“Why I hate white garment Church” – Pastor Ibiyeomie; “Hatred is not of the Lord“ – White Garment Members
There has been a raging controversy between the popular Port Harcourt, Rivers State pastor and televangelist, David Ibiyeomie of the Salvation Ministries and members of the white garment church comprising majorly Cherubim and Seraphim Church, Celestial Church of Christ, and others.
The Port Harcourt cleric in an online video said he hated the white garment churches due to their method of worship. Pastor David Ibiyeomie said this during a worship session with his congregants.
He also alleged that there were many things the white garment churches do that would make his members dislike them.
White garment churches are Christian worship denominations that put on white apparels to worship their God.
Prominent members of this group that belong to the African Instituted group of Churches under the Christian Association of Nigeria are Cherubim and Seraphim Churches, the Celestial Church of Christ, and Olumba Olumba’s Brotherhood of the Cross and the Star, among others.
According to him, some of the white garment prophets carry out incantations by using people’s names.
He gave an instance where the name of a person was drenched in a bottle of gin and began to make incantations until such person was affected and became a drunk.
He stated that a prophet might invoke someone’s name while it was soaked in a bottle of gin, and they would then proceed to chant until they were struck and drunk without drinking any alcohol.
This statement has sparked a flurry of mixed reactions from the Church and some members of the white garment churches.
White Garment Churches are Biblical – Members Explain
In a letter made available on its social media handle, a group within the Celestial Church of Christ named the Celestial generation wrote to Pastor Ibiyeomie to disabuse his mind about white garment churches and to make him understand the tenets of their church.
It read in part, “Dear Pastor David Ibiyeomie, The word ” Hatred ” is totally anti-Christ. You really went too far in your expressions. Hating a Church of Christ or a Body of Christ is really an off, when Christ showed and taught us love!
They went further to ask “Where is the love in all you preach and teach! 1 Corinthians 13, teaches us that if I be pastor, a preacher or a prophet and do not have love, then it is vain.
“Taking swipes against the white garment church multiple times shows that you are not truly a lover of Christ! No true man of God ever hates a body of Christ, or speaks ill about another body of Christ. There is no message of Christ is sheer hatred.”
On the use of Psalms by the white garment church, the Celestians admonished that “the use of Psalms is never a sin, and praying with Psalms is never a sin as stated in Colossians 3 v 16,
“Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. Praying with Psalms is never demonic or amount to incantations.”
They however accepted that there were false prophets and men in every church, including Pastor Ibiyeomie’s Church, as the bible made it clear.
“This is factual about Celestial in particular. No Celestial Church puts people’s name in gin. Celestial Church is never a fetish church. Saying what isn’t about the Celestial Church is liable as a sin against the Holy Spirit. The workings of the Holy Spirit is not incantation or demonic! It is confounding your wisdom because it is not given to you. What you don’t understand is much more than you.”
They also advised the cleric to verify and prove with facts his claims before coming out to mention the name of any church.
“Don’t say things you haven’t been there to confirm vividly for yourself. Celestial Church is a white garment church that is bible believing, Holy Spirit founded and it is of Christ. Whether you like it or not, the Celestial Church will always be of the Lord,” they assured, backing it up with one of their songs that, “If the whole world rise against us or hate us, they will bow for the Lord at last.”
A Nigerian member of C&S Church based in the United Kingdom, Special Apostle Michael Olalekan Folarin was quick to note the biblical foundation of the white garment churches when he commended a fellow member in a tweet.
He tweeted, “Thank you for taking a stand for the church of Christ, quoting Rev 7:13-14 “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come? These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”
Pastor Ibiyeomie has also been accused of a similar braul with the a Celestial Church in his area of Port Harcourt, as well as a branch of Olumba Olumba’s Brotherhood of the Cross and the Star.
Is it good for any church denomination to condemn another based on doctrine?
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