Lifestyle
Christians Should Pursue Access Over Assets – Abuja Cleric
By GWG Religion Editor
Christians everywhere should seek access to Jesus rather than mobilizing assets to buy themselves through the storms and challenges of life, Arc Ike Ugwuanyi has said.
Delivering the Sunday message at the Hospital Chapel, National Hospital Abuja, on Sunday, June 9, 2024, Pastor Ugwuanyi said that many of the saints of old triumphed because of the vision of a future glory which they prioritized over earthly assets and challenges that they faced in life.
Bro Ugwuanyi whose message was themed Hope Sees Challenges as Opportunities drew the ironies of difficulties as testimonials for Christians, noting the context in Romans 5:3 that exhorts believers to rejoice in tribulations.
The context of the joy in tribulations was taken after the preacher told his audience to prioritise access to Jesus over earthly assets.
“I will prefer I have access than have assets. I can prefer to bang on the throne to make my demands than carrying a load of assets,” the architect and preacher said.
Noting the paradox of glorying in tribulations, he said:
“This scripture is one of the paradoxes that we see in the scripture. The Igbo have a saying that nobody boasts in suffering, but here the Bible is saying glory in suffering. It is a paradox.”
GWG.ng reports that he further drew other scriptural paradoxes from Matthew 5:11, 2 Corinthians 11:30, Acts 5:40-41 and James 1:1-2.
He, however, said the paradox of the scriptures was what isolated disciples indeed from those he termed as disciples in need.
Noting how many disciples who Jesus fed with bread in the desert fled after he told them to eat his flesh, Arc Ike Ugwuanyi reiterated that the walk with Jesus was one for the few and not for the MANY who he said fled from Jesus at that point.
He observed that those who abided with Jesus were those who saw a vision of hope in the life hereafter. Others who do not see this hope he said were marked out for double jeopardy.
“A man that does not have hope cannot glory in tribulation or suffering because he knows that he is going to encounter another suffering someday later when he dies. That is double jeopardy.
“The reason why a Christian glories in suffering is because he knows that he has a glorious future.”
Noting that character is built up from the trials and experience of suffering, the clergyman said that “If you see a Christian who cannot endure or persevere he has not really prepared for the race.”
Arc Ike Ugwuanyi in an aside drew attention to preachers who flaunt charisma but guide their flocks away from the realities of building solid character, describing such as a tragedy.
He described John the prophet who preceded Jesus the Christ as an example of a man who was consumed by the vision for his life.
According to him the prophet who ordinarily should have been called John Zachariah was identified as John the Baptist upon his pursuit of his vision.
He drew the attention of his audience to the fact that John as the son of a priest should ordinarily have been a meat lover on account of the several meat sacrifices his father attended to. Ugwuanyi, however, said that it was an irony that John had a testimony of a man whose food was locust and wild honey.
GWG.ng reports that the preacher’s characterization of the inclinations of John the Baptist was in contrast to the attitude of the children of an earlier priest, Eli whose children were reported to have the propensity of appropriating meat offerings from the altar.
The attitude of John, Pastor Ike Ugwuanyi observed, reflected his clear vision.
The preacher who read from Mark 8:22-26 elaborated deeply from the passage that many Christians who do not have correct visions see men like trees which can be fallen to further private aspirations.
He observed that just as the blind man healed by Jesus initially saw men as trees that that is how churches check on tithes and offerings to see church growth noting that such were only seeing men as trees.
“If your vision is not correct and see men as trees your preoccupation will be how to remove them from your path.
“God wants us to see clearly. When you don’t see clearly, you will see men as merchandise with which to make money,” the man of God said noting that rather than be a victor you will become a victim of your poor spiritual vision.
He hailed the report on Jesus as penned in Hebrews 12:1-2. Jesus he said was accounted to have had a correct vision of seeing the joy set before Him as He endured the pain on the cross.
Giving his antecedent, Pastor Ike Ugwuanyi said that if Jesus had not endured the cross, he would himself have been a lost property given his trajectory before Jesus as he said, “apprehended him.”
While emphasizing that God has set times for His children, the preacher while charging the brethren not to force their timing on God encouraged those in difficulties to hold on saying that stars do not shine in the daytime but only in the night.
“Stars shine only in darkness. Stars do not shine in the day. Endure to the end, don’t chicken out. The present darkness is only trying to bring out the star in your life,’ Arc Ugwuanyi said.
As he concluded, the preacher while reading from Isaiah 43:1-2 encouraged his audience that the bible was emphatic that believers may have to pass through storms and fire. He was emphatic on the PASSING THROUGH, charging that they only have to pass through and will not be consumed in the dark stages of life.
He reiterated that point with the narration of Jesus and His disciples in Mark 4:35 – 40 when the Master told them to pass over to the other side across the sea.
“Jesus told them to pass through to the OTHER SIDE. People of God I don’t think that God brought you into the kingdom to just waste your life. I don’t think so,” Pastor Ugwuanyi said as he charged the audience that God was at work in the darkness of their lives to bring them into the light.
“I want you to see opportunities in that thing you are going through. It is in the night that God will sing a song for you,” the cleric said.
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