Jetting Out To The Glory Of God
Written by Terver Atsar
Sunday, 22 March 2009
Jetting Out To the Glory of God

Terver Atsar


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A big storm has been generated across the nation with the recent acquisition of a private Jet by the Redeemed Christian Church of God. Many commentators have sought to find fault with the idea of such an expensive acquisition in the face of global economic downturn and the generally high poverty level among the followership of the church and the nation at large. The impression has also been created that the Jet is meant to boost the private comfort of the General Overseer of the Church. A further error is being indulged by suggesting that the General Overseers of the modern churches (Redeemed included) ‘extort’ the members of the Church through false threats of damnation in Hell-fire if they fail to forfeit 10% of their income(s) to the church and that such non-taxable monies are collected and converted to the personal use of the church leaders.

It is not difficult to understand the anger of the ordinary man struggling to survive on meagre resources available to him when he looks around him and sees some fellow human being with two hands, two legs, and two eyes e.t.c just like himself, surrounded with all the good things money can buy. And a not unusual reaction here in Nigeria is to regard such people as either thieves or cultists or both. Such sentiments are further accentuated when the subject personality is a religious leader. Against this background one could sympathise with those calling for ‘Daddy’ Adeboye’s head.

But beyond this, there is no iota of justification whatsoever to begin to rain abuses and invectives on him. Some have even attempted to question his anointing and opined that he should have used the money to feed the poor or to develop infrastructure or better still he should have donated it to motherless babies’ homes. In fact every commentator seems to have a ‘better’ alternative use to which the money should have been put except this ‘bogus ‘acquisition.

I have no idea how the Church raised the money to purchase an aircraft but my submissions in this piece are based on the assumption that the money was sourced through offerings, tithes or freewill donations from members since these are the known channels through which the church is financed. At any point in time if these assumptions become null, for instance if it turns out that the church embarked on an illegal or corrupt practice to acquire this jet then all my conclusions below would become a nullity and I will swallow my words.

The Redeemed Christian Church of God has a very strict policy on appropriation of funds, which requires that money must be spent for the purpose for which it was collected or donated. Therefore corruption and misappropriation of Church funds could be ruled out. If the money for instance was donated by a wealthy member for the purpose of acquiring this craft, the policy of the church does not allow for the money o be diverted to other purposes like feeding the poor or building of hospitals as many a commentator have suggested.

And I happen to know that the Church has not neglected the poor as being portrayed by critics. Offerings are collected monthly for the orphanages. There is a welfare department of the church that cares for the needy. The church also has a Prison visitation ministry. And the Prostitutes are not left out. A wing of the church reaches out to them and attempts to rehabilitate those who are willing to quit the profession. The Missions arm of the church also goes out to the most remote rural communities to preach the Gospel. They carry along foodstuff, clothing, and drugs for the villagers. The church has taken the Gospel to the most hazardous and hostile societies where Islam is a stronghold. All these attract huge financial commitments for which the society has should commend the Church instead of condemnation.

The impression that Pastor Adeboye has acquired the craft, as a status symbol is as erroneous as it is uninformed. Here is a PhD holder who does not even bother to put that in his name. Whereas we have several Bishops and Rev.Dr.Prophet Lagbajas in town the man simply remains ‘Pastor Adeboye’.

For starters, ‘Papa Adeboye’ (as he is fondly called by adherents) does not own the Redeemed Christian Church of God. He is neither the Founder nor the Sole Administrator of the church. The man only joined the Church in 1973, 21 years after the formation of the church and became the leader when the Church was 29 years old after the founder died in 1981. He is only serving a life term in the prison of God as a chief shepherd of His flock. None of the assets acquired by the church (including this jet) is his personal property. To accuse him of materialism or worldliness on account of this is way out unfair.

Even if we assume that he is going to be the sole passenger of the aircraft, (which is most doubtless not the case), has he not paid his dues? Unknown to many of the unkind commentators, this is a man who left a lucrative teaching job with a PhD to take up a (then) ‘undignified’ job of a preacher at a time when the Church (RCCG) had less that 40 parishes with a congregation of less than 10,000. It is not unlikely that many of his colleagues at that time had ridiculed him on account of his religious ‘fanaticism’. No newspaper at that time had considered his sacrificial action a news material.

At the RCCG camp where he stays, there was a time when that place was a thick swampy forest. There was practically no (human) sense in driving 46 kilometres out of the beautiful city of Lagos to stay in a bush camp in the name of religion. At a point he and his wife were sleeping on a bench on that camp. But he believed God wanted him to do just that. And thank God he obeyed. Many of the editors who now take pleasure in casting slurs on him could not have jettisoned their jobs in humble obedience to the voice of the great invisible God.

When he unveiled the almost impossible vision of taking the RCCG to all the nooks and crannies of the earth, I believe many people considered him unserious. Even some members of the Church deserted him when he broke the then tradition of the Church of using primarily the Yoruba Language for ministration. He introduced what is called in the RCCG circles, the ‘Model Parish structure’ where the English Language is used and some worship practices liberalised without compromising the standards of the Bible.

These reforms catapulted the RCCG from a hitherto unknown congregation to a global church with over 10,000 parishes in all the continents of the world. Over one million worshippers attend a Yearly Holy Ghost Congress, which began on the beach of Lekki in 1999 with a theme ‘Divine Visitation’. Indeed since then God has visited the Church in amazing ways. The Holy Ghost Congress remains one of the largest religious gatherings in the world today.

It is important to note that all these achievements did not allow the dangerous virus of pride to settle in the GO’s head. He remains one of the few Christian leaders of his status that can still wear local suits whereas he could easily afford to buy the choicest coats in the world. An epitome of humility, he remains a good model in holiness and blamelessness, which has endeared the congregation to his ministry.

The millions of Redeemed adherents who support the ministry with their time resources are not ‘brainwashed illiterates’ like most commentators have sought to portray them. To the contrary, the church is full of highly educated and exposed men and women with many occupying prestigious positions in virtually all the sectors of the economy. This accounts for the stupendous wealth of the church.

And acquiring a jet is among the least impossible things that God can do for the Church. The Church (not Adeboye) needs that jet to facilitate their evangelistic drive, which has gone global. With the jet, the church can move their materials and missionaries to any part of the world according to their programmes and plans without depending on the flight schedules of commercial Airlines.

Those who believe in God and his power know that it is a small thing for the ‘All-Sufficient-One’ to provide a ‘mere’ jet to his faithful servants. Am sure if you ask papa GO now, he will tell you that God has just started and that he is praying for the time when the Church will own an Airport and not just the Aircraft. After all the Earth belongs to the Lord and the fullness thereof. If we believe that nothing is impossible with God then we should not doubt the sincerity of his servant when God does the ‘impossible’ through him.

The time has come for the church to wake up and occupy the position God designed it to occupy. The church is supposed to rule the world and not the other way round. Interestingly this is not the first private jet in the Nigerian Airspace. Several Banks and oil magnets own private aircrafts but this has not generated much furore. Why have we not compelled these Banks and Oil Operators to divert such monies to social welfare as part of their corporate social responsibility?

God is not averse to working with the rich. The Bible is full of rich men who also used their riches to the service of God. Abraham was a very wealthy man. And he was the father of faith. Had Abraham lived in today’s time, he would have acquired many jets.

It is true that Jesus lived a lowly lifestyle, choosing not to build a house nor own property (because he said his kingdom is not of this world- John: 18:36) but he did not disapprove of the rich in his company either. Joseph of Armethea who later buried Jesus was a very rich man and a disciple of Jesus.

Yes Jesus fed the poor but he did not eliminate hunger from the streets of Nazareth. The poor and hungry will continue to be around for a while. Not buying that jet would not make the poor members of the church or society richer and acquiring it has not made them poorer either.

Having taken the time to ‘exonerate’ Papa Adeboye from blame in his private capacity, the same may not be said about the sensitivity of the Church as a body to the times that we are in. Even the Bible says there is a time for everything under the sun. It is apparent that the timing for the purchase of the Aircraft may have seemed inappropriate due to the prevailing meltdown in the global economy; an issue that has featured prominently in the analysis of most commentators. The impression of insensitivity of the Church leadership to the harsh economic realities that confront the average church member seems to be the take-home message of every observer.

And then there is the issue of excessive parking and maintenance charges the church would incur on the craft. It does not seem to be an economically wise decision. Commercial airlines incur such expenses but as investment which they easily recoup from their passengers. This is not the case with private aircrafts. The chances are that the church membership may now be exerted the more in order to take care of the craft to ensure that it continues to fly to the glory of God.

The noisemakers can all shut up.
Only the redeemed church congregants should have a say in what happens in their church.

who says most of them arent on NL?

Im so over Naija churches.

Fraud and Brainwashing in the name of the lord!

chikena, we have said it be4 that long ago when eyes were dark this is the same way people shouted when the church the bought their car.am really not surprise now dat enemies of the gospel are opening their mouth here.if RCCG did not buy jet, who then or is NASFAT that u want to see progressing??loook civilization, progress, advavancement starts from the church. the church is a progressive movement. i will not be surprise to see othere churches aquiring a space rocket honestly. God, please Bless your church and all the ememies of God be ashamed forever AMEN

**osisi:

The noisemakers can all shut up.
Only the redeemed church congregants should have a say in what happens in their church.

what makes you think we are loosing sleep over fools who call a preacher Daddy?

The Redeemed Christian Church of God has a very strict policy on appropriation of funds, which requires that money must be spent for the purpose for which it was collected or donated. Therefore corruption and misappropriation of Church funds could be ruled out.

vague statements like this are very convincing. Notice how he never details the so-called "strict" policy. Continue your hustle daddy.

bawomolo:

what makes you think we are loosing sleep over fools who call a preacher Daddy?

vague statements like this are very convincing. Notice how he never details the so-called "strict" policy. Continue your hustle daddy.

bawomolo:

what makes you think we are loosing sleep over fools who call a preacher Daddy?, 

this is sooo wrong! u shouldnt say that!

mandiiee:

this is sooo wrong! u shouldnt say that!

aww fine girl, how can i heal your pain.  I'm sorry, you can call me daddy anyday 

bawomolo:

aww fine girl, how can i heal your pain.  I'm sorry, you can call me daddy anyday 

lool, no i dnt think its right to just generalize and insult a whole church like that, i attend RCCG, but i dnt do all those daddy stuffs, its annoyin sometimezz, haha my mum cant stand it (i think its more of a yoruba "respect" kinda attitude.) its their choice. ,

mandiiee:

lool,  no i dnt think its right to just generalize and insult a whole church like that,  i attend RCCG,  but i dnt do all those daddy stuffs,  its annoyin sometimezz, haha my mum cant stand it (i think its more of a yoruba "respect" kinda attitude.) its their choice. , 

Yes you have a point, My problem is with people who think pastors are spotless figures.  It's fine as long as you don't defend the pastor 24/7.  I shouldn't have been too harsh on RCCG followers.

don't hesitate to call me Daddy Bawo

lol

MrCrackles:

Fraud and Brainwashing in the name of the lord!

crack cocaine be quiet
don't let me open the can of Islam here,you won't survive it o

Rofl

No mind am.

bawomolo:

what makes you think we are loosing sleep over fools who call a preacher Daddy?

and yet y'all carry your ricketty legs in droves to threads where such things are being discussed huffing and puffing.
I hear you indeed.
The jet has already been bought,you can now choke on your periwinkles

bawomolo:

what makes you think we are loosing sleep over fools who call a preacher Daddy?

vague statements like this are very convincing. Notice how he never details the so-called "strict" policy. Continue your hustle daddy.

Huuuhh!!!

Moyola:

Huuuhh!!!

The pain in his writing as he conveys the message of "not being bothered" is palpable
The thing dey pain am well well
I wonder why?

**osisi:

The pain in his writing as he conveys the message of "not being bothered" is palpable
The thing dey pain am well well
I wonder why?

pain me for where. Na my money?

**osisi:

crack cocaine be quiet
don't let me open the can of Islam here,you won't survive it o

U know say me nor send!
Easy going fella
Tolerant dude who blends with all
Never shys away from the truth!

Wow

Personally i don't feel the need for them to come out wid this whole explanation, . . . .

Their money. . . .

their jet. . . .

their congregation,. . . .so really what gives??

Even wid all this justification that hes been made there'll still be folks that are strongly against the whole hing, U really cant satisfy everyone. . . .

why all the fuss about a pastor buying a jet? he was clever enough to trick people into donating their money to him to buy a jet. if any body feels he can do the same let him go ahead, leave adeboye alone to enjoy his jet.

@toyosi20,

@Ebony-silk gave me the main lowdown about u.

I understand and accept my fate for coming into the picture far far far too late in time.

I requested ur facebook and yahoo id from her but she said i should ask u directly.

I am now asking : can i kindly have ur facebook and yahoo id pls .

NotoAtheism,

Haha whats your problem. This stalking na wa o

For RCCG to defend the purchase of the Jet on Nairaland means that the complaints of people dey pain them well well. Some members in the church are not finding it funny.
I'm not totally against the purchase but the timing was all wrong.

The Pope is in Africa and the Catholic church is the richest church in the world. The Vatican bank has more money than the World bank but the Pope flies commercial Alitalia,

despite the fact that he's a target of extrimists. I wonder what RCCG will do if they are as rich as the catholic church??
Buy a country, maybe.

one day people will come and defend prostitution with scriptures, 0 is 0 and 1 is 1 what is not good doesnt have two names. I hope you guys know how much it will cost him to maintain a jet of $28million dollars. 'Daddy' go kill person oooh!

Jeremiah 8:8-10:

    8 “‘How can you say, “We are wise because we have the word of the Lord,”
      when your teachers have twisted it[scriptures] by writing lies? 
    9 These wise teachers will fall
      into the trap of their own foolishness,
   for they have rejected the word of the Lord.
      Are they so wise after all?
   10 I will give their wives to others
      and their farms to strangers.
   From the least to the greatest,
      their lives are ruled by greed.
   Yes, even my prophets and priests are like that.
      They are all frauds. 

This what jesus as to say about calling a pastor "daddy"

Matthew 23:6-10:
6 And they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues. 7 They love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi.’
8 “Don’t let anyone call you ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one teacher, and all of you are equal as brothers and sisters. 9 And don’t address anyone here on earth as ‘Father,’[daddy] for only God in heaven is your spiritual Father. 10 And don’t let anyone call you ‘Teacher,’ for you have only one teacher, the Messiah.

Redeemed members and other pastor idolators please note.

i want to buy ma own jet too. but ve got to establish a church first aint that cool?

KunleOshob:

This what jesus as to say about calling a pastor "daddy"

Matthew 23:6-10:
6 And they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues. 7 They love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi.’
8 “Don’t let anyone call you ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one teacher, and all of you are equal as brothers and sisters. 9 And don’t address anyone here on earth as ‘Father,’[daddy] for only God in heaven is your spiritual Father. 10 And don’t let anyone call you ‘Teacher,’ for you have only one teacher, the Messiah.

Redeemed members and other pastor idolators please note.

Man, i love your posts, you are someone that reads his bible properly. I've read your posts on TITHING and on THE BAPTIST CONVENTION AS WELL, THUMBS UP TO YOU!

Epiphany:

Man, i love your posts, you are someone that reads his bible properly. I've read your posts on TITHING and on THE BAPTIST CONVENTION AS WELL, THUMBS UP TO YOU!

thanx