Coalition is a welcome development if it’ll truly serve as meaningful opposition to government–Israel Kristilere
Senior Pastor, Shepherhill Baptist Church, Lagos and President, Christian Tourism Practitioners Association of Nigeria (CTPAN), Israel Kristilere, recently met with members of the Association of Christian Correspondents of Nigeria (ACCoN); where he spoke to the relevance of pilgrimage in Christendom and also touched on the political alliance happening across the country. CYRIACUS NNAJI has the excerpts:
Nigerians are currently feeling the hit of the government’s economic policies; how has the situation in the country affected the Church?
The church is also part of the society. The church is not a body that can be divulged from the society at large. So, whatever is affecting the society, also affects the church. Whether it’s economics: members of the church who will give to the church – if their business is not doing well, they will not go and steal money to give to the church. Members of the church who are not secured in their homes may not have enough time to go to church for worship. So, it is affecting every one of us. And that’s why the church should continue to pray for the peace, the growth and the prosperity of the land. In Yoruba language, there is a saying – they will say when the tree is okay, the bird that is hanging on it will be okay. But if the tree is dangling, the bird also will be what? Dangling. So, let’s come together to pray for all our leaders that God will grant them wisdom and courage to do what is right.
On the back of the happenings in the country is the wave of coalition in the political space. As a preacher, what is your view on the coalition?
Coalition, politicians, you see. The real problem is that we have strange bedfellows coming together for the sake of themselves. And they end up parting ways when they discover that each one will stand on his own ground. So there is no midway. The issue of the coalition is a welcome development if it will truly serve as a meaningful opposition to the government. Every good government needs opposition. Not opposition that will be causing problems. But at least it will put the government on their toes, checkmate them, and make them also do better. So, any good government would like to have an opposition. But my only grouse is that, from what we have seen in the past, most coalitions don’t really collate. They end up strangulating themselves. By the time they want to choose who is going to be the candidate for the presidency: you can see what is already happening.
By the time this coalition gets on board, and they want to select their presidential candidate, then you will know that there is no coalition. It is coagulation. And then it will be a problem. But we can only pray that Nigeria will get better. I have told people, the APC government might not be the best of it, but I strongly believe that the worst has gone behind us. If we get our bearing right, Nigeria is going on the verge of becoming better. The worst experience we can experience, we have experienced. I stay with that. I mean, things cannot be bad or be worse than what we have experienced. So, we can only look forward to it being better. Trusting God that Tinubu will not pull another string to draw us backward. By design of how things should run, we have experienced the worst. You and I never believed the APC government would go to power. That we are going to buy fuel for N1, 000. If somebody told me, I would say, are you silly? Who would get that kind of money? Are you going to steal it? But we bought it for N1, 000. So, we did all that – the worst we have passed through. We can only pray that it will get better. But we need to work together. Whether APC wins or another party wins in the next election, I’m not really bothered about that. I’m more concerned about the welfare of Nigeria and Nigerians; and trust God that he will take us to a safe haven.
Let’s talk about pilgrimage: as president of Christian Tourism Practitioners; how symbolic is it for Christians going on pilgrimage?
Very, very. I must say that until I first went to Israel, I was one of those who didn’t think it was necessary to go to Israel. Let me say about 21 years ago, I don’t think it was anything I felt was necessary. At that time, I thought I was just trying to copy the Muslims, and I don’t like copying anybody. But to God be the glory, I of course went through government as well. There was a time when the government was funding it, so we were just going free. So, I went free for the first time. Probably maybe it was because of the free that made me go. If I had to pay money, I wouldn’t have gone. But I must tell you that the experience I had there – the Bible becoming life to me, walking the footsteps of Jesus, seeing with my eyes, what I’ve read about this creature, was unique, and it had an impact on me.
And it was then I said to God, this is the place I must come again. So, Christian pilgrimage is not a yardstick for making heaven. It’s not a condition for salvation. But it’s a privilege that can turn your Christian lives around. That can help you to understand the scripture more, and can also equally grant you spiritually enriching experience that will linger on for the rest of your life. People have also gone to Israel and were able to receive their miracles. People have been waiting on God for some things, and God heard their prayers over there. People have also said to me that is it that God cannot hear prayer in Nigeria? God answers prayer everywhere. But there are times that taking some unusual steps will bring the unusual miracles. If I say God doesn’t hear prayer anywhere, why do you have to go to church to pray? You can pray in your living room; that is true. But I still go to church to worship. So yeah, God is everywhere. God is in Nigeria. But we cannot lose sight of the fact that there are certain places where God’s power had moved and God’s glory was revealed. And there’s nothing wrong if you can afford it. Like I said, it’s not a condition for heaven, not the standard for salvation. But if you are able to afford it, it’s something that you will never forget in your life.
Are there criteria for whoever wants to go on pilgrimage?
For now, what matters is that you are a child of God. It is not for anybody that has the money – if you comes to me and says, Pastor, I’m a Muslim but I want to go to Jerusalem; even if you have billions, as rich as Dangote – if he comes and says, Pastor, I want to go to Jerusalem with you, I will give you N10 billion. I will not follow him. I’m sorry; unless he confesses Christ, because pilgrimage is supposed to help most of God’s children to enrich their faith in Christ. Today, you must have an international passport. And then, other places we are going to look out for you. One thing that is very, very crucial is that we want only pilgrims that will go for pilgrimage activities and return. A bunch of people are trying to use that to japa, which is very wrong. Pilgrimage is not an opportunity to japa. Those who want to japa can japa through other means, but not by pilgrimage. Many of them have caused problems for preachers because the consequences of a pilgrim running away or abandoning Israel is very severe. So, it’s not an opportunity to do that. But if you want to experience God, it’s an opportunity to go and encounter Him.
Are people allowed to turn it into a business kind of journey?
People will always be people. I must confess I have seen people who went with me and they were busy buying, buying. I was thinking within my heart, what are they going to use this for? It’s possible that they want to go and sell. That should not be the purpose of which a person goes. But if you ask me, if somebody sees an opportunity when he’s there to buy things that can fetch him money, I would not be opposed to it, because he spends money to get there. But your goal in going should not be because you want to go and buy stuff to sell.
You are not going on a business trip. You are going on a spirituality trip. But if you go to a place and you see they are selling something you know you can buy and somebody will need it, I’m sorry, I will not condemn you. But if your main purpose for going was to go and buy things that you will sell, then you have missed it.
