One church in FCT bans tithes,offerings. Gives visas, houses,cars to members

- A church in Abuja has set itself apart from other churches in Nigeria by this strange custom - Givers Embassy in keeping with its name does not accept offerings and tithes from church members - The pastor says the church is dedicated to the service of humanity especially Nigerians who are mostly poor In a country like Nigeria, where most churches constantly make money off their members, there is a church operating in Abuja which does not collect tithe or offering from its members. The church is Givers Embassy, aka Home of Consular Generals, which was formally established in Abuja at the conference hall of 3J’s Hotel last Sunday, July 30, 2017.

According to the pastor, the church is dedicated to the service of humanity especially Nigerians who are going through economic hardship. Givers Embassy does not accept tithes and offerings Source: Twitter, GiversEmbassy The pastor, Edward Olutoke said: “Givers Embassy exists to raise Consular Generals for God’s kingdom on earth. We give visas to houses, cars and businesses. Above all, we give visas to things that make life meaningful. “These consular generals would, through their devotion to God’s word, worship, and worthy living, inspire the much needed spiritual and socio-economic transformation in their lives and that of others. “The problem of our society is greed. It’s not Boko Haram, it’s not Biafra. If we can solve the problem of greed in Nigeria, we will be better for it,” the pastor of the newly established church, Edward Olutoke said shortly after the first church service. 

“In Nigeria, we don’t give back to the society. People who give back, give peanuts. We don’t need to only feed the people who are in poverty, we need to give them life. Instead of giving them fish, we teach them how to catch the fish." 

Speaking on why his church doesn’t collect tithes and offering, Olutoke said the vision came from God. “God told me that as the owner of the church, he would build and sustain the church. God asked me not to collect tithes and offering. We are to help the needy. God said any member of the church who wants to touch other people’s lives can do it directly to the needy. “The Holy Spirit is leading us and we don’t want people to believe that they must bring offering to church before they are blessed, no. If I give offering in the church while a woman close to me is dying of hunger, what have I done? "As a Christian, I should not allow that woman to die. The God who created the woman won’t be happy with me if I packaged an offering to the church while she is suffering."

According to the picture, the church offers as little as $240 (about N86,000) for a 24-hour miracle, and as much as $5,000, (N1.8m) for you to be elevated to a millionaire status. 

God Still Has Compassion For You

 

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him” Luke 15:20

Brethren, God’s love for you is still intact, true and pure. His love is unfailing and unending. A father’s love that overlook imperfections and weaknesses. Out of love, He offered his only son to come to this sinful world and save us through a shameful death on the cross. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son…..”. “Greater love has no-one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends,” John 15:13.

The main text above is an extract from a passage/parable Jesus narrated in a gathering. It was at a time, the pharisees and teachers of the law tried to question Jesus holiness because they saw him sitting among sinners. They thought, as holy and divine as Jesus claimed to be(He really was holy), he shouldn’t have been yoking with sinners.Jesus, thus, narrated this parable among similar others to enlighten them on the love of God for his children(sinners), and the reason for his coming into this world.

The parable was about a rich man who had two sons and the youngest rose to his father one day, asking for his share of the properties. He later got it and set off for a distant country, squandered all his wealth in wild living. He became in need and had to even suffer to feed on pods which was given to pigs.Recalling the sweet moments at his father’s house, he decided to come back home to his father and plead for forgiveness and tell his father, he was ready to work as a servant in the house. As the text says in Luke 15:20, “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” This is just how God loves you.

The father didn’t care how dirty his son has become; he didn’t care about the fact that his son was in tattered clothes and dirty and could stain his expensive robe with filth. He was not bothered at all about his smell or odour. He was just happy to see his son back and safe. He didn’t sit back and wait for his son to walk to him when saw him far off, he didn’t walk to him neither did he turn away from his son. But even as old as he was, he ran to embrace his son and kissed him. This is the kind of love God offers; love that has no boundaries.

There’s no need worrying over your sinful life. God overlooks your sin when you decide to return to Him. No matter how far you have gone into evil, the LORD is ready to receive you if you turn to Him. All He wants from you is for you to confess all sins to Him and turn away from evil. (1 John 1:9) He is faithful and just to forgive you all your sins. It is not too late to return to God. It is the devil and her accomplices who cannot return to God. You are not his accomplice yet; you just went wayward and devil tried to steal and lure you to his side but you can not follow them to that eternal doom(Hell). Your place is in Heaven with Christ Jesus.

God hates sin but loves sinners. That’s why He is still calling you out of sin into His holiness. He is an “I don’t care how far you’ve ran, just come home kinda God”. You have lingered enough. Take a step towards God and He will ran to embrace you, cleanse you and and clothe you with a new robe.

S O F T L Y, T E N D E R L Y, J E S U S  I S  C A L L I N G, C A L L I N G  O’ S I N N E R S, C O M E  H O M E

5 Keys To Effective And Powerful Prayer.

 

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective – James 5:6.

Prayer is communication between man and his God. Prayer is not only about making demands, there is more to it, It should include worship, confession and thanksgiving. God can do nothing for humanity unless is response to prayer. And we need to be specific about the people and things which we pray for.

These Are Some Keys For Effective Prayer.

1. Upright Living.

God is holy and he does not delight in unholiness. For God to listen to our prayers and answer us, we must live upright lives; we must present ourselves holy before God in prayer. “We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listen to these godly man who does His will”, – John 9:31. We cannot expect God to meet our demands when we would not keep his commands. Keeping God’s commandments is living upright. God is powerful and able to do everything we ask. “Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear,” – Isaiah 59:1-2.

“If I had cherished sin in my life, the LORD would not have listened, – Psalm 66:18. These were the words of King David, a great King of Israel who knew the keys to God’s heart, and for that reason enjoyed God’s favor all the days of his life. Living upright is a key to God’s presence, thus access to His treasury.

2. A Forgiving Heart.

A heart of forgiveness is a gateway to the presence of God. Being unforgiven makes us sinful and God does not hear the prayers of sinners. When we forgive those who trespass against us, we are also guaranteed forgiveness from God. And when we are also forgiven by our father in Heaven, we are cleansed from stains of sin and therefore stand holy before God and eligible to get the answers to our requests. This is what Jesus had to say about forgiveness. 24 “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father In Heaven may forgive you your sins. But if you do not forgive, neither will your father who is in Heaven forgive your sins”, (Mark 11:24-26).

Some people may intentionally hurt or offend you, but in your own interest, you ought to forgive them even if they don’t show remorse or feel sorry for what they have done to you. This way you are automatically forgiven for the wrongs you ignorantly did and didn’t remember to ask for forgiveness. When we forgive others, it benefits us more than those we forgive.

3. Pray With Concentration.

“So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees”. (1 Kings 18:42). Elijah casting himself down and putting his face between his knees means he wanted absolute concentration while praying to God. He did not want to look elsewhere or get his eyes caught up somewhere thereby losing focus on God and what he was praying for. Prayer is a communication between man and divinity and therefore needs not to be distracted. In the Bible, whenever a Jew was praying, to God, he would turn to face a wall or pillar so that he won’t get distracted.

Isaiah 38:2, “Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall and prayed unto the LORD”. Today, It is advisable that you close your eyes while praying to God to avoid distractions. This makes prayers effective.

God Still Has Compassion For You

4. Pray Continually And Persistently.

1Thessalonians 5:18, “Pray without ceasing.” You must pray continually. It is a key to effective prayer. You must pray and not get tired. You should not be tired of praying because prayer is the key to our desires and requests.God does not get tired of listening so we should not get tired of praying. In Luke 18:1, Jesus told His disciples to always pray and not give up. He told them parable to persist in prayer.

5. Be Specific About Your Requests.

“In bitterness of soul, Hannah wept much and prayed to the LORD. And she made a vow saying “O LORD Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant’s misery and remember me and not forget your servant but give her a son, then i will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head,” 1 Samuel 1:10-11. Like Hannah have to know what you really need and pray to God for it. Hannah went up to the temple to pray so many times but always with one request, and that was what she really needed.

You should go to God with what you need not what you just want. You have to be specific with your prayer. Not asking for so many things that you won’t be able to handle. One at a time. It makes prayer effective and open to immediate answers.

In conclusion, you need to go before God in prayer with a pure heart and with great faith. You should pray with boldness believing that God is able to do everything we ask Him. God loves to see us say bold prayers. It shows how much we believe in Him. Jesus assured us, saying, “You may ask me for anything in my name, and i will do it,” john 14:14.

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