God’s Plan for His Pan-African Church
BEYOND THE DECADE PRAYER GUIDE: October 2024
Where is God leading his Pan-African Church? God’s principle has always remained the same. Into spiritual maturity, expansion, and increase.
You can’t bring hope to the dead in their graves through maintenance of the graveyard grounds and gardens. It does no good to the dead in their graves. The Pan-African church has been called into the valley of bones, that is, the world of voodoo philosophy, humanism, and materialism, to prophesy over them and to raise them to life.
The Pan-African church can secure lessons from the experiences of the returned exiles to Jerusalem from Babylon, narrated in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. The spiritual terrain was ripe for a rebuilding and yet fraught with danger, and the Last days as taught by Jesus himself and his disciples would be framed in a similar narrative. The returned exiles had to identify what was the most important aspect in the rebuilding of the temple. This is the question the Pan-African church must address to be the kind of instrument God Most high has fashioned it to be in these Last days.
The return of the exiles and the rebuilding of the second temple were key preparations for the first coming of Christ. Because “The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. And in this place, I will bring peace. I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!” Haggai 2:9 (NLT). It was therefore important the royal and priestly lineages were accounted for, to return to the land of Israel after the seventy years of exile to prepare for the coming of the Messiah long prophesied about. Joseph and Mary, both of royal lineage, would be Jesus’ parents about 400 years after the Return of the Exiles from Babylon. The priest, Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, both of priestly lineage, would play key roles in Jesus’ birth about 400 years after the Return of the Exiles from Babylon. Likewise, the Pan-African Church must account for the ‘Elect’ called to birth spiritual descendants to prepare the world for the Second Coming of Christ. And none will be lost under the discerning leadership of the Ezras and Nehemiahs who are being raised in the Pan-African Church.
Even members of the ten tribes of the Northern kingdom were accounted for among the returning exiles from Babylon though many were lost to the Assyrian conquest and assimilation processes and disappeared from history. It is recorded in 2 Chronicles 31:8 that many families from the Northern kingdom lived in Judah, the Southern Kingdom, during the reign of Hezekiah, “And the people of Israel and Judah who lived in the cities of Judah also brought in the tithe of cattle and sheep, and the tithe of the dedicated things that had been dedicated to the Lord their God, and laid them in heaps.” And many more moved in during the reign of Josiah, who virtually reigned over both kingdoms as the northern kingdom was repopulated by the Assyrians with people of other countries. “They came to Hilkiah the high priest and gave him money that had been brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the keepers of the threshold, had collected from Manasseh and Ephraim and from all the remnant of Israel and from all Judah and Benjamin and from the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” 2 Chronicles 34:9 (ESV). And the remnant of the Northern kingdom living in Judah would have gone along into exile to Babylon when the Southern Kingdom fell.
Accounting for the ten tribes was important to God the Father’s plan for the first coming of Christ. Some of these descendants would play important roles. For example, Anna, from the tribe of Asher, would prophesy over baby Jesus at the temple. And along with her, Simeon of Jerusalem would be led into the second temple to see baby Jesus and warn Mary, “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.’ (Luke 2:21–38, NIV). Jesus himself would constitute his apostles from each of the twelve tribes. For example, Jude or Thaddeus was from the tribe of Judah; Paul or Saul of Tarsus from the tribe of Benjamin; Matthew or Levi from the tribe of Levi and James the son of Alphaeus from the tribe of Zebulun; Bartholomew or Nathanael from the tribe of Napthali; Simon the Zealot was a descendant of three tribes, Asher, Issachar and Gad; James the son of Zebedee from the tribe of Ephraim; and Simon Peter or Simon Bar-Jonah from the tribe of Reuben (Daniel Gallik, 2024).
God has set his love on the remnant from every tribe of Africa and every African Diaspora bloc who constitutes His Pan-African Church whom he has enlisted to participate in his “strange” work in these tail end of the Last days: “The Lord will rise up as he did at Mount Perazim, he will rouse himself as in the Valley of Gibeon — to do his work, his strange work, and perform his task, his alien task.” Isaiah 28:21. The Pan-African Church is the voice calling in the wilderness “prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:3.
Walking back into the pre-exile era, it is interesting to note that as the judgment of exile for Judah drew closer, God raised a righteous king, Josiah, whose reign was marked with righteous, young, and powerful prophets, Huldah, Jeremiah, Zephaniah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Uriah, and as expected were challenged by a slew of false prophets: for example, Hananiah opposing Jeremiah. When judgment is close, God in his graciousness raises more urgent prophetic voices to warn people, so some might be saved. Jesus is coming soon and with him judgment. And a righteous Pan-African church raised to be the powerful prophetic voice in these Last days will likewise produce Spirit-filled leaders and young people with unwavering allegiance to Jesus in these times “when not standing for Him would have been comfortable.”
King Josiah’s reform was prophesied at least 300 years earlier by a young prophet God sent to confront King Jeroboam about the idolatry he had introduced to the Northern kingdom to secure his reign. The ministry of that young prophet from Judah was cut short through judgment. “And as he went away a lion met him on the road and killed him. And his body was thrown in the road, and the donkey stood beside it; the lion also stood beside the body.” 1Kings 13:24. An old prophet in Bethel had deceived him to disobey God’s instructions not to eat or drink in Israel until he got back to Judah.
Pray for the Pan-African church to beware of the Old Prophet in Bethel. Bethel literally means the House of God. Yes, these old prophets dwell in the House of God! This is the old prophet, the old church the Bible does not call a man of God; this is the old prophet, the old church, which dwells in Bethel, described by Jacob as the gate of heaven, but now the gate of golden calf worship, the door to hell. This old prophet, the old church that used to be associated with famous evangelistic and discipleship work has apostatized and not preaching against idol worship or syncretism; this old prophet, the old church has sunk into moral depravity, and deceives and misleads spiritually promising youth.
In the past a young prophet, a young promising Pan-African church was silenced through deception. But even through that ministry, the hands of voodoo idolators shriveled like that of Jeroboam, their wicked altars and shrines split apart, and ashes poured out. The threats from these evil authorities were silenced because of the complete obedience of the faithful few, until these evil authorities pulled the trick of the old prophet. But God had better plans. Pray that this ‘New’ Pan-African church God has raised will flourish in its mandate just as the prophecy concerning Josiah’s reforms in Israel were fulfilled so thoroughly. Pray that the Pan-African church will be empowered to purge every Pan-African community: destroy all voodoo high places; carved images, altars, shrines, Eastern incense altars and ground them all to powder through effective evangelism, discipleship, and deliverances. Pray that the zeal, passion, commitment, and devotion of the Pan-African Church will be unmatched in every community we operate. Pray that the work of the Pan-African Church inspired by scripture will be distinctly characterized by (inspiredscripture.com):
i. faith-led obedience
ii. worship that is guided by God’s Word
iii. an insatiable appetite for learning God’s Word
iv. repentance and living in continual confession
v. growing in fearing God
vi. Spirit-led intercessory prayers
vii. Growing inner peace from trusting God’s Word
What are the expectations of the Pan-African Church? What is the Pan-African Church’s hope for the African and people of African descent in this pivotal moment? A renaissance? No. But something of the spirit and vision of Simeon. “Simeon is not witnessing a political movement or military revolt to overthrow Rome. He does not experience a revival of strict law-keeping led by the Jewish religious leaders of the day. Nor is that the kind of fulfillment he has been expecting. All that Simeon has longed for is wrapped up in this baby he now holds in His arms.” (Josh Matthews, 2015). Pray that the Pan-African Church will recognize the “Consolation of Israel” (Isa 40:1) and be fully satisfied and fulfilled in Him alone.
So how should the Pan-African Church prepare itself to engage the world the way God approves? “This is the first thing that must be done before our temple-building or other undertakings can be crowned with success…. The new start that God Himself was giving would have been invalidated without the altar, which meant forgiveness for the past, and renewed consecration for the future.” (Meyer). Pray that the Pan-African Church will seek forgiveness from God for our past mistakes, ignorance, and sins, and that we will consecrate ourselves to the Lord willingly as the chosen vessel to lead His church in these tail end of the Last Days.
Pray that the Pan-African Church will grow in understanding that the dynamics of church growth in these tail end of the Last days will be less characterized by buildings as in the past and present Christian era, but a taking over of domains: particularly new and dangerously evolving philosophical and social domains. “For the weapons of our warfare are not worldly but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every proud obstacle to the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.” (2 Corinthians 10:4–5). Maclaren’s comment on Ezra 3:1–3 is an insight to value. “There cannot be a temple without an altar, but there may be an altar without a temple. God meets men at the place of sacrifice, even though there be no house for His name.”
Pray that young evangelists, teachers, pastors, and prophets God is raising in and for his Pan African Church to distinctly mark her as his chosen vessel in His Last days work will rise and stand apart, their ministry and service more important than the physical spaces in which they operate, as they conquer ‘domains’ through effective evangelism and discipleship, confirmed with extraordinary signs and miracles. God is calling these to do this great work now as a foundation to define the bigger things ahead in this time of ‘small resources.’ “Thus, we see, the full establishment of religious services precedes the building of the temple. A weighty truth is enshrined in this apparently incongruous fact. The worship itself is felt to be more important than the house in which it is to be celebrated.” (Adeney).
Would the brand of Christianity you are practicing enable you to respond to the ministry of the Last Days God is calling his New Pan-African Church to undertake? “But after 70 years of captivity in Babylon, they were given the opportunity to return to their homeland, the Promised Land. Out of some two or three million Jews deported from the land, only 50,000 decided to return to the Promised Land — approximately only 2%.” (Enduring Word). Pray that every Pan-African Christian will be counted worthy to respond to and participate in the work God has called his New Pan-African Church to undertake in his Last Days agenda.
Pray for the revival of the Church generally in these Last days to prepare for the Second Coming of Christ. Pray against the discouragement tactics of the world system that could lead Christ followers to build ‘their own houses’ instead of the ‘house of God.’ Jesus cautions those building their own houses, “How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God.” John 5:44.
God richly bless you as you endeavor to intercede for everyone of African descent to be set free to fully live for Christ Jesus, our only Lord and Savior, so we can fulfill our assignment as a people God has planned to use in His Last Days Agenda.
Beyond the Decade Vision is led and implemented by Beyond the Decade Coalition. To learn more about the Coalition, its members, and its mandate, visit www.beyondthedecade.org.
