Another Sunday service in Reverence Ministries, and as always, the head pastor, David, was delivering the word of God to the people of God.
A vibrant, ever-growing church that was now in its ninth year of existence, Reverence Ministries had come a long way from its humble beginnings. From a meeting of seven people under a tent to a modern auditorium that seated close to three thousand people, Rev. David had seen his church slowly but surely grow into one of the more active charismatic churches in the country. With other buildings on the same plots of land commissioned for Sunday school and youth services, the church continued to grow bigger and bigger.
While many attributed the success of Reverence Ministries to David’s strict adherence to the true word of God and his strong abhorrence for watered-down versions of the gospel, the reverend would rather attribute it to ‘the grace of God’. He really was not a fan of the prior-mentioned claim of many; he felt that it made him look like he was the only ‘true man of God’ when he knew full well that many other pastors were genuine and doing what the Lord had told them to do.
It just so happened that his sometimes brazen and unapologetic style made him stand out and sometimes painted other pastors, who were not as fiery as he could get, in a bad light. He was always quick to remind his congregation not to allow that narrative to take hold. After all, he was good friends with a lot of the other pastors, and knew they were faithful to God’s call upon their lives. He was no better or greater than any of them, he was just walking in the will of God for his life and calling.
So that morning, David had a message for the people of Reverence Ministries on the dangers of pride, and his focus was on chapter 1 of 1st Kings, where the story of Adonijah was being laid out for them.
“So from verse 5 downwards, what do we see? We see Adonijah moving in clear-cut pride. Your father has not said anything about handing over to you, yet you just get up and say ‘I am king’, then you go and do all sorts of arrangements to crown yourself. And to add to that, he organizes a lavish coronation ceremony without seeking the counsel of the prophet Nathan or the wisdom of King David,” Rev. David stated as he gestured at the LED screen. “Chilling all over. Enjoyment. He thought that that was it. He had arrived. He was the boss. Nobody fit tell am anything.
“But what happened? Once the true king announced who his heir was and word went around, things changed! Now the guests who were feeling all good, getting drunk, eating good and all that, they were now running away! And as for Adonijah, what do we see? Verse 50: Now Adonijah was afraid of Solomon; so he arose, and went and took hold of the horns of the altar.”
Members of the congregation hummed and nodded as he read out the scripture.
“See oh! See what pride did to him in the end. After boosting his ego and making himself king, now here he was now. An endangered man seeking mercy. Remember back then, if a person went to hold the horns of the altar, he was safe from punishment. That was a place of refuge. Listen, people of God, pride really does go before a fall. It’s no lie. Pride will make you feel bigger than you really are and have you doing things you ought not to do, only to bring you lower than you should. Listen, wherever you find yourself in this life, remember that it is God who lifts and brings low. Don’t get proud and act like your current situation will last forever. Recognize that whatever pleasant situation you find yourself in is solely because of the grace of God. Never forget that. Circumstances can change in the blink of an eye, and it really doesn’t matter how rich or famous you are. The tables can turn.
“That’s why I laugh whenever people who come into power become so filled with pride and act like their current status is forever. They start living for themselves, ignoring the plight of those they were assigned to help, just gathering up wealth for themselves. Getting all puffed up and arrogant, hardening their hearts to the word of God, and you just wonder if they truly understand that power is transient.”
The congregation hummed. They could already tell what would be coming up.
“See whenever the Lord points out what is wrong with this country through me and I tell the powers that be. What happens? They come out and attack me. Disparage me and say all sorts of things. The funniest one is that I’m a puppet of the opposition. Eii, me, a puppet?”
David couldn’t help but laugh for a moment, as did some in the congregation. From some of his associate pastors to his wife Sika. Anyone who really knew David knew it would be easier to convince a lion to become a vegetarian than to turn him into a puppet.
“Me, puppet for a political party? Hahaha! I didn’t know the Holy Spirit is a political party. Ajeeeei!”
As his snicker ended, he walked off the stage and headed in the direction of one of the cameras and beckoned at it. “I don’t usually do this, but… video guy, bring the focus on me. Bring it on me, lemme speak to them.”
The congregation laughed. David, in his fearless manner as always, was about to say something to all the people trash-talking him.
“Is it focused on me? Good, good. Now, listen to me. I know a lot of you, especially all you party foot soldiers and government sympathizers, I know you don’t like me. I know you people say I’ve been bought by the opposition, and as for me, all I know is how to make this government unpopular. But listen to me: I stand here and speak the mind of God to the nation. I will not say the things people in high places want me to say. If the word the Lord has given me does not favour the king, I will not change it to please any man. I stand on this altar to do the will of God, and I will be judged for every word that comes out of my mouth. And as far as the issues of this nation are concerned, I will forever be led by what the Spirit says. You can say all the lovely things in the ears of the president if you like, but as for me… 1st Kings chapter 22, verse 14 will always be my mantra.”
The congregation applauded as he walked back onto the stage, and the scripture he mentioned appeared on the LED screen: And Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, whatever the Lord says to me, that I will speak.”
“Listen, dear people of God, I’m not claiming to be perfect. At all. I can’t even claim to be perfect, coz if I do, Sika will come and expose me basaaaa over here.”
The congregation laughed as he glanced mischievously at his wife, who was seated at the front of the church, in the special chairs the Mensah-Jones couple sat in. She shook her head as she giggled.
“Hehehehe. This woman, she’s been with me for twelve good years. If anyone has seen how I can detty myself every now and then, it’s her. So please, I beg, I’m not a perfect man at all. I’m not perfect. But if there’s one thing I will never do, it’s to tell a person something contrary to what the Spirit of the Lord has told me to say. Never. I will say it, and you can despise me if you please. But at least, I will know that I have discharged the duty laid upon me. Because who is it better to please, God or man? One whose praise of you will impact your life and eternity, or one whose praise does little and is so fickle, it can change in a split second?”
As the congregation applauded, with some of his pastors rising to their feet, he simply walked across the stage. He mumbled into the mic, “Please God, my people. Please God. Pastor Gilbert, Pastor Arthur, please God. It’s better to be in the good books of God and in the bad books of the world than vice versa. As simple as that.”
He then began to sing. When we walk with the Lord, in the light of His word…
In no time flat, the rest of the congregation sang along with him, belting out those timeless words of John H. Sammis.
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
As they all ended the refrain, David raised his free hand to tell the instrumentalists to end, then walked back to the pulpit. Time to get back to the main message.
“Anyways, let’s get back to the message. So yes… pride is an insidious and deceptive spirit that blinds us to the truth and leads us to make unwise decisions. It prevents us from seeking counsel, humility, and the acknowledgment of the fact that God rules in the affairs of men. Just like Adonijah, when we are consumed by our own self-importance, we may find ourselves at odds with God’s divine plan.
“May we always remember the words of Proverbs 16:18: “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” Let us be ever vigilant in guarding our hearts against the peril of pride, for in doing so, we will walk in the path of righteousness and find favor in the eyes of our Creator and our Father. Amen, somebody!”
“Amen!”
Well, the man of God is certainly firm in his conviction and doesn’t fear anyone. That’s really good to see…
