The Faithless Poor: What Contemporary Christianity Peddles

It’s heartbreaking and much disappointing to see what the sacrifice of Jesus has become to the people of the earth lately – God’s kingdom came among mankind to become the haven for the oppressed and free, poor and rich and all sort of people, to make known the manifold wisdom of God to all powers in the heavens and on earth. Why has the Gospel changed? Is Christianity today what Christ wanted for his followers? To answer, put Jesus in the context of what is happening in Christianity today and ask yourself whether Jesus or any of His apostles would have done same.

If Christ were to be alive, would he have been driving the most expensive car in the world? If Peter and John were to be here, would they have been the owners of Amazon or Walmart, selling highly priced “Holy Water”, anointing oil, handkerchiefs, salt, miracle stickers and so on? If Paul and Barnabas were in our world today would they have been charging people for consultation fees or giving “deliverance directives” (popularly known as “Akwankyere”) to the sick, oppressed and the distressed for a fee? There are a thousand and one reasons to believe that what we have in our world is not Christianity.

People choose to call it a matter-of-faith. Whatever one believes works for him. That is Existentialism, not Christianity. The Bible-prescribed Christianity believes and practices what the bible teaches and not whatever one can bank his faith on. By this, so-called prophets have ordered church goers to graze the grass, drink concoctions and so on, all in the name of prosperity. Perhaps we should say that the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is as a result of the prosperity promised by these prophets.

Now, consider what Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Mathew 19:23-24 (NKJV). Is not rather the opposite which is true in our world today? Today, wouldn’t we rather say that, “It is easier for a camel to through the eye of a needle than for a poor man to enter the kingdom of God”? Last Thursday, ICGC’s “Special Offerings” went viral when one ministering prophet, supposedly, had an instruction from God – a menu of prosperity miracles with respective prices ranging from $5000 to $70. This is interesting! However, this is not surprising since this is not the first time things of these nature are happening in Christendom. This spread was fast because the program, Greater Works 2017, had a great followership in the media. The defenders of the “menu prices”, including Dr. Mensa Otabil, the founder of ICGC, once again argue that this was by divine inspiration that it was purely a faith-matter. Here is the implication, to say, that the call was to be received by faith.

Before the implications, anyway, were the prices (quoted in US dollars) set by God Himself or Pastor Mathew Ashimolow had the authority to price them on God’s behalf? The first implication is that, FAITH is priced. At the program, when the call to make priced offerings was made, there were people who had the money but decided not to participate. That is, they had the ability to pay but were not willing to make the offerings. Impliedly, these people had no 'faith'. There were others who were willing to receive the $5000 priced-miracle but couldn’t raise such amount so they either had to choose lower alternatives or none at all. So for these people, their willingness alone to get those miracles would not permit them to have them. What then is the ‘faith’ they talk about? If faith is not the ability to pay, why would God price them in the first place?

Later, Dr. Mensa Otabil, preaching at his church commented that church members should not apply logic to matters-of-faith. Of course! We need no worldly logic to prove it, we have the scriptures, and it says, “These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.” 1 John 2:26-27 (NKJV).

Colleagues, brothers and sisters, let us endeavor to search intently into God’s word. Let’s be like the Bereans who cross-checked the faith they were building with the scriptures; paying no expensive homage to, even, Paul's apostolic authority. Despite our numerous academic laurels, our laziness to properly study the scripture for ourselves has led to the proliferation of Christianity with no resemblance of what Christ and his apostles left for us. Paul, the apostle, says, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”. Philipians 2:12