1 Kings 18:20-22 (New American Standard Bible)
21Elijah came near to all the people and said, “(A)How long will you hesitate between two opinions? (B)If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people did not answer him a word.
When the prophet Elijah made that bold declaration on Mt. Carmel, it was in response to rampant idolatry and the rise of the false prophets of Baal. The effect of that declaration was God’s destruction of 450 false prophets and the unquestionable reminder that He IS God (read the entire 18th chapter of 1 Kings for context).
In an age of rampant apostasy and heresy, we’re faced (yet again) with that same juxtaposition – except some of the “alleged” prophets of God (pastors) are straddling the fence…just in case this “God thing” doesn’t work out.
Check out this interesting article from the August 2008 edition of “Christianity Today” magazine (click the title to read the entire article):
Dual Allegiance
Pastor jailed for using human head in occult ceremony.
Laurie Fortunak | posted 7/15/2008 08:44AM
Nigerian pastor Benjamin Ojobu and his wife, Patience, were arrested in May for allegedly using a human head in rituals for church members. The practice of using severed body parts to ensure prosperity—whether material, emotional, or spiritual—is not uncommon in West Africa. In a region where voodoo is culturally acceptable, nearly all Christians engage in some form of occult practice, according to some experts.
Ummm, ok.
So I guess we should be glad that Creflo, TD, Eddie, Ken & Gloria, and the various others Word of Faith (WOF) peddlers aren’t cutting off heads and arms over here in order to “ensure prosperity”. If they did, then maybe the sheep would avoid them entirely if they physically crippled their followers instead of just crippling their follower’s pocketbooks.
Anyway, the article goes on to say that 90% of those who call themselves “Christians” in West Africa actually practice Christianity AND the occult (again, not much different that the many American Christians who claim to follow Christ but practice all other manner of rituals to “ensure” that He blesses them).
Check out this eye-opening (and hair-raising) quote from the article (my emphasis in bold):
Many of the pastors will preach from the pulpit that this type of thing is wrong, but secretly take part in it at night. There is the mentality, especially in African Initiated Churches, where the prosperity gospel is preached, that you do what you’ve got to do to get ahead. You rely on the powers available to you. You are hopeful that Christ will help, but when he can’t come through on Sunday, you may take out a different insurance policy at night.”
Think that the West Africans are “crazy” – that “that can never happen over here”?
Well, you might want to keep an eye on your local Word of Faith mega-church club and congregation.
As the economy continues to slide into recession, you might see Juanita, Paula, Creflo and the other false teachers trying all manner of occult activity to make sure the hustle continues…
As the son of Ghanaian parents, I am all too aware of the stories that circulate among African Pentecostal churches about preachers who are heavily into the occult. I can tell you story after story of preachers who my dad knew were using occult power and openly exposed.
I find myself blaming and not blaming them simulataneously. I blame them because they ought to know better than exposing themselves and their hearers to the occult, and blaspheming the name of Christ. Then again, I don’t blame them, because in our circles, the pressure is immense on preachers to perform. If you want your church to be full to the brim as an African preacher nowadays, you need power – and if you don’t God’s, then naturally you will gravitate to the power of the Devil.
Ultimately, I pray all the time about stories like this, because my dad is a preacher in a relatively new church full of Africans, and I can only pray that he doesn’t succumb to the pressure to perform.
You are exactly who I was thinking of when I found this article, doug.
I continue to pray for you and your family – and that your passionate pursuit if Christ would be an antidote in your home – and community.
Hello! You know what passage this post reminds me of? — And in it the LORD expresses plainly HIS views on such hypocrisy and harlotry…
In Ezekiel 8 the LORD shows the prophet how HIS own priests secretly worship idols within the Temple. I recommend reading the whole chapter (and book), but here are some excerpts:
3. …the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the north gate of the inner court, where the seat of the image of jealousy was, which provokes to jealousy. 4 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the vision that I saw in the plain.
5 Then He said to me, “Son of man, lift your eyes now toward the north.” So I lifted my eyes toward the north, and there, north of the altar gate, was this image of jealousy in the entrance. 6 Furthermore He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel commits here, to make Me go far away from My sanctuary? Now turn again, you will see greater abominations.”
7 So He brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, there was a hole in the wall. 8 Then He said to me, “Son of man, dig into the wall”; and when I dug into the wall, there was a door. 9 And He said to me, “Go in, and see the wicked abominations which they are doing there.” 10 So I went in and saw, and there—every sort of creeping thing, abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed all around on the walls. 11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and in their midst stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan. Each man had a censer in his hand, and a thick cloud of incense went up. 12 Then He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The LORD does not see us, the LORD has forsaken the land.’”
13 And He said to me, “Turn again, and you will see greater abominations that they are doing.” 14 So He brought me to the door of the north gate of the LORD’s house; and to my dismay, women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz. 15 Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these.”
16 So He brought me into the inner court of the LORD’s house; and there, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the LORD and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.
17 And He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here? For they have filled the land with violence; then they have returned to provoke Me to anger. Indeed they put the branch to their nose. 18 Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.”
You are spot on lavrai – I used 1 Kings 18 as a starting point, but Ezekial hit the nail on the head!