Chioma Anozie
9 November 2009
The Vicar of Anglican Chapel, Mushin Lagos, Reverend Mathew Ogu has admonished Christians for the moral and material growth of the nation.
Speaking exclusively to Daily Champion during the maiden edition of the annual harvest of the chapel, held recently, Ogu said there was urgent need for greater love and understanding among Christians of all denominations to move the nation forward in of hardwork, integrity, love and discipline.
He urged various tiers of government in the country to work together with the religious institutions, especially the church, to avoid losing focus in good leadership and moral growth.
"The State and the Church ought to be partners in progress. This is the only way of ensuring a sound society,". Rev Ogu said. He described the maiden edition of the Anglican Chapel's annual harvest as a great milestone.
According to him, it is an evangelism that goes beyond reaching out to other people and symbolises great triumph over internal problems. The cleric said the Anglican Chapel, Palm Avenue, is a product of dynamism and irrepressible spirit noting that its members moved from the mother church to form Chapel about seven months ago and since then the Chapel has been enjoying rapid growth.
According to him, one of the major problems facing the Christian world, especially the Anglican Communion, is the issue of homosexuality. To him, it is something that has left a big dent on the Anglican Communion.
"It is the duty of all Nigerians to ensure that this great evil does not go to the next level. All genuine Christians must join hands and fight homosexuality to oblivion. This is not something that should be treated with kid gloves," he said.
Ogu said proliferation of churches in the country was a blessing rather than a curse but added that why evil has continued to blossom in the country despite the increasing number of churches was because many of the existing churches were built on shaky foundation and given a very wrong focus.
His words "We are in a perilous time. People now deliberately distort the Words of God for selfish material gains. They quote the scriptures out of context in an effort to squeeze out money from people. Many modern day clerics are only busy competing with each other on who rides the best car, or lives in the most exquisite mansion or builds the biggest cathedral. To such people the spiritual growth of their flock becomes very secondary."
Rev. Ogu said the church must wake up from slumber and sack profiteers and charlatans who are destroying the gospel.
"There is urgent need to defend and uphold the true doctrine of Christ and safeguard Christians from the antics of con-men in clerical garbs.
It is wrong to lay too much emphasis on miracles, signs and wonders at the expense of salvation. The greatest need of all genuine Christians is salvation, redemption and sanctification. According to him, the scripture tells us that when we seek first the kingdom of God, all other things would be added unto us".
His prediction concerning the Anglican Chape,l is that in the next 3 years, the church will explode into a mega Ministry and move into a permanent site in addition to becoming a reference point in terms of evangelism, high moral standard and vibrant teaching of the Gospel.
He advised the country's youths to avoid unnecessary imitation and ensure that their dreams in life does not go outside the will of God. Similarly the chairman of the Harvest Committee, Mr. Felix Nnopuechi enjoined Christian leaders not just to preach transparency and love but to exemplify these great virtues in their personal and social life.
The Theme of the Harvest was "Harvest of Divine Increase." Iit was excitement galore as different groups within the Chapel danced to the glory of God while marching to the altar to present their harvest and thanksgiving offering.
The Guest Speaker, Ordinard Emeka Nwanneku from St Stephen Anglican Church Igbobi , told the congregation that the best way to serve and worship God is through heartfelt appreciation of his goodness and kindness to us. When we sit down and count our blessings one by one, he said, we cannot fail to find several reasons for thanking the Almighty God.
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