This article was originally scheduled for publication
AFTER the forthcoming election in Nigeria. I did
not want to be accused of influencing voters in a
particular way. But upon further reflection, it
became clear to me that I was actually trying to
dodge the persecution that trails the path of
anybody that dares to speak the truth. And at our
present crossroads, the Church in Nigeria needs to
hear the truth, however unpalatable. For the
Church is in the danger of being used as a political
tool by Christian leaders with ulterior motives. For
reasons of objectivity and transparency, it is
necessary for me to make the following disclosure.
(DISCLOSURE: I am a passive observer of the
political process in Nigeria. I have absolutely no
interest in ANY political party whatsoever. And I
will NOT vote at the election because I live outside
Nigeria at the moment.)

As a Christian, I believe that it is both sacrilegious
and highly immoral for ANY MAN to use the name
of the Lord, or God’s platform, to influence people
to vote in a particular way that God Himself has
not expressly commanded or revealed. All those
involved in such things will give account for abuse
of office when they stand in judgment.
Sadly, the leadership of the Church in Nigeria has
shown open partisanship in the current election.
And this partisanship is based on a tissue of lies
and distortion of the Bible. On the basis of this
falsehood, a large section of our Christian
community is being led to vote for incumbent
President Jonathan – simply because he is a
Christian, and the other candidate, a Muslim. In the
name of the Lord, voters are being urged NOT to
give due consideration to merit or performance, but
to vote PURELY on the basis of religion!
The foundation of this plot was laid about ten
months ago by one Pastor Bosun Emmanuel (PBE)
in a widely circulated audio message alerting the
Church about a credible plan to Islamise Nigeria by
registering the nation in the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC). In the passionate message, he
also raised a lot of crucial issues pertaining to the
current state of the Church in the nation – how we
have stopped raising disciples for Christ, how we
have become focussed on the so-called ‘prosperity
Gospel’, how we are neglecting the poor in our
midst (particularly our persecuted brethren in the
northern part of the country), how the nation is
decaying because the Church is neglecting her
responsibility, etc. The message was a stirring call
to repentance, and it spread widely among the
Christian community. Personally, I reproduced and
distributed over 100 copies of the audio CDs both
in Nigeria and outside the country.

Beyond this noble aspect of the message, PBE also
planted some insidious seeds of politics. He told us
that President Jonathan was planted by God in
Aso Rock for a divine purpose. He told us that
APC is a party that has an Islamic agenda, and
urged us to vote in Christians as our political
leaders. He pointed to Turkey and similar nations
that had become Islamised because the Christians
in those nations were not watchful as Islam spread
its tentacles across Europe and Africa. He
concluded by warning us that Christianity will be
wiped off in Nigeria if the Church did not urgently
rise up to begin to check the rise of the Islamists
and their agenda in our political development as a
nation. It was a sobering message. And a lot of us
believed him.

But with the benefit of hindsight, it is now clear
that beyond the matters of faith he raised, PBE’s
message was ALSO designed to turn the Church of
Christ in Nigeria into a political association that
can be centrally controlled. Controlled by the
Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), and its
leader, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, whose virtue as an
exemplary Christian leader he extolled very highly.
Building on the foundation of that crafty message,
the Church is now being told that any Christian
that votes for APC is ‘using his thumb to dig the
grave of the Church in Nigeria’!!! And, like puppets,
untold numbers of Christians have bought into this
huge deception without thinking it through! They
have been taught to shut their minds to the
failings and corruption of the present
administration, and vote them in again in a bid to
preserve the Church in Nigeria! What a lie! What a
grand scheme of deception!

NOBODY CAN DIG THE GRAVE OF THE CHURCH
BY VOTING FOR A MUSLIM. The Church of God is
first and foremost a spiritual entity, and thus it is
indestructible by human agents. God DOES NOT
need a Christian to be in political authority before
His will can be advanced in any society. God does
not rule through the ballot box! In His sovereignty,
He can use ANYBODY (Christian, Muslim, Hindu,
Atheist, etc) to accomplish His will at any time,
and at any place. God is indeed sovereign in the
affairs of mankind.

Unwittingly, PBE also confirmed this in his
message. He asked his audience, “Who is the best
Head of State that Nigeria has ever had?” Many
people mentioned Christian ex-Heads of State, but
PBE disagreed. He said the best leader we have
ever had is General Sani Abacha – a Muslim. He
went on to tell us how God used Abacha to break
a national curse over the leadership seat of the
nation, and said that was the MOST significant
event in the political destiny of Nigeria.

If that is true, let us ask ourselves some questions:
Who engineered that event? Obviously, GOD. Who
did He use as a tool of fulfilment? Abacha – a
Muslim! Does this same God still not reign? Has
He stopped using ANYBODY as He wills? PBE even
pointed to his audience that General Gowon, a
Christian, did great harm to the cause of Christ in
Nigeria because He converted the Christian schools
in Nigeria to secular, state schools.

So, brothers and sisters, furthering the cause of
Christ in any society is not about the person in
power – IT IS ALL ABOUT THE PERSON ON THE
THRONE IN ETERNITY! And all He seeks are men
and women that will obey Him on earth. God does
not seek/need our political power or authority to
achieve His purpose!

The reason that Christianity fell in Turkey (and
similar places) was not because Islamic
fundamentalists rose up in influence or power – it
was because Christ DID NOT HAVE FAITHFUL
DISCIPLES ON THE GROUND. Where faithful
disciples exist, Islam CAN NEVER quench the
eternal flame of the Gospel. Never, never ever!
The Gospel can ONLY be extinguished in any
society by the One that lit the flame – Jesus
Christ Himself. And please note this: Jesus can put
off the flame of the Gospel in ANY society when
His followers refuse to turn to Him with all their
hearts. We see this most clearly in Revelation 2:5,
“… repent …if not, I will come to you and remove
your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”
Those were the exact words of Jesus to the
Church of Ephesus – I WILL REMOVE YOUR
LAMPSTAND! It is only AFTER Christ has
extinguished the flame of the Gospel in any
environment that Islamists (or any agent that
satan wants to use) can move in and completely
take over. In such situations, ignorant people will
think it is the political power (or brute force) of
Islam (or whichever enemy) that gives them
victory over the Church. This is blindness! It is
actually God, though Christ Jesus, that is in FULL
CONTROL.

Evidence of this abounds in the Scriptures. Jesus
gave an evaluation of the seven Churches of Asia
in the letters we read in Revelation 2 & 3. Of these
seven, only two were without blemish. And one of
these two, the Church in Pergamos, was actually
located where ‘satan’s throne’ was! (Revelation
2:13). The Church of Christ flourished and
triumphed right in satan’s headquarters! So, it is
not about the location. And it is not about the
spiritual/political authority in the land. It is about
this: “Does Christ have true and faithful disciples
on ground?”

The testimony of the early Church also confirms
this truth. They operated under some of the most
repressive, tyrannical and pagan rulers – yet they
triumphed brilliantly. They took the Gospel all over
the then known world (Acts 17:6). Persecution did
not kill them, it re-fired them. Affliction did not
douse their passion for Christ, it re-fuelled it. The
power was within them – not in the political
dispensation around them. And the Apostles did
not train their converts to capture political power
to ‘help’ the cause of Christ in their land. They
were trained to focus on Jesus. And through them,
Jesus shone in the darkness around them.

For Jesus Himself made it clear that His Kingdom
was not of this world (John 18:36). The coming of
His Kingdom will NEVER be predicated on tricking
people to vote for corrupt leaders – in His name!
That is the deception of Christian leaders that are
feasting sumptuously at the tables of corrupt
politicians. That is why many are not surprised at
the allegation that some pastors have been given a
bribe of N6 billion/N7 billion to influence Christians
to vote for the incumbent administration. The truth
of this allegation may or may never see the light of
day.

Friends, DO NOT BE DECEIVED. The man that is
digging the grave of the Church in Nigeria is NOT
the man that is, in all good conscience, exercising
his civic right to vote for a candidate of his choice.
Rather, the man that is digging the grave of the
Church is the one that is not yielding Himself to
love and serve Christ with all His might - spirit,
soul, and body. The grave-digger is the man that
is not making disciples of those around him. The
man that is silent in the face of the corruption that
seems to be swallowing the Church. Men like these
are a million times more dangerous to the
Christian faith than the brutal forces of Islamic
fundamentalism.

I do not for a moment underrate the horrible
danger posed by Islamic fundamentalism, but I
reiterate that there is a more potent factor involved
- we are walking in, and working for The Greater
One that has absolute authority in the spiritual
realm. Christians do not wrestle against flesh and
blood. Our wrestling (and guaranteed victory) is
over ALL POWERS in the heavenly realm –
principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this
world, and spiritual wickedness in high places
(Ephesians 6:12). When we stand on our assured
victory in Christ in that realm, the events on earth
will unfold ONLY according to God’s will. This is
how Christians reign on earth.

But where are the overcomers that want to
genuinely yield themselves totally to the Lord to be
used by Him? This is the true dilemma of the
Church in Nigeria. We have lost focus of the Owner
of TRUE POWER, that is why we are chasing the
shadow of political power.

Do not allow yourself to be used as a political tool
by ANYBODY. Vote according to your conscience
and conviction. Love the Jonathan administration?
Please go ahead and vote for him. Want to try
Buhari? Please go ahead and vote for him. Your
primary allegiance is NOT to ANY MAN, or to ANY
MAN OF GOD – it is to the Spirit of the Living God.
Listen to Him. And vote ONLY according to your
conscience. This is your liberty in Christ Jesus.
Please use it wisely.

Thanks for reading, God bless.