"One in every four Africans is Nigerian. One in every five black people in the world is Nigerian. With a population of nearly 150 million, there is no doubt the Nigerian Church and nation are bound to have a significant impact on the African continent. The general perception of Nigeria is its failure to set a good example for the rest of Africa. Recently, I read a screaming headline in one of the Nigerian daily newspapers: “Nigeria Still Sinful Despite Many Churches.” This calls for sober reflection, genuine repentance, and a reorientation on the part of the Church. Here are several issues the Nigerian Church isfacing:
The creation of megastars. The “Man of God” syndrome is aptly described in the book Preachers of a Different Gospel, by Rev. Femi Adeleye. “Men of God” have become “stars and celebrities.” Preaching has become a skilful marketing art. Jesus is relegated to the background. Where is the humility of John the Baptist, who declared, “He must increase but I must decrease” (John 3:34)?
The existence of doctrinal distortions, pulpit abuse, falsehood, and the commercialization of the gospel. “Cash for Christ” is sometimes found in churches—the more cash you pay,the greater your chances of seeing a bigger miracle take place.
The commonness of the prosperity gospel. Nigerian churches have exported this to the rest of Africa. Today, this gospel of greed is a disturbing trend with appealing momentum.Capitalist desperados are masquerading as church planters. In his book Foxes in the Vineyard, Insights into the Nigerian Pentecostal Revival, Sean Akinrele quotes Bishop Mike Okonkwo, former president of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN):
This has degenerated to the extent that people now come to church primarily to get rich outside the richness in their souls. Pastors, too, have cashed in on the gullibility of unsuspecting members as symbolism in oil, mantle, honey, palm-leaves, sprinkling of blood, andother mediums are now evolved to build the faith of the people unto materialism.
The PFN leadership has discovered that money has sadly become the yardstick for success in the Church,especially the Pentecostals…. Prosperity messages have therefore taken centre stage of most preaching at the expense of full gospel messages.
The prominence of bossy leadership. In Christ, we learn a new and liberating model of leadership: servant leadership. The African continent, caught in the throes of conflict arising from tussles for power and resources, are desperate for this biblical leadership model. The current posture of spiritual grand-standing depreciates the gains of the Charismatic renewal movement across Africa and makes the tasks of evangelization less convincing in its genuine appeal.
The lack of making the cross central. Where is the cross in the way we live as Christ’s followers? Today,popular theology inspired by the prosperity gospel exponents, “He go butter my bread and sugar my tea. Me, I no go suffer.” This needs to be reviewed if we are to be faithful to the teaching of the one who hung
on the cross for the redemption of humankind. In The Chosen One—a Ghanaian home movie—a prostitute made an observation that resonates with the African Church: “Nowadays, pastors want to be like Jesus, but they are not ready to suffer like Jesus.”
Lausanne World Pulse - LAUSANNE REPORTS - Theological Trends in Africa:Implications for Missions and Evangelism. By Gideon Para-Mallam, March 2008(Gideon Para-Mallam is associate regional secretary of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) in West Africa. He is also Lausanne international deputy director for Anglophone Africa.)
http://worldmissions101.blogspot.com/2008/03/african-mission-challanages-nigerian.html
No comments:
Post a Comment