TheNewsGuru

Tag: Church

  • 43-year-old allegedly defiles toddler in church

    43-year-old allegedly defiles toddler in church

    A Surulere Magistrates’ Court in Lagos State on Thursday remanded a 43-year-old man, Ifeanyi Ndieze, who allegedly defiled a three-year-old girl in a church.

    The court could not take the plea of the defendant as the Magistrate, Mrs M. I. Dan-Oni, said she needed advice from the state Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

    She ordered that the defendant should be kept at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre pending the advice, and directed the prosecutor to duplicate the case file and forward a copy to the DPP.

    Dan-Oni adjourned the case until Dec. 2 for mention.

    The defendant, who resides at Karimu Street, Surulere, is facing a charge of defilement.

    Earlier, the prosecutor, Sgt. Courage Ekhueorohan, told the court that the defendant committed the alleged offence on Oct. 29 at 8:00p.m at No. 18, Salau St., Surulere.

    Ekhueorohan said that the defendant saw the toddler in a church and inserted his fingers in her private part in the guise of playing with her.

    The prosecutor submitted that the defendant was arrested after the toddler told her mother what he did.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that defilement contravenes Section 135 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

  • No tithing in the new testament church – Femi Aribisala

    By Femi Aribisala

    When the Pharisees insisted that divorce was lawful because it was sanctioned by the Law of Moses, Jesus pointed out that Moses authorized divorce because of the hardness of Jewish hearts. But from the beginning, it was not so.

    This same principle applies to the issue of tithes and offerings.

    God says in Malachi: “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this, if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground.” (Malachi 3:10-11).

     

    This scripture was written because of the hardness of the heart of the Old Testament Jewish priesthood. God knew the priests did not have the heart to give. Therefore, he enticed them with blessings and threatened them with the scourge of the devourer. But this is not God’s preferred way of getting people to do what he wants.

     

    New creation

     

    God enables righteousness in His people by giving them a new heart; a giving heart. Therefore, if pastors continue to rely on Malachi to provoke members of their congregation into giving, it must be because they are convinced they do not have the new heart to give.

     

    The new creation in Christ Jesus naturally knows the right thing to do because he loves God and his neighbour. Nobody should have to arm-twist a Christian to: “Honor the LORD with (his) possessions, and with the firstfruits of all (his) increase.” (Proverbs 3:9). Nobody twisted even Abraham’s arm to make him give a tithe of his spoils of war to Melchizedek. He did it of his own free will.

     

    The establishment of a law implies the existence of lawbreakers. Paul says: “The law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners.” (1 Timothy 1:8). Therefore, when so-called pastors make it a law to pay tithes and give offerings, they spoil the members of their churches for the gospel.

     

    It means they have already determined that their members are lawbreakers. They have already concluded that they are hard-hearted and have not been redeemed into the righteousness of Christ: “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” (Romans 10:4).

     

    Christians are not under the law but under grace. (Romans 6:14). Those under grace do nothing by compulsion but naturally: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10). Those under grace are moved by the Holy Spirit; and: “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” (2 Corinthians 3:17).

     

    In the beginning

     

    “It was not this way from the beginning.” (Matthew 19:8). In the beginning, it was clearly stated that God is only interested in free will offerings. He told Moses: “Take from among you an offering to the LORD. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to the LORD: gold, silver, and bronze.” (Exodus 35:5).

     

    “And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the LORD’s offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.” (Exodus 35:21).

     

    With this free will approach, the bible testifies that the people brought so much that they had to be restrained: “They spoke to Moses, saying, ‘The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do.’ So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, “Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.” And the people were restrained from bringing.” (Exodus 36:5-6).

     

    Cheerful givers

     

    This tradition of freewill offerings continues with the redeemed of the New Testament, making the threats and intimidations of Malachi inapplicable. Accordingly, Paul says concerning offerings: “If there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.” (2 Corinthians 8:12).

     

    Observe here that it is only accepted if there is first a willing mind.

     

    Tithe refers to a tenth. This is limiting. Should I only plough a tenth of my field? Should I only sow a tenth of my crops? It is now up to the believer to decide. How much you sow is determined by how much you want to reap.

     

    So, Paul counsels: “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7).

     

    Someone who gives because he is afraid the windows of heaven will be shut against him if he does not, or that the devourer would be unleashed on him, can hardly be regarded as a cheerful giver.

     

    Rather, he would be a fearful giver. But the fearful are not of God: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:18).

     

    New wine

     

    We must not put new wine in old wineskins. The believer in Christ is not blessed because of his tithes. He is blessed because of Christ. He is blessed: “with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3).

     

    The gifts and the calling of God are without repentance.” (Romans 11:29). That means they cannot be revoked. The man who God has blessed cannot be cursed: “No curse can touch Jacob.” (Numbers 23:23).

     

    “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” (Galatians 3:13-14).

     

    Jesus says: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38).

     

    This means the blessings that come from giving are now in the domain of men. When you give, God causes men to give unto your bosom. In which case, this dispensation is one in which men are required to sow into other men’s lives. When you supply my needs, my God will cause others to supply your needs.

     

    I once gave a Nigerian journalist hunted by Sani Abacha’s goons all the dollars I had to facilitate his escape out of the country. When I did, the Lord said to me:

     

    “Femi, I will make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8).

     

  • Davido turns drummer, plays during praise and worship [VIDEO]

    Davido turns drummer, plays during praise and worship [VIDEO]

    Popular singer and record label boss, Davido shocked many of his fans on social media when he took to his Instagram page to share a video of himself playing the drum set in a church in Asaba.

    The energetic entertainer was captured in the video enthusiastically playing the drum set while the choristers sang on.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CFdAEvRhfqH/

    This has sparked diverse comments from his fans and celebrities alike

    Read the comments below:

    @Johnnydrille: This made me smile way too much

    @Kiddominant:That hit hat go believe

    @Legendarylegendz: Their original drummer no dey hit the Drum like that coz if e tear pastor go vex. But if OBO tear the Drum. Pastor go smile

    @Lilkeshofficial: I miss those days when I was a drummer in church.

    @Nwanyehouse: And when the spirit of God came upon David, he played the Drums and Tambourines. Omo talent Doubters i open toilet, feel free to return. I dey praise me worship section

    @Toniamajek: Why won’t we love Davido? God bless you

    @SeunseanJimoh: I like this guy so much, so passionate about everything. ❤️❤️❤️ God bless you

     

     

  • [Videos]Fire will fall next time anyone tries to close down churches – Bishop Oyedepo

    [Videos]Fire will fall next time anyone tries to close down churches – Bishop Oyedepo

    David Oyedepo, presiding bishop of Living Faith Church Worldwide, has reacted to the reopening of Churches in Lagos and Ogun state.

    Oyedepo who made the remarks while delivering a sermon during a Sunday Service held in his church and monitored by TheNewsGuru (TNG) online, threatened that fire will fall next time anyone tries to close down churches.

    He also insisted that Covid-19 and response from the government is a scheme.

    Watch videos:

    His words

    “Every solution is ignored for their evil vaccine, with all healing we recorded in this church and other churches, there was no announcements, except God is no longer ruling on earth, that is the only way those wasting human lives can escape. no constitution in the world can force anyone to take their demonic vaccines.

    “I know a time will come when we will tell the world we have been fooled, But Thank God we have not been fooled. It is only in this church that we lay hands on Coronavirus patients, doctors, nurses, and free them and then they walk free, 29 persons at a time, we say be free in the name of Jesus and the get certificates that they are free.

    “Could they (government) have asked me do we close down the church? No! they know where to ask and who to call, there are many pastors you can’t dare ask that question in Nigeria. Do you close down the courts houses? ogboni houses? don’t you go there yourselves? The next time someone attempts that fire will fall”

  • Op-Ed: When churches re-open: A lesson from the past

    Op-Ed: When churches re-open: A lesson from the past

    By – Bishop Emeritus Robert M. Solomon

    Our physical sanctuaries have been closed for some time, and we can expect that they will remain closed for a while longer. When they are allowed to open, it will probably be in stages. The question in the minds of many pastors and leaders is: What will church be like when we can meet again?

    A lesson from the past

    The Jews whose temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the conquering Babylonian army in the 6th century BC were deprived of their usual worship for seven decades. But God kept His promise and brought back the remnant to Jerusalem, where one of their first priorities was to build a new temple. Against all kinds of challenges, they finally succeeded in completing the temple. It was time to dedicate the new sanctuary.

    In his book, Ezra notes that the building was completed “according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia” (6:14). The sovereign God was working out His will on earth, even recruiting earthly rulers in the process.

    Some of the older Jews who had seen the older temple wept while the temple was being built (3:12)—probably because they had been deprived of the regular worship at the temple for so long. But it was generally a time of joy—notice how the word “joy” appears three times in Ezra 6:16–22.

    Besides rejoicing, the people also restored the regular pattern of worship, with the priests and Levites taking their proper places, and the restoration of Passover observances. In addition, emphasis was given to holiness, in that they resolved to separate themselves from the idolatrous practices of neighbouring peoples.

    There were some things missing, though. The ark of the Covenant, an important item in the temple, was absent. It had been taken away during the Babylonian attack and was lost; no one knows where it went.

    Though the contexts of the Jews returning to a newly-built temple and our situation today as we anticipate returning to our sanctuaries are different, there are some parallels we can observe.

    To be sure, we will have to continue new precautions we have learnt. Pastors and leaders will have to make decisions in the transitional period on whether restrictions

    on singing and shaking of hands are needed, and how they can prevent the church, especially where there are many seniors, from ending up as new clusters of infection.

    But as we return, there will surely be a sense of joy as we gather again to worship God. As we do so, we can think of the following.

    Things to keep

    Some people speak as if it will be a brave new world for the church and the larger society. This is overstated—the church has persevered through all kinds of crisis in its history, from severe persecution to war and deadly pandemics, and kept what is central and dear to Christians.

    One of the things we must retain at all costs is the real communities that we are supposed to be. The church, the Bible reminds us, is a gathered community. We celebrate being a community of people, whose spiritual formation is dependent on the regular interaction of the people. It is in this context that we learn to do the many “one another” things that the Bible speaks about—forgive, bear with, encourage, love, and so on.

    An online community is too disconnected from such real-life interactions, and is but a pale reflection of the church as community. You can switch off your online connections at will, or surf to find preaching by people you don’t personally know. But in a local congregation, you will have to rub shoulders with real people and develop the love and patience that come from embodied life. The German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer described the church as “Christ existing within community”. How true.

    We must also hold on to the holiness that God has called us to. God “has saved us and called us to a holy life” (2 Timothy 1:9). Much of the holiness that we read about in the Bible is experienced and grows in embodied community.

    Things to let go of

    While we must hold on to that which is important and central to being a congregation, we may also have had time during the COVID-19 pandemic to reconsider the necessity or effectiveness of what we have been doing in the past. We may have sidelined what is central, and celebrated the peripherals instead.

    We may have to review what may be our addiction to programmes—many of which may have outlived their usefulness and have become a burden to bear. As best-selling author Steven Covey observes, we are often “in the thick of thin things”, having neglected the more important matters.

    In the early days of the church, vital decisions had to be made regarding Jewish rites and customs, and whether Christians were expected to adhere to them. Guided by the Holy Spirit and God’s Word, the church wisely decided to let go of rites that had outgrown their usefulness or relevance (Acts 15:28–29). The emphasis was for Gentile Christians to turn away from idolatry and live a life of holiness.

    The church exists to be the bride of Christ (that grows into His likeness) and the body of Christ (as His servant and witness). Anything that we do in church that does not contribute to these central roles should be seriously reviewed and released if not needed. Anything that distracts us from our calling must be discarded.

    Church budgets may be affected; already incomes have suffered decline. It is time to review our budgets and what they say about our priorities. Budgets may need healthy pruning and refocusing.

    Things to rediscover

    Like the Jews who rediscovered the Passover, we too will have to bring to focus what we had been neglecting. The Great Commission involves teaching believers to obey everything Christ has commanded us (Matthew 28:19–20). We are to make disciples who will make disciples (2 Timothy 2:2).

    The partial lockdown has brought forth some deep needs. For example, do our church members know how to maintain and deepen their spiritual lives, even in isolation? Do they know how to feed on good spiritual nourishment? Or were they feeling bored, filling their time with entertainment and superficial pursuits? Did parents know how to teach their children about God and lead their families to worship God?

    We cannot be sure if there will be more serious disruptions to our normal church life in the future, but we must take steps to prepare and fortify ourselves for any eventuality. We must help individuals to learn to pursue Christ and be devoted to Him regardless of circumstances. We must help parents to nurture their children and enable families to function as little units of the Christian faith community.

    Many people know the story of how a group of fishermen organised themselves and lost their original mission as they got busy doing everything else except fish. The church must avoid this and rediscover its mission—of evangelism and outreach. As radio broadcaster Paul Harvey once said, “Too many Christians are no longer fishers of men but keepers of the aquarium.”

    The pandemic has opened many Christian eyes to the presence of needy neighbours who often live on the margins of society or are socially invisible. Have we been too comfortable in confining our Christianity within our four walls, and neglecting what the Lord said about being salt and light in this lost world?

    The post-pandemic period may expose many new challenges—such as those who have lost their livelihoods. In Singapore, more than 20,000 people lost their jobs in the first quarter of 2020 and almost 9,000 business entities closed down in April. This has potentially pushed thousands of families into poverty and increased social pathologies in families. Frontline medical staff who have been working in the exhausting edges of death and tragedy face post-traumatic stress disorder, while there has been an increase in mental illness among those who find difficulty coping.

    Former Anglican Archbishop William Temple’s assertion that the church is the only society on earth that exists for the benefit of non-members must make us think carefully about what the focus of our church life is.

    We must also take note that what is true for the church is also true for individual believers and families.

    The post-pandemic church will have opportunities to repent of past consumerist distractions and self-indulgent excesses; to return to Christ, His gospel, and what has been safely guarded by the church through the centuries; to reorganise accordingly; to restore what may have been lost; to reach out to the lost; and to experience a revival of holy living and devotion to the Lord. While we do so, we must remember whose we are, what the end of history will be like, and who is Lord in all situations as the Holy Spirit guides us through the future.

     

    – Robert M. Solomon is a former Bishop of The Methodist Church in Singapore, serving from 2000 to 2012.

  • Expression of grace in the ministry of Jesus (2) – Femi Aribisala

    By Femi Aribisala

    Paul says: “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8).

    This agrees with Jesus’ expressions of grace. He says: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me.” (John 6:44-45). “People can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.” (John 6:65). “The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing.” (John 6:63).

    That means the grace of God is unmerited. “Who then can be saved?” asks His disciples in bewilderment. Jesus says to them: “With men, it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.” (Mark 10:26-27).

    So, when some Jews ask Him: “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” Jesus says to them: “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” (John 6:28-29).

    God’s grace is 100% the work of God. However, we can only enter into this blessing by faith. That is why Paul says we are saved by grace through faith. (Ephesians 2:8). At its most fundamental, God is not a respecter of persons. (Acts 10:34). His grace is available to all men: “The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.” (Titus 2:11).

    However, not all men receive it. Even some who initially receive it fall from grace because they fail to abide by the principles of God’s grace. The grace of God that brings salvation is received by faith without merit. But it is perfected by works.

    Grace through faith

    In the first place, God does not give grace to the wicked. Isaiah says: “Though grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil.” (Isaiah 26:10). Therefore, in order to show grace to a man, God first has to give him the gift of repentance from sin. (Acts 11:18). This means even repentance is a gift of God’s grace.

    This gift of repentance is one of the things God promised in the past that is now “Yea and Amen” in Christ. He says: “I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.” (Zechariah 12:10).

    But God’s grace does not come to an end after we repent. John the Baptist says Jesus has come to give us one grace after another. (John 1:16-17). Through the way Jesus made for us, we can now come again and again to God’s throne of grace to receive more and more grace: “Let us, therefore, come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16).

    However, unlike the grace of God that brings salvation, what we receive from the throne of grace is not only accessed by faith, it must be perfected by works. This grace is merited because: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6). It is only given to those who agree to be: “created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10).

    It is not given to those who despise the grace of God and continue in sin. The psalmist says: “The Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” (Psalm 84:11). Believers who drawback and are not upright can fall from grace. (Galatians 5:4). But true believers grow in this grace. (2 Peter 3:18).

    Grace with works

    That is why James cautions us saying: “But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?” (James 2:20-22).

    The example of Abraham is very instructive. God called Abraham and made some promises to him entirely by grace. He told him: “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:2-3).

    Abraham did absolutely nothing to deserve these blessings. But: “He believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6).

    However, much later, God tested Abraham by telling him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. When Abraham obeyed, God repeated to him the same promises He had earlier made to him by grace:

    “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.” (Genesis 22:16-18).

    In this manner, the same promise that was made to Abraham by grace that he received by faith was now perfected by the works of Abraham.

    Word made flesh

    In 1996, I had a video shop in Victoria Island, Lagos that was making, on average, 7,000 naira a day. But one day, God gave me a dream where I opened the account book of the shop and discovered to my surprise that it made 23,000 naira in one day. I immediately received this prophecy by faith and then set out to work.

    The psalmist says: “Since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed and therefore I spoke,’ we also believe and therefore speak.” (2 Corinthians 4:13). Therefore, I told everybody that my Victoria Island shop would make 23,000 naira in one day. But Ernest, my assistant, did not believe.

    However, I did more than just talk. I filled the shop with goods far above the level of business. I did this so persistently that God spoke to me. He said: “Femi, because you believe me, I will tell you when this prophecy will be fulfilled. It will happen on 29th December 1996.”

    On that appointed date, it was my unbelieving assistant who brought me the news. But, paradoxically, the shop did not make 23,000 naira: it made 29,000. When I asked the Lord the reason behind the discrepancy, He said to me: “Femi, you exceeded the prophecy.”

    And so, this gift of grace also ended up with a surprise. Although it was unmerited and I received it by faith, I perfected it by works (also by God’s grace.) But it did not end there. I kept going back for more and more grace and the income kept growing until it peaked at 55,000 naira a day in 2002.

  • BUSTED: Church facility converted to baby factory in Rivers, different price tags for baby boys, girls

    BUSTED: Church facility converted to baby factory in Rivers, different price tags for baby boys, girls

    For many unsuspecting residents, the Great Mercy Deliverance Ministry located at No 5 Giwa Street, Rumuolumeni in Obi-Akpor Local Government area of Rivers State was a worship centre till the nefarious activities carried out behind its doors was uncovered by detectives attached to the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT). The church premises turned out to be a lucrative baby factory.

    When the IRT team busted it, three newborns, their mothers and three pregnant teenagers, were reportedly found at the facility.

    Another couple ready to take away two babies bought at the church, Grate Mercy Deliverance Ministry, were also apprehended by operatives of the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team, IRP.

    The operators reportedly scouted for teenagers who could not take care of their pregnancies across Rivers, Abia, Akwa Ibom and Imo states.

    It was gathered that the Martins worked with a woman identified simply as IB, who found buyers for the babies. IB is still at large at the time of filing this report.

    To fast-track the criminal deal, they reportedly induced their victims to give birth at eighth months. After births, they allegedly gave them drugs that would make them sleep off.

    It was learnt that the syndicate was busted recently after a relative of one of the victims, Patience, lured into the Church from Akwa Ibom State, reported her missing to the IRT.

    Consequently, a team of detectives trailed Patience to the church where they found three pregnant teenagers, three newborn babies and their teenage mums, including Patience.

    The source stated, “One of the pregnant teenagers, Loveth, is five months’ pregnant. She is from Ngor-Okpala area of Imo State. We also found one Chisom, from Ohaji Egbema, Imo State. She is 18 years old and seven months’ pregnant. The third pregnant lady is Chioma.

    “Patience was found with a day-old baby boy and two other teenagers Favour and Chizaram, were found with a baby girl and a baby boy respectively. In the course of investigations, it was discovered that pregnant teenagers were usually induced into labour in their eighth months due to demands from people who wanted to buy the babies.

    “The suspects, Maureen Martins, and her husband Chidi, who used the church to perpetrate the criminal act, promised the expectant teenage mums accommodation, feeding and maternity care and assured them they would be sent back after delivery. They worked with a woman known as IB who is on the run now.

    “A couple, who came to buy a baby boy and a girl from Maureen, were also arrested. They paid N3.5m. The children are those of Patience and Favour. The two babies were sold to the couple as twins. There are over seven rooms in the church where the girls were kept. Maureen said she had lost count of the number of babies she had sold.”

    Another source disclosed that after selling the babies, Maureen and her husband would give the mothers N30,000 to travel back to their states.

    He added, “It was discovered that Maureen had been operating the baby factory for over six years and people came from across the country to buy babies from her. She usually sold baby boys for N1.5m each, while baby girls were sold for N1.1m each. Maureen is the general overseer of her church, while her husband is an associate pastor.

    “We are currently tracing over 20 children which they have sold. When children are born, Maureen will ask their mothers not to breastfeed them so that they don’t get used to breast milk.”

    While being paraded, Maureen, 45, said she is a nurse and only helped to take delivery of babies at the church. She stated that it was IB who scouted for the pregnant teenagers and sold the babies.

    She said, “I am from Isiamba North, Imo State, but I reside in Port Harcourt. I am married with two children and I am also a nurse. It was IB who introduced this ‘business’ to me. She was the one who brought the pregnant ladies and sold their babies.

    “I don’t know where she got them from; mine was to look after them until they were delivered of their babies. IB would take the babies to the buyers and I would tell the girls that their babies are dead and give them money.”

  • Pastor arrested for allegedly raping 16-year-old girl inside church

    35-year-old pastor in Akwa Ibom State has been arrested by the police for allegedly raping a16-year-old girl inside his church.

    The police said Nnamso Friday Jacob, otherwise known as ‘Major Prophet Honesty Jesus,’ drugged the girl before he raped her.

    The incident reportedly occurred on June 23 at Mr Jacob’s church, the Living Power of Zion Church, Ndue Eduo, Okon Eket, Eket Local Government Area of the state, the police spokesperson in the state, N-nudam Fredrick, said in a statement on Thursday.

    The police said the girl went for “counselling and deliverance” which was fixed by the suspect who is the general overseer of the church.

    “While she was in the prophet’s counselling room, the suspect administered an intoxicating liquid substance to the victim and thereafter took advantage of the victim and had unlawful carnal knowledge of her,” Mr Fredrick, a chief superintendent of police, said.

    Mr Jacob is the second pastor to be arrested for rape in Akwa Ibom in less than a month.

    The police on Wednesday said a pastor was arrested in the state for keeping eight teenage girls in a so-called deliverance centre and allegedly raping one of them said to be 15 years old.

    The police said the girls are between the ages of 13 and 16.

    The pastor, identified as Inimfon Eyo Inyang, 33, was said to have also made an attempt to rape a 21-year-old girl. He was among the 12 people arrested for rape in the state.

    The Commissioner of Police in Akwa Ibom, Imohimi Edgal, has wowed to prosecute “sexual predators” arrested in the state.

    Two computer instructors who gang-raped a 17-year-old girl in 2018 in Uyo were recently convicted and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

    The convicted men were said to have cooked rice with substance suspected to be Indian hemp for the girl who was being tutored by them on how to use a computer. She felt weak and drowsy after eating the rice before the men raped her.

    There has been an increase in rape and other sex offences in Nigeria lately. Nigerian authorities have been under pressure to take firmer actions on the issue.

  • Covid-19: Pastor transforms church into bar in protest against lockdown

    Covid-19: Pastor transforms church into bar in protest against lockdown

    An evangelical pastor is defying Argentina’s ban on church services for over 10 people by turning his church into a bar.

    Bar tables were set up inside the Comunidad Redentor evangelical church in the city of San Lorenzo, and pastors, who were dressed as waiters, would carry bibles on their trays in a mock service to get around Argentina’s coronavirus lockdown, which prohibits more than 10 people in the house of worship, according to the Guardian,

    “We are standing here today dressed like this, carrying a tray, because it seems this is the only way we can serve the word of God,” the pastor, Daniel Cattaneo, dressed as a waiter, said as he opened the “worship bar.”

    Argentina, which has recorded 28,764 cases and 785 deaths — mostly located in Buenos Aires — is in a staged reopening. The province of Santa Fe has a very low number of cases and has reopened bars but churches are still subjugated to rules of 10 people or less.

    “We want to exercise our constitutional right to practice our faith,” Cattaneo told the Guardian. “Bars can open, shops can open, why are they discriminating against us?”

    Cattaneo also announced a “drive-in” worship to circumvent the ban.

    Source: NY Post

  • You are no longer a human being – Femi Aribisala

    By Femi Aribisala

    Many years ago, I went to collect my wife from the airport and was cornered by armed robbers.

    They blocked the road with their car and approached us with guns. But in the middle of the attack, I heard a disembodied voice that reassured me. It said: “Femi, nothing is going to happen to you here.”

    However, immediately I heard this, “something happened.” One of the robbers shot me in the leg. While I was still trying to deal with this contradiction, the voice came back and said to me with the same confidence: “There is nothing wrong with your leg.”

    But did something happen to me or did nothing happen? Was there a bullet in my leg, or was there no bullet in my leg? Was something wrong with my leg or was nothing wrong with my leg? That was my very first encounter with the Lord God Almighty; who “calls those things which do not exist as though they did.” (Romans 4:17-18).

    A few weeks later, God validated his invisible reality by healing my injured leg. In effect, he brought both the attack and the bullet-wound to nothing.

    What is real?

    As a believer, at what level of consciousness do you operate? Do you operate at the level of your senses or at the level of your faith? Precisely what is real to you? Or should I ask: “What do you use to define reality?” The scriptures are unequivocal: “The just shall live by faith.” (Hebrews 10:38). If so, reality must be redefined by our redemption.

    Since we who once were dead to God are now alive to him in Christ, we must no longer be limited by our senses. Since we have been restored into fellowship with the invisible God, the invisible needs to be open to us now.

    Jesus says to Nicodemus: “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3). But now that, thanks to Jesus’ redemption, we are born again; then we should be able to see what God is doing. We should now be able to see clearly the invisible things of God. (Romans 1:20).

    Paul says: “We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

    Thereby, reality is redefined by the abiding truth of the word of God. Jesus says: “Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words remain forever.” (Matthew 24:35).

    Lies of human nature

    Paul says of believers: “We are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” (Philippians 3:3). We have no confidence in the flesh because we know the flesh is a deceiver. It cannot be trusted. It specializes in telling lies.

    That headache you are having is a lie. A simple word of God can expose it. That feeling of well-being you are having is a lie. You might actually be at death’s door without knowing it. That depression you are going through is a lie. It might simply be some demons trying to confuse you. Whose report will you believe? Only believe the report of the Lord.

    Jairus rushed to Jesus so he would receive healing for his daughter. But after he had managed to get to Jesus, a word was sent to him that it was already too late. His daughter had died. But Jesus ignored that report from the pit of hell. He said to Jairus: “Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well.” (Luke 8:50).

    When He got to the girl, He exposed the lie of death. He said: “Do not weep; she is not dead, but sleeping.” (Luke 8:52). He then proceeded to wake her up, and she got up and had something to eat.

    In effect, an experience can be absolutely “real” but absolutely false. Everything we see around us is deceptive. Everything made by the flesh is an old model. Even this world itself is an old model. (1 Corinthians 7:31). The new model is the kingdom of God.

    The flesh is a student of history and not of prophecy. It knows our past, but it does not know our future. It knows what we were but does not know what we will be. But the sure word of prophecy knows our future. It tells us that when we see Jesus, we will be like Him. (1 John 3:2).

    Since there is only one Jesus, that means all of us will be the same. Don’t forget that Jesus is not just the Saviour of Christians but of everybody. He is the Saviour of the world. (1 John 4:14).

    Jesus equalizes everyone. “He died to sin once for all.” (Romans 6:10). Since He died for all, “then all died.” (2 Corinthians 5:14). Thereby, He makes all things new. (Revelation 21:5). Every valley shall be exalted. Every mountain and hill made low. That means the differences we see now between us and others are temporal. At some point, we will all come to the unity of the faith whereby we will all attain the full and complete standard of Christ. (Ephesians 4:13).

    Therefore, can you look at people and see them the way God sees them with the eyes of faith?

    God’s perspective

    In the Old Testament, God looked at the heart. Samuel assumed God had chosen Eliab, the son of Jesse, as the new king of Israel. “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’” (1 Samuel 16:7).

    However, in the New Testament, God looks only at Christ. The question is this: “Is the person in Christ? Is he a new creation in Christ Jesus?” The answer might surprise you. Christ is in everybody. From God’s point of view, every man is now Jesus Christ. Only two people are existing in the universe: God the Father and Jesus Christ.

    Every man, woman, and child is now part of the body of Christ. “There is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.” (Colossians 3:11).

    So, God sees everybody the same way. When He looks at you and me, He only sees Jesus. Today, God sees everybody in the future and not in the present or the past, after all, “the end of a thing is better than its beginning.” (Ecclesiastes 7:8).

    God sees what we will become rather than what we have been or what we are. He sees that all of us will be like His son Jesus because Jesus died for everybody. Therefore, Paul counsels: “From now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer.” (2 Corinthians 5:16).

    What this means is that you and I are no longer ourselves but Christ.