The trouble with Born-again churches
Monday, 19th February, 2007
http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/459/549941
In the recent past a lot has been said about the state of the church for the born-again Christians (Balokole) in Uganda.
A born-again Christian is one who has received and confessed Jesus as Lord and personal Saviour (1 John 1:9; Acts 4:12); he or she is a witness of the new life in Christ (Roman 10: 10); and, he or she is in regular fellowship with other believers (Hebrews 10:24-25).
Born- again Christians in Uganda can be traced from 1893 when a missionary, George Pilkington, started a revival amongst the first converts to Christianity.
In the early 1920s a missionary to Rwanda, Dr. Joe Church, together with Mr. Simeon Nsibambi, started a revival at Namirembe which eventually grew to become the East African Revival that swept the Church throughout the whole of East Africa.
The first batch of born-again believers were characterised by eagerness to publicly repent the old sinful ways and a disdain of the things of the world. Consequently, they were very much despised because they shunned materialism and sought to live a simpler lifestyle.
For example, Simeon Nsibambi, father to Prime Minister Apolo Nsibambi, gave up his important position as health inspector in the Buganda government and, although a wealthy landowner, took to the habit of walking barefoot.
William Nagenda (father to John Nagenda), another convert, also gave up a government position to become an evangelist. Canon Binaisa (father to former President Godfrey Binaisa); Apollo Kivebulaya and other converts became missionaries in the Great Lakes region, abandoning the comfort of staying at home.
When my grandfather, Lazurus Kalinabiri’s estate was divided among his five children, one of his daughters, Aunt Nora, who had become a born-again believer, refused to take up the offer since “she had nothing to do with things of the world.” It was typical then to despise the Balokole because their focus was not on worldly riches.
However, churches especially those often referred to as Balokole churches, espouse the “wealth and prosperity” gospel. The premise of this gospel is that material blessings are an indication of God’s work in the life of the believer.
Physical hardships and scarcity are generally interpreted as the work of the devil. Many Christians have argued against this gospel on grounds that it runs counter to traditional Christian teachings that stressed simplicity and humility.
Historically, Christians were never known to be after wealth and prosperity. For example, the early missionaries, like the Rev. Alexander Mackay and the eight missionaries he set out with from England to come to the wilderness of Africa in 1876, denied themselves the comfort and riches of their advanced society to bring the Good News.
The early missionaries were modelling their faith on the founder of the Christian faith, Jesus Christ, who gave up the riches of heaven to come and live a bane life on earth, thereby bringing salvation to mankind.
The view here is that a born-again Christian is not supposed to envy the world. But today, the opposite can be seen in the way many recent churches crave for worldly standards and acceptance in the name of “Godly blessings.” Instead of the Church fulfilling its prophetic mission, believers take to courting political favours and acceptance.
The assumption of worldly VIP titles to enhance prestige and amassing wealth for its sake is an indication of such folly.
We see in Church such worldly trends like “Christian fashion shows,” “power couples,” Pastors’ body guards and “visa prayers.” On some occasions believers have even fought for microphones and hurried to non-believers for arbitration. Just as those who are lost flock shrines for fortune telling, “Pastors” have become fortune-tellers by demanding cash for supernatural revelations.
Yet believers are pilgrims and aliens in this world. They are like a truck driver passing through Uganda on the way to Rwanda. Although he may rent or buy a piece of land in Uganda, his eyes are always on Rwanda, his ultimate destination.
A believer holds a different passport (Ephesians 2:19). True believers look with amusement as “people of the world” struggle for earthly things because for them there is a better place. That is why believers cannot understand why anyone would engage in human sacrifice to acquire temporary possessions.
The Bible says one cannot serve two masters (Mathew 16-20) at the same time. A believer and Church mistakenly taken up by the possessions of this world has lost focus and needs prayers and counsel of other believers.
