Though founder of Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), Prophet T.B. Joshua is dead, one thing that he took to the grave was that he was rejected in the Christendom in Nigeria. His case was like the rejected cornerstone which Jesus spoke of in Matthew 21:42, which read: “Did ye never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner. This is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
Despite Joshua ‘s exploit, the Christian bodies in Nigeria never accepted him, both the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN). To them, Joshua was simply an exorcist or a charmer and so on.
Joshua was reputed to have said that he was converted in his mother’s womb.
The likes of Pastor Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer, Redeemed Christian Church of Nigeria (RCCG), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, Bishop David Oyedepo and many others rejected Joshua until his death.
Adeboye, in 2009 said he would never go to Joshua’s church to minister.
He was quoted as saying in the Vanguard when asked whether he could worship in Joshua’s church, “No! Definitely not! If he wants me to come and minister in his church, we will sit down; we will discuss the issue of salvation the way I understand it, according to the scriptures.
“If we agree on that and he now wants me to come and preach the same message of salvation in his church, then I will go.”
To Adeboye, Joshua was never born again and so, he could not associate himself with him.
Oritsejafor, when he was PFN president and CAN chairman said the body would not admit Joshua to its fold because they were not convinced that he was a child of God.
He had said then that before Joshua could even qualify to be a PFN member, he should show who tutored him as a pastor in the first place.
Oritsejafor was quoted as saying that “Jesus did not say by their words you will know them; he said by the fruit you shall know them. If T.B. Joshua can show me his pastor who pastored him before he said he was called into the ministry; if T.B. Joshua can tell me when he got converted and how he got converted, then we would consider him. Anybody who is a Christian is a Christian because he received Jesus Christ at a point.
“I gather he said he was converted in his mother’s womb and I don’t see anybody like that in the Bible. It is a conscious decision you make and it doesn’t happen in your mother’s womb.”
He said healing and miracles were not criteriafor admitting anyone into the PFN fold or CAN.
According to Oritsejafor, “We are not taking T.B Joshua but like I said, he too can repent and be converted tomorrow. T.B Joshua can say I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and personal saviour; I repent of my sins. Then he can say, come check me out and see what I am doing then we can consider accepting him. PFN is for all; nobody is really excluded.”