Bible Reading: Obadiah 1; Revelation 8.
Memory Verse: “But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.” Obadiah 1:12 (KJV)
There was a report of a Pastor in a Pentecostal church in Nigeria who was sleeping with his daughter!. This act had gone on for a number of years since when the daughter was thirteen years till recently when she turned eighteen years! The daughter reported the matter to her mother who was said to have advised the husband to stop but the man did not. When the matter got to the church, it was investigated and the man was found culpable. He was removed from being a pastor and was de-robed as ordained minister of the church. He was subsequently put under mentorship of another pastor for counseling.
The wife could not stop the evil habit of the man and the family tried to cover the evil act but fortunately they did not succeed. Unfortunately, the daughter had been battered and because the mother could not help her and apparently she was not grounded in Christ, she resorted to taking cocaine!
Now there are a few lessons to learn from this reality: firstly, being a pastor or a senior member of a church does not immunize one from evil acts; what is more important is your deep understanding of the word of God and having the fear of God. The Pastor knew the word of God as he was teaching others but apparently did not fear God and so was leaving a satanic life!
Secondly is that covering up satanic acts does not solve the problem; rather it complicates it. Whenever you or your loved one is involved in any devilish act, it is important that such be reported to godly people ( preferably, your spiritual mentor) that can help and you should not Iive in denial but rather go back to basics, repent and seek the face of God for forgiveness. Proverbs 28:13 (KJV) says, “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.”
It is Important that you do not look at your position or consequence of losing your position today but focus more on the consequence of eternal damnation that can result from such an action. If both the Pastor and his wife had accepted the problem and jointly reported the issue to enable the man face the immediate consequence of his action, the problem could have been solved earlier with minimal consequence.
Thirdly, the daughter that resorted to taking cocaine would have been given earlier counseling and rehabilitation and possibly prevented from getting to the extreme of using drugs! Fourthly, the current situation where the matter is now known in so many places would not have been so. Certainly, a stitch in time saves nine!
What is your own secret sin? Is it battering your spouse, pornography? fraud? or adultery among others. It is high time you went to the Lord and seek His face asking for His mercy and taking action to live a life pleasing unto Him. It is better you conquer the flesh by the power of the Holy Spirit than allowing yourself to be deceived to end up in hell.
Finally, are you one of those that run away from brethren that are no longer in the good books of the authority? Many Christians specialise in burying their wounded in church rather than helping them to heal their wound! If you were around the Pastor that committed the above offence, will you be praying for him, encouraging him, visiting him to counsel him or will you be among several that will avoid him like a plague? Obadiah 1:12 (KJV) says, “But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.”
What do you think Jesus would do in such a circumstance? It is important to always do what Jesus would do in such a circumstance irrespective of what others will do. As a child of God, you should be able to take a stand for Christ no matter the opposition and win lost souls back to God.
Prayer point: Father, give me the grace to always stand out for you for the rest of my life in Jesus Christ’s name.
Bro. Biodun Oyapero