Professor Solomon Adekunle Bello, a Pastor at the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), has explained the reasons behind poverty within the Christians community and the steps to take to escape poverty.
Professor Solomon Bello, who is in charge of Lagos province 71 in a lead paper at the Business Summit of the Redemeers Men’s Fellowship of the LP71, Divine Connection Zone with the theme: “For Christians Not Be Poor, To Avoid Conflicts And Financial Crises” said: “poverty is not for any true child of God. As long as men continue to sin against God, they will continue to struggle.”
At the summit which attracted participation from members in all the areas and parishes in the Divine Connection Zone and beyond, Prof. Solomon, Bello, also a lecturer at the University of Lagos, described prosperity as a birthright of Christians while poverty is a curse.
He listed the major factors that brought about poverty as sin, laziness, curses, ingratitude, devourer, extravagancy, and procrastination.
“Cursed and blessings are the results of the obedience or lack of it on the part of a man. The Bible informs us that poverty is a curse. It was the resultant effect of man’s separation from God in the Garden of Eden. Gen. 3:17-19.
“As long as men continue to sin against God, they will continue to struggle. Roman 6, Prov. 28:13 Obadiah 1:17. It takes two to succeed you and God. (Isaiah 49:17, Psalm 1:1-3, Haggai 1:9).”
He said that some of the problems people experienced in their lives were caused by sheer laziness.
“Some people are actually under curses. They labour in the same office others are working in, they sell wares other are selling farm where others are farming, but when it is time for them to reap as harvest, they find themselves in trouble,” he said.
“What work for others does not work for them. Where others put their hand and record profit, when they put their hand there, that is the day the government will pass a decree, or their goods will be stolen or impounded, or fire will burn their store.
“When they have an interview, they want to attend so as to get a job, they fall sick and by the time they recover, the examination would have been over.
“Such people are laboring under terrible cruses which have been inflicted on them. They may be hard workers, yet they find themselves working like elephants and eating like ants. Jabez was such a person. (I Chronicles 4:9-10).”
On gratitude, he said: “a man who knows how to show God appreciation is a man who is destined for great heights.
“An ungrateful man cannot go far in life. Gratitude will open the doors of breakthrough and success to you at any time. Appreciation of God’s goodness leads to an appreciation of your blessings and worth before God and man. Luke 17:12-19.
“Appreciation of God leads to success in life. It is the shortest cut to victory. If you want the heavens to be opened for you, if you want to be made whole, then you must be ready to appreciate Him. When you return to give glory to God He will return to make your life worth living. Divine upliftment comes in the place of gratitude.”
