By Nwamulu Namma in Abuja
A fiery call for holiness echoed across pulpits and social media this week as a gospel minister reminded believers that being a child of God goes beyond prayer and preaching. “What makes you a true child of God is not because you can pray and preach. Ada Ogbunka says what makes you a true child of God is because you’re living holy for Christ, both inside and outside,” she declared.
The message, which has sparked wide discussion among Christians, emphasized that outward appearance and inward character must align with the word of God. She lamented that many believers today profess salvation but live contrary to biblical standards.
“Today we have Christians who dress and look like harlots, and make claims they’re saved by grace,” she said, urging the church to return to the standard of modesty, purity and separation that Scripture demands. Ada Ogbunka referenced 1 Peter 1:16: “Be holy, for I am holy.”
The minister expressed deep concern over what she called the rise of false shepherds. “The one that beats me so much is that they will go as far as setting up a church and starts misleading the blind to hell,” she lamented, warning that God will hold such leaders accountable for leading people astray.
She however noted that grace is not a license to sin but the power to live righteously. According to her, Titus 2:11-12 makes it clear that the grace of God teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world.
The preacher called on pastors, youths and church workers to examine their lives both in private and in public. _“God is looking at the heart and also at how we represent Him in our dressing, speech and lifestyle. We cannot preach Christ on Sunday and deny Him on Monday,” she said.
She therefore urged believers to be examples in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith and in purity, as admonished in 1 Timothy 4:12. “Holiness is not legalism. It is love for Christ. It is proof that the Spirit of God truly dwells in us,” she added.
Closing with a prayer, the minister cried out: _“God help us.”she called the church to repentance, revival and a return to the old path, where believers were known not just by their gifts, but by their Christ-like character inside the church and in the streets.
Scripture Reference Sidebar: LIVING HOLY
1 Peter 1:16. Be holy, for I am holy.
Titus 2:11-12. Grace teaches us to live godly
Matthew 7:20. By their fruit you shall know them.
