BY LADI PETER THOMPSON
Spiritual impact is reckoned beyond bread-and-butter Christianity and it is not all ministers that have the opportunity to plant institutions that will outlast time itself.
Anyone who knew Pastor Taiwo Odukoya would attest that the central scripture of his life and legacy was this simple but deep spiritual cadastral that says, “The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the Law of Sin and Death.”
In his gentle but firm manner, he persuaded thousands to chant this scripture daily even though it is clear that not too many understood the depth and power of the confession in their possession.
The majority of people that use smart phones don’t know how it works but they use it to get the jobs done anyway.
This particular scripture works the same way because Odukoya cared about everybody and knew that this scripture would work for both mature Christians and babes in Christ.
Speaking out this scripture is like detonating a nuclear weapon against the forces of darkness and Odukoya favoured it because its power is based on a spiritual principle.
Spiritual principles are upheld by God Himself and they work whether you are anointed or not.
The Law of Gravity for example works whether you are young or old and it does not care whether you are feeling sad or happy.
“Odukoya was a minister of ministers and his legacy will live forever”
Odukoya knew that the majority of miracles, healing and deliverances that followed his stewardship came out of that well spring of life.
He was charismatic, anointed and erudite but he would rather humble himself and uplift the Law of the Spirit of Life instead.
It is my belief that the greatest legacy that the Fountain of Life Church can uphold to honour his memory would be to take that Law of the Spirit of Life to the next level.
A tough but not impossible proposal with great potentials because all blessings that God has for man are powered by the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ while all the curses and evil that the kingdom of darkness spits out are empowered by the Law of Sin and Death.
The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ and the Law of Sin and Death both go all the way back to the Garden of Eden because they are the fruits of the Tree of Life and the Tree of Death (aka Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil) respectively.
Odukoya was a minister of ministers and his legacy will live forever but the Body of Christ has to be on its toes because the kingdom of darkness fears such men more after their exit than even before.
He served at a juicy desk in NNPC for years and never enriched himself despite the lure of mammon. His temperance and patience were exemplary as the modest two-bed accommodation with wooden partitions he managed for years was no reflection of the mega-church that God entrusted him with.
Like all honest ministers serving in the chronic corruption of Nigeria, he struggled to build a decent house until God raised a flock who understood that their caring pastor should be a partaker of their material things without any coercion.
The houses, cars and fame were additions that came through faith and patience.
Bimbo and Taiwo working together had proven that godliness with contentment is great gain. God used the death of Jesus Christ to bless the kingdom of God and the same goes for those who serve and die-in-Christ.
Moses was a faithful minister of Christ and the kingdom of darkness tried to claim his death but Michael the Archangel shut Satan down when he contended for the body of Moses. Bimbo, the wife of Taiwo’s youth, was an effective minister in God’s hand and kingdom of darkness tried to claim her death with some cock and bull story that was hacked down with the Sword of the Spirit.
God uses everything in the lives of his obedient servants including their exits, so we must be vigilant to guard the rare legacy of the servants of God; Bimbo, Nomthi and Taiwo Odukoya who stood as shining witnesses in the gross darkness of a corruption that tries the best of men.
Thompson is the Lead Pastor, Living Waters Unlimited Christian Guild
