 Well, I thank you all very much for listening and sorry for your show everyone, I could have listened to you all day. Thank you very, very much indeed. Our host, Mama, the Archbishop of the Church of God Bishop of the National Archbishop Madra Benson, is a hostess. I had called you out of protocol because I think that you deserve very very much for some money from today. Mama was very very grateful that the money that was received this year. Your services to the Governor of the Church of God, the Governor of the Church of God, and the year of the President of the Church of God, those people in the government are very sensitive about our needs and suffering. And it's not just about how people get their things. I am the owner of the Church of God, the Archbishop of the National Archbishop of God, and Master Chris of the Archologian. Rather than just a distinguished guest, ladies and gentlemen, it is such a privilege for me to be here. I'm excited to participate in all these rounds and I want so many who have worked with me and who have lived with the great and perhaps the greatest contemporary African Apostle of our faith, Bishop Benjamin the Dalitian. It is already 50 years since the institution of the Church of Revelation in Nigeria. It is 20 years since the consecration of her grace and Bishop Margaret Denson in Jerusalem. 50 years of millions of souls in sin. 50 years of miracles, signs and wonders. 50 years of the establishment of thousands of church worldwide. 50 years of incredible conquests for the Kingdom of God. We now have the blessing of the Hossa University, the world of faith group of students, the all nations of Christ Institute, from Wales has arisen several thousands of global leaders and ministers. It is also 75 years of the life of God's chosen helpmate for the great man of God, the one who God prepared to carry out the great work across the world as Bishop Margaret Denson in the Hossa. The spirit of God and the grace of God upon the man of God as Bishop Denson the Hossa, which caused him to shout in miracle causing faith that if I am truly a man of God and let fire fall, those words resonated on today. His life and his times was a game changer in the trajectory of the gospel of Jesus Christ in Africa and indeed the world. And we see today the children, we see today so many of his children in the faith, children in the gospel, men and women who themselves have become fathers and mothers in the faith. Indeed, looking today at his own children, his borrowed children, it is obvious that the word of God remains true in Deuteronomy 7 verse 9 that therefore know that the Lord your God he is God. He is a God who keeps covenant and mess for a thousand generations with those who love him and keep his commandments. He has kept covenant with you and he will keep covenant with you indeed for a thousand generations yet to come in the mighty name of the Lord Jesus. Your Excellencies, my Lord bishops, distinguished guest speakers and gentlemen, the Church is matting on and surely Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. Blessed be God forevermore, to speak for a few minutes on the topic the Church, the nation, the Church politics and nation building, the Church politics and nation building. Scripture says in Psalm 24 verse 1 and 2 that the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell in it, for it has founded it upon the seeds and it has established it upon the waters. God is the author of life and the world and he remains interested, he remains committed to the destiny of nations. All of the history of the Church through all of the times God has shown that it is the Church, it is the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ that he has given direction to directly affairs of nations. And I just want to repeat that, that God has shown through the years, through the history of the Church, that it is through the Church, it is through the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ that he has given the direction to lead nations, to lead our nation and to lead the nations all over the world. How so? God himself gave us the commission, the great commission, Matthew 28 verse 18 to 20, where he says that all power has been given to me in heaven and on earth and he says to all of us, go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe the things were for our commandment and law and wisdom until the end of the age. God himself commissioned us to go out and disciple the nations, to preach the gospel, not just to preach the gospel but to teach the nations of the world including our nation, to observe the things that we have been taught, to observe the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In Genesis 1 verse 28, we have been given the fivefold mandate, the scripture says that God blessed them and God said to them, be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth, have dominion over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Clearly God himself had given us the mandate to be fruitful, to multiply, to have dominion over the earth, to replenish this earth with our title, to replenish this earth with the vision that he has given us. God called the church and God mandated the church to do the various things and we have not subdued a nation, we have not subdued the nation until the principles, the values and the virtues of the kingdom of God have been accepted as a normal way of life in society. That is what it means, that is what it means to go and teach and to teach them to observe all of the things that he has commanded us. He has equipped us spiritually, the Almighty God has equipped us spiritually. He has told us in Matthew 5 verse 30 and 14 that we are the souls of the earth, that we are the light of the world. He has given us the mandate, he has equipped us and he has told us who we are, that we represent the light in this world, represent the light in our nation, represent the souls in this nation. We are the ones that must make the difference in this nation. In Romans 8 verse 19 it is we are told that the honest expectation of the creation eagerly awaits the revealing of the sons of God, that the honest expectation of all creation, including the creation that is located here in our nation, eagerly awaits the revealing of the sons of God. Our revealing, the revealing of those of us who are here, the children of God is eagerly awaited by the rot and corruption of society. Our revealing is awaited by everything that has gone wrong. Our revealing, our impact is awaited in everything that has happened all around us. The word of God tells us that the church has the majesty of place in determining the future of nations. The church has the majesty of place. The scripture tells us in 1 Timothy 3 verse 15, it says that if I am delayed, and this is Paul speaking, if I am delayed I write so that you may know and that you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God which is the pillar and the ground of truth. So this house of God, this place that is called the church, these people that are called the church represent the pillar and the ground of truth. And it's not just some feeble truth, this is the everlasting truth. This is the truth upon which the world was built. This is the truth upon which the world's foundations were laid. So the church is the pillar and it is the ground of truth. It is the business of the church to make rulings. It is the business of the church to make rulings, to determine what should happen, to determine what should be said and what should not be said. It is the business of the church to determine the fashions of the time, to determine what will hold and what will not hold. That is what is meant by being the pillar and the foundation of truth. We cannot shy away from that very important responsibility. Every time we must recognise, and I will go very quickly through this, we must recognise that it is the pulpit that has defined the trajectory of the development of nations in practically all over the world. What is preached and the pulpit, what is said and the pulpit has determined the trajectory of the world almost without fail. Alex de Tocqueville is a French philosopher who was not even at the time a Christian and he wrote in 1830 when he saw the incredible movement, especially of the development of the United States of America, he went to the United States himself and in his book Liberty he wrote. He said, I looked everywhere for the reason, for the development, for the reason for the great advancement of this country called America. So I looked everywhere. I looked in their big canals, their big carpets, their railways, their perfect buildings and I did not find the answer to the reason for the greatness of his nation. Until I went to their churches and I heard what was being preached, I heard what was being spoken on the pulpit and when I heard what was being spoken on the pulpit I knew the reason why this function is great. It is the pulpit that determines the greatness of nations, it depends on what is being preached on the pulpit. Whatever is being preached on the pulpit will prevail whether we preach right or wrong, it will still prevail and that is the problem. Whatever is being preached on the pulpit, if we preach that people will become wealthy by sudden miracles, by sudden flight, without hard work, so if we preach that it will be lined by life and pristened by pristened, by righteousness, by integrity so it will be and so our nation will be, it is the pulpit that has always defined the trajectory of nations. Let me say that the protestant reformation and many of us who are students of history know exactly what the protestant reformation was about but just to very quickly and very roughly define it. This was the change in Christianity, this was the dramatic change in Christianity when faith was recognized as the basis when the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ was recognized as the basis for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, our belief in the Gospel of Jesus Christ was recognized. The protestant reformation for those who have read some of the history is often said to have given birth to the industrial revolution and when you read the works of people like Ashton and Weber and several other great political economists and historians, you will find that they justify this by so many examples that indeed the industrial revolution which as you know, led to the creation of the great economies of the world and led to the creation of many of the sound economic principles that have led to the growth and development of the world. There was a direct product of the protestant reformation. So many say and many will agree that it is the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that were responsible for the dramatic transformation first of the economies of Europe and America and then Japan and the rest of Asia. Let me tell you a quick story. The puritans in Europe and in America by strictly complying with the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I will explain very quickly how, by strictly complying with the principles of the Gospel were able to affect their economies, they were able to affect their societies, they affected education, they affected the arts, they affected commerce, they affected practically every aspect of life. They changed and dramatically defined every aspect of life in their societies. Indeed there are some who have heard of what is called the Iwakura mission and I'm sure that we can google this up and find it. They just spelled as it pronounced the Iwakura mission. This was a mission sent by the Japanese Emperor led by a man called Iwakura. The Japanese Emperor in 1877 discovered that Europe and America had moved so quickly ahead of Japan. Japan, one of the very ancient civilization itself, even at that time, a technology giant, was suddenly discovered that Europe and America had moved along very quickly and had overtaken it. The end process sent to both Europe and America found in a two month period that mission that is called the Iwakura mission to study, to look at what exactly it was that had made this nation go so far ahead. They discovered of course that there were the sound principles, many of the principles and we'll look at a few of them very quickly. Many of these principles are the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. No one copies like the Japanese. They copied those principles. They taught those principles in their primary schools and in their schools and they transformed their own economies. It was only after that that China copied Japan. China, of course, another ancient civilization, five centuries ahead, even in terms of civilization, ahead of Europe and America, but suddenly found itself someday in growth. It had to wait until the revelation of the sons of God in Europe and America before it began to kick off again. So there is no question at all that it is the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that has transformed nations. There is no nation in the world, whether it is a Christian nation, whether it is a Muslim nation or even those who say they do not believe in God. Every one of them must observe the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we'll look at some of those principles as I said. Everyone must. There is no other way out of development. So the truth of the matter is that whether a person accepts Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, I want you to listen to me carefully. If you accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, you will without a doubt inherit eternal life. That is the promise of the Gospel. That is the reason for our salvation. That is how come we are hopeful, how come we are so full of hope and earnest expectation that soon enough we will indeed see God in glory. For let me point out that there are those countries of the world that do not even accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, but they accept the principles and they practice the principles. They practice some of the principles that we are going to talk about. And when they practice those principles, the principles still work. The question of going to heaven, the question of eternal life is a separate matter. The question of observance of principles is another matter entirely. And that is why it is that no matter the country of the world, if you practice the principles, you will get the results. And that has been the story of countries as diverse as Europe, as countries in Europe, as countries in America, as the countries of the Americas and the countries even in the Middle East and many of the other countries of the world. Well let me just say that what are these principles? Let us very quickly look at some of these principles. What are these principles? The first principle is the principle of righteousness. The scripture says in Proverbs 14 verse 34 that righteousness exalts a nation. What is seen is the reproach to any people. The word of God says also in Matthew 5 verse 37, it says, let your yes be yes and your no be no. Be a person of integrity. Let integrity be the predominant principle in our existence and in our lives. Integrity, righteousness is what exalts a nation. That is what exalts a person and that is what exalts a people as well. Any nation that works out righteousness, that works out integrity, that values trustworthiness, that values compliance with truth, with honesty, with the great without a doubt. There are questions around just talking again still about integrity and all of that. Respect for credit and obligation. They know the countries of the world develop their economic systems, especially their credit systems around the principle that it is the weekend who borrows and does not repay. Psalm 57 verse 21, at the weekend borrows and does not repay. It's a principle of integrity. So when a person borrows money from an institution and many of the Christian communities, especially the early Christian communities, lent each other money and they repaid on the pain of death because they strongly believed that it is the weekend that borrows and does not repay. They prospered because of that principle of integrity. They were able to lend money and give back so that they continue to prosper because they did not deplete the pool from where the resources were coming from. That is it. That's the principle of integrity. When we do not observe the principles of integrity, when we do not observe these principles, then the society breaks down. It is impossible for there to be prosperity without respect for the principles of integrity. And so it is that there is no way that a society that enables corruption, there's no way that a society that allows corruption, that celebrates corruption, that refuses to condemn corruption. There's no way such a society can make the kind of progress that society before it was made. That is why it is that from the pulpits, from the pulpits we must preach integrity. From the pulpits we must stand against corruption. From the pulpits we must refuse to accept the situation where unexplained wealth is all around us. Well you cannot explain how it is that people have become wealthy. You cannot explain. And there are in our churches people whose wealth cannot be explained. People who pay taxes and loans from stolen wealth. It is impossible for us to be the life of the world. It is impossible for us to be the source of the earth if we do not practice this principle. It is this principle that has made other nations great. The principle of our churches. The principle of integrity. It is this principle that has made it possible for many nations of the world to be great. I remember years ago as a student in Iwa, I was, at the time we used to have found difficulties with paying fees through the central bank. So I was out of, I had not paid my fees and my fees were standing for about six weeks. So I went to the council of the university and explained that I was still owing fees for about six weeks. I wasn't sure when my fees were going to be paid from Nigeria because of the difficulties we had at the time with transferring funds. And he said to me, why don't you go to the bank and ask for your loan? I said, I don't have any money, I don't have any collateral. How am I going to just go to a bank and ask for it? I said, yes. So I went to the bank, the bank in the university itself, and across the counter I spoke to a lady who asked me who I also was, looked at my letter so that I had one or two remittances to my account but I had less than 40 funds, less than the other time. She then asked me when I thought my fees would come. I said, well, I cannot be sure but I expect I would pay the next six weeks or so. How am I going to pay 600 pounds? I said 600 pounds. And right across the counter, to give me the 600 pounds, I signed the document. I did not see a man that I was signed to a group on the other side of the counter. I signed the document and I left and paid my fees. Fortunately, some weeks later, my check came and was paid to the bank. That was in 1981. By 1984, it had become impossible for many people who carried the great passport to open accounts in banks in the United Kingdom. Why? Because the weekend had borne to many cases and I had not prepared. Many who had used credit cards, many had used credit cards, taken credit cards and used the credit card for various purposes and disappeared home. Many have thought that these people are very foolish. How can they allow themselves? And they took it and disappeared. So it became very difficult for many other people there not to borrow money as I had agreed with you. But to even open back accounts, the currency of the world, the currency of commerce, the currency of business is trust. As a currency, it is trust. It is not how right you are, it is not how smart you are, it is trust. If we can be trusted, everything can happen. Business can happen. Credit can be given. If we can be trusted. So the principles are the principles. The principles of hard work, principles of hard work, innovation. There are many who know what is called the Puritanic work ethic. This was the work ethic of those who were called, who like you and I, were believers of all. They were called the Puritans. They had a work ethic. Everybody knew that the Puritans would work regular hours. They would work for the number of hours that they had to work for. They would not speak from the job. They would not steal everything from the job. Everybody knew that they were faithful. They would plan. They would do everything that they were required to do. Everybody knew that. And so the work ethic was made after that. The Puritanic work ethic. Somebody ought to name hard work after us as Christians. Somebody ought to be able to say that this is the way of the born and the given. They are aware that you will find it. You will find the work ethic. You will find that it will work regular hours. You will find that you will be honest. You will find that it can be trusted with business. You will find that it can be entrusted with resources. Many do not know that the first mechanical clubs, not the hour clubs, the mechanical clubs, were first made in Bavaria by Christians in Bavaria. Why did they make the mechanical clubs? Because they worked in factories and they wanted to be sure that for the hours they worked they would be able to pay their taxes. So many of them, if they worked eight hours, they would marry by the mechanical club and take their 10% off it. They were that faithful. They were that faithful. Today, question is whether it is possible to trust something simply because they say I am a believer, simply because they say I am born again. Even if a person says I am a pastor and he be trusted. The truth is that it is these principles of integrity, the principles of trustworthiness, the principles of hard work, innovation, the work ethic that our faith is known by. It is these principles that have made so much of a difference. It is these principles. Look at the principles of time consciousness, time consciousness, like you just believe as one, to everything there is, to everything there is a sin, a time for every purpose under the heavens. These are the principles that have worked elsewhere. Time consciousness, respect for time, respect for savings and investment. These are the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Respect for the rule of law, Romans 13 verse 1, submit to government that every soul is subject to the government authorities. All of these principles are principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. That the principles of governance, principles of payment of taxes and dues, all of these are the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Every nation that has faithfully followed these principles, every community that has faithfully followed these principles has made a difference. Look at the principles around welfare of the poor and the vulnerable. It's a fundamental directive of the gospel of Jesus Christ that we must either as government, as a policy matter or as a matter of social action, the concept about the welfare of the poor and the vulnerable. It is a fundamental principle. Matthew 25 verse 35 to 40. It is a fundamental principle that Jesus Christ himself preached. He said, I was hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. All of these principles, I was naked and you killed me. I was in prison and you visited me. I was sick. All of these principles. These are the principles by which social welfare schemes first in Europe then in America were founded. These are the principles. These are principles of sound, these are sound principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Look at the education, the great influence of Christianity on education, the importance of education, the importance of knowledge. And so, so many of the first schools, many of the schools, even Oxford and Cambridge as you know were founded first by Marx, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, these were universities founded by men and women of God. If you look at the founding acts of Harvard, one of the very important things that sticks out there is where it says all knowledge and wisdom belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. These are the kinds of texts, these are the kinds of things containing those texts. Of course, you've seen perfect examples of that. Today here we now have the density in the Hosa University. These are the great examples of the way in which the gospel of Jesus Christ influences even education and influences everything else. It is these principles that make a difference. The reason why you and I have to be involved in every aspect of our lives is because we are told that we are the salt of the earth, we are the light. What is that light? The light is the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is that light. So we are supposed to take that light into every aspect of our lives. We are supposed to take it into education, into entertainment, into the arts, into government, into politics, into everything else. We are supposed to take that light into it. We are powerless if we play the same games as those who do not know the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are completely powerless. There is no way by which if our light does not prevail, if we do not bring our light into the government, that there will be a change or that there will be a difference. No, we must have the courage of our convictions to take our light to every aspect of life. But many times one of the things you will find is that many times the gospel is controlling. The principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ can be very controlling and by that they mean that it is usually against our flesh. The gospel and its principles are usually controlling. They are controlling to the way that we feel. And that's why God himself said that look, His ways are not our ways. As high as the heaven is from heaven. So are His ways far from our ways. So are His thoughts from our own thoughts. The principles of the gospel are controlling. And that's why many times we fail to observe them. Look at the principles that say that we have to die to live. How many people want to die to live? John 12, 23 to 25 have to die to live. That there is first a dying. There is a dying to self before we can live. It's a completely controlling being. Everyone wants to just live. Nobody wants to die to live. Nobody wants to make the sacrifice that is required. Look at the principle that says humble yourself so that you'll be exalted. Completely contrary. Different from how we are taught in the world. Asset yourself. Appear big, boast, brag. That's what the world teaches. But the gospel says humble yourself so that you'll be exalted. The gospel says that the greatest of us will be those that are willing to serve. Those that are willing to be slaves. That's what the gospel says. Completely contrary. Completely contrary to everything that you and I know. It says seek Him first the kingdom of God. And His righteousness. And all other things will be added. Seek Him first the kingdom and His righteousness. Then all other things will be added. For many times you find that even in church we are seeking the things. We are seeking the things first. And we are living the righteousness and the kingdom. Because this gospel is completely contrary. It doesn't agree with our flesh. It doesn't agree with the way we want to feel. The scripture says that we should love our enemies. It says we shouldn't even hate those who hate us. It says we should pray for them. Those who curse us we should actually bless them. Many times we skip that part of scripture completely. Because it is so contrary. How does anybody love someone who kills his wife or kills his children? How do you love such a person? How do you love someone who, right there in your presence, opens the womb of a woman who is pregnant? How are you supposed to love such a person? But that is the very nature of the gospel that we preach. It is the gospel that challenges us to action. It is the gospel that does not allow us to hide away in our flesh. Because the gospel is not the work of a man. It is not the thoughts of a man. It is the very act of God itself. God himself is the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is God himself at work. So we cannot accord with our own sense of what is right and what is wrong. The gospel says we should not revenge. It says don't revenge at all. Because vengeance is mine. It says that we should not revenge. Sometimes we hear from the prophets. We hear words spoken in anger. We hear words saying that one must revenge. That one must take action. That is not what the gospel says. That is not what it says. There is no way in scripture and there is no way in the history of our field where we have revenge and succeeded. There is no way. The only way that the church has prevailed is by keeping to the gospel. That is the only way the church has prevailed. The church has never prevailed by common sense or by the sense of the word never. The only way it has prevailed is by keeping fidelity to scripture. That is the only way the church has prevailed in all of the history of the church. The word of God says in 2 Chronicles chapter 7 verse 14. It says that if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways. Turn from their wicked ways and I will hear from heaven and I will forgive their sins and I will heal their land. The scripture says that if we who are called by his name, that is to say those of us who are believers, it says if we pray, if we seek his face, if we repent and we turn back from our wicked ways, it does not say that we should preach, that people should turn back from their wicked ways. No, that is part of it. It says we ourselves first must turn back from our wicked ways before our land can be healed. The responsibility for the building of nations is on the church. The responsibility for showing direction is on the church. The burden is on the church. It says not only must we pray, seek his face, repent, but we must turn from our evil ways. We must turn from our evil ways. If we do not turn from our evil ways then our land cannot be healed. It does not say that our land must turn from its evil ways. It says we who are the church must turn from our evil ways so that our land will be healed. The Lord has placed enormous responsibility on the church because the church is the pillar and foundation of truth, because the church is the source, because the church is the light. The responsibility has been placed upon us, but our yoke is an easy one because it is a yoke that has been given to us by the one who loves us, who loves us unconditionally. Let me say at that yoke, I've asked Bishop Benson at the Housa, at Great Papa, saw the future. He saw a future where the church will be under seat. He saw a future where he would say the church is under attack. Some time ago, some years ago, I listened to a message of his which he preached. I believe it was in 1988 in Ben Hitt's church. And in that message he said, among other things, he said that 1987 was the year when the church was under such great attack nationally and internationally. He said the church was attacked internationally. Several ministers of God were under attack in various ways and nationally all over the world there was attack. He said it was so bad that people were beginning to wonder whether God was still interested in the church. He said he looked into the scriptures in search of an answer and he said that he found in not less than 200 different situations where the people of God and the church were under attack and in each of those situations God effortlessly delivered the church. So in every generation, we have seen persecution but our government already has made a way. There is no question at all that he will give us victory on failing. So today the church of God is not afraid. We are not afraid. We are not doing it in any way. And I'm sure that the bishop was still alive today and he was here. He would have said that the children of the devil must bow to the children of God. He would have said no shaking. He would have said I am absolutely certain that he would have said no shaking. And I say to you no shaking. Mama as a son, I am immensely proud of you. First, you are a woman of history and destiny having cracked the glass ceiling of the religious, that religious glass ceiling and we spoke about it becoming the first female over Syria of a major African ministry. That is by itself and your personal view. But also you are a woman of the future because you have defined the destinies of so many and changed the destinies of so many by your messages, by your counsel and by your inspiration. I've known that at all that the Almighty God has so much ahead of you and so much out in the screen. And so I pray for you that as your days so shall you stand, so shall you listen and so shall you fail with God. Happy birthday Mama. God bless you.