Wednesday 18 June 2014

The Singing,Preaching,Praying Devils.

Dear reader, if possible, please open your Bible as you read this so you may verify and confirm the truth from God's word. Thank you.

The singing devil.
Ive said it before and Ill say it again. Music is one of the most powerful tools in getting to the human spirit. Music can be an uninvited guest in your mind. Music may enter your thoughts without your permission. If taste is to tongue, sight is to eye, and feeling is to touch, then MUSIC is to ear. I recently argued with my friends about a song called "Lingala ya Yesu"(Lingala music for Jesus)...Ill be honest. I don't like it. Please don't be offended. I don't hate the musicians or their attempts to further the gospel; Some people may argue that you cant put God in a box. Some will say, "It is unfair to criticise music that has brought me closer to the Lord." Some will even call me a rigid absolutist who's out of touch with the world. Others may criticise my taste for music. I can agree with one thing: that as a Lingala music fan listens to that song, he may become aware of a man called Jesus. That said, I fear ladies and gentlemen that we are compromising a little too much; trying too hard to make the Gospel 'cool' when in fact,we are diluting its effectiveness and potency.

The Gospel artists that made that song may well be good Christians. They are candidates of heaven just as I am and God loves them. But,as you plough through this article my beloved reader please remember Lucifer was the chief musician in heaven. Remember he is the master of counterfeits and the "Author of all lies" (John 8:44). I'm not here to divide God's kingdom or His people; I'm only here to enlighten. I dare raise my voice not against a group of gospel musicians and preachers, but against a rather grey area that is so light in shade, it looks white to the naked eye.

Truth be told, there are those among us who disguise their love for carnal music under the veil of Worship. Someone out there loves Hip hop, and has a problem letting go of it, so someone came up with 'Holy hip-hop'... the same was done for rock (gospel rock), Jazz, and house music( gospel house) and the outrageous Heavy Metal... I can only imagine what the world would have come to when 'Holy Dubstep' will come on the airwaves. There is a problem with this conformist tendency we are now normalising. We are reaching to peoples emotions but not their minds. We are offering them an analog(mirror image) to the club where the 'twerking' can continue.We are teaching by persuasion, but by persuasion we aren't teaching. Instead of taking the church to the world, we are bringing the world into the church. We forget that God is Holy. 1 Peter 1:14-16 says,"As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.; for it is written 'Be holy, as I am holy.Lets be brutally honest. What is Holy about rock, jazz, lingala, hiphop, house or dubstep. In addition to this,The Bible severally says "do not conform to the pattern of this world" (Romans 12:2). Look at the origins of each of these genres; and see how craftily the devil has concocted this potion of lies that are 98% Truth and 2% Fallacy.

Just because a song has the name 'Jesus' in it, or a line from the bible, that doesn't automatically make it a Gospel song. The songs demeanour and genre are put into question where more often than not, it is associated with club music or some rock concert for example. I will confess: whenever I hear Lingala the first thing that comes to mind is "Madiaba"(Buttocks), a popular Lingala track; or Koffi Olomide (Lingala artist). There was once a time this business crossed the line. I heard a track saying "Tingizia Yesu hiyo kitu" (Shake that thing for Jesus).... I snapped. I hope were now on the same page.

Recently there were Gospel Music awards and I thought to myself, would Jesus attend that show? doesn't awarding one artist and denying the other this prize inspire envy in the 'looser' and provoke pride in the 'winner'?There is also the applause the singers receive. Is it for them or is it for God? There is a preacher named Charles D. Brooks who always asked his congregation not to clap for him. He said its permissible but not constructive; so he asked them to say 'Amen'. I thought he was too rigid but I later understood why. I'm sure Ive annoyed some of you by now but hear me out friends. We walk dangerously close to error by opening avenues for pride and envy to proliferate in our hearts. Moreover, we have commercialised God's word. By conforming, we give room for the devil to poison our hearts and minds with pride, envy as well as his heresies.

Ladies and gentlemen, when a gospel song is vague, unnecessarily repetitive, devoid of depth and shallow of scripture; when the artist is self-seeking and derives more attention than the message, I beg you to turn it off. When the song can easily be played in the club along with the secular songs, its is inappropriate. If you want to sing and act like the world, guess what; the world can do it better. Lets stop trying to be like the world. With these criteria you're probably wondering what I listen to; well I love Acapella, and any harmonious music that puts more emphasis on the message rather than the messengers in a ratio not less than 9:1 ; music that reiterates scripture,wisdom and worship rather than applause for singers; preferably devoid of drums and guitars which more often than not smother and suffocate the message rather than complement it. But that's just me... So brethren, when you smell pride and hypocrisy, please walk away.

The Preaching, Praying Devil.

There are among us what we call 'Stage-play' saints. Of all sinners the hypocrite does the most harm to God's church in this world and therefore will have the most torment in the one to follow. Jesus laments in Matthew 23:13 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to." Religion has consistently proved to be the hypocrites' favourite turf, as they seek to snare others into their error and sin while posing as children of God. Its the best opportunity to display their righteousness and 'moral superiority' just as the pharisees. Jesus twice called the Pharisees a brood of vipers (Matthew 23:33; 12:34). When a viper hisses, you don't stand around hoping its bluffing. Flee!
So whats the matter?
Some of these individuals make a lot of noise about their religion but secretly have their hearts set on earthly goals. They pretend to be heaven-bound. Their speech is pure, their service admirable but their hearts are lined with deceit; enough to fool even themselves. The world mistakenly calls them saints, but Christ knows they are devils. They are rabid wolves in sheep clothing (Matthew 7: 15). We must beware not to fall for their error or be ensnared by their heresies; however convincing they may be we must be on our guard. Don't let a liar with sweet words steal your heavenly crown by infatuating you with promises of things below. The most prominent things these preachers promise God will give you is a 'Great plan' (vaguely), a house, a business, more money, or a spouse (like a certain pastor from Nigeria) Some may have complex theological theories that, if studied carefully, aren't biblically sound.

Indeed God does want you to have these things. God wants to bless you. But should this be all we want from God, so much that we put them before God in our hierarchy of needs?.NO. Here's an example...As a parent, how would you feel when you want to embrace your child and all he wants from you is money to buy toys and not your love or company?... I remember when I was growing up, I could vividly distinguish friends who genuinely wanted to be my friend and those who just wanted to play with my toys. So it is with God and the prayers that come before Him.

The singing hypocrite may escape detection but the preaching one doesn't have that sophisticated camouflage. I can never fully describe how damaging their lies are; I feel melancholy just thinking about how many people have been led astray.Sometimes when I turn on some stations on Sunday morning I want to reach into the TV and grab that preacher by the neck(Forgive me Lord).... THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL. It's nauseous; a stench to the nostrils of The Almighty God. But what is so surprising is that so many professing Christians have embraced it with open arms; some do it without knowing it. I always thought it was so obvious but I was wrong. Its as though the congregation is under a spell; worshiping money and material things rather than God Himself.



How can you recognize a hypocrite?
The Bible says in Matthew 7:16-18 ,"By their fruit you will recognise them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit".... Ladies and gentlemen, a mango tree doesn't produce mangoes to PROVE its a mango tree; it does so because it IS a mango tree. Verse 19-20 warns "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.Thus, by their fruit you will recognise them." (also consider Luke 6:43-45).

These bad fruits are the very opposite of the fruits of the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23; so instead of Love, there is hatred.Instead of peace there are arguments and chaos.Where there ought to be joy there is sadness. Impatience prevails over forbearance, cruelty over kindness, narcissism over goodness, and prostitution over faithfulness. Gentleness and self-control are but myths to them. When the sin is fully grown there is an outpouring of divisions, divorces, lawsuits, greed, malice, dissent, and godlessness. Their children are burdened and suffer for sins that weren't theirs in the first place.

In case you have suspects in mind (including yourself), ask yourself these questions; can that person die for the Gospel? Is he/she willing to be thrown into a lions den like Daniel? or into the superheated furnace like the Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego? or thrown into a murky pit like Jeremiah?... Lets get more gruesome now. Are the 'Preachers of L.A.' willing to be sawed into two halves like Isaiah? or stoned to death like Stephen? or Beheaded like Paul? or crucified upside-down like Peter? or bludgeoned like James? or boiled in oil like John?.... Of course no one wants to die. But do they love Christ enough to consider their lives here on earth as nothing? is their treasure in Heavenly principles? in eternal rewards? or are they in mundane worldly items that moth and rust doth eat?(Matthew 6:19) Or are they like Judas who,loving money, sold the Holy One for a bag of silver coins? Given their lifestyles, the things they say and prosperity they preach, I doubt their sincerity. But only God judges hearts.

The Bible says, with all honesty,"Love not the world nor the things that are in the world, for if anyone loves the world, THE LOVE OF THE FATHER IS NOT IN HIM. For the desires of the world; the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life shall pass away. But he who does the will of God lives forever."(1 John 2:15-17).  In Revelations 12:11 ,The Bible talks of Saints that did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. When those saints go marching in, I want to be among the Number! When I get to heaven, I wouldn't want to have trouble being in God's presence; It is a blessed hope of delight rather than a day of dread and fear of condemnation. When this world comes to an end and the great probation comes to a close, I want to be running towards Jesus to quench an eager anticipation, rather than weeping and crying out to the rocks to fall on me as the wicked shall; in horror of His Majesty's Glory (Revelations 6:16).

The Danger of this lie...

Matthew 7:13-14











There are two sets of victims in this Pyramid scheme;whose architect is the devil...
  1. The 'Higher ups' who are deceived by the allure of wealth and are full of greed.
  1. The 'Lower downs' who feed the 'Higher ups' and are robbed of their resources then loose faith in God.



Both groups of people are robbed of a REAL  relationship with God....
I was once captive to the lie of prosperity. I was once swamped by the sensationalism and emotionalism of one American prosperity gospel preacher. There is a 'T' and 'J' somewhere in his names. He sure knows how to get a crowd excited, with fancy words and theatrical gimmicks. I fell for it. When God didn't bring this 'great plan' to pass; I nearly lost my faith and I wondered how many more people went through this great disappointment that I did and left the church. I just wanted to get to the next year of college; but I failed despite hard work. I later stumbled upon        1 Peter 4:12 that says "Do not be surprised at the fiery trial you are suffering , as though something strange were happening to you." James 1:2-4  tells us to "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, when you face trials of many kinds, because you know the testing of your faith produces perseverance.Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."... 

After my rough patch, I ACTUALLY became wiser, more mature, patient, less self-conscious, and tough. I even began this page you are now reading. I moved on.But without that traumatic experience, I would never have cultivated the resilience I now have. Had  I gotten what I wanted when I wanted just as that preacher said, I would never have been where I am today. Indeed all things work for the good of those who love him. (Romans 8:28). I'm glad God hurt me; to save me of course. Because He knows the greater scheme of things. 

Wealth often isn't a bad thing. In fact its a blessing. But in the pursuit and accumulation of wealth, our hearts deepest desire may easily be shifted from God to the world, just as did king Solomon towards his last days when he prostituted himself to other gods(thanks also to his many wives)

 ( 1 Kings 11:4). . 

I strongly believe we are in error when we use the Gospel to obtain indulgent and obscene amounts of wealth; as though that was the work of Christs blood on the cross. He didn't die so you could have a ball here on earth. He died so you may be free of the devils power, his temptations and death. He did it so we may live with Him eternally: in Mansions far fancier than humans can fathom; where mortgages are myths and taxes don't exist, because Jesus paid it all!(John 14:2). Why trade your eternal inheritance and face-to-face communion with God for gold? Do you not know that in heaven the streets shall be made of it? why trade son-ship for gravel? ... The most valuable things on earth are the most worthless in heaven. That is why all the Heavenly host wonder and are baffled when we give away our eternal treasure for temporal gain; just as Esau gave away his birthright for a meal of lentils.(Genesis 25:34)


Whats more depressing is when these hypocrites defend that ill-gotten wealth under a banner that reads "Do not Muzzle the ox that treads the corn"(1 Corinthians 9:9)>>> as true as this scripture is, it is the number one most abused scripture of the 21st century:  following close behind is Jeremiah 29:11 which says...(oh well I'm sure you can recite it off head)..."For I know the plans that I have for you. Plans to prosper you not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future"....What If; to secure your life in paradise, God had to allow the devil to press you in certain ways? as was with Job,the disciples, and countless other prophets and martyrs. What if torment was part of God's plan to prosper you? To prove to the devil your not a phony Christian laden with hypocrisy?... think about that for a moment.... I also believe there is a line preachers shouldn't cross in their accumulation of wealth from their ministries. I'm no judge, but that line is somewhere before a million-dollar mansion, a yacht, or a Ferrari; the very objects of grandeur.

I'm glad I dared to write this and speak out against a lie that is leading poor souls in the wrong direction. I do expect rocks to be thrown at me. In fact I'm prepared for the firing squad; But I serve a God whose messages cannot be muzzled! Before I wrote this, someone forewarned me not to "talk badly in public about preacher x and y" because ill be 'dividing the church'.... Well brethren, Jesus openly rebuked the pharisees in the hope that people will not fall for their error. John The Baptist openly rebuked Herod. Elijah did not spare the prophets of Baal before the whole assembly of Israel.


Ladies and gentlemen, despite all these agonizing truths, there is something to smile about. I thank God who convicts us of sin and leads those who are willing in the right direction!!! I'm THANKFUL! ... Aren't you?

YOUR HOPE SHOULD BE IN THE FACT BELOW......

GOD CURES HYPOCRISY!!!
If you're still reading I must commend your patience with all the words of woe and lament above. Ill leave you with something to smile about... THERE IS HOPE FOR THE HYPOCRITE!!! 

Well God was VERY merciful when He said "Return, faithless people; I will cure you of backsliding."(Jeremiah 3:22)... We are weak human beings with a wide spectrum of vices we invariably entertain. We long for redemption from our sin-polluted bodies that desire to defy God. Take comfort friends in the knowledge that Jesus cures hypocrisy, just as he cured Leprosy. For your comfort, know that he has never failed to cure an ailing soul that sought his help. If you have to die, at least die at his doorstep. Jesus indeed condemned hypocrisy, but he will not refuse a hypocrite help; just as he condemned adultery but helped the woman caught in it (John 8:1-11).

In John 3:1 we are told of Nicodemus, a PHARISEE who couldn't stomach conceit anymore. He admitted he needed help; he groaned under the weight of hypocrisy and went in the night to seek Jesus' counsel. He never regretted it. Proof of his conversion was in John 19:38-42 where he assisted in the burial of Christ..Dear hypocrite, if you are overwhelmed, take it to the Lord in prayer; He is the physician who's skill and faithfulness can make you whole. No one has ever fallen out of his healing hand; and no case has ever been too hard for him to handle. Jesus has never stopped healing, even after his ascent to heaven. He still grants forgiveness as faithfully as ever. All you have to do is be thirsty enough for God's grace, enough that you may give up your pride for it. It is the thirsty soul that will be quenched; just ensure your thirst is right and deep. There is Hope for you, and its free of charge.... There is Hope,for a weak and  sinful soul that desires healing.... There is hope for you dear hypocrite, because God came to redeem you from your hypocrisy(John 3:17).... There is hope for you...His name is Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour; to Him be the Glory, Honour and Power. Amen.

6 comments:

  1. You know my bro, mum and I were discussing this a few weeks back and I agree people are trying to make gospel 'cool' but really is there anything wrong with that? if it brings people closer to God, I say its a win win coz you get to praise the Lord and at the same time have fun doing it and from my own experience, I feel more lifted when I've shouted my lungs out. lemme ask you, would you rather eat rice and beans or nyamchom and ugali? (I know it's not the same thing but just had to make a comparison to emphasize) we are living at a time where "normal" doesn't cut it anymore, we are constantly evolving so is music. Listen to this, I think the problem here is not the lingala/rock/hiphop gospel, the problem is that people don't like change coz it's scary to them and when they sense a small change, they develop a negative mindset as a result, they close their minds so it's impossible to see the whole picture. it's only natural though, we don't like being outside our comfort zone.
    Don't get me wrong, I agree with you wholeheartedly about music being a powerful tool that is sometimes used to divide God's kingdom but what you are are saying is purely speculative, where is the proof that rock/hiphop/lingala is unholy? all these are just different sounds(beats) and if am being objective here, I don't think the sound matters to God as long as the heart is pure and genuine about praising Him.
    maybe, just maybe what worked for our generation is not working anymore, just like I said the world is constantly evolving and maybe it's time to spice things up in the gospel sector(of coarse spice things up in the right way) if it will bring people(especially young people) closer to God.

    You have some very strong opinions here my friend some of which I agree with and some ... am just thinking to myself how I am going to hell...
    I think with God, a lot has been said and a lot will continue to be said throughout generations. People have spread lies about God, others simply don’t believe in God, others have their own opinions about God, and others form a God in their minds and souls to justify their daily livelihood to feel good about themselves when actually they are constantly lying to themselves. I think there is the ultimate truth. Am talking about the truth where you personally seek the truth within yourself, the kind of truth which is rooted deep within yourself and only you can access it if you truly seek it. Everyone is ‘special’ in this world (or at least every single person thinks that) and so comes the different perspectives of God. To me, He, knows you personally and so He will judge you according to time period you lived history. Yes he gave us a blue print of how we should conduct ourselves in form of the bible but that was more than 2000 years ago and while some rules still apply like rules on adultery, killing and so on, the way people live now has dramatically changed and so He will judge you according to your time. Ie) he cannot judge you the same as a person who lived 2000 years ago. He will consider your environment and how you were brought up as a child and a person as well.
    I really like this article coz it got me thinking about my life and the music I listen to daily and there's no denying it's opened my eyes but you also make it seem like listening to music that is not gospel is a sin...it's not. fact: most people listen to the beats of a song rather than the singing and you can't categorize beats as holy or evil.
    I've enjoyed the read, thank you and God bless :)

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    1. very insightful answer my brother! :-) got me thinking as well. I do agree that change;as inevitable as it is, is very uncomfortable to some people. I admit there was an element of strong opinion on my part; but in the greater scheme of things, my greatest concern was about those who use the gospel to commercialize and capitalize on God's Sovereign word. I admit that to reach to certain groups of people you must adapt the Gospel to heir taste; but we must recognize that there are some people who disguise their greedy intentions under this veil of nobility. some people use this need to their wants. they use this necessity to advance their material gain. those were the targets for this blog. My point was to be wary of them.

      I also have to let you know that you(and your mother) shall be in heaven. they see the three surprises of heaven are that 1. you got there in the first place 2). some people you thought would make it aren't there 3). some folk you thought would never make it are there...... Your comments are sincere and contrite. God is watching all this. so you will be there. bottom line is God detests it when we turn His sanctuary into a den of robbers; (Matthew 21:12- 13). Jesus was graceful in all his communion and teachings of God's word; but when this commerce and greed was taken to His Holy temple,The very place sinners ought to seek help, He FLIPPED OUT AND OVERTURNED TABLES and WHIPPED THEM!!! This is one of the few times Jesus lost his temper. with that anger and wrath is what I wrote this article with. I didn't mean to discourage or condemn; that wasn't my intention. My mission was to enlighten you about the Hypocrites that pose as children of God whilst being of the devil... hope we are on the same page... Grace and peace be upon you Bro.

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  3. I have to say I was abit biased when I saw the link to this Facebook. I thought it would be jabs about specific individuals. But It is very insightful and I feel blessed having read the whole thing.

    A couple of things;

    I agree with most of what is said on here. Music in this age, regardless of the genre, has changed. Its has so much more to do with the artist and very little attention is paid to the actual message of the song. You find that because it has a catchy beat and a captivating hook we just nod out heads to it without really paying attention to the msg. And to some subconscious level, Whether we realize it or not, whether we want to believe it or not, the message starts affecting the way we think and reason.

    Alvis said something that I have to disagree with. That times are changing and we will will be judged on the time we live in (paraphrasing). Maybe my understand was abit of but I don't think this to be true. This Is how i see it. The word is the word. It does not change. When he says do not commit ", do not covet, do not murder" it is just that. Just because we now live in a world where there is alot more sexuality, or acceptance of it. Or more innovative means to commit those sins does not mean that it might be okay to do. It may be harder yes, but it does not change the word. We shouldn't be trying to find exceptions to his word, that because our times are different, we won't be judged the same as those who didn't go through the same.
    Yes, the world has changed. Our mindset however should not be because it has changed we should adapt our ways to suite it. Instead we should change it to suit the teachings and ways of the word.


    Lastly, this is to you Evans. I understand your take on "wolf in sheep's clothing". And I agree that yes, there are people who teach the word with distasteful intentions,and yes this is wrong, and yes you are right in saying and calling them out, and yes you nay well be right about it.
    My view however is this, the manner in which you go about it dilutes the message you are trying to put across.

    I will give myself as an example. I spoke to you a couple of weeks ago about a post you has put up on fb. I did not agree with the way you said what you said, partly because I knew Ernst, but also because of the way you said it. It came across to me like a person vendetta of sorts. Because of that I was biased towards you.
    As I was going through fb I saw the comments tagged to this post and I scrolled right past it because of my pre convinced notions that it was an attack on him. I later saw the title and decided to ignore the caption and read this. And I feel blessed for it.
    Now imagine how many other people who may have not read this because of the same notions simply because of how you went about portraying the message?


    I am glad I read tho, and I thank God for nudging me to go back and open the link. Thanks for posting. And barakas

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    1. Thanks for reading victorine. I'm glad you did. It is relieving to find people who get the point.

      As for my outburst, I agree that diplomacy should always come first. I assure you that before I posted those statements, I thought deeply about it and prayed. I confronted the man and told him my issue, and his response warranted militancy over diplomacy. Jesus tells us in the book of Matthew that if a brother is sinning, call him aside and tell him privately.

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    2. If he doesn't listen, then call him aside in the presence of two or three brothers and reprove him gently. However, if the person still does not change, then you are to chastize him before the Church that others may see and take warning, and he is to be treated as an outsider.

      When someone is in charge of so many souls and is compromising the Gospel, someone ought to say something. Especially when these people know what they are doing. I would never want to hurt anyone, neither does God. But when God's mercy has been trampled underfoot and His precepts rejected, His wrath is kindled. Mercy triumphs over justice says the Bible. But when mercy has been exhausted, justice has to follow. Only when diplomacy fails should militancy be employed. Not physical militancy but spiritual. It was sad what happened, but we leave it to God knowing that everything happens as it should happen and couldn't happen in any other way.

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