THE REMNANTS OF GOD

By Akin Ojumu

I'm not a member of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry. While it’s true that I have several family members who are lifelong staunch Deeper Lifers, I have never worshiped at a Deeper Life Church, except for one occasion many years ago when I attended an evening service with my big brother. There are just certain doctrinal positions of the church that I don't share and do not comport with my understanding of Scripture. I guess when we get to heaven, we’ll know who’s right and who got it wrong.

Nevertheless, as much as I disagree with Deeper Life on a host of doctrinal issues, there’s one thing for which I respect the church and its General Superintendent, Pastor Kumuyi. Their fidelity to the true Faith and the consistency with which the true Gospel is preached is unparalleled. It is on these fundamental tenets of the Christian faith that the Deeper Life Bible Church and I have common ground and share a common cause. 

Among the megachurches in Nigeria, Deeper Life is the only one that still religiously preaches the message of the Cross. It is one of the few remaining churches – if not the only church – in Nigeria where the salvation of soul is the primary focus and the only one where attainment of eternal life is the central purpose. While the other churches are busy consumed with the here and now, Deeper Life is the one church in the country whose vision is not the accumulation of material possessions, and it is the only Christian denomination remaining that has not made the acquisition of earthly treasures its singular mission.

Now don’t get me wrong. Deeper Life is by no means a perfect church. Like the rest of us, it is made up of fallible people. Nonetheless, it is a church that strives to stay within the boundaries of Scripture and does not attempt to remove or erase ancient landmarks. To Pastor Kumuyi, the salvation of soul comes first. He is a minister of the Gospel who puts a premium on the spiritual well-being of his members, with the physical and material well-being taking secondary status. Whenever the General Superintendent gets on the pulpit, his message is eternal salvation and not material accumulation, unlike other “men of God” who use every sermon to spread the poisonous gospel of mammon.

Deeper Life is one church where the Christian race does not begin and end at the altar call. It is a church that knows that a mere confession of faith, and getting born again, is not enough to get anyone to heaven. They understand that what comes after the altar call, i.e., the discipleship and the grounding of the believer in the Word of God, are even far more important. After salvation, they guide the new converts through the difficult journey of living a transformed Christian life – a life that is fully given to God and obedient to His precepts. While they don’t always succeed, at least they try to help their church members attain a level of faith that is characterized by demonstrable works of righteousness.

And just as the Almighty God had a reserve of 7,000 men in Israel who had never bowed down to or kissed Baal, during the idolatrous reign of the wicked king Ahab, the Deeper Life Bible Church is one of the few remnants of God in Nigeria who have not bowed down to mammon but continue to worship God in spirit and in truth by upholding the Gospel truth.

The Deeper Christian Life Ministry is God’s warning to the reprobate Christian denominations out there. The church is God’s clarion call to all those who have lost their way to turn away from the earthly-focused, material-obsessed, "give me give me" false gospel they now preach and return to the foundational doctrine of the Christian faith before it is too late.