The State Of The Modern Church And The Footing Given To Its Critics

TAIWO ABIODUN 

The way many new generation Pastors have presented the Gospel of Christ has given a strong footing to those who attack the church today. We now see individuals like Omoyele Sowore, Very Dark Man, Abraham Daniel, and others boldly speaking against the church, mocking its doctrines, and ridiculing the body of Christ. A true Christian should never give ear to such voices because they are not speaking by the Spirit of God but from a place of mockery and unbelief.

However, while these critics bear responsibility for their actions, much of the blame falls on certain pastors whose actions have emboldened them. Many pulpits today have shifted from preaching Christ-centered messages of salvation, repentance, and holiness to messages that prioritize personal gain, prosperity, and manipulation. The Bible warns about such preachers in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, saying:

“𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘦; 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴; 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴.”

Instead of being places of soul-winning, exhortation, and encouragement, many churches have turned into business centers, where the focus is no longer on the kingdom of God but on material wealth. This distortion of the gospel has provided ammunition for those who now attack the church with accusations of greed, manipulation, and falsehood.
2 Peter 2:1-2 further warns about this:

“𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘮𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘧𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴; 𝘣𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘭 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘧.”

Because of these false teachings, some believers have been led astray, confused, and discouraged in their faith. Many have become disillusioned and have even walked away from the church. This is why Christians must be discerning. Not every message preached from a pulpit is of God. 1 John 4:1 instructs us:
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“𝘉𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥, 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥: 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥.

𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐎 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐅𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐇

In the midst of this, we must give special commendations to our fathers in faith whose focus has remained steadfast on the true Gospel of Christ. To those who have refused to compromise, who have stood firm in preaching salvation, righteousness, and holiness, we say THANK YOU. Your candor, your unwavering commitment, and your dedication to the true message of Christ have been a light in these dark times.

𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄, 𝐃𝐎 𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐋𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐀𝐁𝐎UR 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐁𝐔𝐈𝐋𝐓 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐘𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐒.

The enemy seeks to sow deception and corruption within the body of Christ, and if unchecked, the next generation could drift further from the truth. 𝐖𝐄 𝐔𝐑𝐆𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐓𝐎 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐊 𝐔𝐏 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐒𝐄𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐔𝐑𝐂𝐇. Confront the doctrines that are leading many astray, expose the errors, and correct them with the Word of God.

The Apostle Paul charged Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2-5, and the same charge applies today:

“𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥; 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯, 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯; 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘳𝘦𝘣𝘶𝘬𝘦, 𝘦𝘹𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘦; 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘭𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴; 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴, 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵, 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘺.”

𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐀𝐃𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐎 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒

Let every believer hold fast to the truth of God’s Word, test every teaching against Scripture, and commit to living a life that truly reflects the love, humility, and holiness of Christ. Instead of giving ear to critics who mock the church, Christians should focus on deepening their relationship with Christ, studying the Scriptures for themselves, and being led by the Holy Spirit. The gospel of Christ is about salvation, transformation, and eternal life—not just material success.

As Colossians 2:8 warns:

“𝘉𝘦𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘷𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘵, 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦𝘯, 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵.”

May the Lord grant us the grace to stand firm, discern truth from falsehood, and remain faithful to Christ until the end.

Amen.