One cannot ignore the noise going round in the country
without being accused of indifference; Terrorism, Gay marriage and Islamic Banking. Let me state
that none of these issues is peculiar to Nigeria or our generation.
Terrorism is
everywhere in the world today in their different dimensions. Most countries in
the middle East today have adjusted to it as way of life- Pakistan, Iraq, Iran,
Israel, Afghanistan, but to mention a few. We are only beginning to feel what
those we neglected to reach with the gospel have been living with for decades.
Each time missionaries come to our gatherings to ask for mission support, our
leaders announce that it is time for widow’s
mite. Some even divert funds meant for these missionaries for their
insatiable materialistic desires. When we are told to pray for missionaries
martyred by the governments of these countries living the best way devil would
want them to, we rush over it to continue with our kill and bury prayers. It was when Afghanistan was liberated from
Taliban control we heard that two lady missionaries- Heather and Mercie- had
been held in a dungeon waiting for death.
Even in the bible, religious extremism and terrorism is
mentioned. That was what killed Jesus Christ and James the brother of John.
Some forty men bound themselves under an oath not to eat or drink until they
have killed Paul (Acts 23:12-13).
There is this one we have ignored because we don’t see the
blood of those that they kill- journalism terrorism. Newspapers publish fear
instilling reports which are not verified. Where one person was killed, they
say hundred had died. Where there is no trouble any where they manufacture them
just to sell their papers. Ray Ekpu the chief editor of Newswatch magazine once
said on an interview, that bad news sell more than good news. You can
understand why newspapers propagate more bad news than good news. United
Nations Organization (UNO) and Western world powers keep circulating fearful
reports about African countries and their economies so that their citizens will
see no reason to put confidence in their leaders. They even told us that
Nigeria will not stay for another fifteen years, and some powerful Nigerians are putting in every effort to prove them
right. They tell us we are so corrupt there is no hope for us.
But are they better? How did we learn fraud? Right before we
knew our left from our right, white men gave our fathers bottles of dry gin in
exchange for their brothers and children who they used in their plantations as
slaves. Only last year an American was jailed for helping the late Nigerian
dictator, Gen. Sani Abacha, defraud Nigeria. How? They gave people free eye-glasses
and took away millions of Dollars. Some come here to give us ministry cover and
promise to take us to see their wonderful country. We pay seven thousand Naira registration
fees to them, multiply that by one thousand and see how much you have. Because
we believe that everything from them is better, we can’t see that a ministry
cover from an organization in Britain or USA is of no use to somebody in
Africa. Now the prime minister of
Britain, David Cameron is threatening us,
lower vassals that unless we become as vile as he is and accept same sex
marriage as he has done, he will stop sending us what he calls aides. How does
he get the money he sends as aides? Stolen money! The money our politicians
paid into their banks that had yielded so much interest for the government. Another way is that they know where to buy
crude oil and other natural resources at the official rate but will rather
encourage our people to steal it and sell to them at cheaper rate. To facilitate
this, they give us guns and encourage us to fight for resource control. So the
cycle continues. These are all terrorism in their different forms. Thanks to
the God of justice, we hear that what a man sows he shall reap. International
Monetary Fund (IMF) will have to take their services home now. France, Britain,
Greece, Sweden and many more European countries need them badly. We all should
remember how they forced these loans down our throat through our ignorant but
corrupt leaders. We only knew what we had eaten when our stomach began to turn.
Same sex marriage or
sexual relations was here in the days of Abraham and continued to the time
of Paul, not only in Britain but all over the world. For crying out loud, it is
here in Nigeria. It is reported that most show persons involved in it. There is
no government policy backing armed robbery, prostitution, adultery, political
thuggery, public fund embezzlement, use of magic and occultism. Yet, all these
are going on today unrestricted. Same sex marriage is not the only sin which
the bible condemns which is going on around the world. Nigeria has not
legalized abortion, who can deny the fact it is going on unrestricted.
Why are we now disturbed about this? That is because many
pastors have never mentioned this as sin. Some are too busy raising fund for
glass houses and air-conditioned auditoria so that they have no time to deal
with issues that concerns personal lives of their members. We are becoming more
and more further from reality in our teachings and activities. Some criminals
have hijacked our political class and they keep warning us to keep out of
politics. Some Christian leaders even boast that they don’t involve in
politics. Those who go close, go to look for contracts. Even pulpit people are
so hungry for power that they abandon their pulpits to contest for political
office. Something Jesus Christ was offered and he turned it down, his servants
want to accept.
If our pulpits become
fiery voice of God again and preachers follow the examples of John Wesley and John
Wycliffe, we will rule Nigeria from our churches. As long as Nigeria is
concerned today, political and economic power are with the church of Jesus
Christ. Not because of political office holders but our numbers are more and we
have spiritual upper hand. No other religious organization can boast of the
spiritual control we command in Nigeria. That is why they have to resort to
violence and legislation. As in United States of America ,so Nigeria is.
Legislation doesn’t govern USA, churches do.
Islamic banking-
Here again our sins stare us in the face. I just can’t understand what our
leaders are talking about. If we lived as the bible commands us, nobody will have
need for Islamic banking. Our Christian leaders tell us to give for God’s work
as they build universities, but after the tuition in these schools are so high
that those who built them can’t afford them. Even pastors in these
organizations have to send their children elsewhere; I begin to wonder which god
owns the school. Our G.Os fly private jets and go about with bullet proofed
cars escorted by fierce looking policemen while most of us are begging the
state Governments for eighteen thousand Naira minimum wage per month, and they
say nothing.
Let us get this clear; we don’t need a government banking
system to keep our members and win converts. Just do what the bible says, He
that has two coats share with your brother, extend help to people, not survival
allowance. There is so much suffering in the land that if we reach out to
people with the wealth God has put in our care, Islamic banking will be no
threat at all. Some of us pay our security men ten thousand Naira monthly,
while the same men are sent to buy foods for pet dogs to the tune of hundred
thousand a month. Why won’t such a man go for any another religion where he is
valued more than a dog?
God did not make Ishmael richer than Isaac; all religious
groups in Nigeria put together are not richer than Christians. We all saw the
show of shame in the banking sector, those who claimed to be Christians ran the
house of fraud in the name of banks. One of our sisters, who was a bank
executive, claimed she gave her house-help loan to the tone of thirty six
million Naira, but we know the truth. Most of the bank executives were and are
still prominent members of our churches who pay in large sums of their stolen
money into our cathedrals. If they valued their religion in any way, we will
see this wealth in the life of the ordinary man on the street, and then who
will have time for non-interest banking. When governments of some States in
Nigeria returned schools to Mission organizations, what was the result? Tuition
rose astronomically so that almost all the students in these schools were
thrown out. If we showed value for those students they won’t face the
temptation for going for non-interest banking system of another religion. Does
the bible encourage the Christian to lend to his brother on interest? Why are we
now threatening to have our own banking system only in response to Islamic
banking? So now it was not adopted we go back to comatose, never taking the
initiative.
Finally I dare to say, let the Christian leaders return to
teach the truth of the bible and it won’t be long before all this noise will
disappear. Let us go back to messages that deal with everyday living of our
members and also practice same, and the walls of every other system will tumble
like Jericho’s wall. No questioning the fact that Christians are in charge in
the world because our message is reasonable and practicable and holds true hope
for now and the life after. Jesus Christ did a thorough job, it is only for us
to follow his footsteps and the victory is already ours.
