The Church has passed through what could be termed as evolution to assume her present status. All of these have taken place so that the divine purpose of God for mankind can be fulfilled. Some people however believed that the Church at the time of the early apostles was at its formative stage, but has now reached its perfect stage of development through the work of the Holy Spirit. Its present state is however a replica of the Church in Laodicea. However, the Church cannot afford to fail the MASTER in that, the Church in Laodicea – Rev 3:14-18 is not more today because they compromised the MASTER’s will.

Most believers today are in the following states to mention but a few:

1. They look at buildings as the Church and not the people that congregate inside the buildings.
2. They believe that denomination is the Church, thereby failing to realize that their denomination is part of the entire body of Christ.
3. ⁠They see Church as a social centre where their personal ambitions can be realized.
4. ⁠They see fellowship centres as the only place where prayers can be answered and doubt any other place, including their closets as a prayer answering place.
5. ⁠They believe that the Church is headed by the General Overseers and Superintendents/Pastors and not Christ. Hence, the word of these leaders is more valuable to them than the scripture.
6. They no longer see the need to prepare themselves as a holy habitation for God’s Spirit. Instead of renewing their mind and living right with God on daily basis, they spend fortunes in beautifying structures which they believe is the habitation of God. There is now a rat race competition by treasury looters, fraudsters, robbers, cultists, whoremongers, witches, and wizards, etc, to build structures tagged ‘Church’.
7. ⁠They see tithe, offering, and other dues as the only portion of their lives for the Lord and do not believe that all they have, including themselves, is what God requires of them.
8. ⁠They believe in scriptural passages that can give them financial and spiritual breakthrough and victory. Other passages for rebuke, admonitions, and corrections are often neglected.
9. ⁠They gather Pastors/Teachers for themselves who will only teach them what they are eager to know.

The Church Leaders have assumed some of the following states:

1. Leaders gather brethren to themselves and no longer for Christ.
2. ⁠They make members see the grace in them as theirs and not God’s, thereby encouraging members to idolize them.
3. ⁠They see the Church as a fast way of making money and becoming famous. Thus, making most of them join occultism, practice witchcraft, magic, and use charms.
4. ⁠Some see the Church as a haven for satisfying their sexual desires.
5. ⁠Some see the Church as a shield of protection for their criminal activities.
6. A lot of them see the Church under them as their empires and have a flair for expanding these empires instead of making disciples of people and maturing them for the Lord.
7. ⁠Some market and promote themselves through pictures of pastors and their wives on signposts, handbills, posters, and billboards.

However, some of the general situations in the Church are as follows:

1. True worship has been passed for dancing, merrymaking, and religious activities.
2. ⁠True fellowship has been passed for socializing with members, caring less for the less privileged, i.e., the poor, widows, and orphans.
3. ⁠Leadership in the Church is now based on the social and financial status of members and no longer on genuine salvation and God’s calling.
4. ⁠Men’s traditions have taken over Biblical injunctions in the name of Church doctrines.
5. ⁠Searching the scripture, quiet time, and culture of meditating on the word of God have been passed for vigils and other church activities.
6. ⁠Building of campgrounds, non-affordable institutions of learning, edifices, and cathedrals are now the order of the day, instead of building the people into spiritual maturity.
7. Introducing worldly cultures and systems to the church is now the order of the day, neglecting what the Bible says in James 4:4 – “Unfaithful people! Don’t you know that to be the world’s friend means to be God’s enemy? Whoever wants to be the world’s friends makes himself God’s enemy” – (GNB)
8. Idolizing leaders and obeying them even when it is contrary to God’s word is now the order of the day.
9. ⁠Establishment of Church branches in urbanized and commercial centres in pursuit of fame, recognition, and financial gain has taken over Jesus’ directive of making disciples of all the people of the world, especially reaching out to the unreached people.
10. Each denomination has its own traditions patterned after the ideas of the founder and not necessarily after the scripture.
11. There is a tactical class distinction in the Church today as the clergy and workers class consider themselves as superior and religious than the laity class. This has resulted in the complacency and apathy that have engulfed the present Church.
12. Evangelism has been passed for Denominational Marketing and Promotion thereby making members to see their G.O’s and Denominations as all that matters in their religious beliefs.

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