Fast-forward to 2008/9, a number of ministers had come together to organise a befitting 70th birthday program for this spiritual father who had served the Lord and the Body (at that time) for close to 5 decades. I was part of the organising team and had the privilege of writing his biography. He shared so many things during the several interviews I had with him some of which did not make it into the book. One of such was his stance on denominations.
First of all, contrary to the assumption of many, Dr. Mike Oye wasn’t born a Methodist. Sometime in the early 70’s, he was invited by the Methodist Church Nigeria to work with them to reach a very difficult community – Kaiamo – somewhere between Kwara and Kogi state. It was this same time that an American mission agency had invited him to come and plant churches for them all over America in a very juicy offer. Brother Mike’s response was: “There are so many evangelists already in America who can do that. Let me go to the unreached land of Kaiamo.” In fact, this was part of the reasons some people back then labelled him “Mad Mike.”
The point however is that he got into the Methodist because he saw an opportunity to reach the unreached. Needless to say, he has not allowed his involvement with the Methodist to cage him as he has made himself available to serve the entire Body. Here are some excerpts:
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From the Day one of my Christian walk, the Lord revealed to me the universality and the oneness of His church. Denominationalism is not of God. Divisions have been the greatest havoc to the work of God. Only genuine humility will cause the barriers to fall. Big denominational bodies should realise that the body is bigger than them and allow their names to go and structures to fall so that genuine flow of the Spirit of Christ will take place for us to evangelise the whole world. We are not to evangelise into denominations.
Sir, if denominationalism is not the ideal pattern for building the church, what then is? Is there a pattern in the New Testament?
You see, the wrong thing has happened for so long that the true thing appears too artificial. The true thing would have been like this: in Osogbo, there is the Church in Osogbo with many expressions in Osogbo for geographical reasons (proximity). That is the ideal. And then the church in Osogbo can have fellowship with the church in Ibadan and so on.
But how will all these be coordinated?
Coordinate what? Are there no Christian families? In my street here, there are up to five or more Christian families. Do I go to coordinate them in their families? No; each man is a pastor in his house. This is the ideal thing. Abraham was a pastor in his house. See, the real downright unit of the church is the Christian home. The Christian homes don’t need to be bossing one another because they are individual units. But the Christian homes here in Ofatedo can come together once or twice in a week to share. And what they share is what they take back to their various homes to continue. There is no need for the church in Ibadan to lord anything over the church in Osogbo. The church in Osogbo is unique and the church in Ibadan is also unique. In fact, the various units of the church in Ibadan are all unique in one way or the other but the central doctrine is the same. Just look back into the days of Paul and you will see this picture I’m painting. The church in Ephesus, the church in Corinth, the church in Galatia etc. were all different churches but the apostolic teachings pervaded all of them. They had different challenges and therefore, counselling and letters written to each of them were different. But those counselings were a corrective measure to help them conform to the central thing.
But sir, we don’t have that central thing today, and secondly, the apostolic authority that was like an umbrella for all those small units of the Body in those different regions, I don’t think we have that today.
You see what is happening is this: churches that allow someone like me to go into them in one way or the other have been influenced by me. Churches that allow someone like Adeboye have been influenced by him. What would have been the ideal thing is for Adeboye, myself, Kumuyi, people in that category, to come together once in a while like the Jerusalem council and compare notes in an honest effort to sanitise the whole church of Christ. But no, selfishness will not allow it. Greed will not allow it. Kingdom power will not allow it. Jealousy, envy, rivalry will not allow it. And this is a big concern for me. Frankly speaking, that is why me, I am aloof. I have made some efforts in the past with some key leaders but they dodged me.
Can we ever get back to that ideal that you are describing? Is it possible sir?
It is possible because Jesus is coming to meet a wonderful church. But it will take a lot of shaking. Let me tell you the truth: the Lord will literally have to call some leaders home in order to allow His will to be done. It is a process. But God will see to it that it is done.
