Encomium
Prophet T.B. Joshua has countered insinuations that he is fighting Christ Embassy’s Pastor Chris Oyakhilome over a session of questions that saw the respected ministers producing different answers. This has caused several reports that there might be a rift between the two respected clergy.
The pastors had given different answers to the question, ‘If abortion after rape was a sin’. Then again, when TB Joshua was asked if masturbation was a sin, he had said yes, that it was even as bad as fornication. A question to which Pastor Chris had replied, saying masturbation wasn’t a sin, sparking another huge online criticism of both pastors’ teachings.
However, the senior prophet of Synagogue has declared that there was no issue between them. Reacting to the difference in their replies and evidently showing his support for Oyakhilome, Joshua, on Monday, March 21, 2014, said, “This reminds me of a recent article in which people put me side by side with my brother, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome talking about masturbation. Our brother was referring to Christians, not others. Christians who already have a relationship with God, their wrong is different from others because the root of their wrong is from the flesh, not from the heart. When the root of your wrong is not from the heart, your wrong will make you to run to God the more. That is, it will intensify your relationship with God. I mean, you will see the need of God the more until His name is glorified. Your challenges will make you to honour God before men.
“Therefore, we men of God, the Bible is our standard. We cannot disagree because our Bible is one. The understanding of people that read us can only differ. Men of God are a blessing to our generation.”
Temitope Balogun Joshua, born June 12, 1963 in Arigidi. Commonly referred to as T. B. Joshua, he is a Christian minister, televangelist and faith healer. He is leader and founder of Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN), which runs a Christian television station called Emmanuel TV, available on satellite and on the Internet via the streaming faith broadcast portal.
He is also a notable humanitarian, providing aid to minorities and the underprivileged on national and international scales via another ministry. He has been awarded various awards, notably receiving the National Honour of OFR by the Nigerian government in 2008.He is recognised as one of Africa’s 50 most influential people. Joshua is known for his popularity across Africa and his online presence, with over 900,000 fans on Facebook and hundreds of YouTube videos which have proved controversial and amassed thousands of views.
Presiding over an ever-widening network of Christ Embassy Churches and campus fellowships on five continents, Pastor Chris (December 7, 1961) also pastors one of the largest congregations in Africa. He holds massive teaching and healing crusades like the Higher Life conference and Night of Bliss with crowds of over 3.5 million in a single night’s event.
The world renowned Healing School is a ministry of Pastor Chris which manifests the healing works of Jesus Christ today, and has helped many receive healings and miracles through the gifts of the Spirit in operation. He is the author of the popular daily devotional, Rhapsody of Realities which is being distributed in over 160 countries in over 148 languages.
Pastor Chris, in 2003, pioneered the first 24-hour Christian Network from Africa to the rest of the world, and this has given rise to three satellite stations, the LoveWorld TV in the UK, LoveWorld SAT in South-Africa and LoveWorld Plus in Nigeria and still counting. Through these media, millions of people have been reached with the beautiful message of salvation and many lives have been transformed.
These stations are also available on the mobile platform. Pastor Chris is also the host of Atmosphere for Miracles, a programme airing on major television networks in the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Asia, Europe and around the world, which brings God’s divine presence right into the homes of millions around the world. With a burning desire to bring God’s word to all men in simplicity and with the power of the spirit, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome (PhD), established the International School of Ministry, specifically to train and equip ministers of the gospel of Christ, building in them the realities of God’s word and empowering them to carry the message of eternal life in Christ Jesus to their world, with great demonstration of the miraculous power of God.
Pastor Chris also pioneered the establishment of the Inner City Mission of Christ Embassy, a ministry for children living in the inner cities of our world, to give them a hope and a future. He is married to Pastor Anita and the union is blessed with two daughters.
-FEMI OYEWALE
