In a recent heartfelt appeal, Pastor Ayo Akerele, senior pastor of Rhema Assembly and founder of Voice of the Watchmen Ministries in Ontario, Canada, has raised an urgent alarm over the state of Christianity in Nigeria. He warns that if spiritual fathers do not rise to repair the broken walls of the gospel, the current generation of youths will plunge into brazen apostasy, potentially leading to the extinction of Christianity in Nigeria by 2030.
The Growing Crisis of Dishonor
Pastor EA Adeboye, one of Nigeria's most respected fathers of faith, has recently become the target of ridicule, mockery, and online shaming, especially from children and youths. This troubling trend, Akerele notes, reflects a deeper spiritual crisis. He asks, 'How did we arrive at a point where sons and daughters boldly stand behind cameras to dishonor fathers without fear, restraint, or remorse?'
Citing Judges 2:10, he laments that a generation has arisen that does not know the Lord. Reports of prominent Christian leaders' children abandoning the faith or embracing African traditional religion have further devastated him. In his 42 years of walking with the Lord, he says he has never encountered a generation of youths as angry, disappointed, disillusioned, and vindictive as the present one.
Cultural Storms and a Diluted Gospel
Akerele identifies powerful ideological forces—Feminism, Globalism, Humanism, and Universalism—that challenge biblical truth. Tragically, many clergy have adjusted, diluted, and rebranded the gospel to align with these forces, producing a powerless Christianity devoid of the cross, holiness, and spiritual authority. Children raised in this environment see no reason to submit to a gospel that lacks authenticity and transformative power.
The Failure of Spiritual Blacksmiths
Drawing from Ecclesiastes 10:10, Akerele compares spiritual leaders to blacksmiths who must sharpen the axe. However, many have abandoned their sacred duty of prayer and discipleship to focus on money-making. He recounts watching the children of a faithful church servant weep bitterly as their father was mistreated by the institution he served. They confessed they would reconsider their commitment to Jesus if they could turn back time. 'These children may never serve the God of their father,' he warns.
The Church's Compromised Witness
While the Nigerian church has experienced God's mercies over the past 50 years, there has not been a commensurate display of biblical truth and kingdom-mindedness among leaders. The crises of insecurity, economic collapse, and bad leadership have evaporated the church's goodwill among the younger generation. Akerele notes that many top church leaders maintain strategic relationships with government officials, raising expectations that the church would influence the political class toward justice and fairness. Yet, the church cannot take over the functions of elected politicians.
A Generation on the Edge of Apostasy
Tens of thousands of young people in the church today stand on the precipice of apostasy and atheism, disillusioned by hypocrisy, greed, immorality, and doctrinal confusion. They are in church but not in Christ; they can organize but cannot agonize; they can feast but cannot fast. If the fathers do not rise, this generation will plunge into apostasy, and the church's influence will be obliterated.
When the Fathers Carry Swords but the Children Do Not
Akerele references 1 Samuel 2:12 and 1 Samuel 13:22 to illustrate the tragedy of children without swords—the Word of God. Many youths have never been trained in Scripture, prayer, holiness, or spiritual warfare. Instead of the world coming to the church for sharpening, the church now goes to the world. Culture is shaping Scripture instead of the reverse.
Lessons from History
Akerele cites examples of great ministers whose children rejected the faith due to careless living, hypocrisy, or imbalance in ministry: Billy Graham's son Franklin rebelled before becoming an evangelist; Andy Stanley walked away wounded by church conflict; John Piper's son Abraham became a vocal atheist; and Paul Washer's child struggled despite a godly home. These stories remind us that ministry without balance destroys families, hypocrisy kills faith, and a leader's private life shapes the spiritual destiny of their home.
The Urgent Need for Intercession and Authentic Christianity
The world is getting hotter, the church is getting colder, and the fathers are aging. The future of the African church rests in today's youths, but they need to be trained in intercession, sanctification, discipleship, genuine repentance, compassion, faithfulness, and evangelism. Akerele calls for surgical urgency to call them back.
The Power of Godly Mothers and Fathers
He highlights the examples of Susanna Wesley, Morrow Graham, and Katharina Luther, who shaped revival through intercession and godly influence. Jonathan Edwards, a spiritual blacksmith, sparked the First Great Awakening. Today, however, the message has been rewritten from 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God' to 'God in the hands of angry sinners.'
A Warning to Angry Youths
To youths whose tongues are sharp against the fathers, Akerele says: 'The causes of evil do not excuse the consequences of evil. You may be angry, but you do not have the authority to judge your fathers. God does. Rise above the failures of Eli and carry your own cross.'
Conclusion: Return to Truth
He calls for repentance, the cessation of hypocrisy, and a return to truth. 'If we do not live the truth, the next generation will never catch the flame. If we do not model righteousness, they will never walk in it.' Quoting Psalm 145:4, he prays that God would raise blacksmiths again, restore the hearts of fathers to children and children to fathers, and awaken the church before it is too late.
