows Job’s commitment to God was on a solid foundation for better for worse. 

To what exactly is the believer called? What kind of life can we expect in the world? Are we called to prosper in the world as many have led us to expect? The answer is an emphatic “No.” It is the ungodly who prosper in the world. (Psalm 73:12). As a matter of fact, the believer is called to suffer in the world. Peter says: “To this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow his steps.” (1 Peter 2:21). 

Peace (shalom) is another word for prosperity in Hebrew. For a Christian to have peace in the world is to negate the ministry of Christ. The bible pronounces woe on those who are at ease in Zion. (Amos 6:1). If we have peace in the world, then we have no need for Christ. A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has peace in Christ. A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has trouble in the world.

 Overcomers 

Bad times are inevitable in a world of sin and sickness. Therefore, Solomon counsels: “Enjoy prosperity whenever you can, and when hard times strike, realize that God gives one as well as the other- so that everyone will realize that nothing is certain in this life.” (Ecclesiastes 7:14). Christianity does not promote expectations of worldly advantages, but of heavenly reward. Jesus says: “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). 

There is a fundamental difference between gaining the world and overcoming it. The Christian faith is an instrument by which we overcome the world. John says: “Whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world- our faith. (1 John 5:4.) 

When a man overcomes the world, he survives without those things the world esteems. When a woman overcomes the world, she sings even though she is barren. (Isaiah 54:1). She is unfazed, even though she is single. When a man overcomes the world, he is not ashamed to be born in lowly Nazareth. He is comfortable riding a donkey instead of a Cadillac. 

The believer is called not only to suffer, but even to suffer unjustly. We are called to suffer persecution for righteousness’ sake. (Matthew 5:10). We are called to do good and suffer for it: “For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for his sake.” (Philippians 1:29). 

New wine 

The Holy Spirit is given to prepare and strengthen us for the journey ahead. He is given that we may be supernaturally empowered to bear all our trials without complaining. He is given that we may be patient and longsuffering in the crucible of life, and that we may face its inevitable ordeals joyfully. (Colossians 1:10-11). The promise is that, after we have suffered for a while, God will restore, establish and strengthen us. (1 Peter 5:10). 

God has left the new creation as new wine in old bottles? This is because he wants us to work out our own salvation. (Philippians 2:12-13). He wants us to take the kingdom by force. (Matthew 11:12). He wants us to strive to enter the kingdom through the narrow gate. (Luke 13:23-24). He wants us to labour for the food which endures to eternal life. (John 6:27). He wants us to labour to enter into the rest of God. (Hebrews 4:11). 

For this reason, Jesus warns us to count the cost before accepting his invitation to discipleship. If we are not prepared to pay the price, we should not even embark on the project. (Luke 14:28-30). 

Losing to gain 

A lady phoned me from the United States with a burning question. “Doctor,” she said, “since you committed your life to Christ, what have you gained?” I told her I had gained Christ but this was meaningless to her. She wanted to know what I had gained in the world. 

She hit the nail on the head by asking the wrong question. I told her that her question came from lack of understanding of kingdom dynamics. In the world, you gain by gaining. But in the kingdom of God, you gain by losing. Her question should therefore have been: “Doctor, since you committed your life to Christ, what have you lost?” In order to know Christ, we have to lose so many things we have acquired in the world. 

What are the Isaacs in our lives? What are those things that compete for the love of God in our lives? What are those things that compete with God for our attention and devotion? Is it our husband, wife or children? Is it our homes, jobs and possessions? Jesus requires that we give them all up for him. (Matthew 10:37-38). If we are not prepared to give them up we cannot expect to be heirs of God. 

How do we recognise a true believer? Not by his church attendance record. Not from the number of scriptures he can quote. One of the ways we recognise a believer is by how he responds to affliction, to temptation and to difficulties. (2 Corinthians 6:4-10). Satan has a simple thesis: slap the Christian and his faith will be scattered. Kill his son and he will become an unbeliever. Break up his marriage and he will stop going to church. 

However, true believers put on the whole armour of God and are able to stand against all the devices of the enemy. They do not put on the armour of Saul: they put on the whole armour of God. (Ephesians 6:11). “Take heed, do not turn to iniquity, for you have chosen this rather than affliction.” (Job 36:21). 

 By Femi Aribisala

A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has peace in Christ. A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has trouble in the world. Jerry Brown-Johnson took his young son, Jedidah, to a children’s hospital. When he got there, he was told Jedidah would have to be given an injection. Because it is often difficult to find a vein in children, the injection would have to be inserted through his head. Jerry had to hold down Jedidah while a vein was provoked by slapping him repeatedly on the head. Then a needle was inserted. You can imagine how painful this must have been for a boy barely two years old. But Jerry was pleased for his son to go through the ordeal in order to prevent him from the greater agony of sickness and death. Trusting God The truth is that Jedidah needs to be taught to trust his “old man” in pain as well as in pleasure. Even though he might not understand why he had to be given the injection, the presence of Jerry while the pain was being inflicted on him should be sufficient as a source of reassurance. Job said of God: “Though he slay me, yet will I trust him.” (Job 13:15). He asked a telling question of his wife who wanted him to curse God when he fell into adversity: “Shall we receive only pleasant things from the hand of God and never anything unpleasant?” (Job 2:10). This shows Job’s commitment to God was on a solid foundation for better for worse. To what exactly is the believer called? What kind of life can we expect in the world? Are we called to prosper in the world as many have led us to expect? The answer is an emphatic “No.” It is the ungodly who prosper in the world. (Psalm 73:12). As a matter of fact, the believer is called to suffer in the world. Peter says: “To this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow his steps.” (1 Peter 2:21). Peace (shalom) is another word for prosperity in Hebrew. For a Christian to have peace in the world is to negate the ministry of Christ. The bible pronounces woe on those who are at ease in Zion. (Amos 6:1). If we have peace in the world, then we have no need for Christ. A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has peace in Christ. A Christian does not have peace in the world: he has trouble in the world. Overcomers Bad times are inevitable in a world of sin and sickness. Therefore, Solomon counsels: “Enjoy prosperity whenever you can, and when hard times strike, realize that God gives one as well as the other- so that everyone will realize that nothing is certain in this life.” (Ecclesiastes 7:14). Christianity does not promote expectations of worldly advantages, but of heavenly reward. Jesus says: “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). There is a fundamental difference between gaining the world and overcoming it. The Christian faith is an instrument by which we overcome the world. John says: “Whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world- our faith. (1 John 5:4.) When a man overcomes the world, he survives without those things the world esteems. When a woman overcomes the world, she sings even though she is barren. (Isaiah 54:1). She is unfazed, even though she is single. When a man overcomes the world, he is not ashamed to be born in lowly Nazareth. He is comfortable riding a donkey instead of a Cadillac. The believer is called not only to suffer, but even to suffer unjustly. We are called to suffer persecution for righteousness’ sake. (Matthew 5:10). We are called to do good and suffer for it: “For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for his sake.” (Philippians 1:29). New wine The Holy Spirit is given to prepare and strengthen us for the journey ahead. He is given that we may be supernaturally empowered to bear all our trials without complaining. He is given that we may be patient and longsuffering in the crucible of life, and that we may face its inevitable ordeals joyfully. (Colossians 1:10-11). The promise is that, after we have suffered for a while, God will restore, establish and strengthen us. (1 Peter 5:10). God has left the new creation as new wine in old bottles? This is because he wants us to work out our own salvation. (Philippians 2:12-13). He wants us to take the kingdom by force. (Matthew 11:12). He wants us to strive to enter the kingdom through the narrow gate. (Luke 13:23-24). He wants us to labour for the food which endures to eternal life. (John 6:27). He wants us to labour to enter into the rest of God. (Hebrews 4:11). For this reason, Jesus warns us to count the cost before accepting his invitation to discipleship. If we are not prepared to pay the price, we should not even embark on the project. (Luke 14:28-30). Losing to gain A lady phoned me from the United States with a burning question. “Doctor,” she said, “since you committed your life to Christ, what have you gained?” I told her I had gained Christ but this was meaningless to her. She wanted to know what I had gained in the world. She hit the nail on the head by asking the wrong question. I told her that her question came from lack of understanding of kingdom dynamics. In the world, you gain by gaining. But in the kingdom of God, you gain by losing. Her question should therefore have been: “Doctor, since you committed your life to Christ, what have you lost?” In order to know Christ, we have to lose so many things we have acquired in the world. What are the Isaacs in our lives? What are those things that compete for the love of God in our lives? What are those things that compete with God for our attention and devotion? Is it our husband, wife or children? Is it our homes, jobs and possessions? Jesus requires that we give them all up for him. (Matthew 10:37-38). If we are not prepared to give them up we cannot expect to be heirs of God. How do we recognise a true believer? Not by his church attendance record. Not from the number of scriptures he can quote. One of the ways we recognise a believer is by how he responds to affliction, to temptation and to difficulties. (2 Corinthians 6:4-10). Satan has a simple thesis: slap the Christian and his faith will be scattered. Kill his son and he will become an unbeliever. Break up his marriage and he will stop going to church. However, true believers put on the whole armour of God and are able to stand against all the devices of the enemy. They do not put on the armour of Saul: they put on the whole armour of God. (Ephesians 6:11). “Take heed, do not turn to iniquity, for you have chosen this rather than affliction.” (Job 36:21).

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/02/christians-are-called-to-suffer-in-nigeria/

BIZARRE LAW: SINGLE WOMEN BANNED FROM USING MOBILE PHONES

A village in Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat has banned single women from using mobile phones, with elders deeming the technology a “nuisance to society”.  

Members of the Suraj village council in Mehsana, the premier’s home district, passed a resolution in early February outlawing the use of mobile phones for teenage girls and young women.  “Community leaders felt that just like liquor, the use of mobile phones by unmarried women was a nuisance to society,” village head Devshi Vankar told AFP, adding that a similar ban would be announced for school-age boys soon.  

He said mobile phones were distracting unmarried women from carrying out their studies and household chores in the village, which has a population of 2,000.  If caught owning or speaking on a mobile phone, the violators will face a 2,100-rupee ($30) fine, according to the council, which is also offering 200 rupees to informers for tip-offs.  However, they can talk on their parents’ or relatives’ phones.  

The ban was imposed at a meeting originally called to discuss the community’s growing alcohol abuse problem.  It comes amid a nationwide campaign by Modi to spread the use of technology in rural India.  Last year the government launched its “Digital India” initiative to help boost connectivity in India, where nearly a billion people do not have access to the Internet.  

AFP

http://www.punchng.com/village-bans-mobiles-for-single-women/