"Touch me not", Jesus told Mary.
"For I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God."
John 20:17
This was after Jesus resurrected...
I read this scripture & my imagination started roaming as it always does: I imagine Jesus as a Nigerian. I can guarantee He would have monopolized God the way our pastors do.
It's very common to hear the Nigerian Pastor say, "whatever you're going through, MY GOD will help you!"
"MY GOD will touch you today!"
"MY GOD will turn that situation around!"
It's almost always my God, my God, my God.
Jesus told Mary, MY Father, YOUR Father; MY God, YOUR God.
In other words, Mary, you & I have same access to Him!
We're on the same level relating with God!
If I were a pastor & I always tell my flock, "My God will heal you!" or "My God will bless you!", with time, the flock will start praying, "In the name of the God of Haruna Daniels!"
Or sing, "🎵I am serving the God of Haruna, I know, yes I know...🎵"
Giving the notion that I have a better relationship with God than them, making myself another mediator between God & man.
That is what we see in our Churches today.
I don't know if this is a Nigerian thing: I'm not sure people pray to the God of their pastors elsewhere...
But sha, we thank God that Jesus isn't Nigerian, so He didn't monopolize God.
He opened the access, that's why He called God Mary's Father & Mary's God too.
May we not turn God's Fatherhood into a monopoly.
Amen.
Shalom.
🙏🏿
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Kingsley Moghalu was a Deputy Governor of the Central Bank.
He later went into Politics & ran for the Office of the President.
He campaigned and did all he could.
Then his Party (ADC) held a Presidential Primaries Election to pick their Presidential Candidate...
To the shock of everybody, a certain Dumebi Kachikwu won!
He defeated Kingsley Moghalu to become the Presidential Candidate of ADC.
Everybody was surprised!
Dumebi WHO???
Who is he?
What's his pedigree?
What are his antecedents?
But that is POLITICS, folks...
Kingsley Moghalu was busy campaigning for votes across the Country, he obviously assumed the Presidential Ticket was in the bag.
But popularity among the ELECTORATE is not the same as popularity among the DELEGATES.
Kingsley Moghalu lost out because he MISCALCULATED...
A friend traveled abroad, leaving his kids at home.
I was in the house with the kids yesterday & they said, "Mr Harry! Please, call Daddy! We want to talk to Daddy!"
So I put a call across to my friend.
"My guy, how far?"
"Harry!"
"I dey your house, your kids wan talk to you..."
So I gave the phone to his 12 year old daughter.
"Daddy! How are you?" She laughed, she screamed, she was very excited talking to her Father!
"Daddy, when are you coming back? Daddy, I want you to buy me some things! I will send them through Mr Harry's phone..."
The 10 year old son took the phone:
"Daddy, I want some toys from Toys "R" Us..."
I sat there, watching the kids talk to their Father.
I saw the bond.
I saw the love.
I saw the unity.
I saw the connection...
There were no FEARS.
There were no WORRIES.
There were no CONCERNS...
"Calm down! CALM DOWN!"
She was talking too fast, I couldn't understand her.
But I knew she was hurt.
And ANGRY!
She called me that evening, around 7pm.
From the background noise, I knew she was in traffic.
"Please park, let's talk", I advised.
"I'm not driving", she replied...
"I'm in my car, in front of Cash & Carry".
I asked her to take a minute to calm down...
My mind went back a few months earlier when she got married to the love of her life.
When I saw her call, I had assumed she wanted to tell me she was pregnant or something...
Hearing her so agitated set an alarm ringing in my head.
What in the world could be wrong, I wondered.
When she calmed down, she told me a bizarre story.
A week earlier, her husband had suggested they buy a new TV and move the one in the living room to the bedroom.
She agreed...
"She said Africa is different because we are more fetish and diabolical than other continents
She said accepting Jesus and the Holy Spirit is not enough..."
I've heard this submission countless times.
And it's amazing how a lot of Christians believe this NONSENSE...
There's a Nigerian Church that teaches "Sanctification" as a doctrine: when you get Born Again, you still need to be "sanctified" BEFORE you can be baptized in the Holy Spirit, they teach.
Yet, Cornelius & his household got baptized in the Holy Spirit BEFORE they got Born Again!
When you show them SCRIPTURE that renders their sanctification doctrine false, they tell you, "THIS IS AFRICA!"
Like Africa has a way of making SCRIPTURE less powerful, Africa has a way of making the resurrection of Jesus less effective!