Christians Only Material: Where many fail 6 & 7

By Festus Ndukwe.
There is nothing that has hurt God’s move and work so much than SELF. Not even Satan or the witch, but this subtle human demon called SELF. God needs to open our eyes to see this enemy.
Rebellion Unlimited
An overall leader of a well known Church became threatened by the zeal and charisma of one of his pastors, and threw him into a rural area. The pastor rebelled, and refused to go. Instead he moved to another part of the town and started his own church.
The church of this charismatic pastor began to expand. One of his pastors emerged and began to have influence. This senior pastor became threatened and threw him into a village as his former overseer did to him, and warned him not to have anything to do in the town where he is. Again, the one that was thrown out rebelled, and objected to the posting, and instead drew away followers, and started his church in the same town.
It is the SELF in the senior pastors that provoked the SELF in the junior pastors to rebel, and leading to the establishment of churches of rebellion.
In another well known Church, a young dynamic and vibrant pastor was doing very well. Other churches were inviting him, and he even received the gift of a car. His elders were jealous, and being a church whose elders are more powerful than their pastor, they threw him to a very far village that is not on any known map, and brought someone to replace him. He rebelled and refused to go. In the church he ceased to be their pastor, in the church he was posted in the village, he refused to be their pastor. Confusion. Disorder. All orchestrated by SELF.
Jesus Visits a Village
A brother who was also a member of the church became concerned about the situation of their dynamic pastor. He brought his jeep. His wife cooked some food, and they pleaded with the pastor to allow them take him to find out this village where he had been reposted. Reluctantly, he joined them and they hit the road. After hours, they met a dead end. They parked the jeep and hired motor cycle riders. It was a Sunday, and the villagers had been praising God, and waiting for their new pastor. They arrived.
The pastor climbed the podium and began to pray before the message. Suddenly, fire fell, thereby disrupting his program as it happened with Peter and Cornelius, and there began all kinds of manifestations and deliverances. Jesus had been waiting for him. After the service, they entered the jeep and left. The pastor never went back. Till today.
You see what SELF is doing in the Church. It was SELF that made the elders throw the pastor out. For Christ, it was for good so that “the region that dwell in darkness will see a great light.” But the pastor had “not so learned Christ.”
Why no move of God
All the above stories are being replayed everywhere. That is why there is no power. There is no great move of God. That is why the world is not seeing Christ in the Church. They see fighting, they see church people going to court presided by sinners to resolve their disputes. And ministers cannot grow beyond where their disobedience has stalled them. The cause is this wicked Haman, called SELF. But his days are numbered.
In any of God’s work, He does not look at many churches you have established. He does not look at the crowd. Strangely, many churches that started out of rebellion pull a lot of crowd. God also does not look at your prosperity. God looks only at Christ. It is Christ He places His value.
Lessons for our Journey
Meanwhile, the overseer that reposted his dynamic pastor was in error. He was in error because he did it out of malice. The pastor that refused to go to the village was also in error. He was in error of disobedience. He was not conscious of Christ and His sovereignty, that He has power to turn the action of a wicked man to the good of His servant who submits, and to the advancement of His kingdom. The same with the treatment the elders meted to the other pastor. I did not mention that this pastor that objected to the posting of the elders to the rural area started doing open air meetings in the city. The open air meetings were for who? For Christ? He struggled, and was looking for funding for it. It did not last long.
We should be careful how we react to overbearing dispositions of leaders led by SELF. A leader who maltreated you has an issue with God. But you that left out of reaction has lost. The tangent where many ministers have, out of hurt, left the place of their posting is a junction God would have promoted them if they had with patience borne the unjust treatment of their leader.
Since the administration of heavenly allocation is done by our CEO, Christ, there is always an appointed time God has given to visit his servant after He has watched him bear with patience the painful things that had come to him.
When you rebel and disconnect yourself from God’s plans for your life, the angel that is responsible in bringing your allocations to you will stop coming. Our CEO, Christ, will tell him not to bother as you have left your location. You could not wait for your time of showing forth.
Patience is a Jewel
“Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work that ye may be perfect and entire (complete), wanting (lacking) nothing,”James 1:4.
Brethren, when our patience have run its course, we will be matured in character and God will do for us more than we think or imagine. Look at the patience of Joseph and see what it turned out.
Not too Late
For those of you who left your place of posting without checking from your Head, Christ, it is not too late. It is just that you have lost years. Several souls whose destinies were tied with you had also lost. If you had cooperated with God in His dealings with you their lives would have been touched by yours.
Trace the point that you left and go back and humbly submit yourself to the leadership over you no matter how painful. God, in His mercy, is still waiting for you at that junction that you left, for you to pick up His yoke and continue with Him in the journey to your destiny.
Some people say it does not matter the choice they make in life that they will still realize God’s purpose for their lives. It is not true. The only road and route to realizing destiny and purpose is walking with Christ where you are. He is the way. If out of hurt you leave, then you have removed your neck from His yoke. The blessedness of the yoke of Christ leads a man to where He is going.
In the course of our teachings some years ago, a minister was convicted as the Lord was raising some of these issues. With joy he closed his church and went back to submit himself to the church from where he left.
May the Lord help as many that will receive this truth so that they can be the kind of vessels God desires them to be and thereby enter into God’s purpose for their lives! Amen!
●●Ndukwe, a Lagos-based minister can be reached at festus.felicia@gmail.com.