PENTECOSTAL LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES
In many of our Pentecostal churches, only one man preaches, only one man performs miracles, and only one man has the monopoly on wisdom and anointing. Sometimes, we have to watch him on television or satellite. I say to you, this cannot continue.
I’ve been thinking and pondering, always trying to envision far ahead, and we are approaching a critical point that I have long feared concerning Pentecostalism. You see, in the Anglican Church, when you reach a certain age, you retire. In the Baptist Church, you retire. Thank God for the Assemblies of God Church; when you reach a certain age, you retire. Thank God there is a church where leadership is rotated, not owned by any individual.
However, we have a problem emerging in our mega churches and Pentecostalism. We have fathers of the faith who, along with their wives, have labored to build these mega churches. They also labored with others because you can’t build a mega church on your own. Yet, many of these leaders have now become storytellers. There are no new concepts, no new ideas. You can’t blame them; many of them are above 70. Ideally, at 70, they should be retiring. Some of them don’t even have the physical strength to do a lot of things.
But because we have this ‘Obi-ship,’ kingship, or ‘K.C.-ship’ in Pentecostalism, people still worship and rally around them. These leaders have become the center of attraction and cohesion. They hold the people together, and if they are not there, the people will disperse. You can’t blame them. You might wonder how this organization will survive without them.
Thank God for the Christian Pentecostal Mission (CPM). Papa Ezekiel and his wife early on gave some of the leadership in CPM and their branch pastors relative autonomy, even though they were still subject to the leadership of the central body. So, even when Papa Ezekiel departed, the CPM churches continued to thrive.
In contrast, in many of our Pentecostal churches, only one man preaches, only one man performs miracles, only one man has the monopoly on wisdom and anointing. Sometimes, we have to watch him on television or satellite. But that era is gone.
Now, if you want to bring your child or your wife into the system, there is too much information and questioning that has taken place—enlightenment and interrogation of the system. Because of the grandiosity and the glamour that follow leadership in Pentecostalism, many people within the system who have joined to build will want a share of the “cake”—a piece of the action, a piece of the glamour.
We are in a quagmire. If you are in that system, it would be foolish to think that you will get your reward from it. No, you went there to serve God, to relate with God. The church should ideally help you discover your purpose, refine yourself, and equip you by studying the word of God and receiving anointing.
I grew up in a system where my bishop gave me opportunities to do things—open the Word of Faith School in Aba, lead the men’s fellowship, give lectures to pastors, and preach. Today, I run schools based on the experiences I gathered from opening that school, which became one of the 50 best schools. I lecture men around the country because I have led men. I teach pastors because I have learned from walking with pastors. The things I’m sharing today are why I’m in this hotel; they are things I learned in my denomination, but I always had my mind on the nations.
The reason many of you get frustrated is that you don’t have any vision beyond your denomination. I am a member of the Church of God Mission; that is my denomination. But I was doing missionary work around Africa with my own money. I was running conferences outside the Church of God Mission with my own money, and so I developed myself.
Why don’t you think about your life and develop yourself? You can think beyond your congregation. I’m talking about vision now. Your purpose is there, but this vision—this vision can be beyond your congregation. Let it be for your generation.
I’ve said this several times: Once you do this, you are never frustrated by any church. You are never frustrated by any pastor because you can always see beyond where you are. Don’t allow your church to be the circumference of your destiny. If you feel frustrated where you are now, if you feel caged, the reality is that no one caged you—no general caged you. You caged yourself. Hold yourself responsible.
I am your friend, Dr. Charles Apoki. God bless you.
