GistReel

The founder of Salvation Ministries, Pastor David Ibiyeomie, has come under fire from several Christian leaders over his recent sermon suggesting that Jesus Christ despised poverty and deliberately avoided associating with poor people during His earthly ministry.

In a viral video circulating on social media, Ibiyeomie told his congregation that Christ never visited the home of any poor person, which he interpreted as a sign that Jesus disapproved of poverty.

He further argued that Jesus’ death and resurrection were not just for salvation but also to break believers free from financial hardship.

“Jesus never visited any poor person in his house, that means He hates poverty. Check your Bible, He visited Lazarus, they were not poor, they were giving him food. He visited a sinner called Zacchaeus who was rich, tell me one poor man that Jesus entered his house, He hates poverty, that is the meaning,” Ibiyeomie said.

He added, “You can become poor, but you are not permitted to remain poor. Nothing is wrong with coming to Christ as a poor man, but it is wrong to remain poor.”

The remarks triggered a wave of reactions from notable clerics, including the founder of Power City International Ministry, Pastor Abel Damina, who described Ibiyeomie’s interpretation as a distortion of biblical truth.

Damina, known for his fiery teachings, accused Ibiyeomie of twisting scripture to support a materialistic gospel.

“How can Jesus hate poor people? The Bible says though He was rich, for your sake He became poor so that through His poverty you might be rich—and that richness is not material but spiritual,” Damina said.

He also pointed out that Christ was born into a humble home, referencing Joseph the carpenter and Mary.

“If Jesus hated the poor, He wouldn’t have come through a lowly family. He would have been born in a palace,” Damina argued.

Supporting Damina’s stance, the Lagos State Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Bishop Stephen Adegbite, also dismissed Ibiyeomie’s message, describing it as misleading and out of line with true Christian teaching.

“This is a dangerous distortion of Christ’s mission. Jesus is a friend of the poor, and He came to lift them. That is the essence of the gospel. Wealth has never been a measure of spirituality,” Adegbite stated in a telephone interview.

He warned Christians to be cautious and not fall prey to what he described as “fake pastors” who equate financial prosperity with divine approval.

“The message of Jesus is salvation, not prosperity at all costs. By their fruits, we shall know them,” he added.



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