It’s unbiblical for pastors to tax church members – Prophet Momodu
By NGOZI ECHENDU
Tuesday, April 29, 2008

The General Overseer of Divine Power Gospel Ministry, Prophet Shem Momodu is an evangelist and also a prophet of God who has been in the ministry over the years for prophecy and deliverance. God has used Momodu to deliver so many souls from bondage over the years and vowed not to relent; with God, he will liberate many more souls from captivity. In an interview with Daily Sun recently, the prophet hinted he was set to bring freedom to many families who have been afflicted by the devil, the morality situation of the society and his calling.

The evangelist hails from Agbede in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State, married and blessed with children.

Call
My calling was a miracle to my wife who was a Christian, then I was a Muslim. As I was planning to convert her to Islam, little did I know that her own God is greater than mine. The day I was arrested by God was the day I went to Church to seek for miracle to be rich, then the Prophet of God prophesied I am a prophet, not too long I accepted Christ and was ordained a prophet in 1987. Since then I have been doing the work of God.

Salvation and miracle
Salvation is quite different from miracle; salvation is when we are following the ways of Christ, that is, doing His will. It is our right as children of God to have miracle because there is power in every individual but many people are denying themselves that right, that is why people seek for miracle from one place to the other while the miracle is in our hands. Until they accept God as their Lord and saviour, which is salvation, they will not stop seeking for miracles.

Morality situation of the society
Immorality in the society is now the order of the day, Firstly, some pastors encourage youths to get married without being blessed by God. According to the scriptures, the children born out of wedlock are bastards and shall stand against you on the last day. Besides, it is also a curse to that spouse. Secondly, there are some pastors too who claim they are called by God, they go ahead performing magic in the name of miracle leading the children of God to destruction, all these are setting the country backward. For the country to prosper, we must always abide by the truth and do the right thing at the right time and not turning away from the 10 commandment.

Life as a prophet
As a prophet, I try to live a holy life, in terms of telling the truth, doing the right thing; I don’t want to talk when God has not asked me to talk. I believe I’m quite different from some prophets, who talk everyday. I know there are times the spirit might not reveal anything to you but some false prophets will go ahead to deceive people that God has said one thing or the other. I believe in the truth and nothing but the truth because I want to make heaven.

Challenges
The challenges are enormous, firstly, I want to put the power of darkness to shame and secondly to set the children of God free from bondage, with God I have been liberating people without collecting any dime. That is why we are packaging a programme entitled, "Family Liberation" to destroy the altar of Baal which kicks off from April 30 to May 4. Many families pay huge money for family liberation but in our Church, it is free and your family will be set free from the affliction of the devil. With God, I will always conquer the devil.

Taxing the church
I don’t encourage pastors that tax their members because it is not biblical and there is no reward from God for such act, but when it comes from the mind of the members to give freely, there is always a reward from God for the member and the Church.

Tithe
Tithe is biblical for Christians to always bring one tenth of their income to God. With that God will increase them financially and protect them from evils. Tithe is actually a secret code to protect businesses, jobs and lives, among others.

Advice to young prophets
If they are actually called by God, they should allow God to speak to them and also direct them on what to do, without looking at other men of God who are making it, because our callings differs, they should not listen to what happened to other men of God because God can still use them greatly.