“There’s something about this verse that always gets to me… 2nd Kings… chapter 12:2… and the Bible says, ‘Throughout the time Jehoiada the priest instructed him, Joash did what was right in the LORD’s sight.’ Now there’s something good, and something bad in this verse…”

Sly had his earphones plugged in, as he listened to one of Bishop Ario’s messages while on his way to church for the midweek service. As he sat at the backseat of the trotro, he nodded along to all he was listening to. This was one of the bishop’s older messages, and it was a really deep one. It dealt with the importance of balance in being guided by mature people in the faith, namely one’s pastor, and hearing from God for yourself. He had already expounded on the essential need for the former, and was now dealing with the latter.

“Listen… In this day and age, the Holy Spirit isn’t for just a select few; He is with every believer, and it is Him that we should lean on. Those who make pastors their middlemen between them and God, they’ve missed it. Totally. Every day, they are looking up to their pastor to pray for them for this, waiting for them to tell them what’s happening in their lives. Look, God did not give apostles and prophets and pastors to the church just to serve as bridges between them and God. There is an ultimate purpose in all of that. Please, let’s look at the book of Ephesians, chapter 4… verse 11…

” ‘And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.‘ You see, our job is to build up the church, to bring you to a mature level of knowledge of Christ. It is not to be your overlord and some permanent middleman between you and God! No sir! My business is to help you have a deep relationship with Christ, and I have failed as a servant of Elohim if all I do is keep you on a path of dependency on me!”

Sly nodded as the trotro gradually approached the bus stop of the church. This was as hard as it got from Bishop Ario, and oh, how some of his sons in the ministry needed to hear this!

“Pastors! Listen to me, our work is to get the sheep to a place of perfect maturity, where they can hear the voice of Christ for themselves and have fellowship with Him. If you only intend to make yourself a crutch on which they have to lean on for everything related to God, you have missed it! We are servants of the vineyard of Adonai, this isn’t a place for setting up our selfish empires! Are you hearing me, somebody!”

Sly sighed and shook his head, just as the trotro stopped at the bus stop. “So much truth in this. So much truth. Yet the exact opposite is happening in that Hall we meet in. Chale, I dunno what’s gonna come up this time. But well, let’s see…”

***

“Halleluyah!” Pastor Henry boomed into the microphone as he took his stand behind the pulpit. “Bless the Lord, somebody. This midweek service is gonna be a good one, amen? As usual, we’re going to learn a lot, so let’s get started with a prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank You for the opportunity to be here…”

Praise and worship had taken place, and it was time for the word to be delivered. Sly, seated in the front where all pastors-in-training were to sit, inhaled and exhaled slowly as he bowed his head, wondering what would come out of this meeting. He sure hoped it was something solid from the Bible.

“So, let’s turn to the book of Exodus… chapter 2, verse 1… ‘And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter of Levi.’ stop right there, please. What do you guys see? Where is the man from… and where is the woman from… ah-hah, correct. So when we tell you that you must only marry from this church, you see why?”

Sly’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“‘Oh, but he’s a Christian’, ‘oh, but he really loves the Lord’, please, please, please, is he here? No? Then please, forget about him. Hw3, people of God, when we tell you these things, we’re not just saying it for fun ooo. There is Scripture to back it up. You think when the Bible says do not be unequally yoked, it’s only about marrying non-believers? No oo, it’s deeper than that. Look at this scripture, we’re clearly dealing with the twelve tribes of Israel, meaning they’re all from one father. But they stuck only to their tribes! Did the man go and pick a wife from the house of Gad? Or Naphtali? Or Asher?”

As the congregation responded in the negative, Sly sat back in his seat, incredulous as to what was going on. He had heard through the grapevine that this ideology was held in high esteem by the leadership, but never had he imagined that they would find a scripture to back it up.

It doesn’t even make sense! What’s the context of the scripture? He asked himself while Pastor Henry continued to speak. Isn’t it just about giving us the origin of Moses?

“See, any relationship with any boy or girl outside this church, we break it right now in the name of Jesus!” Pastor Henry declared. The weak response from the congregation made it obvious not everyone was excited to agree with such a declaration.

And obviously, the pastor was not pleased with the response.

“Herh, so you people want to go against the ways of the church? Ei! Osofo Kojo, it’s like the loyalty teachings we’ve been doing, they are not sinking in kraaa ooo. Herh! Children of Bishop Ario paaaa, and you want to find love elsewhere? Hw3, it’s an error, wai! The love you’re looking for is right here in this church! Sister Jubilee, the love you want is riiiiiiigghhhtt here!”

“Riiiiiiiigghhhhttt here! I’m not going anywhere, Osofo!” Jubilee declared, springing to her feet.

“God bless you, my sister! That’s a loyal follower right there, people of God! That’s what we’re talking about! Osofo Sly!”

As the pastor’s attention moved to him, Sly immediately put on a big grin and rose to his feet.

“Osofo Sly, the love you are looking for is right here! Amen?”

“AMEN OOOO, AMEN!” he responded enthusiastically, raising his hands in the air.

“Thank you! That’s another hard follower right there! Sister Sophia! Are you there?”

As Pastor Kojo’s attention quickly switched to another person in the congregation, Sly sat down and sighed within himself.

The need to maintain a false image of contentment and compliance.

If there was anything Sly despised, it was acting fake. Yet, thanks to the culture of the church, he had no option but to play tag-along if he didn’t want a high-octane roasting before the people of God.

And while Pastor Kojo continued calling other names to repeat his statement, he kept questioning the reasoning behind this little doctrine that had been raised.

Or is it just some way of pulling our legs or something? Chale, I don’t know, I don’t know…

***

“Alright, Osofo Sly, please, I’ve sent the PDF.”

“Okay… yeah, I’ve received it. Great, thanks. Alright, then I’ll see you on Sunday.”

“Sure. And remember… we’re staying riiiiiigggghhhhttt heeeeerreeeee!”

Sly laughed and gave a weak cheer as he waved at Jubilee before turning to the exit to leave. Service had ended, and that was the slogan for the night: “We’re staying right here!”

Fully in relation to the whole Exodus verse.

If only this Youth church was not toxic and man-centred, then yeah, I’d stay right there. And I’d make you mine, he thought wistfully to himself as he stared back at Jubilee. Indeed, were it not for the culture of the Youth church and the misapplication of that verse, such a suggestion would not be out of place. After all, those feelings for the sweet lady still lingered, and he would have loved nothing more than to have her to himself.

“Definitely not happening, though,” he murmured to himself as he walked through the exit gate to cross over to the other side and get into one of the trotros waiting at the bus stop. “It just wouldn’t work. The fights go be plenty pass…”

As he got into one of the trotros, which was virtually empty, he continued to try and understand how the leadership arrived at that scripture to support their claim.

While his brain worked hard on the matter, two young men from the youth church entered the trotro and took their seats behind the driver’s seat. As he was seated at the back, they could not see Sly.

And they began to chat.

“Hmm, James, me, I dunno about that thing Pastor Henry said about the marriage thing ooo. Me, my parents always say that what matters is the person being a believer, and that these things the churches like to say is just their own desire.”

“But Adjei, let’s be frank with ourselves, I don’t think that that’s what the scripture is supposed to be about ooo. Me, I don’t think the context of the verse agrees with what they’re saying. But you know these our pastors; you dare not disagree with them on anything.”

“Hmmm, say it again ooo. I asked Sister Jubilee after the service that what if it’s in the will of God that you marry another person outside the church? She simply told me that I should listen to what the men of God have said, and that is where the will of God lies. That felt so… someway bi.”

“Just look at that. Chale, it’s really someway. So dismissive. Me, I’m also hearing that it’s because of Oscar that they’re doing this.”

“Ei, saaa?”

“Yes oooo. I hear he has a girlfriend that’s not in the youth church, and they want him to end it with her, or they’ll sack him from the choir.”

“Bro, you’re joking, right?”

“Chale, ibi serious thing ooo. Serious thing…”

Sly reclined in his seat, stunned at what he was hearing.

So there was actually a deeper reason for that sermon? To enforce an agenda and whip the congregation in line with what the leadership demanded?

He shook his head.

Surely, this had to be a joke.

What at all is this? Ehh?

Pretty clear that it’s not really about God’s divine agenda with this bunch, isn’t it? It’s about their own empire, with God’s name on it to make it appear to be a God thing. Hmmm…