It is common in Nigerian churches to call pastors men of God. Or a pastor as man of God. Hmmm…. There is nothing more egocentric than calling a pastor a man of God. In a Pentecostal wonderland like Nigeria where an Ogboni man may call himself a pastor in a derelict shanty coven, it begets belief that we still continue to call a person like that a man of God. We can be truly sensational here and say that 90 per cent of Nigerian pastors being called men of God as nothing but agents of Satan.
Though it is uncommon in the New Testament, it is common in the Old Testament. It first appears in the designation of Moses, the great prophet of God who wrote the Pentateuch. In Deuteronomy 33:1, Moses is first called the man of God. He is called the man of God again in 1 Chronicles 23:14 and Ezra 3:2. The term “man of God” one time in the Old Testament was used of an angelic messenger, one who came in the form of a man to bring a message from God to the wife of Manoah that she was to bring forth a child who came to be the man Samson. That occurs in Judges 13:6 and 7. In 1 Samuel 2:27, it was used to describe a prophet who spoke on behalf of God to the high priest Eli about the divine judgment soon to come on his sinful family. It was used again in 1 Samuel 9:6 and following to designate Samuel himself as the man of God who spoke divine truth.
We also encounter the usage in the book of 2 Kings 1:9. Ahaziah, the Samaria king had an accident. Fearing that his injury may lead to an untimely death, he sent his messengers to go and make enquiry in the coven of Baal-Zebub the god of Ekron whether he shall recover from his accident. The angel of the Lord then sent Prophet Elijah to go and confront Ahaziah’s messengers and to say to them thus: “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore, thus says the Lord: You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.”
Then that dark prophesy was transmitted back to Ahaziah by his messengers. Realising that it was Elijah the Tishbite who made the prophecy, the king was enraged and sent a captain of 50 with his 50 men to go and capture Elijah and bring him to him. So the captain spoke to Elijah: “Man of God, the king has said, ‘Come down!’” By the miracle of what followed, Elijah truly proved that he was a man of God indeed. “If I am a man of God then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his 50.
We also come across the use of the term man of God in the New Testament. One of them reflects back to the Old Testament men of God, that is 2 Peter 1:21. It says: “The prophecy came not…that referring to the Old Testament…at any time by the will of man but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” And there you want to see that as a technical term for the authors of Scripture who were the spokesmen of God, the holy men of God.
The one other use of it is a generic use in 2 Timothy chapter 3. Would you look at that for just a moment? Every use of the “man of God” is specific up to this point, referring to one or another prophet, referring as in 2 Peter 1: 21 to a group of prophets, referring in 1 Timothy chapter 6 verse 11 to Timothy specifically, but here in verses 16 and 17 of 2 Timothy 3 it is broadened and used in a somewhat generic sense. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness in order that…and here’s the phrase…the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. While Timothy is certainly the object in the context here since he is the recipient of the letter, and since his own conversion has been mentioned in verses 14 and 15, the term in use in verse 17 broadens beyond Timothy to include any man of God. The statement then in verses 16 and 17 is primarily for the benefit of those who are the articulators of the Word of God, the messengers of the Word of God, though it certainly extends beyond that at the widest point of interpretation to every believer.
In Nigeria, we call anybody who stands on a pulpit a man of God. Mechanic-turned pastor. Taylor-turned pastor. Bus driver-turned pastor. Musician-turned pastor. Olosho-turned pastor. Teacher-turned pastor. Barber-turned pastor. They are all, in the Pentecostal tradition of Nigeria, men of God. The real puzzle still remains: Who is a man of God? How do we know one if seen? By what do we measure a man of God? Can we call just about anybody on a pulpit who answers to the word pastor a man of God? In a nation like Nigeria, where we drink iniquity like water, do we really have to trust and believe that there still exist genuine men of God like Moses and Elijah in our midst? In Nigeria, men of God have been known to be contractors, political harlots, businessmen and ritualist. They have been known to prefer opulent living. They have been known to be robbers of the congregation in order to drive the best cars, live in mansions and rumble the skies with powerful private jets. Our consolation as Christians is this: “God is not mocked: for whatever a man sows, that he will reap.” – Galatians 6:7. Are you still been fooled by your General Overseer who you called man of God, but in the real sense, this “holy” man is a deceiver and a thief who only comes only to steal, kill and destroy? Shine your eyes!!!
Deacon Oladeji writes from ridet@hotmail.co.uk.
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