“I will be bigger than them all”: The trap of fame and status in ministry, By Ayo Akerele

Which is your preference? To be great in the eyes of men, while being small in the eyes of God or to be small in the eyes of men, while being great in the eyes of God. Jesus once said, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets.” (Luke 6:26).

His journey to his so-called “stardom”, “fame” and “glamour” in ministry began on the day he was surprisingly invited to a conference in a state in the US. It was a “high profile” convention that played host to some of the most famous and highly sought after speakers within the American charismatic circle. Dressed in a fine suit and a matching pair of shoes, this servant of God, together with his personal assistant, sat quietly in his designated section of the hall, waiting patiently to be ushered to the podium. That day, the word of the Lord flowed from his mouth with unusual power, depth, and impact. The power of God was so strong in his delivery of the word of the Lord in that hour.

The rank and file of senior Christian leaders in the US who sat under this ministration was stunned by the incredible depth of revelation and insight that came from this “unknown face” in the charismatic circle. Who invited him? Where is his church? When did he start out in ministry? These and many other questions shattered the carnal glass ceilings of many in the congregation, who never expected such a level of impact from an unknown figure. These were notable church leaders with large followerships in attendance at the conference.

At the end of his session, he walked straight to the waiting lounge as a matter of protocol; it was time to get some rest and exchange pleasantries with fellow ministers. Surprisingly, and sadly, none of the notable ministers walked up to him for either a handshake or even a hug. He was actually lucky to get some pockets of waves from a few folks in the lounge. The flesh had jumped in. Like Jesus told Peter, “Simon, Simon, Satan has attempted to sift you as Wheat” (Luke 22:31).

Satan came into the picture, and he sadly fell for it. He felt lonely and discouraged at the attitude of the crème de la crème of church leaders that he had been watching on the television. Are these people like this? Why have they not approached me with a gesture of a warm greeting? That was Satan at work; it is the trap of ego, pride, and prestige. The feeling of, “I deserve to be respected and acknowledged for this powerful message.”​

But he did not receive the public affirmation he so desperately desired. How dare an unknown face in the charismatic circle speak so powerfully like this in a meeting where the famous and the rich in the church were congregating? Out of sheer embarrassment, discouragement and a feeling of being disenfranchised, he beckoned to his personal assistant, and said to him, “Let’s get out of this place. One day, I will be bigger than these people.” That was the beginning of his foray into the mad pursuit of fame and stardom in ministry. Satan had finally sifted him as Wheat. The, “I will be bigger than them” spirit had entered into him, and he pursued the dream of stardom with every passion and fervour in him. As we speak today, this minister of God has derailed completely from the truth, going after money and fame. He has actually achieved his lifelong dream: to be bigger than “them.”

Which is your preference? To be great in the eyes of men, while being small in the eyes of God or to be small in the eyes of men, while being great in the eyes of God. Jesus once said, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets.” (Luke 6:26).

When the church becomes an institution of class and caucuses, rather than that of oneness, unity, and collaboration, the quality of Christian leadership will be gravely compromised. And when leadership is compromised, followership will be super compromised — this is the situation in our hands today, which would continue to deteriorate until the remnants in the church wake up and speak out.

In fact, the worst has happened to our generation. Many ministers are really not small in the eyes of God, but are actually nonexistent, unknown in heaven, and merely existing to serve their personal purposes, agendas, and bellies. You will know them by their fruits (Matthew 7:20). The pursuit of fame in God’s kingdom is the pursuit of shame. The gospel is not complicated. We are not confused. The Bible is inerrantly clear about the values that uphold the Christian faith and the preaching of the gospel, one of which is “humility.”

Christianity, according to Bruce. L Shelley, is the only major religion on earth to have as its central event the humiliation of its God.”

But as we speak, the very core values that uphold our faith are being repeatedly eroded and replaced by man-made values that promote the dominance of the flesh in the church. Once the values are wrong, the products (fruits) will be bad. Like I have repeatedly said, every new generation is an improvement on the previous one. Children are value expanders. There is a growing entrapment of ministers in the church by the Satanic forces of fame and stardom that were promoted and are still being upheld even by notable fathers in the ministry, making it easier for the younger generation to follow suit. In fact, it’s been proven beyond every doubt that many of these men with large followership, who promote these false values, belong to various occultic associations that have many notable leaders as members. These are open secrets.

When the church becomes an institution of class and caucuses, rather than that of oneness, unity, and collaboration, the quality of Christian leadership will be gravely compromised. And when leadership is compromised, followership will be super compromised — this is the situation in our hands today, which would continue to deteriorate until the remnants in the church wake up and speak out. There are still remnants of faithful men and women in the body of Christ. These are the watchmen in our land. They must not be tacit or nonchalant. They must acknowledge this crisis, speak out against it in love, pray about it, and invest time and resources into the development of a sustainable and intentional discipleship programme.

The current generation of Christians are undiscipled, unbaked, and uncooked. They are men and women of the flesh who are largely loyal to churches, pastors, and their flesh. They can never please God. Why? The Bible says so.

“So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:8)

If we all continue in our state of apathy and nonchalance; if we refuse to speak out in love against this mad rush into ministry for fame and affluence; if we all refuse to pray for pastors and church leaders; if we all continue to maintain our allegiances to our ministerial caucuses, there would be no future for our children, and many of them would turn away from God.

Picture yourself in the year 2060. Imagine the state of the church if none of these issues are addressed? Except you are completely broken and detached from the flesh, it will be hard to publicly identify yourself as a Christian, much less uphold the core values of the Christian faith. If we all continue in our state of apathy and nonchalance; if we refuse to speak out in love against this mad rush into ministry for fame and affluence; if we all refuse to pray for pastors and church leaders; if we all continue to maintain our allegiances to our ministerial caucuses, there would be no future for our children, and many of them would turn away from God.

I do not pray for that to happen, but this is a warning to this generation. We do not have any excuse before God. Joseph had no Bible. Daniel had no Bible. This generation is a spoilt one. We have abused God’s grace to a fault. The Bible warns against grieving the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). We have grieved the Holy Spirit. Our pursuit of fame has produced shame and embarrassment for the church and for the Lord. We have wasted the sacrifices of the heroes of faith, many of who were martyred for the same gospel that has now been cheapened.

One of my favourites teachers, Dr David Jeremiah, once said, “we have cheapened Christ before a watching world.”

Wake up friends and turn away from sin and iniquity. Dear Pastor, turn away from wizardry, occultism, the worship of men and money, and the pursuit of fame. It is time to seek the Lord.

“Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the Lord , Till He comes and rains righteousness on you.” (Hosea 10:12)

Ayo Akerele is the senior pastor of Rhema Assembly and the founder of the Voice of the Watchmen Ministries in Ontario, Canada. He can be reached through ayoakerele2012@gmail.com