Written by Tòmíwá Olúyínká
Sequel to last sunday’s sermon, Rev. Dr. Tunji Bamgbose emphasised the revelation, gospel, and capacity of God’s love through the epistles and ministry of Apostle John, and the duties families(mother, father, and children) have in profiliating the love of God. He titled the sermon “Protect your Family from the World”, backing it up with John 3: 16-17, and 1John 2.
Rev. Tunji raised a though provoking question: ‘If God so love you in the world where you are, why can’t you use your world to love God back and not use your world to hate God?’
In our contemporary world, we hear comments like ‘Aye n seru e’ and we are eager to please and love the world. However, Rev. Bamgbose urged the church to apply the love of God in their marriage and family, stating that ‘marriage is very important to God. You can chose not to get married, but if you’ve been given the grace to be married, I confront you that your marriage occupies a special space in the heart of God. Therefore you should guard and save it through His love.”
Rev. Bamgbose stated that although there are preachings on love in marriage, the preaching is placed on mundane things, things that are of worldly style, which pursuantly leads to the devaluing of marriage in the contemporary world. He therefore urged the congregation to hold fast to the love of God and replicate His love in our homes. God created the world and everything in it, but he sent his love to us as a solution to overcoming the problems of this world.
Speaking on 1John 2, he asked: ‘If John says God loved the world, why then does he also say we shouldn’t love the world?’ To answer this, he emphasised that the love of God for the world is to the transformation and salvation of the world. Hence, our duty is to replicate this love to the world and not to ‘join hands with the wickedness or lifestyle of the world, because it can ruin and break down the family and marital life.”
The devil takes pleasure in seeing divorces and conflicts in the home, whether between spouses, or parents and children. But if we accept the shared love of God, we can overcome every attack from the devil. He listed the sources of attack on marriages as:
Everyone has the responsibility of guiding their family. Parents should understand that their children are from God and they do not love them more than He does. Therefore, they should allow them serve the Lord first, and not encourage or release them into the hands of the world. Likewise, husbands and wives should protect their marriage and deny their ‘marriage and family from the abominable things of the world.’ By doing so, we begin to live in ‘the world that God has created for us—- the world of love, salvation, restoration, peace, and for him.’
We should read the Bible to know and understand the love of God, and for salvation. We should ‘let the love of the Lord in our lives rule and transform the world. Rev. Bamgbose admonished the church to hold fast to the love of God because it can ‘save everything around you, your family, marriage, and life.’
Experience the full sermon here.
Written by Tòmíwá Olúyínká
Written by Kelani Omótóyòsí
Leyin iwasu ti a ko ni Ojo isinmi to koja, Alufa Tunji Bamgbose tenumo ifihan, ihin rere, ati agbara ife Olorun gege bi a ti ri i ninu awon akosile ati ise iranse Apositeli Johanu, ati ojuse ti idile (iya, baba, ati omo)ninu fifi ife Olorun tan ka. Won so oruko Iwaasu naa ni “Dabo Bo Idile Re Lowo Aye”, o si fi Johanu keta; ese kerindilogun si ketadinlogun ati Johanu akoko; ese keji se atileyin re.
Alufa Tunji gbe ibeere kan kalẹ ti o mu eniyan ronu jinlẹ: ‘Bi Ọlọrun ṣe nifẹ rẹ ninu aye tí o wa, kilode ti o ko fi le lo aye rẹ lati fi ifẹ pada fun Ọlọrun, ki o ma ba a lo aye rẹ lati korira Ọlọrun?’
Ni aye ode oni, a maa gbo awon oro bii ‘Aye n se iru e’ a si maa sare lati se ife ti aye ati lati te aye lorun. Sugbon, Alufa Bamgbose ro ijo pe ki won fi ife Olorun han ninu igbeyawo ati idile won, wipe “igbeyawo se pataki gan niwaju Olorun. O le yan lati ma se igbeyawo, sugbon bi a ba ti fun o ni oore ofe lati ni igbeyawo, mo so fun o pe igbeyawo re ni ibi pataki kan ni okan Olorun. Nitori naa, o gbodo daabo bo o, ki o si toju re nipase ife re.”
Alufa Bamgbose so, wipe biotilejepe iwasu po lori ife ninu igbeyawo, iwasu naa ma n da lori awon nkan asan, awon nkan ti o je ti aye, eyi ti o si n fa ki igbeyawo ma ni ijakule ninu aye ode oni. Nitori naa, o rọ ijo pe ki won di ife Olorun mu lile, ki a si tunse ife re si ninu ile wa. Olorun da aye ati ohun gbogbo ti o wa ninu re, sugbon o ran ife re wa gẹgẹ bi ojutu lati bori awon isoro aye yi.
Iwe Johanu kini ori keji, won beere pe: ‘Bi Johanu ba wipe Olorun nifẹ aye, kilode ti o tun so pe ki a ma nifẹ aye?’ Lati dahun eyi, won salaye pe ife Olorun fun aye je fun ayipada ati igbala aye. Nitorina, ojuse wa ni lati tun ife yii se afihan si ayé, ki a ma ‘darapo mo ibi tabi iwasi aye, nitori o le ba idile ati igbeyawo je.
Inu esu a ms dun ti o ba ri ipinya ninu igbeyawo ati ariyanjiyan ninu ile, boya laarin oko ati aya, tabi laarin obi ati omo. Sugbon bi a ba gba ife Olorun ti a pin gba, a le bori gbogbo ikolu esu. Won se akojo awon orisun ikolu lori igbeyawo leseese:
Gbogbo eniyan ni ojuse lati dari idile won. Awon obi gbodo mo wipe awon omo won wa lati odo Olorun, ti won ko si le nifẹ si won ju ti Olorun lo. Nitori naa, won gbodo je ki won sin Oluwa ni akọkọ, ki won ma ba a gbe won fun aye tabi gba won niyanju sinu ohun ti aye nfunni. Bakanna, oko ati aya gbodo daabo bo igbeyawo won, ki won si ya ‘igbeyawo ati idile won kuro ninu awon ohun eewo ti aye.’ Nigbati a ba se eyi, a ti bere si ni gbe ninu ‘aye ti Olorun da fun wa, aye ife, igbala, imularada, alaafia, ati fun.’
A gbodo maa ka bibeli ki a le mo ati ki oye ife Olorun le ye wa, ati fun igbala. A gbodo ‘je ki ife Oluwa ninu aye wa joba ki o si yi aye pada.’ Alufa Bamgbose kilọ fun ijo pe ki won di ife Olorun mu lile nitori o le ‘gba gbogbo ohun to yi o ka, idile re, igbeyawo re, ati aye re.’
E wo iwasu lekun rere nibi.
Written by Kelani Omótóyòsí
