In a week that the country’s political landscape reverberated with the most shocking defection to the ruling party so far, it was no less of a shock that one of the leading lights of the Nigerian charismatic movement was also busy mobilizing against the poor in our midst.

Whatever, the reason behind the defection of the 2023 vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa remains a matter of conjecture. Remarkably, he has not gone out to denounce his former party besides the claim by his PDP campaign spokesman, Charles Aniagwu that the PDP has lost taste.

According to Aniagwu when the taste of the palm wine changes the pattern of drinking will change.

However, for Pastor David Ibiyeomie of Salvation Ministries, Port Harcourt, his shocking assertion that Jesus boycotted the poor is unarguably one of the shocking fallouts of the convulsion that has taken up the Church of Christ by the cankerworm of prosperity teaching.

Even more shocking was that following his initial teaching to his disciples, that he came forward to double down on his fallacious assertion.

Given that he heads what he calls Salvation Ministries, it is fitting to say that his perspective of salvation is defined by riches and not necessarily sin, which was the primary concern of Christ’s coming to the earth.

As the former Jewish law exponent, Paul wrote to his disciple, Timothy, “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”

Pastor Ibiyeomie’s claim that Jesus boycotted the poor and did not visit them is particularly ridiculous and rooted in a beclouded revelation. He apparently forgot that Jesus was born in a manger in the midst of goats and other animals because his parents could not find a room in the available hotels in Bethlehem. What could indicate poverty worse than being born among animals? That was what Jesus undertook to bring salvation to mankind.

That Ibiyeomie cannot find any example of Jesus visiting the poor did not mean that he did not visit the poor in their conditions. John the Beloved in his book (21:25), wrote: Jesus also did many other things. If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written.

It is, as such, incongruous for one to assert that because he did not see Jesus visiting the very poor in their homes, that such meant he detested them or their conditions. Where we did not find Him visiting the poor in their homes (maybe because they didn’t have homes) but he went out to meet them like the woman who had spent all her money on physicians. Where else but on the street could he have found the woman who spent all her money on physicians? Jesus allowed the poor to swamp him contrary to Ibiyeomie who would not want us to go out to be with the poor.

Pastor Ibiyeomie’s focus on wealth and riches reminds us of the charge by Paul on how the pursuit of riches caused many to forsake the cross. Writing in Philippians 2:21 he charges ”All the others care only for themselves and not for what matters to Jesus Christ.” NLT

Going further in Philippians 3:19, he cautions the Christians in Philippi against those who were against the gospel of self-denial and death to the cross. He said, “They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.”

It is the prayer of this correspondent that all Men of God, lift up their eyes above the trappings of the earth and look unto the plans of God and stop bragging about their cathedrals and vain things.

Those who brag about boycotting the poor and boasting about what they have on earth and not what they have done in bringing many sons into glory have a day to give account.

Contextualising our walk on earth on the material sphere defeats the essence of the incarnation which was essentially to defeat the works of the devil. The principal work of the devil is sin. I give it to Pastor Ibiyemoie that sin ravages the poor. But it also ravages the camp of the rich around him, if not more.

The story of the rich young ruler concludes with Jesus giving a serious caution to those who put wealth above every other consideration.

 ”How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

It is a spiritually infantile postulation for any spiritually discerning person to relate with people based on their wealth. The bible tells us that riches have wings and can fly away in a moment. Such people judge people on sight and not by faith which is the framework for spiritual exercise.

Jesus told us that the poor will always be in our midst and he never warned us to boycott them. Pastor Ibiyeomie’s revelation is a strange fire that must be quenched.

James the apostle warned against discriminating against the poor in James 2:1-3, saying that the rich should not be given a privileged sitting position over the poor in the congregation. It is fitting to conclude that with the oratory that many pastors have, that many of them are just like Nigerian politicians, determined to suppress the poor, or like Pastor Ibiyeomie to put them out of sight.

That is why the fundamentals of good governance are put aside in the embrace of political capital and survival. They lie shamefacedly saying bad is good. Now, pastors are about giving spiritual resonance to their claim!