Cornerstone Anointed Church of Christ, Surulere, Lagos has come a long way in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ and in inculcating good morals in Nigeria.
The church, which marked her 22nd anniversary, recently, has not left any stone unturned in ensuring that the life and victory of Jesus Christ is celebrated. In this interview with Gilbert Ekezie, Founder, senior Pastor of the church, Peter Unoarumhi, spoke about the church and how he became a cleric after a stint with a confraternity. He also commented on corruption and need for better morals in Nigeria.
Could you tell us about Cornerstone Anointed Church of Christ?
Cornerstone Anointed Church of Christ was founded 22 years ago during Easter. So, we celebrated the church’s 22nd anniversary on Easter day, April 16. We have come a long way. The vision of the church is centered on Jesus Christ. So, it is completely a Christ centric church. Among other things, we preach the messages of hope, faith, holiness and most importantly, of love that is expressed, especially during the period of Easter in order to save us from sin and grant us new and eternal life.
What were the highlights of the 22nd anniversary celebration?
We preached the word of God to give people hope that is beyond this earth, so that they would live for eternal reasons. The word takes pre-eminence in people’s lives. There were also drama sketches from children and adults as well as music from the choir to get us into the Easter mood and to celebrate, as God wants us to.
What was the theme of this year’s anniversary?
The theme was Lead for Jesus, taken from John 5:6. This is because we believe in living with Jesus and dying in Him and that is why we use the anniversary to celebrate the victory of Jesus Christ.
What do you think is the impact of Cornerstone Anointed Church of Christ on the society?
I would say that the impact of our church is not felt in the numerical side, but in the character side. People’s values have changed and they have discovered that they were living according to the wrong values of life. That is to say, they were materialistic in nature. But now, a lot of them are characterized for eternal purposes, living their lives in Jesus Christ and trusting Jesus Christ to express Himself in their lives, their family units, their children and other things they have. So, the change is more spiritual than physical. However, there have been physical changes as well, especially in the area of outstanding miracles in the church that Jesus had done. Sometimes, so silently, people have been delivered from blindness, and there have been other uncommon miracles. Here, a child was cured of blindness, just by the touch of anointing oil; a medical doctor was also healed of an ailment in the body, while so many others have received healings from various illnesses. In fact, there are enormous miracles God has been doing in this church, and there had been outstanding testimonies of people whom Jesus has lifted up financially after their salvation. Now, they have much to show, compared to before. Therefore, Jesus is characterizing himself in various ways, and there had been so much contentment and godliness among members of the church, as a hallmark of true Christianity. That is the summary of the work Jesus is doing here.
Could you tell us how you found yourself in the ministry?
Oh, it’s an amazing story. Well, I attended the University of Ibadan, where I studied Philosophy and Religious Studies and obtained a Bachelor of Arts, 2nd Class Lower Division. Thereafter, I got a job as a Marketing Officer in Lagos and rented an apartment at Anthony Village. One day, I saw my former girlfriend, Becky Musa, an actress in those days whom I went to university with, looking for accommodation. Fortunately, she got a place close to me at Anthony. Meanwhile, I was a pirate at UI. At a point, I was not so comfortable to continue to be a pirate, but there was no alternative. After sometime, cancer struck Becky and I was there for her, trying to make some changes in her life, even when the doctors were telling me what would happen. Becky was in the hospital beyond the time the doctor said she would spend. Thereafter, someone whispered to me that this is the time God wanted to meet with me and not just about Becky. That was how the journey started. So, I listened to the voice and gave my life to Jesus Christ without delay. That was the beginning of my Christian work.
How was your wife’s cancer healed?
In fact, God proved himself and gave her unexpected healing. We went abroad. Later, we returned to Nigerian and I married her.
How was Cornerstone Anointed Church of Christ founded?
After our marriage, we also traveled back to America where I started a ministry in 1992 during my Masters degree programme at the Christian University but Cornerstone was founded at Surulere, in Lagos, Nigeria in 1994 after I graduated from the Christian University.
What are your experiences as a pastor?
It has been a provision of grace of Jesus Christ. I would say that I have met all kinds of people who truly want to live their lives with God. I have come in contact with scientists, who are philosophical about life; who do not see life only from what the common sense teaches. I have also met the good, the bad and the ugly. But in all, God has plans for everyone. So, it is an interesting thing seeing God expressing Himself in humanity. There is nothing I can compare with my ministry, because God is really doing what is good in the lives of those who believe in Him.
What challenges are you facing in the ministry?
They are not many, though I have seen that men cannot deliver promises than they claim, but God can always deliver His own promises. It’s important to learn the lessons of time and to put one’s trust in God and not in man. There are very faithful men God has given to me in this church, especially my leaders who are men of seasoned grace. There is no silver, gold or money than my co-workers who have been working without incidents of quarrels being witnessed in other places. God has blessed us with a very sound leadership in this place. I see them as people who can deliver the good given to them.
What’s the role of the church in correcting the ills of society?
Well, I believe that the church is too significant in correcting the ills of society. This is because it’s the light of the world. The problem of corruption President Buhari is fighting was supposed to be the crusade of the church, because it lives in holiness. It is quite unfortunate that level of corruption in Nigeria is alarming.
So, the church should be in the forefront in the fight against corruption. Unfortunately, we have a lot of churches that are worldly and not ready to share this vision. It’s a very crucial fact that the society needs to change for better and the church should do more in that regard.
After 22 years your church is today growing very fast, could you tell us what the beginning was like?
It was indeed very tough and challenging. We started in our living room and with me alone, because initially, my wife refused to join me in my devotional studies in America. It was a serious problem for me, wanting my wife to join me. But, she wanted her own devotional studies different from mine. But God told me that everyone has his or her own calling and that I should be patient with her. That I did and after sometime, she joined me and we started working together. Later, another person came to join us at the devotion and things began to change. Thereafter, the person brought another two people and the ministry started to grow gradually. So, when we returned to Nigeria, we gathered some people in our living room. From there, we decided to use our garage and an extension outside. Later, we started putting canopies on the street. It was 13 years after that God gave us this auditorium we are in today.
Could you advise the present leadership in Nigeria?
Two things are there. Our leaders should know God, if they must lead well. If they refuse to toe the path of God in their leadership engagements, they cannot succeed. They should understand that if one is leading people to him, he is misleading them. Interestingly, no one takes good care of anybody, except God. Therefore, our leaders should be servants and not bosses, as we are seeing today. If we have good leaders serving us, the country will be more buoyant and interesting to live in. There will also be peace and God will be able to express Himself better. Also, Nigerians and parts of the world will be proud to identify with the country. Moreover, it’s easy for the led to follow the leader. The problem of life is not usually the led, but the leadership. When the truth is modeled by leaders, the followers will be persuaded to give their lives and follow.
What’s your vision?
My vision is to stay with Jesus Christ, concerning relationship, anointing and character. Relationship of love, which is the greatest commandment, anointing from Jesus Christ and His enablement to live His life, then character which is the fruit of the spirit.
What’s your advice to parents?
The instruction of God is not only to train children, but also to train them in the way of the Lord. Children are looking for a place they will stay and not go back but they are unable to find it. The church is a sleeping giant where there should be spiritual education for the children. Children need education that will actually reveal Jesus Christ to them. We have broken homes today, because we refused to allow God be in charge of our marital relationships and homes.
It’s not God’s nature that people should divorce. But, when God is disregarded, problems maximize. So, we need to come back to what God told us by training up our children in the way of God. Nothing is wrong when people celebrate children who are educationally intelligent, but if God is not given to them earlier, devil will capture them.