Posted by By PHILIP NWOSU AND UCHE USIM on
The pastor of the Grace and Truth Church has condemned indecent dressing by some adherents in churches today, saying that this is temptation in the house of God.
The pastor of the Grace and Truth Church has condemned indecent dressing by some adherents in churches today, saying that this is temptation in the house of God.
Speaking with Daily Sun in Lagos, Reverend John Ogu said that the church today is in deep crisis and many have turned the place of worship of God into a place of dancing and noise-making.
Indeed, the man of God said: "Today, preachers are not interested in delivering the people. The church of Christ is just as bad as a pop house, where people go to dance."
Background
My calling is what I will describe as divine call, because today there are two types of ministers on the pulpit, the one called just like Paul, just like Moses and the rest of them like Peter and the other apostles. There were others that went into the ministry as a result of man made education, that is having obtained an educational qualification that enabled them to be there, by going into the seminary or Bible school. That is alright, if it has to be the service of God, there must be a divine aspect to it, else it will only be like any other secular job, like the policeman goes to the Police College and the doctor goes to school to become a doctor. But when it comes to the service of God, He has to call you, and you have to have that personal experience that you can testify that it took place here or there.
My first experience was when I was seven years old, that was when I had my divine visitation. I don't talk much about those things, because it is a difficult thing for anyone to understand. That was my first experience with divinity. Then I grew, went through school, while in school, I was active in religious activities, then during the war in 1967, I joined the Nigerian Army, fighting on the side of Federal forces for three years. In the Army, I was trained in a special field and I did more of a pastoral job alongside my military duties. I never sustained any injury while at the frontline, most of my friends died because they did not trust in God Almighty, they had their charms which they wore around their waist and hand. I was not interested in such a thing, I just had my little Bible and God help me though the war.
It was in 1972 at the University of Lagos, that we had a crusade where I was baptized fully in the Holy Spirit, my ministry became noticeable by all, God began to do great things in a very simple way. I believe in preaching the gospel in its simplicity. No matter what great thing God has done through me or my ministry, I do not advertise them because it is not my power, I should not have the glory. I will be humble enough to say that all the miracles that are recorded in the Bible have taken place in my ministry, including raising the dead and multiplication of bread, but except walking on water.
Ban on miracle preaching
I have to be honest with you, there are real miracles of God and there are fake miracles of Satan. If you are a Bible believer, you should be conversant with the story of Moses in Egypt. By the power of God, he did so many things and the magicians of Pharaoh did almost the same thing. But the power of God proved to be superior. What we see today is not the finger of God. He did not actually send us to go and do miracle, now God said go into the world and preach the gospel, he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. Salvation, that is why Jesus died. Secondly these signs shall follow them that believe. Miracles are to follow believers, miracles are not to be preached, not to be advertised. If Jesus heals somebody, He will say don't tell anybody , go and do what the law says you should do.
He didn't advertise it, because it is the power of God. Signs and wonders are to follow not just me, but anybody that believes. But when you see someone who has become a god and all he does is signs and wonders and has no message, nothing to preach, that person is not sent by God, he is just a religious businessman. I have no problem with the ban, I think they did the right thing, why should I worry about television miracle, if what I am doing is true, it will advertise itself, people will know God is there. I don't have to go and get a supposedly blind man and then pretend to give him sight with the blink of my eyes, it never work like that in the Bible days.
Christ means the anointed one, I am anointed. I don't argue when they say they are anointed, but who anointed them, by their fruits you shall know them. When God sent Moses to deliver his people, He gave him a message, not just the rod. It was Moses who wanted something to prove that God sent him. God initially said: Go to Egypt I've seen their burdens and have heard their cries, I have come down but I am sending you and I will be with you. Go, when you get there tell them that I AM THAT I AM. So today people have put miracles before the message of salvation.
Today ministers have security agents around them because God cannot do it. In those days, we were servants to His people, servants of God and servants to His church, today preachers are kings, they are lords, you have to kiss their rings and kiss their shoes. In those days we preached the gospel freely, today you pay for prayers, anointing oil, for night vigil, everything is almost money, the Blood of Jesus Christ is relegated to the background, they have taken over from God, they can tell who is going to heaven and who is not, it is no more based on your faith in God, it is now based on relationship with the great preachers. So to me, it has been a great battle to dare to be different, it has been an uphill task to preach the gospel the way it is, but God has given me the grace to stand alone and stand with Him, and other few ministers who know that heaven is real and hell is real.