“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” (1 John 4:18). Therefore, Christians should resist any attempt by anyone to scare them into doing anything pertaining to the righteousness of God. That is precisely what mercenary pastors do in order to arm-twist Christians to pay tithes; a requirement now inapplicable under the New Testament.

According to Jesus, many of the so-called churches today that are large and famous are actually spiritually dead.

In much of the contemporary church, faith is an instrument by which we get something from God. In the hand of motivational preachers, it is a device by which we gain the world. Motivational preachers offer quick and easy solutions to life’s problems. They reduce the believer’s relationship with God to formulas. They imply that God can be programmed like a computer.

The prosperity gospel maintains the redemption in Christ Jesus is also redemption from financial poverty. It says every Christian is called to be rich in dollars and cents. A favourite scripture in this regard comes from Paul, who says: “You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9).

On 27th November, 2014, at the inauguration of Rauf Aregbesola as second-term governor of Osun State, Senator Bola Tinubu, National Leader of the APC, asked Nigerians to prepare their charms and other juju powers for the 2015 elections. Present on that occasion were the big guns of the APC, including now President Muhammadu Buhari, former party chairman Chief Bisi Akande and APC state governors.

Children are the glory of marriage. Then there is the glory of the first-born and the glory of the last-born. The first-born is given pre-eminence in all things. He gets the best and the biggest portions. He goes out without being chaperoned. He is treated with great respect by his siblings.

Jesus establishes three spiritual laws pertaining to prayer. He says: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8).

Recently, a friend took me to the jewel-in-the-crown of the Redeemed Christian Church of God; a glitzy parish called “City of David” in Victoria Island, Lagos. Displayed resplendently on a wall in the church-office is a design of their current building project; a 14 storey architectural extravaganza titled “Trinity Towers.”

Don’t believe the lie: all men pray. There is no man on earth who does not pray; even atheists do. Put him in a particular space where he is confronted with his humanity and man will cry out for help in prayer. He might not know who is he is praying to, but he will ask for a deliverer. However, there is only one deliverer: God.

Many Christians don’t even know what Jesus saves us from. Some believe he saves us from God. But that would make God evil for no man is saved from good but from evil. However, Jesus affirms that: “Only God is good.”(Matthew 19:17). Moreover, God is Almighty; therefore no man can be saved from him. God declares: “I am he; and no one delivers out of my hand.” (Isaiah 43:13).