ANGLICAN DIOCESE OF JOS
CHRISTIAN INSTUITE
ARCHBISHOP BENJAMIN ARGAK KWASHI (OON) DD, D.Min.
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BISHOP'S CHARGE 2008
In the Name of the Father,
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
It is with great joy that we welcome everyone to this Second Session of the Tenth Synod of the Anglican Diocese of Jos. The
First Session of the First Synod of the Diocese of Jos was held here at St.John’s College, but this is the first time since then that
we have come back here for Synod. We do sincerely thank them for their welcome and hospitality. St. John’s is our oldest
Anglican Secondary School but it is only just this year that it has acquired a Chapel which has the status of a parish. The
building was begun by Bishop Zhumbes, and now under Ven. Odigie a determined push has been made to get it ready for this
gathering. Everyone has taken part: the students even did the initial cement floor themselves during the course of one night!
We thank everyone who has contributed to this exercise and we pray that the Lord will take you to still higher heights.
We particularly welcome our preachers and teachers who have travelled far and set aside time to be with us now. The Rev.
Istifanus Bahago is the current President of the Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria, and has been a long standing friend and
school-mate at T.C.N.N., who distinguished himself intellectually and spiritually and has now been elected President of C.R.C.N.
for a second term. His wife is a wonderful pastor’s wife and it was my privilege to be the preacher at their wedding many years
ago. Both of them have the gift of hospitality and are endowed with talents for mission and ministry.
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Jonah C. Ilonuba, our preacher on Sunday, has stated his intention to retire this year as Bishop of Nsukka
Diocese. Jonah and Rose Ilonuba are a wonderful couple, a model of family life and pastoral leadership in the church. We
became friends when I was preacher at the inauguration of Nsukka Diocese where he has served as the first Bishop. Jonah is a
gentleman par excellence and his wife, Rose, a lady. In a nation where humility and gentleness are not virtues, these servants of
God have held up and have left a wonderful example. It is difficult to look at them both in the face and to believe that they will
retire. We are glad and proud to associate with them. As a diocese we wish to confer on them our Diocesan Merit Award as a
distinguished couple and leaders in our church.
Having the mind of Christ
is the most treasured possession a true child of God can ever long to have. Whatever mind we may have of our own - and it is
often said that you may give birth to a child, but you do not give birth to his / her mind - if that mind is not the mind of Christ it will
come to nothing. The apostle, in insisting that the Philippians possess the mind of Christ makes this demand from a concrete
background of a personal knowledge of who Jesus is, what Jesus did and how Jesus accomplished the task of the Father here
on earth, so that now, armed with the mind of Christ we also can, and will by the grace of God, accomplish God’s will here on
earth. The purpose is simple: to serve in order to save; to be humble in order to be lifted up; to seek nothing of self in order to
win the lost; and doing all this through the grace of God, in the power of the Holy Spirit to bring glory to God and blessings on
earth.
It is important at this point to look at the background of Paul’s letter to the Philippians. The Church in Philippi had an
interesting beginning with Paul at the centre of it. In the Acts of the Apostles we hear how Paul had a vision of a man saying,
"Come over to Macedonia". Paul obeyed, and the first place he and his colleagues reached was this ancient, beautiful city of
Philippi: a businessman's city and prosperous. Philippi was a leading city in the Roman Province of Macedonia; it was a town
inhabited by soldiers and civilians of Rome. In fact if you had Roman citizenship then in matters of law and justice you were as
well off in Philippi as you would have been in Rome.
According to Luke, in Acts 16:11-15, when Paul and Silas arrived in Philippi, they first preached to Lydia, and she and her
family became the nucleus of the church there. However, in the rest of chapter sixteen we hear of how a fortune-telling business
was upset by the apostles' preaching. What happened was that they cast out the demon which was in the slave girl, and this so
angered the girl's owners that it led to the imprisonment of the apostles. Eventually, this turned out to be a blessing because as
Paul and Silas prayed and sang in prison, the earth quaked, the prison doors opened and their chains fell off. These amazing
events led to the conversion of the jailer and to the baptism of his whole household. What followed was the beginning of a strong
church in this leading city. It was some considerable time later that these Philippian Christians heard that Paul was in prison, and
on their own initiative they sent help through Epaphroditus, who unfortunately fell ill.
For Paul, however, what was even more disturbing than Epaphroditus' illness, was the news which he brought about the church
in Philippi. There was no doubt that the church was suffering persecution from outside, but worse than that, there was lack of
unity within the church. Paul was therefore deeply concerned that the preaching of the gospel should not be hindered in this way.
It is based on this background and these concerns that Paul sets out to admonish, to encourage and to teach the church with
this letter. The fact that Paul was in prison is not obvious from what he writes: the letter shines with love and with joy. In chapter
one, he rejoices that although he is in prison, Christ is being proclaimed. In chapter two he reminds them of the amazing humility
and love of Christ, and urges them to show the same kind of love to one another. In chapter three he turns to his own situation
and says, that, yes, he could have been a big person in the eyes of the world, but all of that is useless and worthless, because:
"My one desire is to know Christ and the power of his resurrection" (3:10). In chapter four he finishes his letter with some
personal details, encouragements, admonitions and requests. This whole letter is a master-piece as it speaks from the heart of
conviction, commitment and consistency of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Some scholars have suggested that Philippians 2:
5-11 are a part of a popular hymn that was used after the resurrection while others think that this poem or hymn was actually
written by Paul about Jesus. Whatever the case may be I am convinced that this portion of Scripture is the most moving
elevation of the place of Jesus Christ in the history of salvation and has the greatest implication for mission and evangelism.
Jesus is rightly elevated to the place where nothing can evermore bring him down. William Barclay says:
In many ways this is the greatest and most moving passage Paul ever wrote about Jesus. It states a favourite thought of his.
The essence of it is in the simple statement Paul made to the Corinthians that, although Jesus was rich, yet for our sakes he
became poor (2 Corinthians 8:9). Here that simple idea is stated with a fullness which is without parallel. (William Barclay, The
Daily Study Bible, p.34)
The direct application of this for us is that in having this kind of mind which was in Christ Jesus, we will be partakers of the
experiences of Jesus Christ and also partakers of his elevation where nothing will be able to bring us down. In capturing this
mind of Christ, Paul is lost in awe and wonder and all he could wish for is that the church and all Christians should seek nothing
more than -
having the mind of Christ.
Charles Wesley put it this way:
’Tis mystery all! The Immortal dies;
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the first-born seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
Let angels minds inquire no more.
“Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 2:5)
I personally find that this passage revives the soul as it entails a deep search for the enrichment of the knowledge of the mind
of Christ. This is a whole life’s enterprise that in all things one does nothing concerning anything without finding out what the
mind of Christ is on such a matter. It is my candid presentation that this is one of the reasons why this portion of Scripture is not
on the front burner of our sermons, Bible studies, lounge discussions, family meetings, and any Christian gathering at all, and
dare I say that I have scarcely heard at any Christian meeting anyone ask, “What is the mind of Christ on this issue?” My sense
tells me that no-one would ask this question because when we sincerely search to know the mind of Christ we will not do what we
want. No wonder we are where we are as Christians, and in whatever position we are, we find ourselves without any significant
progress! In fact I will even press further to say that we are without any tangible, positive impact in the society because we are
operating without the mind of Christ, and we look more like the world than Christ.
The early church took this portion of Scripture and sang it as a hymn or read it as a poem, and the evidence of the influence of
this passage is clear. In the face of persecution, they did not surrender: they were victorious. In periods of hardship, they were
not discouraged: they were resilient. In temptations and trials they stood high overboard and put the devil to shame. In every
way they proved to have the mind of Christ and they became transformers of communities, pioneers in every good work, in
health, in education, social concerns, care for the less privileged, support for widows and all in need. It was obvious that these
were extraordinary people whose source of power and will to survive as well as their consistent manner of daily living can only be
traced to their steadfast faith and desire to do nothing outside the mind of Christ.
We should explore a little of the mind of Christ because if we know what the mind of Christ is and we open our hearts to the
total preoccupation of having this mind, then we shall find that applying it in daily life and in situations will not be a struggle. Over
time this becomes a way of life and a pattern for others to follow. I am convinced that a person with the mind of Christ is ready to
explode any day with revolutionary love, revival mission, dynamic and aggressive evangelism, and a spirit-led and controlled life.
“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.” (Phil 1:27)
What then is the mind of Christ?
The whole of the ministry of Jesus Christ began at a time when most people, if not all, believed that nothing could change. The
rich were getting richer, the poor were getting poorer. The political forces had been well-entrenched and protected by wealth,
power and military force. Every little gathering was censored, every demonstration was brought down forcefully and might was
right. The religious system had decayed almost beyond redemption and the followers were simply religious without faith because
the religious leaders were openly corrupt, the worship was dry, ineffective and extremely legalistic and boring, To make matters
worse, it offered no hope as the sick remained sick, sinners remained sinners, the poor continued to be helpless and the
religious systems milked them all. On one occasion Jesus had to ask, “Shouldn’t this daughter of Abraham also be let lose even
though it is a Sabbath day?” (Luke 13:16). That is to say that the religious leaders had become heartless, ineffective and blind.
Everyone at the time of Jesus knew that there was a need for change but the problems were monumental and no-one knew from
which angle any one problem was going to be tackled. Several zealous people had previously risen against the system, but any
such well-intentioned revolution was quelled by force. Gamaliel cites such examples, and he warns his colleagues concerning the
apostles:
"Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be
somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing.
After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his
followers were scattered. Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose
or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves
fighting against God." (Acts 5:35-39)
So Jesus, in taking the responsibility of challenging the historical situations of his time, literally took his life in his hands. He laid
down his life on the line for a cause, because his mission was worth that price if the world was going to be changed, people
saved and men and women restored to God. The mind of Christ, therefore, does not look at the present prevailing
circumstances or situations and give up. In encouraging the Corinthians Paul puts it this way: we walk by faith, not by sight (2
Cor.5:7).
The letter to the Hebrews (chapter 11) in demonstrating those who were human beings like us, but who changed history, took
decisions and moved on with God, emphasises the fact that these people were able to perform in their time and generation only
because they stood their ground in the faith they had in God, and in God’s ability to take absolute charge and control of their
lives whether they lived or whether they died. This is the mind of Christ. Jesus himself said, “Into thy hands I commend my spirit”
(Luke 23:46).
Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as
something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in
human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death - even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly
exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven
and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
(Phil.2:5-11)
The first step in having the mind of Christ is to have an unwavering faith in God through Jesus Christ, to surrender totally and
make a resolute commitment to accept the lordship of Jesus Christ, with an unswerving belief that Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
died for our sins and was raised on the third day. This confession must be personal and made with a determination to walk
consistently according to the word of God and to seek to do the will of God in all situations and all circumstances. For this is the
will of God for us in Christ Jesus. We have a promise in this case:
God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." (Heb.13:5)
The second point about having the mind of Christ is that it is action packed. It not passive or docile, for to have the mind of
Christ is to love, and love is a “doing word”. The life that Jesus lived in every way can only be described as love. He loved the
world so much that he could not stay in heaven and just speak comfortable words of love to us; love moved him to come to our
rescue. Love moved him to stop the world from perishing. Love moved him to destroy the tables of commercial exploiters; he
overthrew oppressive political forces without a single weapon of war. He de-mystified the powers of Satan, destroyed
principalities and powers, and Satan and all his rulers were brought under his feet. Jesus did this by love; he did it because of
the love he had for us who were long imprisoned by Satan, held captive and rendered helpless in the face of all these oppressive
forces that threaten humanity with death, discouragement and despair. Sometimes the threats are subtle and they come in the
form of helplessness and a quick push to surrender. Love defeated all these and opened the gates of freedom, victory and
fulfilment. This method of battle remains the single heavenly method for recording victory over Satan and all his schemes.
Whoever commits himself to Jesus and opens his heart to receive the love of God in this way will also receive the power to defeat
the devil and all his lies.
Thirdly, the mind of Christ is developing a right attitude to all of life, from start to finish, and to be humble. Jesus is the second
person of the Godhead. He is Son of God but unlike Adam and Eve, who wanted to be like God, Jesus, who is the Son of God,
did not contest his position nor did he want to take by force the place of God, but instead he took the humble position of
accepting the leadership of God in determining the will of God for his life. This took him through an incredibly humble birth,
humble beginnings in the shop of a carpenter, an almost unknown life as a youth, until the beginning of his ministry. To the
oppositions he encountered he responded with grace and humility. Ultimately he took the humble path that led to his death, not
for his own sins or crimes but for the sins of the whole world. He gave up his position and became a servant, and this he did for
the salvation of the whole world. His willing acceptance of humility covered every aspect of his entire life from his birth in the
stable to his death on the cross. He did not just give up a few privileges! He accepted all the limitations of being human -
including death, a death of the worst possible kind. Human beings have no choice about facing death: Christ chose to accept
death on our behalf to free us from the power of sin and death. He held nothing back, but abandoned all his rights, status and
privileges. Yet by becoming nothing, he gained everything and is now exalted in the highest possible place, so that at his name
every knee shall bow, and every tongue will confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord”. Humility precedes and also leads to honour and
glory.
Brothers and sisters, this is what it means to have the mind of Christ: to surrender to God through Jesus Christ, to be filled with
the love of God and to put humility at the heart of all our life’s work and service. Our greatest model in this is Jesus Christ and
we are to emulate our Lord. Obviously we cannot imitate Christ in his divine glory, but we are called to imitate his humility. St.
Paul reminds us that this is in fact at the very heart of our calling. Our mindset and attitudes should be the same as those of
Christ. Christians are not at liberty to adopt a way of life which differs from that of Christ: to do so would be to deny the Lordship
of Christ and to establish one’s own lordship. The way to peace and glory is the way of humility, setting aside all selfish interests
for the sake of communal gain. If church and state leaders had consistently followed in this way, both the church and the world
would not be as they are now!
One of the things that having the mind of Christ does, in addition to all that has already been mentioned, is that the mind of
Christ always seeks to glorify God. Having the mind of Christ is not self-seeking, is not self-propagating, nor does it seek self
glorification or self gratification, but it seeks to bring glory to God in all things and at all times. Having the mind of Christ is a
choice we make when we accept the offer that Jesus makes:
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke
is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)
His invitation is for all who labour and are heavy laden to come: come as you are with all your struggles, your trials, your pains -
and his promise is that when you choose to come in this manner he will reform you, transform you, renew you and regenerate
you into a new person and take away all your burdens and cares and problems and give you rest. But the second choice you
also make is to agree to accept the offer of Jesus in taking up his yoke which is an acceptance of a totally new way of life, of
taking up the cross and becoming a disciple, and of learning from Jesus’ gentility and lowliness of heart - for that is the secret of
finding rest. Only a heart willing to learn from Jesus will know the light burden and easy yoke of the Lord.
Unfortunately many church members are struggling, and in the process are hurting one another. Sometimes even the pastors
are also caught up in the web of struggles, thereby making the system totally muddled up. There is the struggle to be heard,
“fighting for our people”, “defending our rights”, stampeding one another into negative actions in an attempt to be relevant,
seeking recognition, fighting, cheating, slander, backbiting, gossip. All this has gone to such an extent that the church and its
ministry has become completely unattractive to the outside world. In fact, people are happier to leave church than they are to
come to church. The only reason people still come to church I do not know, but I would want to suggest that it is more out of
reflex action or going to hear the latest negative news or going to display a car, a dress, to discuss business, politics, or just
attend for attending’s sake. My feeling is that very few people actually come to church because they are seeking God and as a
pastor I know this because very few people wait after the church service to talk about God and his ways and demands.
The other reason why people come to church, especially in Nigeria, is because they believe God answers prayers. Prayer has
taken such a prominent position in the belief of the people that they see prayer as being like magic, and in fact you hear
comments such as, “I prayed about it” or “I told God about it”. Whether in praying to God they are actually asking for the mind of
Christ, is another question!
What follows from these kinds of behaviour is a typical manifestation of the fall of man. Inferiority sets in and this leads to the
struggle against inferiority, so that when there is success, privilege or accomplishment, the pendulum swings right to the other
extreme, to a feeling of superiority. Let me quickly say that wherever there is such a manifestation of character or behaviour,
then you know that the mind of Christ is absent. In addition to this there is a defeatist attitude and belief in the face of hardship,
difficulties or the ordinary challenges of life, to the extent that it becomes accepted always to lament and to say, “It cannot be
done” or “We cannot make it” or “There is nothing that can be done about . . .” In fact it becomes customary to surrender and
give up in the face of any minimum challenge - not even a maximum one! My point here is not just that people have tried and
then become discouraged and given up; in many cases they have not even tried! Little or no effort is made to demonstrate and
to live out the professed faith. Again, this clearly shows that there is a lack of having the mind of Christ.
Unless and until this kind of attitude and character is utterly defeated by seeking to have the mind of Christ, the church, our
communities, our generation and future generations will become complacent and will progressively degenerate into being lazy,
unproductive and constantly looking up for help from foreign donors, foreign investors and everything foreign, when in fact
everything necessary for us to live on, enjoy, develop, prosper and become a blessing to others has been provided by God
around us in abundance - but for lack of having the mind of Christ we have become ungrateful, underdeveloped and unable to
see what is in front of us. Lack of the mind of Christ makes us blind, makes our vision narrow and restricted, and we do not see
the world as Christ see it: we are not able to see the whole picture.
These attitudes can change because we have a Saviour who has defeated all of these on the cross of Calvary, taken them to
the grave, deposited them with Satan, and has cut off the chains of bondage, setting free all who accept him as Saviour and as
Lord, and who surrender their lives completely in dedication to having the mind of Christ. We must change the whole orientation
of the church, of our communities, our children, and defeat the lies of Satan by having the mind of Christ. What we must do is to
pause as a church at all levels of leadership to ask what is the mind of Christ in every one of our decisions, actions or even
inactions.
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)
Jesus’ words here are a clear indication that the mind of Christ brings the fullness of life and life in all its abundance. It therefore
means that wherever the mind of Christ is in operation all that has already been mentioned will find its level. Such things will not
be at the forefront of a church fellowship, nor would they even be allowed to exist among the children of God, for these kinds of
things are the characteristics of the world without Christ. Again, you would notice that in Jesus’ lifetime he hardly invited the
press to anything! He was not self-seeking, but because he sought to do the will of God against the will of the devil, the flesh and
the world, he became the news. Dear people of God, when you choose to have the mind of Christ, believe me, you will be the
news! The Corinthian church became the news, so did the Ephesian church, the Galatian church, the Laodicean church -
indeed the entire New Testament communities became the news to such as extent that even businessmen, like Epaphras, who
came in contact with the gospel could not keep it to themselves, but took it back home to Colossae or to wherever they were
heading. In admonishing them Paul urged the Colossian church to possess the mind of Christ and exhibit it in a fashion that will
tell the world who they are. They are to be God’s chosen people, holy people, beloved and full of love, people who are clothed
as it were with the vestments of Jesus Christ’s qualities of compassion, kindness, humility, patience, people who forgive one
another, allowing only God to rule each heart, and people who dwell on the word of God and concentrate each day on gratitude
one day at a time, so becoming a thankful people. (Colossians 3:12-16)
I am convinced that this is not just some ancient New Testament story of the early church alone but this is my portion in the
name of Jesus. I am convinced at this point in my desire and determination to raise a new Jos Diocese that will have the mind of
Christ. My call to this pursuit is sealed; my determination is resolute; my conviction is total. I am only asking for grace that
whatever is left of my life now will be invested in the search to have the mind of Christ, and to make the mind of Christ known to
many. I invite the Diocese of Jos to come on this journey which promises to be exciting, adventurous but most rewarding in
having the mind of Christ.
MISSION
Let me point out that it is not possible to have the mind of Christ and not be concerned about mission. Jesus himself said, “I
have come to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10), and throughout his earthly ministry he demonstrated the mind of God in
restoring and healing the sick, raising the dead, caring for the poor and needy. He was full of compassion and his passion
always was to save and bring life in all its fullness to the world.
This is why there is a Diocese here at all, and this is why there is even a Jos Diocese. And because we now know what it
means to have the mind of Christ, then - unless we deliberately choose to have a different mind - we must be engaged in mission
and evangelism, collectively, individually and as communities and institutions in the Diocese of Jos. Our churches must reflect
this image and so must our schools, our businesses, our participation in politics and governance - all must have this missionary
mind of Christ.
What I have noticed is that when we choose not to have the mind of Christ we choose misery, heartache, estranged
relationships with God and man and as if that were not bad enough, we actually choose the path of eternal damnation. However,
when we choose the mind of Christ in addition to all the other blessings that we have mentioned earlier we will see increase as
we reach out to others in mission and evangelism. We will see great blessings in the respect we get from the communities we
seek to save and to serve. We will actually receive divine benefits, blessing promotion and protection and most of all we will see
God being glorified before our eyes.
This is the call we have and we give praise and glory to the Lord for the labour of love of our clergy and congregations so far.
We make an urgent call and plea that we should do more! Our speed must increase; our efforts must be doubled and our
investments physically, financially and in terms of personal involvement must be total even as we see the Day of the Lord
drawing near.
The youth of Nigeria, that is, those under the age of 35, form not less than 65% of the total population of the country and many
are harassed, helpless and depressed and almost hopeless. A majority of them are unemployed and in fact unemployable. A
majority of them are undereducated and so they are exploited by the evil forces of the land. Worse still, they cannot contribute
meaningfully to the educational growth and economic growth of the nation. Instead, their energies, inventiveness and abilities
are being hijacked by evil forces unto destruction. Unfortunately, they will not go down alone - until they have caused misery,
sadness and hardship to the rest of society. Research has also shown that the bulk of the HIV/AIDS infected patients are from
this age range. My question is: where is the mission of the church?
Where is the mind of Christ?
The church has an urgent task to the younger generation in re-investing and not minding the cost until we have redirected
these young minds and given them a hope and a future that can only be found in Jesus Christ. Salvation is found in no-one else,
for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12) - except the name of Jesus!
We must declare the gospel:
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then
for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it
is written: "The righteous will live by faith."
(Romans 1:16-17)
This is the only power that can change any life and I testify to my recent visit in March to Numan. We were invited to preach for
five days for a Revival in the Lutheran Church in Numan. While we were at home on one of the mornings a group of young
people came to greet me as they had heard my sermon the previous evening via the loud speakers. I had known just one of
them previously, but we all sat for two hours and had a wonderful chat. It was a sort of Bible study without Bible. At the end of
the meeting we agreed to meet again on Sunday morning and I would pray for them. On Sunday at 8.00a.m. we had 92 young
men and women gather. This took place in an area of Numan known as KWALINGA, a notorious area where even the police
refuse to go. We turned a beer parlour into a church for church service that morning, and please note that of these 92 young
people 80% are unemployed, unemployable or were engaged at that moment in dubious activities. The meeting was a scary one
for us and our team, but our determination to get the gospel to them was without compromise. That morning I baptised 22
people. Today we have a Gospel centre running with our missionaries in place and the current figure of worshippers numbers
157. You will receive a full report from Canon
Gompwell, who spent a month following up the ministry and has just returned. We have withdrawn Samuel Nwokoro from the
Christian Institute and posted him to Numan for the next five months. We are also posting the Rev. Isaac Tarfena, his wife and
family, to this mission station to develop it and build it until they themselves are strong enough to disciple others. We are grateful
to the Ven. N. P. Bewarang and his GHaDS team who have travelled there to train them and lead them in empowerment and self-
employment schemes, as well as to check and follow up on their health programmes. We have subsequently informed the
Bishop of Yola and the Lutheran Bishop in Numan of this unusual and creative new approach to mission. We are convinced that
with the mind of Christ we will reach people any day, any time, using current revelations as we seek to know the mind of Christ.
Let us make a commitment to double the membership of our diocese; let each member make a commitment to lead an
unchurched person to Christ and bring that person to church before December this year. Each church should keep a record
and encourage and train members to do this for the sake of Christ and the salvation of souls.
We are fortunate to have our primary and secondary schools, our churches and communities with daily programmes that
should help the growth and assist in building the health of our diocese, but there are more people who are not so fortunate. A
huge majority of our nation is still outside the church and outside the experience of the fullness of life that Jesus alone brings.
We who are privileged must go and bring them in to the fullness of life and into all that builds up our common good. For only in
doing this shall we show to the world that we are a people
having the mind of Christ.
GAFCON
I would like to spare you the details of how we got to this point, but I must express some bare truths in a few words, just to give
you an idea of how we arrived here. You will receive communiqués, letters and messages from the Primate on the details of
GAFCON during this Synod.
First of all, the Church of Nigeria, unanimously voted to attend GAFCON (Global Anglican Future Conference) in Jerusalem
from 17th to 29th June this year. At the same time we also voted unanimously not to attend the Lambeth Conference this year.
The Primate of the Church of Nigeria, the Most Rev. Peter Jasper Akinola, had spotted the introduction of another gospel into the
Biblical theology as we know it in the Church of Nigeria. There are bishops in Canada and USA who have openly declared that
Jesus is not the only way to God. Others who may not openly have said so have shown by their words and actions that the Bible
no longer holds authority over their lives, their doctrine and faith. This way of thinking was challenged and it led to the formation
of a study known as the Windsor Report. By this time Gene Robinson who was happily married to his wife with two children,
chose to abandon his wife and to take a male partner in a homosexual relationship, and the Episcopal Church in America
confirmed his election as Bishop and consecrated him. This they did against all caution and pleas from the wider Anglican
Communion. By this act it became obvious that some people within the Anglican Communion have thrown overboard the
Lambeth Quadrilateral and have rejected the doctrine of the Anglican Communion and the teachings of the Bible, together with
the faith delivered once and for all to the saints (Jude 1:3).
This open display of abandoning the word of truth brought to light and to our memories in a fresh way what we had
experienced in Lambeth ’98. On that occasion some of the western bishops actually called the African bishops “illiterate”; one
openly said that Africa’s Christianity was only a mile away from witchcraft; some said that we were bribed with chicken wings to
vote for Resolution 1.10 on the Position of Scripture in the Anglican Church, while others called us narrow minded
fundamentalists, Anglicans who hold only to one way of interpreting Scripture. Some even said that Africans are not matured
enough to handle matters of deep intellectual doctrines. At the Lambeth ’98 conference we were harassed every day with gay
lobbies and the conference was skewed and forced to debate human sexuality, while no concrete discussion, debate or even
desire for action was mentioned about world-wide mission, the HIV/AIDS scourge in Africa, the political situations and crises in
Sudan, Congo, Liberia and Sierra Leone, and the issue of poverty in two-thirds of the world was hardly scratched on the
surface. In short, Lambeth showed itself not to be interested in the mind of Christ.
The hard task of turning the mind of the Anglican Communion back to the Bible and to seeking to have the mind of Christ was
taken up by our Primate, the Most Rev. Peter Akinola, who travelled extensively to attend several meetings with other Primates,
and expended so much energy and resources for this purpose - but sadly to no avail. Much prayer was invested in this project
and now, in the context of worship and prayer, the Lord is asking us to take a break and to search out his mind in Jerusalem for
two weeks. This mind searching is open to the entire Anglican world, and like-minded primates have agreed that we should all
meet in this way. At its heart, this gathering is a gathering for discerning the direction God will give in the Anglican Communion.
We ask for prayers that we may know
the mind of Christ.
THE CHURCH OF NIGERIA
We must give glory to the Lord for the work of the Holy Spirit in guiding, directing and blessing the collective and individual
efforts of bishops, priests and lay members of the Church of Nigeria. A great stride has been taken in the areas of mission,
evangelism and church planting, social concerns for different categories of people, as well as the presence of different dioceses
at times of welfare needs in all the crisis points of the country. The Church of Nigeria is also leading in combating and helping
people living with HIV/AIDS, malaria and infant mortality. It is also to the glory of God that by the choice and design of the will of
God our Primate, the Most Rev Peter J. Akinola, in the last eight years has vigorously led the church in this direction and has
taken his oath of office as a priest and bishop very seriously, not only in attending to the needs of the church but also in
defending the integrity and faith of the church. We are glad and privileged to be part of this great move of God in which as
partakers we are also witnesses of the grace of God in the growth of the church.
In 1999 the number of dioceses in the Church of Nigeria was 62, and this year there will be 137. We are grateful participants
to this increase by giving birth to Lafia, Pankshin, Bukuru and a grandchild, Langtang. Not only do we see this as a sign of
progress but also an indication that through the mercy and grace of God we are moving in the right direction. The evidence is
clear. We are seeing people saved, schools established, health concerns taken to the poor and with our minimum resources
caring for the needy. Let the Lord alone take all the glory because we know that this is
the mind of Christ.
OUR DIOCESE
We are privileged and blessed by God to have led this diocese in the last sixteen years. We have witnessed growth, progress
and transformation of lives and communities. We have seen God do mighty things in changing and transforming people,
establishing churches, and bringing peace to warring communities. The gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is real, powerful and still
potent in its ability to save lives and communities. We must continue to celebrate God’s goodness and greatness and power, as
a church and a diocese. Our role as a mother and now a grandmother diocese is to keep growing because there is room for
much growth ahead of us. We must model to the younger dioceses in every aspect of the life of a Christian in mission and
evangelism, deep-rooted, Spirit-led liturgical practice using the Prayer Book, grass root Bible literacy, leading to the formation of
Bible based church communities and the establishment of transparent church administration with decent book-keeping and good
accounting practices. This is one of the ways of laying a firm foundation for a healthy growth of a diocese. This is also
the mind of Christ.
The time has come for us to look at the graph of our growth in the last sixteen years, we have met with the Archdeaconry
treasurers and finance officers of our diocese and after carefully studying our financial performance, we have re-adopted our
diocesan canon, which was passed, to the effect that every church should pay 10% of its gross assessment monthly. If we do
this to the end of December 2008, we shall be able to cut down our 2009 assessments by 40%. This exercise will continue in the
reduction of our assessments during the next three years until our assessment goes down to 30% of the current figures. This is
possible because of our current level of investments and previous performances. A graph to this effect will be presented during
the Synod.
Another area of concern in the life of our diocese is our staff situation. The time has come for all of us together to get involved
in ministry and mission. We are at the moment short of ordained staff, which means that our current ordained clergy MUST work
twice as hard to supervise, give leadership and provide pastoral care for churches that do not have clergy or evangelists. No
church must be allowed to die for lack of a church worker. This is unacceptable and it is not the mind of Christ.
In our attempt to find more workers for the church let me state categorically and clearly that in the Diocese of Jos we will not
recruit or employ people who are not ready to die for the gospel, people who are not creative, who are not developers and
builders of grass root communities; we will not recruit people who have not encountered or experienced new birth in Christ Jesus,
who are not on fire for the gospel. We do not want people who are simply looking for employment; we need people who have a
calling to fulfil. We are particularly looking for people who are below 30 years of age, who are willing to serve the Lord Jesus
Christ under any condition, in any capacity, and to serve any tribe or community. In fact, we are in dire need of such people
now! Please understand that we take a year or two to examine and confirm the call of any candidate we consider, and it then
takes three years for such a person to be trained before ordination. If a candidate is already 35 before coming to us, we will be
ordaining him at 40, when the energy is beginning to wane, and the problems of a growing family are increasing.
A majority of the communities in Nigeria we want to reach are part of a young generation under the age of 35. Candidates for
ministry who are already 35 at their point of entry will automatically find it more difficult to minister to the next generation as the
generations differ in their approach to life, technology, reasoning and so forth. If we want to reach the young generation we must
recruit people from that generation. The writer of the gospel of Mark was a young man who followed Peter around and you can
see his youth in his gospel writing: it is full of urgency, with no details, but full of action and speed. Similarly, the apostles later
recruited younger people (Acts 6), as did Paul (Titus, Timothy, Philemon).
There may be a place for truly committed and dedicated older candidates, but they, together with their families, must show their
ability to relate to the youth and prove their willingness wholeheartedly to commit themselves. They will need to convince us that
they are truly committed with their families to the same requirements as those placed on candidates who are younger. Such
complaints as the wife’s job, or the needs of the children should not form a barrier to their meeting the needs of ministry. These
matters should have been carefully considered before any commitment to full-time ministry is made. Those who are older should
know that the demands on them are in fact much higher than those made on younger candidates. In the present Jos Diocese,
and particularly in the new mission stations, there are no vicarages, no church buildings and in some cases no church lands. So
you can see that we are looking for labourers, builders and single minded, committed Christian servants.
In this ministry the whole family must work as one unit. That is why at the Christian Institute we are committed to training the
wives as well as the men. By the grace of God it will soon become compulsory for the wife to attend for the full length of her
husband’s course: according to her abilities she will either attend the main school or the separate women’s school courses. We
are also setting up our own nursery / primary school there for the children. The future of the gospel ministry looks set to grow
more, not less, difficult, as we stand against persecution, poverty, the spread of HIV/AIDS, malaria and infant mortality, and as we
seek to improve educational opportunities and also care for the environment. The call to serve is a call from God: there can be
no short cuts, no loopholes, and no half measures!
Our diocese has a great future in the economy of Kingdom affairs. Several prophecies have indicated that a great revival of
the church of God will start from Jos and reach out and spread. We accept this prophecy: we desire to be part of it and we
ourselves believe that the Diocese of Jos shall not lag behind in actively promoting the fulfilment of God’s prophecy in this
regard. We believe that this is
the mind of Christ.
We do thank most sincerely every church member who has laboured in prayer and those who have contributed resources,
financially and physically to the work of God in these last sixteen years or more. We pray God to enrich your lives and to give
you the most treasured gift of knowing
the mind of Christ.
ANOTHER ATTACK
Once again, we continue to give thanks to the Lord for his saving grace and power to keep. We are convinced that the life we
live now in Christ Jesus is propelled on wings of multitudes of prayers from around the world.
We were preparing to do a Thanksgiving Service for Gloria’s recovery when, on 24th July last year, we heard the bang of some
unwanted visitors on the back door of our house. The house was full as all the children were in, including guests, my younger
brother, the Ven. Jacob Kwashi, and his son. There was panic, but there was calm and peace. I knew that they were after me,
so I began to bid farewell to Gloria who would not listen. MTN and GLO all refused to work that night, as usual. The GSM
operators are collaborators with evil as when you need them most during crises the network is simply unavailable. Just as we
were giving up, I got a call through to Kaduna and after that call I went on my knees to pray. A few minutes later four young men
broke into my room and said, “Man of God, we have come for you. This is not time for prayer.” They took me outside to carry
out their intentions and stopped to negotiate the price of my life. One of them screamed. “I’ve changed my mind. Let’s take him
back inside and kill him there.” Again, I asked for another time to say my last prayers; I picked my Bible and my glasses and
knelt down to read and pray. Then they noticed Gloria. They asked her for money and she looked for what she had to give
them, and a little later she was by my side holding my hands in prayer. A few minutes later we saw our son, Rinji, and when we
asked what he was doing here, he said they had gone!
We must thank the numerous and countless throng of Christians around the world - some of whom know us, but many of whom
have only heard about us - who have ceaselessly bombarded the heavens and sent endless numbers of angels to help us. We
thank all those who by their gifts, visits and kindness have made us strong. The cards, letters, emails and text messages are too
numerous to mention. We are grateful, and for your sake and for all you have done we will not give up. We will stand for the
gospel; we will live for the gospel and to the gospel alone do we owe everything.
To the Lord alone be all the honour and all the glory. God has saved us again and we give him all the praise and all the glory.
We declare we will not surrender to evil. We will not surrender to Satan. We will not allow wickedness to prosper. We have
made up our minds to enthrone truth, righteousness and justice. We are determined to promote excellence and quality with
dignity in service for the glory of God. All this is possible through the mighty working of the Holy Spirit in us by the proclamation
of the gospel of the Kingdom of God. We have no doubt that the gospel alone has the power to accomplish this task. This same
gospel is worth living for and, believe me, it is worth dying for.
CONCLUSION
An unwavering faith, which so dominates a person’s life, that it controls all that is said and done and even thought;
A steadfast faith, which stands firm through trials, doubts and difficulties;
A determined faith which will not take “No” for an answer;
A loving faith which propels into action;
A faith which is humble, never seeking anything for self but always seeking everything and everyone for Christ;
Such a faith cannot be bought or acquired in one day, but can only grow in a lifetime of service as we journey with Our Lord,
totally committed to him and to the Kingdom of God.
Such a faith can only be ours through the grace of God, but
This is what we pray for, because this is the heart of
Having the mind of Christ.
+The Most Rev. Dr. Benjamin A. Kwashi
May 2008
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
It is with great joy that we welcome everyone to this Second Session of the Tenth Synod of the Anglican Diocese of Jos. The
First Session of the First Synod of the Diocese of Jos was held here at St.John’s College, but this is the first time since then that
we have come back here for Synod. We do sincerely thank them for their welcome and hospitality. St. John’s is our oldest
Anglican Secondary School but it is only just this year that it has acquired a Chapel which has the status of a parish. The
building was begun by Bishop Zhumbes, and now under Ven. Odigie a determined push has been made to get it ready for this
gathering. Everyone has taken part: the students even did the initial cement floor themselves during the course of one night!
We thank everyone who has contributed to this exercise and we pray that the Lord will take you to still higher heights.
We particularly welcome our preachers and teachers who have travelled far and set aside time to be with us now. The Rev.
Istifanus Bahago is the current President of the Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria, and has been a long standing friend and
school-mate at T.C.N.N., who distinguished himself intellectually and spiritually and has now been elected President of C.R.C.N.
for a second term. His wife is a wonderful pastor’s wife and it was my privilege to be the preacher at their wedding many years
ago. Both of them have the gift of hospitality and are endowed with talents for mission and ministry.
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Jonah C. Ilonuba, our preacher on Sunday, has stated his intention to retire this year as Bishop of Nsukka
Diocese. Jonah and Rose Ilonuba are a wonderful couple, a model of family life and pastoral leadership in the church. We
became friends when I was preacher at the inauguration of Nsukka Diocese where he has served as the first Bishop. Jonah is a
gentleman par excellence and his wife, Rose, a lady. In a nation where humility and gentleness are not virtues, these servants of
God have held up and have left a wonderful example. It is difficult to look at them both in the face and to believe that they will
retire. We are glad and proud to associate with them. As a diocese we wish to confer on them our Diocesan Merit Award as a
distinguished couple and leaders in our church.
Having the mind of Christ
is the most treasured possession a true child of God can ever long to have. Whatever mind we may have of our own - and it is
often said that you may give birth to a child, but you do not give birth to his / her mind - if that mind is not the mind of Christ it will
come to nothing. The apostle, in insisting that the Philippians possess the mind of Christ makes this demand from a concrete
background of a personal knowledge of who Jesus is, what Jesus did and how Jesus accomplished the task of the Father here
on earth, so that now, armed with the mind of Christ we also can, and will by the grace of God, accomplish God’s will here on
earth. The purpose is simple: to serve in order to save; to be humble in order to be lifted up; to seek nothing of self in order to
win the lost; and doing all this through the grace of God, in the power of the Holy Spirit to bring glory to God and blessings on
earth.
It is important at this point to look at the background of Paul’s letter to the Philippians. The Church in Philippi had an
interesting beginning with Paul at the centre of it. In the Acts of the Apostles we hear how Paul had a vision of a man saying,
"Come over to Macedonia". Paul obeyed, and the first place he and his colleagues reached was this ancient, beautiful city of
Philippi: a businessman's city and prosperous. Philippi was a leading city in the Roman Province of Macedonia; it was a town
inhabited by soldiers and civilians of Rome. In fact if you had Roman citizenship then in matters of law and justice you were as
well off in Philippi as you would have been in Rome.
According to Luke, in Acts 16:11-15, when Paul and Silas arrived in Philippi, they first preached to Lydia, and she and her
family became the nucleus of the church there. However, in the rest of chapter sixteen we hear of how a fortune-telling business
was upset by the apostles' preaching. What happened was that they cast out the demon which was in the slave girl, and this so
angered the girl's owners that it led to the imprisonment of the apostles. Eventually, this turned out to be a blessing because as
Paul and Silas prayed and sang in prison, the earth quaked, the prison doors opened and their chains fell off. These amazing
events led to the conversion of the jailer and to the baptism of his whole household. What followed was the beginning of a strong
church in this leading city. It was some considerable time later that these Philippian Christians heard that Paul was in prison, and
on their own initiative they sent help through Epaphroditus, who unfortunately fell ill.
For Paul, however, what was even more disturbing than Epaphroditus' illness, was the news which he brought about the church
in Philippi. There was no doubt that the church was suffering persecution from outside, but worse than that, there was lack of
unity within the church. Paul was therefore deeply concerned that the preaching of the gospel should not be hindered in this way.
It is based on this background and these concerns that Paul sets out to admonish, to encourage and to teach the church with
this letter. The fact that Paul was in prison is not obvious from what he writes: the letter shines with love and with joy. In chapter
one, he rejoices that although he is in prison, Christ is being proclaimed. In chapter two he reminds them of the amazing humility
and love of Christ, and urges them to show the same kind of love to one another. In chapter three he turns to his own situation
and says, that, yes, he could have been a big person in the eyes of the world, but all of that is useless and worthless, because:
"My one desire is to know Christ and the power of his resurrection" (3:10). In chapter four he finishes his letter with some
personal details, encouragements, admonitions and requests. This whole letter is a master-piece as it speaks from the heart of
conviction, commitment and consistency of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Some scholars have suggested that Philippians 2:
5-11 are a part of a popular hymn that was used after the resurrection while others think that this poem or hymn was actually
written by Paul about Jesus. Whatever the case may be I am convinced that this portion of Scripture is the most moving
elevation of the place of Jesus Christ in the history of salvation and has the greatest implication for mission and evangelism.
Jesus is rightly elevated to the place where nothing can evermore bring him down. William Barclay says:
In many ways this is the greatest and most moving passage Paul ever wrote about Jesus. It states a favourite thought of his.
The essence of it is in the simple statement Paul made to the Corinthians that, although Jesus was rich, yet for our sakes he
became poor (2 Corinthians 8:9). Here that simple idea is stated with a fullness which is without parallel. (William Barclay, The
Daily Study Bible, p.34)
The direct application of this for us is that in having this kind of mind which was in Christ Jesus, we will be partakers of the
experiences of Jesus Christ and also partakers of his elevation where nothing will be able to bring us down. In capturing this
mind of Christ, Paul is lost in awe and wonder and all he could wish for is that the church and all Christians should seek nothing
more than -
having the mind of Christ.
Charles Wesley put it this way:
’Tis mystery all! The Immortal dies;
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the first-born seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
Let angels minds inquire no more.
“Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 2:5)
I personally find that this passage revives the soul as it entails a deep search for the enrichment of the knowledge of the mind
of Christ. This is a whole life’s enterprise that in all things one does nothing concerning anything without finding out what the
mind of Christ is on such a matter. It is my candid presentation that this is one of the reasons why this portion of Scripture is not
on the front burner of our sermons, Bible studies, lounge discussions, family meetings, and any Christian gathering at all, and
dare I say that I have scarcely heard at any Christian meeting anyone ask, “What is the mind of Christ on this issue?” My sense
tells me that no-one would ask this question because when we sincerely search to know the mind of Christ we will not do what we
want. No wonder we are where we are as Christians, and in whatever position we are, we find ourselves without any significant
progress! In fact I will even press further to say that we are without any tangible, positive impact in the society because we are
operating without the mind of Christ, and we look more like the world than Christ.
The early church took this portion of Scripture and sang it as a hymn or read it as a poem, and the evidence of the influence of
this passage is clear. In the face of persecution, they did not surrender: they were victorious. In periods of hardship, they were
not discouraged: they were resilient. In temptations and trials they stood high overboard and put the devil to shame. In every
way they proved to have the mind of Christ and they became transformers of communities, pioneers in every good work, in
health, in education, social concerns, care for the less privileged, support for widows and all in need. It was obvious that these
were extraordinary people whose source of power and will to survive as well as their consistent manner of daily living can only be
traced to their steadfast faith and desire to do nothing outside the mind of Christ.
We should explore a little of the mind of Christ because if we know what the mind of Christ is and we open our hearts to the
total preoccupation of having this mind, then we shall find that applying it in daily life and in situations will not be a struggle. Over
time this becomes a way of life and a pattern for others to follow. I am convinced that a person with the mind of Christ is ready to
explode any day with revolutionary love, revival mission, dynamic and aggressive evangelism, and a spirit-led and controlled life.
“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.” (Phil 1:27)
What then is the mind of Christ?
The whole of the ministry of Jesus Christ began at a time when most people, if not all, believed that nothing could change. The
rich were getting richer, the poor were getting poorer. The political forces had been well-entrenched and protected by wealth,
power and military force. Every little gathering was censored, every demonstration was brought down forcefully and might was
right. The religious system had decayed almost beyond redemption and the followers were simply religious without faith because
the religious leaders were openly corrupt, the worship was dry, ineffective and extremely legalistic and boring, To make matters
worse, it offered no hope as the sick remained sick, sinners remained sinners, the poor continued to be helpless and the
religious systems milked them all. On one occasion Jesus had to ask, “Shouldn’t this daughter of Abraham also be let lose even
though it is a Sabbath day?” (Luke 13:16). That is to say that the religious leaders had become heartless, ineffective and blind.
Everyone at the time of Jesus knew that there was a need for change but the problems were monumental and no-one knew from
which angle any one problem was going to be tackled. Several zealous people had previously risen against the system, but any
such well-intentioned revolution was quelled by force. Gamaliel cites such examples, and he warns his colleagues concerning the
apostles:
"Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be
somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing.
After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his
followers were scattered. Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose
or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves
fighting against God." (Acts 5:35-39)
So Jesus, in taking the responsibility of challenging the historical situations of his time, literally took his life in his hands. He laid
down his life on the line for a cause, because his mission was worth that price if the world was going to be changed, people
saved and men and women restored to God. The mind of Christ, therefore, does not look at the present prevailing
circumstances or situations and give up. In encouraging the Corinthians Paul puts it this way: we walk by faith, not by sight (2
Cor.5:7).
The letter to the Hebrews (chapter 11) in demonstrating those who were human beings like us, but who changed history, took
decisions and moved on with God, emphasises the fact that these people were able to perform in their time and generation only
because they stood their ground in the faith they had in God, and in God’s ability to take absolute charge and control of their
lives whether they lived or whether they died. This is the mind of Christ. Jesus himself said, “Into thy hands I commend my spirit”
(Luke 23:46).
Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as
something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in
human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death - even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly
exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven
and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
(Phil.2:5-11)
The first step in having the mind of Christ is to have an unwavering faith in God through Jesus Christ, to surrender totally and
make a resolute commitment to accept the lordship of Jesus Christ, with an unswerving belief that Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
died for our sins and was raised on the third day. This confession must be personal and made with a determination to walk
consistently according to the word of God and to seek to do the will of God in all situations and all circumstances. For this is the
will of God for us in Christ Jesus. We have a promise in this case:
God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." (Heb.13:5)
The second point about having the mind of Christ is that it is action packed. It not passive or docile, for to have the mind of
Christ is to love, and love is a “doing word”. The life that Jesus lived in every way can only be described as love. He loved the
world so much that he could not stay in heaven and just speak comfortable words of love to us; love moved him to come to our
rescue. Love moved him to stop the world from perishing. Love moved him to destroy the tables of commercial exploiters; he
overthrew oppressive political forces without a single weapon of war. He de-mystified the powers of Satan, destroyed
principalities and powers, and Satan and all his rulers were brought under his feet. Jesus did this by love; he did it because of
the love he had for us who were long imprisoned by Satan, held captive and rendered helpless in the face of all these oppressive
forces that threaten humanity with death, discouragement and despair. Sometimes the threats are subtle and they come in the
form of helplessness and a quick push to surrender. Love defeated all these and opened the gates of freedom, victory and
fulfilment. This method of battle remains the single heavenly method for recording victory over Satan and all his schemes.
Whoever commits himself to Jesus and opens his heart to receive the love of God in this way will also receive the power to defeat
the devil and all his lies.
Thirdly, the mind of Christ is developing a right attitude to all of life, from start to finish, and to be humble. Jesus is the second
person of the Godhead. He is Son of God but unlike Adam and Eve, who wanted to be like God, Jesus, who is the Son of God,
did not contest his position nor did he want to take by force the place of God, but instead he took the humble position of
accepting the leadership of God in determining the will of God for his life. This took him through an incredibly humble birth,
humble beginnings in the shop of a carpenter, an almost unknown life as a youth, until the beginning of his ministry. To the
oppositions he encountered he responded with grace and humility. Ultimately he took the humble path that led to his death, not
for his own sins or crimes but for the sins of the whole world. He gave up his position and became a servant, and this he did for
the salvation of the whole world. His willing acceptance of humility covered every aspect of his entire life from his birth in the
stable to his death on the cross. He did not just give up a few privileges! He accepted all the limitations of being human -
including death, a death of the worst possible kind. Human beings have no choice about facing death: Christ chose to accept
death on our behalf to free us from the power of sin and death. He held nothing back, but abandoned all his rights, status and
privileges. Yet by becoming nothing, he gained everything and is now exalted in the highest possible place, so that at his name
every knee shall bow, and every tongue will confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord”. Humility precedes and also leads to honour and
glory.
Brothers and sisters, this is what it means to have the mind of Christ: to surrender to God through Jesus Christ, to be filled with
the love of God and to put humility at the heart of all our life’s work and service. Our greatest model in this is Jesus Christ and
we are to emulate our Lord. Obviously we cannot imitate Christ in his divine glory, but we are called to imitate his humility. St.
Paul reminds us that this is in fact at the very heart of our calling. Our mindset and attitudes should be the same as those of
Christ. Christians are not at liberty to adopt a way of life which differs from that of Christ: to do so would be to deny the Lordship
of Christ and to establish one’s own lordship. The way to peace and glory is the way of humility, setting aside all selfish interests
for the sake of communal gain. If church and state leaders had consistently followed in this way, both the church and the world
would not be as they are now!
One of the things that having the mind of Christ does, in addition to all that has already been mentioned, is that the mind of
Christ always seeks to glorify God. Having the mind of Christ is not self-seeking, is not self-propagating, nor does it seek self
glorification or self gratification, but it seeks to bring glory to God in all things and at all times. Having the mind of Christ is a
choice we make when we accept the offer that Jesus makes:
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke
is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)
His invitation is for all who labour and are heavy laden to come: come as you are with all your struggles, your trials, your pains -
and his promise is that when you choose to come in this manner he will reform you, transform you, renew you and regenerate
you into a new person and take away all your burdens and cares and problems and give you rest. But the second choice you
also make is to agree to accept the offer of Jesus in taking up his yoke which is an acceptance of a totally new way of life, of
taking up the cross and becoming a disciple, and of learning from Jesus’ gentility and lowliness of heart - for that is the secret of
finding rest. Only a heart willing to learn from Jesus will know the light burden and easy yoke of the Lord.
Unfortunately many church members are struggling, and in the process are hurting one another. Sometimes even the pastors
are also caught up in the web of struggles, thereby making the system totally muddled up. There is the struggle to be heard,
“fighting for our people”, “defending our rights”, stampeding one another into negative actions in an attempt to be relevant,
seeking recognition, fighting, cheating, slander, backbiting, gossip. All this has gone to such an extent that the church and its
ministry has become completely unattractive to the outside world. In fact, people are happier to leave church than they are to
come to church. The only reason people still come to church I do not know, but I would want to suggest that it is more out of
reflex action or going to hear the latest negative news or going to display a car, a dress, to discuss business, politics, or just
attend for attending’s sake. My feeling is that very few people actually come to church because they are seeking God and as a
pastor I know this because very few people wait after the church service to talk about God and his ways and demands.
The other reason why people come to church, especially in Nigeria, is because they believe God answers prayers. Prayer has
taken such a prominent position in the belief of the people that they see prayer as being like magic, and in fact you hear
comments such as, “I prayed about it” or “I told God about it”. Whether in praying to God they are actually asking for the mind of
Christ, is another question!
What follows from these kinds of behaviour is a typical manifestation of the fall of man. Inferiority sets in and this leads to the
struggle against inferiority, so that when there is success, privilege or accomplishment, the pendulum swings right to the other
extreme, to a feeling of superiority. Let me quickly say that wherever there is such a manifestation of character or behaviour,
then you know that the mind of Christ is absent. In addition to this there is a defeatist attitude and belief in the face of hardship,
difficulties or the ordinary challenges of life, to the extent that it becomes accepted always to lament and to say, “It cannot be
done” or “We cannot make it” or “There is nothing that can be done about . . .” In fact it becomes customary to surrender and
give up in the face of any minimum challenge - not even a maximum one! My point here is not just that people have tried and
then become discouraged and given up; in many cases they have not even tried! Little or no effort is made to demonstrate and
to live out the professed faith. Again, this clearly shows that there is a lack of having the mind of Christ.
Unless and until this kind of attitude and character is utterly defeated by seeking to have the mind of Christ, the church, our
communities, our generation and future generations will become complacent and will progressively degenerate into being lazy,
unproductive and constantly looking up for help from foreign donors, foreign investors and everything foreign, when in fact
everything necessary for us to live on, enjoy, develop, prosper and become a blessing to others has been provided by God
around us in abundance - but for lack of having the mind of Christ we have become ungrateful, underdeveloped and unable to
see what is in front of us. Lack of the mind of Christ makes us blind, makes our vision narrow and restricted, and we do not see
the world as Christ see it: we are not able to see the whole picture.
These attitudes can change because we have a Saviour who has defeated all of these on the cross of Calvary, taken them to
the grave, deposited them with Satan, and has cut off the chains of bondage, setting free all who accept him as Saviour and as
Lord, and who surrender their lives completely in dedication to having the mind of Christ. We must change the whole orientation
of the church, of our communities, our children, and defeat the lies of Satan by having the mind of Christ. What we must do is to
pause as a church at all levels of leadership to ask what is the mind of Christ in every one of our decisions, actions or even
inactions.
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)
Jesus’ words here are a clear indication that the mind of Christ brings the fullness of life and life in all its abundance. It therefore
means that wherever the mind of Christ is in operation all that has already been mentioned will find its level. Such things will not
be at the forefront of a church fellowship, nor would they even be allowed to exist among the children of God, for these kinds of
things are the characteristics of the world without Christ. Again, you would notice that in Jesus’ lifetime he hardly invited the
press to anything! He was not self-seeking, but because he sought to do the will of God against the will of the devil, the flesh and
the world, he became the news. Dear people of God, when you choose to have the mind of Christ, believe me, you will be the
news! The Corinthian church became the news, so did the Ephesian church, the Galatian church, the Laodicean church -
indeed the entire New Testament communities became the news to such as extent that even businessmen, like Epaphras, who
came in contact with the gospel could not keep it to themselves, but took it back home to Colossae or to wherever they were
heading. In admonishing them Paul urged the Colossian church to possess the mind of Christ and exhibit it in a fashion that will
tell the world who they are. They are to be God’s chosen people, holy people, beloved and full of love, people who are clothed
as it were with the vestments of Jesus Christ’s qualities of compassion, kindness, humility, patience, people who forgive one
another, allowing only God to rule each heart, and people who dwell on the word of God and concentrate each day on gratitude
one day at a time, so becoming a thankful people. (Colossians 3:12-16)
I am convinced that this is not just some ancient New Testament story of the early church alone but this is my portion in the
name of Jesus. I am convinced at this point in my desire and determination to raise a new Jos Diocese that will have the mind of
Christ. My call to this pursuit is sealed; my determination is resolute; my conviction is total. I am only asking for grace that
whatever is left of my life now will be invested in the search to have the mind of Christ, and to make the mind of Christ known to
many. I invite the Diocese of Jos to come on this journey which promises to be exciting, adventurous but most rewarding in
having the mind of Christ.
MISSION
Let me point out that it is not possible to have the mind of Christ and not be concerned about mission. Jesus himself said, “I
have come to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10), and throughout his earthly ministry he demonstrated the mind of God in
restoring and healing the sick, raising the dead, caring for the poor and needy. He was full of compassion and his passion
always was to save and bring life in all its fullness to the world.
This is why there is a Diocese here at all, and this is why there is even a Jos Diocese. And because we now know what it
means to have the mind of Christ, then - unless we deliberately choose to have a different mind - we must be engaged in mission
and evangelism, collectively, individually and as communities and institutions in the Diocese of Jos. Our churches must reflect
this image and so must our schools, our businesses, our participation in politics and governance - all must have this missionary
mind of Christ.
What I have noticed is that when we choose not to have the mind of Christ we choose misery, heartache, estranged
relationships with God and man and as if that were not bad enough, we actually choose the path of eternal damnation. However,
when we choose the mind of Christ in addition to all the other blessings that we have mentioned earlier we will see increase as
we reach out to others in mission and evangelism. We will see great blessings in the respect we get from the communities we
seek to save and to serve. We will actually receive divine benefits, blessing promotion and protection and most of all we will see
God being glorified before our eyes.
This is the call we have and we give praise and glory to the Lord for the labour of love of our clergy and congregations so far.
We make an urgent call and plea that we should do more! Our speed must increase; our efforts must be doubled and our
investments physically, financially and in terms of personal involvement must be total even as we see the Day of the Lord
drawing near.
The youth of Nigeria, that is, those under the age of 35, form not less than 65% of the total population of the country and many
are harassed, helpless and depressed and almost hopeless. A majority of them are unemployed and in fact unemployable. A
majority of them are undereducated and so they are exploited by the evil forces of the land. Worse still, they cannot contribute
meaningfully to the educational growth and economic growth of the nation. Instead, their energies, inventiveness and abilities
are being hijacked by evil forces unto destruction. Unfortunately, they will not go down alone - until they have caused misery,
sadness and hardship to the rest of society. Research has also shown that the bulk of the HIV/AIDS infected patients are from
this age range. My question is: where is the mission of the church?
Where is the mind of Christ?
The church has an urgent task to the younger generation in re-investing and not minding the cost until we have redirected
these young minds and given them a hope and a future that can only be found in Jesus Christ. Salvation is found in no-one else,
for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12) - except the name of Jesus!
We must declare the gospel:
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then
for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it
is written: "The righteous will live by faith."
(Romans 1:16-17)
This is the only power that can change any life and I testify to my recent visit in March to Numan. We were invited to preach for
five days for a Revival in the Lutheran Church in Numan. While we were at home on one of the mornings a group of young
people came to greet me as they had heard my sermon the previous evening via the loud speakers. I had known just one of
them previously, but we all sat for two hours and had a wonderful chat. It was a sort of Bible study without Bible. At the end of
the meeting we agreed to meet again on Sunday morning and I would pray for them. On Sunday at 8.00a.m. we had 92 young
men and women gather. This took place in an area of Numan known as KWALINGA, a notorious area where even the police
refuse to go. We turned a beer parlour into a church for church service that morning, and please note that of these 92 young
people 80% are unemployed, unemployable or were engaged at that moment in dubious activities. The meeting was a scary one
for us and our team, but our determination to get the gospel to them was without compromise. That morning I baptised 22
people. Today we have a Gospel centre running with our missionaries in place and the current figure of worshippers numbers
157. You will receive a full report from Canon
Gompwell, who spent a month following up the ministry and has just returned. We have withdrawn Samuel Nwokoro from the
Christian Institute and posted him to Numan for the next five months. We are also posting the Rev. Isaac Tarfena, his wife and
family, to this mission station to develop it and build it until they themselves are strong enough to disciple others. We are grateful
to the Ven. N. P. Bewarang and his GHaDS team who have travelled there to train them and lead them in empowerment and self-
employment schemes, as well as to check and follow up on their health programmes. We have subsequently informed the
Bishop of Yola and the Lutheran Bishop in Numan of this unusual and creative new approach to mission. We are convinced that
with the mind of Christ we will reach people any day, any time, using current revelations as we seek to know the mind of Christ.
Let us make a commitment to double the membership of our diocese; let each member make a commitment to lead an
unchurched person to Christ and bring that person to church before December this year. Each church should keep a record
and encourage and train members to do this for the sake of Christ and the salvation of souls.
We are fortunate to have our primary and secondary schools, our churches and communities with daily programmes that
should help the growth and assist in building the health of our diocese, but there are more people who are not so fortunate. A
huge majority of our nation is still outside the church and outside the experience of the fullness of life that Jesus alone brings.
We who are privileged must go and bring them in to the fullness of life and into all that builds up our common good. For only in
doing this shall we show to the world that we are a people
having the mind of Christ.
GAFCON
I would like to spare you the details of how we got to this point, but I must express some bare truths in a few words, just to give
you an idea of how we arrived here. You will receive communiqués, letters and messages from the Primate on the details of
GAFCON during this Synod.
First of all, the Church of Nigeria, unanimously voted to attend GAFCON (Global Anglican Future Conference) in Jerusalem
from 17th to 29th June this year. At the same time we also voted unanimously not to attend the Lambeth Conference this year.
The Primate of the Church of Nigeria, the Most Rev. Peter Jasper Akinola, had spotted the introduction of another gospel into the
Biblical theology as we know it in the Church of Nigeria. There are bishops in Canada and USA who have openly declared that
Jesus is not the only way to God. Others who may not openly have said so have shown by their words and actions that the Bible
no longer holds authority over their lives, their doctrine and faith. This way of thinking was challenged and it led to the formation
of a study known as the Windsor Report. By this time Gene Robinson who was happily married to his wife with two children,
chose to abandon his wife and to take a male partner in a homosexual relationship, and the Episcopal Church in America
confirmed his election as Bishop and consecrated him. This they did against all caution and pleas from the wider Anglican
Communion. By this act it became obvious that some people within the Anglican Communion have thrown overboard the
Lambeth Quadrilateral and have rejected the doctrine of the Anglican Communion and the teachings of the Bible, together with
the faith delivered once and for all to the saints (Jude 1:3).
This open display of abandoning the word of truth brought to light and to our memories in a fresh way what we had
experienced in Lambeth ’98. On that occasion some of the western bishops actually called the African bishops “illiterate”; one
openly said that Africa’s Christianity was only a mile away from witchcraft; some said that we were bribed with chicken wings to
vote for Resolution 1.10 on the Position of Scripture in the Anglican Church, while others called us narrow minded
fundamentalists, Anglicans who hold only to one way of interpreting Scripture. Some even said that Africans are not matured
enough to handle matters of deep intellectual doctrines. At the Lambeth ’98 conference we were harassed every day with gay
lobbies and the conference was skewed and forced to debate human sexuality, while no concrete discussion, debate or even
desire for action was mentioned about world-wide mission, the HIV/AIDS scourge in Africa, the political situations and crises in
Sudan, Congo, Liberia and Sierra Leone, and the issue of poverty in two-thirds of the world was hardly scratched on the
surface. In short, Lambeth showed itself not to be interested in the mind of Christ.
The hard task of turning the mind of the Anglican Communion back to the Bible and to seeking to have the mind of Christ was
taken up by our Primate, the Most Rev. Peter Akinola, who travelled extensively to attend several meetings with other Primates,
and expended so much energy and resources for this purpose - but sadly to no avail. Much prayer was invested in this project
and now, in the context of worship and prayer, the Lord is asking us to take a break and to search out his mind in Jerusalem for
two weeks. This mind searching is open to the entire Anglican world, and like-minded primates have agreed that we should all
meet in this way. At its heart, this gathering is a gathering for discerning the direction God will give in the Anglican Communion.
We ask for prayers that we may know
the mind of Christ.
THE CHURCH OF NIGERIA
We must give glory to the Lord for the work of the Holy Spirit in guiding, directing and blessing the collective and individual
efforts of bishops, priests and lay members of the Church of Nigeria. A great stride has been taken in the areas of mission,
evangelism and church planting, social concerns for different categories of people, as well as the presence of different dioceses
at times of welfare needs in all the crisis points of the country. The Church of Nigeria is also leading in combating and helping
people living with HIV/AIDS, malaria and infant mortality. It is also to the glory of God that by the choice and design of the will of
God our Primate, the Most Rev Peter J. Akinola, in the last eight years has vigorously led the church in this direction and has
taken his oath of office as a priest and bishop very seriously, not only in attending to the needs of the church but also in
defending the integrity and faith of the church. We are glad and privileged to be part of this great move of God in which as
partakers we are also witnesses of the grace of God in the growth of the church.
In 1999 the number of dioceses in the Church of Nigeria was 62, and this year there will be 137. We are grateful participants
to this increase by giving birth to Lafia, Pankshin, Bukuru and a grandchild, Langtang. Not only do we see this as a sign of
progress but also an indication that through the mercy and grace of God we are moving in the right direction. The evidence is
clear. We are seeing people saved, schools established, health concerns taken to the poor and with our minimum resources
caring for the needy. Let the Lord alone take all the glory because we know that this is
the mind of Christ.
OUR DIOCESE
We are privileged and blessed by God to have led this diocese in the last sixteen years. We have witnessed growth, progress
and transformation of lives and communities. We have seen God do mighty things in changing and transforming people,
establishing churches, and bringing peace to warring communities. The gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is real, powerful and still
potent in its ability to save lives and communities. We must continue to celebrate God’s goodness and greatness and power, as
a church and a diocese. Our role as a mother and now a grandmother diocese is to keep growing because there is room for
much growth ahead of us. We must model to the younger dioceses in every aspect of the life of a Christian in mission and
evangelism, deep-rooted, Spirit-led liturgical practice using the Prayer Book, grass root Bible literacy, leading to the formation of
Bible based church communities and the establishment of transparent church administration with decent book-keeping and good
accounting practices. This is one of the ways of laying a firm foundation for a healthy growth of a diocese. This is also
the mind of Christ.
The time has come for us to look at the graph of our growth in the last sixteen years, we have met with the Archdeaconry
treasurers and finance officers of our diocese and after carefully studying our financial performance, we have re-adopted our
diocesan canon, which was passed, to the effect that every church should pay 10% of its gross assessment monthly. If we do
this to the end of December 2008, we shall be able to cut down our 2009 assessments by 40%. This exercise will continue in the
reduction of our assessments during the next three years until our assessment goes down to 30% of the current figures. This is
possible because of our current level of investments and previous performances. A graph to this effect will be presented during
the Synod.
Another area of concern in the life of our diocese is our staff situation. The time has come for all of us together to get involved
in ministry and mission. We are at the moment short of ordained staff, which means that our current ordained clergy MUST work
twice as hard to supervise, give leadership and provide pastoral care for churches that do not have clergy or evangelists. No
church must be allowed to die for lack of a church worker. This is unacceptable and it is not the mind of Christ.
In our attempt to find more workers for the church let me state categorically and clearly that in the Diocese of Jos we will not
recruit or employ people who are not ready to die for the gospel, people who are not creative, who are not developers and
builders of grass root communities; we will not recruit people who have not encountered or experienced new birth in Christ Jesus,
who are not on fire for the gospel. We do not want people who are simply looking for employment; we need people who have a
calling to fulfil. We are particularly looking for people who are below 30 years of age, who are willing to serve the Lord Jesus
Christ under any condition, in any capacity, and to serve any tribe or community. In fact, we are in dire need of such people
now! Please understand that we take a year or two to examine and confirm the call of any candidate we consider, and it then
takes three years for such a person to be trained before ordination. If a candidate is already 35 before coming to us, we will be
ordaining him at 40, when the energy is beginning to wane, and the problems of a growing family are increasing.
A majority of the communities in Nigeria we want to reach are part of a young generation under the age of 35. Candidates for
ministry who are already 35 at their point of entry will automatically find it more difficult to minister to the next generation as the
generations differ in their approach to life, technology, reasoning and so forth. If we want to reach the young generation we must
recruit people from that generation. The writer of the gospel of Mark was a young man who followed Peter around and you can
see his youth in his gospel writing: it is full of urgency, with no details, but full of action and speed. Similarly, the apostles later
recruited younger people (Acts 6), as did Paul (Titus, Timothy, Philemon).
There may be a place for truly committed and dedicated older candidates, but they, together with their families, must show their
ability to relate to the youth and prove their willingness wholeheartedly to commit themselves. They will need to convince us that
they are truly committed with their families to the same requirements as those placed on candidates who are younger. Such
complaints as the wife’s job, or the needs of the children should not form a barrier to their meeting the needs of ministry. These
matters should have been carefully considered before any commitment to full-time ministry is made. Those who are older should
know that the demands on them are in fact much higher than those made on younger candidates. In the present Jos Diocese,
and particularly in the new mission stations, there are no vicarages, no church buildings and in some cases no church lands. So
you can see that we are looking for labourers, builders and single minded, committed Christian servants.
In this ministry the whole family must work as one unit. That is why at the Christian Institute we are committed to training the
wives as well as the men. By the grace of God it will soon become compulsory for the wife to attend for the full length of her
husband’s course: according to her abilities she will either attend the main school or the separate women’s school courses. We
are also setting up our own nursery / primary school there for the children. The future of the gospel ministry looks set to grow
more, not less, difficult, as we stand against persecution, poverty, the spread of HIV/AIDS, malaria and infant mortality, and as we
seek to improve educational opportunities and also care for the environment. The call to serve is a call from God: there can be
no short cuts, no loopholes, and no half measures!
Our diocese has a great future in the economy of Kingdom affairs. Several prophecies have indicated that a great revival of
the church of God will start from Jos and reach out and spread. We accept this prophecy: we desire to be part of it and we
ourselves believe that the Diocese of Jos shall not lag behind in actively promoting the fulfilment of God’s prophecy in this
regard. We believe that this is
the mind of Christ.
We do thank most sincerely every church member who has laboured in prayer and those who have contributed resources,
financially and physically to the work of God in these last sixteen years or more. We pray God to enrich your lives and to give
you the most treasured gift of knowing
the mind of Christ.
ANOTHER ATTACK
Once again, we continue to give thanks to the Lord for his saving grace and power to keep. We are convinced that the life we
live now in Christ Jesus is propelled on wings of multitudes of prayers from around the world.
We were preparing to do a Thanksgiving Service for Gloria’s recovery when, on 24th July last year, we heard the bang of some
unwanted visitors on the back door of our house. The house was full as all the children were in, including guests, my younger
brother, the Ven. Jacob Kwashi, and his son. There was panic, but there was calm and peace. I knew that they were after me,
so I began to bid farewell to Gloria who would not listen. MTN and GLO all refused to work that night, as usual. The GSM
operators are collaborators with evil as when you need them most during crises the network is simply unavailable. Just as we
were giving up, I got a call through to Kaduna and after that call I went on my knees to pray. A few minutes later four young men
broke into my room and said, “Man of God, we have come for you. This is not time for prayer.” They took me outside to carry
out their intentions and stopped to negotiate the price of my life. One of them screamed. “I’ve changed my mind. Let’s take him
back inside and kill him there.” Again, I asked for another time to say my last prayers; I picked my Bible and my glasses and
knelt down to read and pray. Then they noticed Gloria. They asked her for money and she looked for what she had to give
them, and a little later she was by my side holding my hands in prayer. A few minutes later we saw our son, Rinji, and when we
asked what he was doing here, he said they had gone!
We must thank the numerous and countless throng of Christians around the world - some of whom know us, but many of whom
have only heard about us - who have ceaselessly bombarded the heavens and sent endless numbers of angels to help us. We
thank all those who by their gifts, visits and kindness have made us strong. The cards, letters, emails and text messages are too
numerous to mention. We are grateful, and for your sake and for all you have done we will not give up. We will stand for the
gospel; we will live for the gospel and to the gospel alone do we owe everything.
To the Lord alone be all the honour and all the glory. God has saved us again and we give him all the praise and all the glory.
We declare we will not surrender to evil. We will not surrender to Satan. We will not allow wickedness to prosper. We have
made up our minds to enthrone truth, righteousness and justice. We are determined to promote excellence and quality with
dignity in service for the glory of God. All this is possible through the mighty working of the Holy Spirit in us by the proclamation
of the gospel of the Kingdom of God. We have no doubt that the gospel alone has the power to accomplish this task. This same
gospel is worth living for and, believe me, it is worth dying for.
CONCLUSION
An unwavering faith, which so dominates a person’s life, that it controls all that is said and done and even thought;
A steadfast faith, which stands firm through trials, doubts and difficulties;
A determined faith which will not take “No” for an answer;
A loving faith which propels into action;
A faith which is humble, never seeking anything for self but always seeking everything and everyone for Christ;
Such a faith cannot be bought or acquired in one day, but can only grow in a lifetime of service as we journey with Our Lord,
totally committed to him and to the Kingdom of God.
Such a faith can only be ours through the grace of God, but
This is what we pray for, because this is the heart of
Having the mind of Christ.
+The Most Rev. Dr. Benjamin A. Kwashi
May 2008