Babafemi Oluyemi

This will be long. Ephesians 1-3 is probably the most important book about the kingdom itself. The Kingdom is Christ, and no Kingdom is outside Christ. And no one was able to communicate the kingdom the way Paul did in Ephesians 1-3. So, Myles Munroe was more of a Kingdom influence pastor; go into the world and do this and that. Influence the culture. Take over systems, shape the world - that’s probably where his takes are coming from. Myles set the basis and principles of engaging the world, which is prominent in certain Christian circles today. It is the reason you find Pastors like Pastor Kunle Soriyan make certain statements that many Christians find disturbing. So, you also find songs like 'I have decided to Follow Jesus' by Gaise Baba. Now, if we go back to all the parables of the Kingdom, those are the forte of Myles Munroe, and where he developed his kingdom concept of shaping and influencing the world. In fact, he started shaping the constitution of countries; I think Somaliland (can’t remember properly) consulted him to shape their constitution after God’s principles. They were on the project before his accident. So, Somaliland ran to Israel (however, there is a political undertone to this too). This is the most critical point in Christendom because Paul didn’t go about telling people to be great business leaders, be innovators, be inventors, etc. Jesus said you are the salt and light of the world, also a city set on the hill that cannot be hidden. Paul believed the Gospel is solely Christ and focused entirely on Him. It’s the reason he was also not overly emphatic about giving, kingdom advancement, prospering, building systems, etc., and pastors like Myles Munroe believed the parables of the kingdom as told by Jesus centered on those things… However, they miss an important aspect of Paul’s ministry and that was Aquila and Priscilla. Both of them were great business leaders but also great missionaries. In our attempt to be a blessing to the world, we’ve become shallow believers, such that we are overly obsessed with money and created a new ministry for ourselves, “Kingdom Financiers”. ''I am called to be a kingdom financier", we hear this everytime. So, we talk about 7 mountains of influence, etc. This is the reason we see ministers start the gospel based on Christ and as they grow and see the needs of people, they pivot to another thing entirely and start carving identities outside of Christ to mentally ascertuate the people to produce certain realities in their lives that they feel. I have spoken about this a few times and say that no identity must be carved outside of Christ under any circumstance because in Christ, we have been given all that pertain to life and Godliness. It's the reason I wrote about Andrew Wommack a few days ago. He seems to be the only minister to teach Christ from a small congregation to global ministry with thousands of members across the world with successful people from every walk of life without carving any identity for the people outside of Jesus Christ for them. No need for dimensions, portals, realms, the seed of this and that.. etc. The point is not to be influential or purposeful in the world, the point is driving another identity into Christians in a bid to influence the world. I believe Aquila and Priscila, whom Paul also managed, are key to answering this; this is my study on them: Aquila was a Jewish native of Pontus (a province in northern Asia Minor along the Black Sea), while his wife Priscilla is frequently designated in Paul’s epistles by her formal Roman name, Prisca. The couple originally established a successful business in Rome. However, around AD 49, Emperor Claudius issued an imperial edict expelling all Jews from the capital. Roman historian Suetonius records this event in De Vita Caesarum (Life of Claudius 25.4), noting that Claudius "expelled from Rome the Jews who were constantly making disturbances at the instigation of Chrestus" (a common Roman misspelling of Christus). This extra-biblical account aligns with Acts 18:2, explaining how a sudden geopolitical crisis forced Aquila and Priscilla to relocate their business from Rome to Corinth, where they met the Apostle Paul. In Acts 18:3, Luke records that Paul stayed and worked with Aquila and Priscilla because "they were tentmakers [skēnopoioi] by trade." The Scope of the Enterprise: In the 1st-century Greco-Roman economy, a skēnopoios was not merely a canvas stitcher, but a skilled artisan working with heavy leather, woven goat hair (cilicium), and textiles to produce military gear, commercial awnings, maritime sails, and travel tents. Marketplace Agility: Their trade required supply chain management, raw material procurement, and client negotiation. It was portable and resilient, allowing them to establish prosperous commercial hubs across three major imperial cities: Rome, Corinth, and Ephesus. Financial Independence: By maintaining a profitable business, they self-funded their missionary journeys and provided financial protection for Paul, shielding his ministry from accusations of seeking financial gain from converts (1 Corinthians 9:15–18). Despite their entrepreneurship prowess, they were vast in Christ and His theology. In Acts 18:24–26, a brilliant Jewish orator from Alexandria named Apollos arrived in Ephesus. Though eloquent and mighty in the Old Testament Scriptures, his understanding of Christian baptism was incomplete, stopping at the baptism of John. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him speaking boldly in the synagogue, they demonstrated remarkable spiritual discernment and grace: Private Correction: Instead of publicly debating or humiliating him, they invited Apollos into their home. Theological Depth: They "explained to him the way of God more accurately" (akribesteron). As lay entrepreneurs, their grasp of Christian doctrine was sophisticated enough to instruct and mentor one of the premier scholars of the early church. Aquila and Priscilla converted their personal residences into strategic mission headquarters: Ecclesial Hubs: They hosted vibrant house-churches in Corinth (1 Corinthians 16:19), Ephesus, and later upon their return to Rome (Romans 16:3–5). Self-Sacrificial Courage: In Romans 16:3–4, Paul writes: "Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but also all the churches of the Gentiles." They put their lives and social standing on the line to shield the apostolic movement during times of violent persecution. This is my conclusion: The purpose of God is to bring men into Christ, make them become Christ experientially, as we minister Christ to the world. This is the purpose of every believer: receive Christ, become Christ experientially and manifest His life (this includes all the gifts of the Spirit). Be productive in the world and solve problems, but your influence is used to minister Christ to men. No one will do it in that field except you. You are a minister of Christ not called to reveal a dimension of God. You are to reveal Christ. So, if you are a career diplomat, for example, you should be able to teach Christ, manifest His Life, bring people in your place of influence into Him and also fund the gospel. In revealing Christ, you are meant to intercede too, who will intercede for people in your place of influence or estate if not you? Your sole purpose in Life is Christ, the secular reality is a means to an end, and the end is Christ. Pauline Epistles captured all these but they don't know. My view.

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