It is obvious, clear as the daylight; today’s Church is under perilous attack, unseen since its inception. The uniqueness among this form of attack is that, it is not perpetrated by the known enemies of the church, but rather the church turning against itself, creating enemies within and indirectly overthrowing its source. Yet, the words of the Lord Jesus to Peter in Matthew 16:18-20 still stand, “on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”

I would challenge any institution or religion which had undergone severe persecutions and attacks than the church. Many have lost their lives, bodies thrown into sea, families and properties burnt for the sake of the church. Some were tortured and refused to be released as revealed in Hebrews 11:36-38, but yet, it grew stronger and stronger.

The church was established to be an epitome of heaven. A place filled with love, everlasting peace, joy exceeding, strength, encouragement and above all, surrounded by the power of God. These things are never purchased with money, but by the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, the covering of God in today’s church keeps fading each blessed day. The church today is filled with bitterness, greed and hatred for one another. The love and care for each other is now based on principle of “whom you know”. That is the fate of putting a square peg in a round hole; it is the result of overthrowing the power of the Holy Spirit to be replaced with the power of money in the church.

Even an alien who enters the church for the first time will see an evidence of the power of money reigning in the church today. The church today had been structured to be dependent on money than the Holy Spirit. Money dominates discussions in all church meetings. It is now the solution to all the problems of the church. It is the determinant for those who sits at the church’s leadership council instead of men filled with the Holy Spirit. It is the measure of one’s performance and level of spirituality. It is the measure of the level of God’s blessing in your life. I can boldly say that the church directly and indirectly has made money its master, while the name Jesus is just a means to acquire money. How can the church be strong if it serves money instead of God? Jesus declares in Matthew 6:24, that no one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and the love the other or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Today’s church had its foundation on money. Just take away the money aspect and the whole foundation of the church will collapse. Our worship is now based on luxurious auditorium equipped with air condition and comfortable chairs, quality sound and instrument, and so on. I recently came across the recurring expenditure of a church per month, and I was shocked to the bone. This amount of money would be enough to cater for the needs of almost all the children on the street in the city of Accra. I once visited a church and during the service, the light went off and to my surprise, the whole service came to a halt for almost an hour because the service had been centered on electrical gadgets instead of the Holy Spirit. A well renowned minister refused an invitation because of the quality of sound and microphones in a church. What marvels me so much is the threat and curses ministers pounce on people who refuse to pay their tithes. Tithing has been elevated above the name of Jesus in some churches. Churches care about your tithe than your relationship with Jesus Christ. I once came across a minister who declared openly that all that God cares about is his 10% shares of your income. How you would deal with the 90% is none of God’s business. There have never been in the history of the Church where the church had received huge amount of money than this generation but yet, our achievement can never be compared to the works of the early missionaries who had little but brought many to Christ.

The Holy Spirit must take his seat as the source and resource of the church. He comes with life, joy, power, Christ-like attitude, strength, and all heavenly features that the church lacks today. The powerful quote of Jesus Christ in Matthew 6:33 still stands; seek him first. Our purpose and mission of the church is Jesus Christ and nothing else. The church needs the Holy Spirit and never money to regain its efficacy and power that brings hope and life to all.

Jefferyasare70@yahoo.com