AFRICAN PLUME

By Akin Ojumu Not too long ago, Bishop David Oyedepo had an epiphany. The man of God intuitively grasped the reality of job’s adversity. All of a sudden, he came to an illuminating realization that Job’s predicament was a direct result of his poor tithing habit. In Bishop Oyedepo’s telling, the real cause of the calamity that befell Job was his failure to pay tithe.  According to the white suit and white shoes man of God, God removed Job’s divine security and allowed Satan to buffet him with catastrophe because the man was a habitual tithe defaulter. Job’s life became pretty tight because he failed to pay tithe. Here’s exactly how the Bishop puts it in his own words: “You can’t see anywhere where Job tithed. So, his blessing was not secured. You can’t find anywhere where Job tithed. No! He was overly committed to giving liberally to the poor and God was committed to bless him. But there was no security.” Just so it’s absolutely clear. Bishop Oyedepo’s assertion that Job didn’t have div

“T.D. Jakes’ Delusion of Grandeur” By Akin Ojumu Puffery, embellishment, and prevarication of evasion have come to define contemporary Christianity. Ruling over the Body of Christ are powerful men and women oozing the odor of mendacity. Thick smoke of their hubris fills the air with pungent stench as they make sacrifice on the altar of haughtiness. These anointed authoritarians demand from their followers, absolute devotion, total surrender, and unquestioning loyalty. And from everyone else, they expect submission of intellectual agency and suspension of disbelief. They see themselves as demigods and want to be worshiped as such. It’s in this broader context that one should interpret Bishop T.D. Jakes’ expectation of blanket immunity from accountability for God’s anointed regardless of what they do. This is the backdrop for his expressed sentiment that the person anointed by God is above reproach and untouchable. It’s when you understand this, that you’ll appreciate why T.D. Jakes woul

“Canceled by T.D. Jakes” By Akin Ojumu It was two weeks ago that I posted on the African Plume YouTube channel a video clip of a sermon by Bishop T.D. Jakes. In the portion of the sermon titled, “Pull it Down,” that was posted, the grey-beard Bishop dishes out warning of divine retribution that would be visited upon anyone out there who dares to say anything bad about him. Sanctimoniously draped in the saintly robe of “touch not my anointed,” T.D. Jakes remonstrates: “We don’t have enough respect for God's anointed. When God anoints a person, no matter what they do, be careful about putting your mouth on them because they belong to God. If there’s any bringing down to be done God will bring them down not you. Because if you touch what God has appointed you become an enemy not of the person but an enemy of God. Talk to me, somebody!” What was posted on the African Plume YouTube channel was a mere 34.22 second clip of an 80-minute sermon. The post was an innocuous post that wasn’t ac

By Akin Ojumu As this perverse generation of ours blindly stumbles its way towards the end of the age, Bible prophecies about the End Time apostasy get fulfilled day by day. We all are witnesses to God’s warnings about the mass falling away from the truth coming to pass right before our eyes. Not a day passes without another thing happening that proves the end is at hand. “The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder, and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them. For this reason God will send them a powerful delusion so that they believe the lie, in order that judgment may come upon all who have disbelieved the truth and delighted in wickedness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12). Spurious claims of extraordinary miracles by charlatans fill the airwaves. Everywhere you turn, we are accosted by false apostles and false p

By Akin Ojumu Baltimoreans woke up this Tuesday morning to the shocking news of the collapse of the Key Bridge. Dali, a Danish shipping company Maersk chartered the Singapore-flagged container ship, mere thirty minutes into its 27-day voyage to Sri Lanka is said to have rammed into the bridge causing it to collapse. For all Marylanders and those of us who call Baltimore home, this is a tragic incident of an unimaginable proportion. Opened in 1977, the iconic Key Bridge, one of two of such bridges we have in the City of Baltimore, is like a carotid artery through which flows much of the history of our community. The Key Bridge is Baltimore and Baltimore is the Key Bridge. As important as the historical value of the Key Bridge is to all Baltimoreans, so is its critical commercial importance. The Baltimore Harbor is a major shipping hub, and the Key Bridge, which spans the Patapsco River, is a critical shipping lane and a vital connection for commuters and transportation of goods and serv

By Akin Ojumu Some preachers say some things so outrageously wacky that when you hear what they say you know without a shadow of doubt that the person saying these things is as crazy as a rat trapped in a coffee can.  Like a coastal town with overrun levees, we are submerged in the flood of ridiculous utterances made by all sorts of religious hucksters. The deluge comes at us fast and furious, it’s like these people are trying to outdo themselves in order to get on the Guinness Book for the wackiest remark. Take for instance the incredible account Bishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams gave in this video clip of what he claimed he saw when he went on an intergalactic voyage to heaven. “Like I saw cars in heaven. I saw Elder Saki in heaven, and he was riding a beautiful car…a white Range Rover. And it was shining like a diamond and his whole body was full of light. And I said, ‘Papa!’ Then I was shocked. I was in a shock to see a Range Rover in heaven. And I said it’s impossible, there can’t b

By Akin Ojumu  Charlatans all have one thing in common, they are intolerant of people who think. A derisive Biblical anti-intellectualism is a virulent disease prevalent among Gospel hucksters. False prophets and false teachers are fiercely hostile to the idea of engaging the mind in order to understand the Word of God. Biblical anti-intellectualism, roughly defined, is a mindset that cynically, surreptitiously, and systematically undermines the sufficiency of Scripture. Wherever you find this disease, Bible-based truths, theological competencies, and fidelity to wholesome hermeneutics and precise expository teachings often give way to the myth and mysticism of neo-Gnosticism and New Age beliefs. Characteristically, Scriptural anti-intellectuals put more premium in the word they purportedly heard from God than the sure Word of God written in Scripture. To perpetuate their myth of hyper-spiritualism, aka “heavy anointing,” impostors tend to look down with disdain on those who engage the

By Akin Ojumu Senator Ali Ndume was on Seun Okinboloye’s Politics Today show this morning to tell Nigerians what they already know about the country's ruling class.  Unwittingly, the Senator characterized his fellow colleagues in the Nigerian Senate as animals who recognize and approve of existing pecking order. In an attempt to defend the huge sums of money he and his colleagues got for the so-called  “ constituency projects, ”  and to justify the huge disparities in the funds allocated to various Senators, Senator Ndume quoted from George Orwell's Animal Farm: “All animals are equal, but some are more equal than the others.” I couldn’t agree with him more. The Nigerian Senate is indeed a wild zoo, and the Senators that roam the chambers and corridors of this animal farm are untamed beasts and ferocious scoundrels. As it’s in the nature of all wild animals and scoundrels to behave according to type, these dangerous savages are devouring their owners, i.e., the citizens of Nige

By Akin Ojumu If, you are like me, you live a mostly sedentary lifestyle and you are somewhat petrified by what deleterious impact your stationary lifestyle may have on your overall well-being in the near future, do not despair, I’ve got good news for you. A group of researchers from Harvard and University of Sydney, as well as from various institutions in Spain, Brazil, Chile, and Denmark, have solved the riddle of whether sedentary people might be able to offset the alarming health risks associated with sedentary lifestyles by taking daily walks. The result of their pivotal research study was published recently in the British Medical Journal of Sports Medicine. What they found was that even the most sedentary among us could ward off the harmful effects of prolonged sitting by incorporating a few steps into their daily routine. With just a couple of thousands steps a day, a sedentary person may be able to swing in his favor the odds of dying from cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancer a

By Akin Ojumu “Remember that favor can only be activated by fasting. Esther activated her own favor by fasting.”  So says Leke Adeboye, the son of Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God.  Last time I checked, favor – which in this case means the divine favor of God – is something that God gives freely and not something that can be earned. Favor is an unmerited gift that God bestows according to His sovereign will. We don’t earn it by the multiplicity of our good works. And we most certainly don’t deserve it because of our long record of good deeds. Apostle Paul made this abundantly clear in his letter to the Church at Ephesus, when he wrote: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9). The word translated “grace” in the New Testament comes from the Greek word charis, which means “favor, blessing, or kindness.” We can

By Akin Ojumu Everybody knows the LORD’S PRAYER. This was Jesus’ teaching to His disciples and, by extension, us as well, on how and what to pray. Matthew 6:8-14: “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father, which art in heaven,  Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:  For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.” When we pray, the Lord Jesus teaches us to come to Our Father who art in Heaven in a spirit of worship, thanksgiving, reverence, humility, and dependence.  “Give us this day our daily bread.” (Matthew 6:11). In our petition to God for our specific needs, we are told to ask for not more than what we need to sustain us from day to day i.e., “Give us this day our daily bread” and nothing more. When we come to God, our petition should be about the bread for

“People Don ’ t Go to an Abattoir for Brain Surgery” By Akin Ojumu God’s Word is sustenance for the soul. It is the bread that nourishes the heart and provides the essential vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and calories the spirit needs to be healthy, strong, and active. The Word of God protects against spiritual and physical chronic communicable and noncommunicable diseases. A well-balanced diet of God’s Word keeps us spiritually alive and well. Given the importance of the Word of God for the salubriousness of the soul, it’s imperative that the truth of Scripture be handled with accuracy. In order to fully enjoy the spiritual nourishment that it offers, the essence of the Prophetic Word Made More Sure must be preached with great care. For the most part, people care a lot about their physical well-being. Even those who engage in risky lifestyles and are given to all kinds of foibles put great premium on their healthcare. When it comes to choosing a physician, they’ll break the bank to ge

“By His Power, Wisdom & Outstretched Arm” By Akin Ojumu The Word of Faith Movement is the source of some of the most blood-curling heresies in modern times. As the Grand Poohbah of the “Name It Claim It Blab It Grab It” false gospel, Kenneth Copeland is one of the most prolific false teachers ever to disgrace the name of Christ. The man has promoted so many bizarre teachings, it’s virtually impossible to catalog them all. For instance, it’s common in the Word of Faith Movement to diminish the deity and glory of God and to edify man. Their deification of man starts with the first man, Adam. This erroneous movement teaches that Adam was a carbon copy of YAHWEH. Kenneth Copeland not only believes that “Believers are equal with God,” the man has gone as far as to say that “God is the greatest failure and loser in the Bible.” A brazenly blasphemous utterance any degenerate mind could ever conjure up. Kenneth Copeland has told so many lies about God and His Word that I wouldn’t believe a

“Did God Create Heavens & Earth By Faith?” By Akin Ojumu Everybody has their own pet peeve. There’s that one thing that sticks in your craw; an intolerable annoyance that pisses you off and makes you want to pull your hair out every time it happens. If you say you don’t have one, you are lying. We all do. While seeing preachers mangle the Word of God, twisting it to make it mean whatever it is they want it to mean, is a pet peeve of mine, others may see it as nothing to fret about. There are even those who have gone as far as to suggest that Scripture isn’t even the Gospel. According to them, the “Gospel is whatever it is that God tells you in that season for your life.” For me, however, the mishandling of God ’ s Word is one thing that makes my blood boil. Which brings me to Kenneth Copeland. This man is one of the most influential preachers in the world today. The man has been preaching for as long as many of us are alive. His following is massive and his influence on the theolog