INSECURITY: We are in trying times - Bishop Adebayo Babalola

By Paul Ukpabio

We are in trying times, says, Bishop Adebayo Babalola, the Presiding Bishop at Flaming Sword Ministries, Lagos. The Bishop who made the observation after one of his powerful sermons at the Lafiaji, Lagos Island located church, indicted the church leadership in Nigeria.

According to him, the leadership of the church in Nigeria, has failed in the good that they ought to have done and ought to be doing, for the general good of the country.

"The church is the cause of the trouble in the country, and that's because, the church is confused! The leadership of the church have been lacking in vision. They have been lacking in prayers, and instead of them to address the reason why they are there, they are thinking that it is the people in power that are making mistake. Meanwhile, it is them that are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. In those days, when a prophet decrees a thing, it is so! But not now." Said the Bishop sorrowfully. 

"The church is sleeping," he continued, "the church in recent times has been direction-less, with lack of focus, and always ready to change their stance from one direction to another! The church has been negligent and aimlessly, they have gone away from their primary duty of praying for the society, to attend to their pockets! It is very unfortunate."

Bishop Adebayo Babalola also condemned the sudden desperate desire of Nigerian Church leaders to claim political power in the country.

"What has the church got to do with election or elective positions in the country? Is that their primary duty? Is that the business or concern of the church? The church's interest in political matters should be to pray for political leaders to have vision and lead the country aright. When Men of God leave their duty posts of tending to God's flock and go about playing politics with politicians, then there is a problem. God said 'pray for Jerusalem.' He didn't say go to Jerusalem and become King there! Or said go to Jerusalem and criticise the King. Or tell the King that you are holier than him. He said pray for the peace of Jerusalem." 

Babalola urged church leaders to embrace the church and its duties and responsibilities. He reminded church leaders that their primary duty is to tend to the flock spiritually and that God will bless them when they do that.

He said further that church leaders should avoid politics because they cannot even direct the affairs of themselves. That they don't have focus and that they are all divided.

"You see and hear them fighting themselves, they go about collecting money from governor's, and when they collect money like N12 million, they declare only N6 million to the people under them. They won't even stop there, they will be fighting themselves." he added.