Marchman: I have not posted in a while but if you have followed my previous posts, you would know that I used to attend Christ Embassy Church, even though I had reservations about some of their teachings. I finally left the church, phew! I will use this thread to explain why I quit the church and why I may never attend another Pentecostal/Charismatic church which now appears to me like a sole proprietorship, with the General Overseer or lead pastor as the owner.
1. Excessive premium on Giving money
In Christ Embassy the number one thing they lay emphasis on is giving money. The church can use any tactic to get money from members, including manipulation, threats and the likes. While there is nothing wrong with giving money or time, I believe everything should be balanced and moderate. I think that was why St Paul said we should not give out of target, or threat but as we decide in our heart. In CE, there is nothing like moderation or balance when it comes to giving. They tend to believe literally that everything answers to money. You don’t have a job, give and sow seed. You are infertile, give and sow seed. Your father is sick, give and sow seed. Every message ends with a charge to give money. They collect tithes, offerings, partnerships (money), seeds (more money), first fruits (your whole income in January) and plethora of others.
You are also charged to give for Pastor Chris’s birthday and for all the other pastors. And for projects and the likes too.
Before I started worshipping with the Church, I read the story of the account clerk at the Sheraton Hotel who stole from his employers to give to the church. As a member, I could relate with the man. The Church is obsessed with money. They do not mind how or where you get it. If you want to rise or be noticed or win awards, just give big money. It is this obsession with money that led it to start collecting gate fees from members for its New Year Service at the LoveWorld Convocation Arena in Lagos, which ironically was built by the offerings of the members charged to get in. A lot of people I know personally had gone broke, had their businesses ruined, or fallen out with a loved one because of this teaching by the church.
In summary, at CE, money is everything- EVERYTHING.
That's why you are where you are and what you are.
professorchuks: Bros plz shatap. U are a disgrace to Christianity, on the subject of gvg to ur pastor or anybody else that is ur man of God, the bible said something:"bring all the tithes and offerings into my storehouse and see if the windows of blessing won't be opened unto u". Is only a stingy poor man that complains, go and check out the big guys attending CE, even Solomon gave, and I'm nt sure u hv given half of wat he gave to God and u are complaining. Gvg is a principle, u gv to receive. On the subject of Sin, I knw d kinda church u like attending, that type that they will tell u to come out for alter call every Sunday. Even Paul said something, shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? U wnt the man of God to continue teaching u samething coz u are a baby Christian, the type that does nt wnt to discipline himself, salvation(soteria) is applied to a Christian once, once u hv been redeemed, u hv started the race already and surely u must fall, but u hv to work on ursef to keep growing and don't blame ur pastor. I'm nt a member of CE, I'm of another denomination, buh we are all Christians under 1 body, I can't and won't allow u to come here and talk trash about a man ordained by God jst becoz u wnt to favor some pagans or atheists, so u now talk against a pastor of whom u don't hv the right to judge, it is only God that will judge him nt u. U beta delete this post b4 u start experiencing some funny changes in ur life
So it's too much to preach and talk about righteous living everyday because you're not a baby Christian but you it is allowed to preach about giving, seeds and anything money every church day? So there are no adult Christians when it comes to that?
after reading all dez comments and supposed" truths", I cant just help but ask -WHICH WAY Which way is now the right way!? So somebody cannot go to church again because you are afraid of what the pastor or members may be doing? I'm just really tired and scared. This kind thing dey kill faith
Nice one OP. You're 100% so on point. The exact same reasons why I left the church like 15 years ago. There are still more points to add to the deification of Pastor Chris such as the male members jerry curling hair like their leader, not allowing their members to mix / integrate with other churches/christians makes everything look like a cult.
Everything the op wrote down here is nothing but the raw truth. My mum is a die hard member. She even operates a satellite church.
Onething I noticed is how they've turned Chris to a god. You will often hear them saying, "pastor said we shoud not sin" instead of saying "God says we should not sin"
I tried to leave that church but she wouldn't hear of it till the day she asked us to stop saying the lord's prayer because there were some flaws in it. That was the day I decided to use extreme force and break away.
It is almost 4years now and my feet has not stepped into a church and i've been enjoying inner peace like never before!
The one that u are going, did they teach u ppl to judge and condemn Christains and non Christains??
my dear sister,its often said that when u see things going wrong nd u ignore it nd nt spill it out,it might consume u in one way or the other.is nt about condemning people or religion but pointing out the way they re deceiving people.taking them through a wrong path.read my other comments.thanks
Marchman: I have not posted in a while but if you have followed my previous posts, you would know that I used to attend Christ Embassy Church, even though I had reservations about some of their teachings. I finally left the church, phew! I will use this thread to explain why I quit the church and why I may never attend another Pentecostal/Charismatic church which now appears to me like a sole proprietorship, with the General Overseer or lead pastor as the owner.
1. Excessive premium on Giving money
In Christ Embassy the number one thing they lay emphasis on is giving money. The church can use any tactic to get money from members, including manipulation, threats and the likes. While there is nothing wrong with giving money or time, I believe everything should be balanced and moderate. I think that was why St Paul said we should not give out of target, or threat but as we decide in our heart. In CE, there is nothing like moderation or balance when it comes to giving. They tend to believe literally that everything answers to money. You don’t have a job, give and sow seed. You are infertile, give and sow seed. Your father is sick, give and sow seed. Every message ends with a charge to give money. They collect tithes, offerings, partnerships (money), seeds (more money), first fruits (your whole income in January) and plethora of others.
You are also charged to give for Pastor Chris’s birthday and for all the other pastors. And for projects and the likes too.
Before I started worshipping with the Church, I read the story of the account clerk at the Sheraton Hotel who stole from his employers to give to the church. As a member, I could relate with the man. The Church is obsessed with money. They do not mind how or where you get it. If you want to rise or be noticed or win awards, just give big money. It is this obsession with money that led it to start collecting gate fees from members for its New Year Service at the LoveWorld Convocation Arena in Lagos, which ironically was built by the offerings of the members charged to get in. A lot of people I know personally had gone broke, had their businesses ruined, or fallen out with a loved one because of this teaching by the church.
In summary, at CE, money is everything- EVERYTHING.
That's why you are where you are and what you are. What you are saying does not have an iota of truth or justification using what God has said in His word. You are only frustrated by your non moving forward nor succeeding in life. Your personal experience does not reflect the happenings. Go and reconcile with God, so he can prosper you. A church will not make you prosper, but the application of God's word. The Church is not the problem, but you are the problem.
morbeta: I once lived in a compound in Ikeja where some pastors of Christ embassy were my neighbours.........oboy see groove...babes na beans. we groove ooooooo. The only thing I didn't do with them was Jerry curls. Till I left there groove no finish.
akagaba: Op, wake up... as soon as u left, 500 more people walked in so dont come here and disgrace urself. If u have allowed d devil to take a hold of u, then seek deliverance somehwere becus so many lives are being changed and transformed in Christ Embassy. We dont preach sin in CE cuz thats not what God asked us to preach. We rather preach the goodnews of the gospel of our Lord Jesus and thats the gudnews that brings sinners to God.
For money matter, its only a poor man that speaks d way u do. We give big, very very big in CE and thats becuz we serve a big God so deal with ur poverty.
Very lame defence. What do you say about the rampant immorality and dietifying the man Chris?
Lol. I understand your sentiments, dear. But the sad thing is, this is not peculiar to CE, many of these churches around too are culpable, Catholic inclusive. That is why one needs to be sensible enough to be able to remove dirt from the true seed.
jaymejate: THIS GUY is .... i'm sorry to say, is a fool. you guys have totally forgotten that, the pastors are human being and not has perfect as Jesus u know. they too always look for a way to get enlightened. so you too you are finding enlightenment that's why you're there. teachings can never be perfect. you are to take the ones that is useful to you and throw away the ones that are not.
the ministry of people is different. some is to teach holiness, some to teach on how to give, some is prosperity e.t.c.
and moreover, they didn't force you to give or did they point gun at you to give? if they are not giving you what you want to hear, go to another place and stop making people feel like the church is diff.
MINISTRY OF EVERYONE IS DIFF.
you judging them, check Romans 2; 1-3
I laugh in swahili, that's another heresy from you. Holiness messages should cut across all pastors. So bro, holiness is not a ministry but a mandate from God to Christians. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and everything will be added unto you. But pastors are now majoring on the minor. Wake up bro
akagaba: Christ Embassy does not preach sin rather they preach righteousness, thats the gospel of Jesus Christ. But they rebuke sin and guide d members on how to live a righteous life. Its similar to the fact that they dont preach hell but heaven but guides members on how to become a citizen of heaven and not a hell candidate so OP, u need to be saved.
And one of the gospels of righteousness being preached by Mr Chris oyakhilome involves telling you that masturbation is not a sin? Any, for how long do you want to cover up the lies and errors in your church?
jaymejate: THIS GUY is .... i'm sorry to say, is a fool. you guys have totally forgotten that, the pastors are human being and not has perfect as Jesus u know. they too always look for a way to get enlightened. so you too you are finding enlightenment that's why you're there. teachings can never be perfect. you are to take the ones that is useful to you and throw away the ones that are not.
the ministry of people is different. some is to teach holiness, some to teach on how to give, some is prosperity e.t.c.
and moreover, they didn't force you to give or did they point gun at you to give? if they are not giving you what you want to hear, go to another place and stop making people feel like the church is diff.
MINISTRY OF EVERYONE IS DIFF.
you judging them, check Romans 2; 1-3
thank you bro, I jst don't know what some people thing those days,
and for a fact I can say Neva , I repeat Neva, I hav heard or see of our members paying for gate fee, for DEC31s,
further more as you rightly pointed out its, not by force to give,
on him saying the church is all about money, he is 100% ignorant of what he was saying, I wud have said more, but no need cause hw didn't know what he is saying
Lol. I understand your sentiments, dear. But the sad thing is, this is not peculiar to CE, many of these churches around too are culpable, Catholic inclusive. That is why one needs to be sensible enough to be able to remove dirt from the true seed.
True tho... buh y Mapist tho? Sounds like rapist to me (lol) dnt mind me
Marchman: 2. Sin Means Nothing at CE Their teaching regarding to sin is so liberal. They rarely even mention it. The belief is that a Christian cannot sin, but only do wrong. The implicit message here is that ‘if you are saved, you are always saved’. You are a son of God and nothing you do or do not do can change the fact. In other words, heaven is sure. I am really not versed in the Bible to argue with this but what I know is that, this teaching is dangerous. It is like giving one a blank cheque or immunity from sin. What you have is a morally decadent church, starting from the top. Sexual sins are so rampant. You must have read the allegations of Pst Anita against her husband, that he was screwing some top female pastors. Such allegations are common in the church and I believe Pst Anita was very naïve in not understanding what was happening under her nose for decades!
It is not just PSt Chris that has been accused of fornication; his younger brother Rev Ken was also accused of impregnating a member of the South African Church when he pastored it. My friend who was in the church at that time (he also has left) told me that in all practical terms, Rev Ken had a harem in SA, with all manners of girls, mainly young university girls, living in his house. His wife was leading the church at Isolo, Lagos at that time. Apart of the Oyakhilome brothers, sin (or wrong-doing since a Christian cannot sin, according to their belief) is very common among the pastors and laity. Including me. I did a lot of things I’m not proud of as a leader, including fornication. But what struck me is that I was going numb, conscienceless in the church. No message speaks to my struggles to stay upright and not to sin. They do not even talk about such things. The focus of the messages is often on how to be successful, perhaps so you can give more money!
In summary, at CE, sin means nothing!
Hmm, this one seems to be a world spread saying in those church tagged with anti-christ pastors. " Once saved, you are always saved". I believe Pastor Prince Joseph also said that too.
jaymejate: THIS GUY is .... i'm sorry to say, is a fool. you guys have totally forgotten that, the pastors are human being and not has perfect as Jesus u know. they too always look for a way to get enlightened. so you too you are finding enlightenment that's why you're there. teachings can never be perfect. you are to take the ones that is useful to you and throw away the ones that are not.
the ministry of people is different. some is to teach holiness holiness
, some to teach on how to give, some is prosperity e.t.c.
and moreover, they didn't force you to give or did they point gun at you to give? if they are not giving you what you want to hear, go to another place and stop making people feel like the church is diff.
MINISTRY OF EVERYONE IS DIFF.
you judging them, check Romans 2; 1-3
Didn't u read the part he said they collected gate fees for a certain program. Then you said if he doesnt feel they are teaching the right thing, then he should leave. That is like saying if you see where they are killing somebody with a knife, you just walk away. Come on ! If u see something dats not good, speak up. Thank u
In this your post, i see no much importance. I've watched a full sermon of pastor Chris on YouTube that he thought that no matter what, when married, a Christian can never divorce. That they gotta work it out. I was so shocked about that his teaching because i believed he'd be of the league of those who support divorce. In that message he made it clear it's wrong. Fast forward yrs later, he divorced his wife. So it's very common for him to preach about something literally, but he does and means the opposite. E just be like make mesef preach am as people dey do.
You were wrongly informed. He didn't divorce his wife. Its the other way.
There is nothing like one pastor being called to preach prosperity and anoda to preach holiness. U can't find it anywhere in scriptures. Wat u av is Peter called to be an apostle to the news while I Paul called to be an apostle to the gentile. But the gospel is the same which is Jesus. They all preached Jesus which covers prosperity, holiness, power, persecution and so on. So if anyone tells u he's called by God to preach prosperity tel him to go and ask God well again. Dis is not to mean God can't instruct u at a particular time to teach ur pple about a particular subject especially if dey are lagging behind in dat area. So every pastor owe his or her congregation d obligation to present a complete message to dem least u end up aving rich xtians who are worse than unbelievers in character and values.
I find it difficult to blame any pastor rather I will blame the followers. it is as well worrisome that our campuses are not exempted from this follow follow syndrome according to Fela. If the like of Rev. King could have followers in his days I wonder what church means to some people.
Which way is now the right way!? So somebody cannot go to church again because you are afraid of what the pastor or members may be doing? I'm just really tired and scared. This kind thing dey kill faith 
