How Many Christians Are Deceived Today

“I was taught wrongly.” A Christian sister said. She had been a Christian for so many years, but she realized for the first time that she had been wrongly indoctrinated.

Her husband has been in coma for almost four years now in a clinic. I visited him with one of my ministers to pray for him. He went into coma after a surgery went wrong. After the ministration of prayer, and we were leaving, the wife reached out an envelope to me, and said it’s for me. I asked her what that means, and she said it was for my transport. And that she had been giving to the pastors who had come to pray for her husband. I told her that it was wrong, I rather have to give her something to support her in this difficult time.

I explained to her the responsibility of the true church; how the church should take care of persons like her, who is in difficulties, and not her giving to the pastor for his ministration. No true minister of Christ would take money from the sick, poor, afflicted and needy or even ask for such a thing; the minister would rather give to them. Her response was, “I was wrongly taught.”

But been “wrongly taught” that way is not without a cost. It costs a Christian believer so much to live by such false doctrine of buying the gifts of God with money, any gift of God from Christ. Peter said to a man who wanted to pay money for the gift of the Holy Spirit, “Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God” (Acts 8:20-21).

That is the reason why many Christians are worst off in life, and why pagans and believer of traditional worships and religious bodies have clearly much better lives than those Christians.

Every true minister of Christ, whether an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, a pastor or a teacher, is a gift of Christ to the church. No person has to pay for their ministration. And they don’t have to take or ask for anything, because they are given as gifts to the church and the world.

“Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints,...” (Ephesians 4:8, 11-12)

Any perfect thing they offer to the saints is free. The Lord Jesus has commanded that they should heal the sick, cleanse lepers, raise the dead and cast out devils freely; “freely ye have received, freely give.” (Matthew 10:7-8)

But many false ministers have invaded the church, tearing apart the flocks and causing a great disgrace and shame to Christ. These people are making great gains on the poor souls and devouring widows’ homes. Many Christians are wrongly taught to pay for the ministration of salvation, healing, deliverance, blessings and breakthroughs.

The church has been made to see their salvation and inheritances in Christ as something they need to buy with tithes, firstfruits, seeds, offerings and sacrificial givings.

Everything in Christ is a "free gift". Normally, to say a "free gift" is a tautology or saying the same thing twice over in different words, generally considered to be a fault of style. But the word of God says, “... the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And not as it was ... the free gift is of many offences unto justification. ... the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.“ (Romans 5:15-16, 18)

“Not as it was” before Jesus came. Before Jesus came, widows gave their last food to the prophets in exchange for abundance, the people paid tithes and gave all their firstlings and sacrifice costly things before they could get God’s favour and blessings. But now all things are gifts and free. We only give thanks unto God our Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ for them.

The Bible says that we should give “thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;” (Ephesians 5:20)

“In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

“And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” (Colossians 3:17)

If a christian believer wants to do or give anything to the church or to a pastor, the one should do so willingly from a cheerful heart, not grudgingly or of a necessity, because “God loves the cheerful giver”. If you give from a willing heart, if even it’s a cent, is bountiful unto God and He would reward it causing you to have abundant grace. (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)

In Christ, it is “grace for grace”. God gives freely by grace and we also give back by grace, and do all things unto Christ freely, and He responds by more grace and it continues ...

But many Christians are erroneously deceived and taught to give monies and sacrifices for the free gifts, which are received with only thanksgiving. We only have to thank God for them, and for this reason of ignorance and deception, these ignorant souls are affiliated by devils and witches and their lives are destroyed and cannot be redeemed nor be saved.

God wants us not to be ignorant of His gifts. “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. ... the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.” (1 Corinthians 12:1, 4, 7)

What is a gift? Gift, in English, is a noun, and it means, a thing given willingly to someone without payment; a present.

Jesus said, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

Salvation is a gift, so are anything from God by the Lord Jesus Christ. The word says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

But many Christians today are taught that unless they pay money in the form of seeds, tithes, offerings and sacrifices, they cannot be blessed or receive breakthrough or even be saved. They are taught that to prosper in life and enjoy the peace of God, they have to give monies; seeds, tithes, offerings and sacrifices.

But the problem is that people who do such things put themselves under the curse of the law, which Christ has redeemed the world from. These deeds; tithes, offerings, sacrifices, Ten Commandments, anointing by oil etc, that were ordered in the Old Covenant, are called the works of the law. Those who do them are under the curse.

“O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? ... For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:1-3, 10, 13-14)

Jesus Christ is the end of those deeds for anyone which believes in Him. It is people who don’t believe in Christ that continue to practice those things. If anyone is doing them, it means they have ignorantly denied themselves the salvation of God, not to mention deliverance, blessing or prosperity.

Paul said concerning Israel, “Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” (Romans 10:1-4)

If Israel, who were given those deeds could not be saved, then what about you who is just learning to do them? The Israelites are the heirs of the promise, which was made to Abraham, but because of their ignorance they cannot be saved. Because they seek it by the works of the law.

“I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh: Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.” (Romans 9:1-5)

If God is giving all things freely by His grace, “then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” (Romans 11:6)

“... of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” (John 1:16-18)

When you mix the grace of God with the works of the law, you make your life more miserable than unbelievers and religious folks who do not accept Christ as their Lord. It is better to be an unbeliever than to confess Christ as your Lord and at the same time practice the works of the law.

Jesus said, “No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse. Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.” (Matthew 9:16-17)

You cannot put the Old Covenant and the New Covenant together and practice both at the same time. If you do that you make your life worse. Neither should you ever mix them in your life. If you do that your life shall burst out and you shall be destroyed.

The ministration that was written and engraved on stones was death and condemnation, it was not life and justification (2 Corinthians 3:7-9). The Ten Commandments that were engraved on stones cannot make you righteous and holy. If you rather avoid them, and walk by the Spirit through the obedience of the word of grace, you shall not fulfill the sinful lust of the flesh.

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.” (Galatians 5:16, 18)

But if you decide to use the works of the law to justify yourself, then count Christ out of your life. "Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.” (Galatians 5:4-5)

Many Christians are truly taught wrongly, and that has great toll in their lives. They came to Christ to seek life, deliverance, peace, joy and prosperity. But rather they have inherited death, bondage, oppression, sorrow and poverty. Because of their ignorance.

“Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst. Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it. And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled:” (Isaiah 5:13-15)