Pastor Poju Oyemade had a special meeting with senior Pastors recently and he shares some highlights below:
When I was going to start our television ministry back in 2004, I was advised by the Spirit of God about something which I intend to share this morning. He said, you are the pastor of those that attend Covenant Christian Centre but not the pastor of the other several people who will listen to you via television. He said, if you respect that you will have a successful public ministry.
He went further and said you must not make other pastors feel uncomfortable about their members listening to you because you are projecting your church culture and preferences which maybe different from theirs. ( For example i have never taken an offering for building or any other project in our church but that does not make those who do it wrong in any way or form).
There are things Paul taught where he said I have no commandment from the Lord on this, this is my judgement. What that instruction meant to me was this, since what we were going to be playing on television were our recordings from our services, I had to be mindful of what I decided to play on TV. I edited out the parts where I spoke to the congregation as their pastor and left where I purely taught scripture.
My point is this, many come on social media and talk to people like they are their pastors. Paul spoke only into the Churches he raised or where his apostolic authority was received by the local pastors. He didn't go into other men's works to interfere with it, he simply protected his congregations morally and doctrinally.
He said 2 Corinthians 13 - 15 "But we will not boast of things without our measure (sphere of authority) but according to the measure of the rule God hath distributed unto us, a measure which reach unto you. For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure ..........not boasting of things without our measure(beyond our authority) in other men's labour...."
Paul understood the reach of his authority and he went further to say that reach will grow as those we feed faith increase and by them our jurisdiction will expand.
My dear friends, coming to knock other ministries and the way they do things in their congregations in the public square is not ministry nor the love way. As Charles Finney said " show me a better way of doing it and I will follow but don't think I will change because you tell me of a better way"
Feed your congregation with your knowledge, let them grow and let signs and great marvels occur in their lives through your teaching and am sure your jurisdiction will expand.
To come out and criticize others will only produce 3 things.
- You will draw false attention to yourself only to realise you were more like an entertainer to those who seemed to listen but they were never committed to you.
- When you decide to do what you have criticized in others i.e "mega church" "buildings" etc, you will sweat and struggle and your nakedness will be seen by all. Growth will elude you and you will have to start explaining after some years to your members why the growth that was evident in the early Church and Paul’s ministry you use as your standard seems to have carefully avoided your terrain. (Don’t forget they are watching you to see the outcome of your doctrine).
- You are not ministering life (solutions to people's problems which Jesus's ministry focussed on) but only division. Focus on your work, your congregation, love them and bless them. Grow them and when your light shines many who erred will come to understanding and learn doctrine as Isaiah said.
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