Evang. Tope Alabi has been trending since yesterday for her criticism of the Yoruba song: “Oniduro mi, e seun o”. I have always said that our songs are a reflection of our theology and thus our theology determines what songs we accept and vice versa. I talked more on this in my sermon about three Sundays ago.
That said, how do I view the criticism?
1. There is nothing wrong with a public criticism of anything that has already gone public. Yes, Aunty Tope Alabi should have called the attention of the composer privately but it’s not a sin that she did so publicly. Personally, I don’t know the composer but it doesn’t matter who it is. If he/she goofs, we can correct him/her publicly.
2. The basis for Sister Tope Alabi’s rejection is not the Bible. She didn’t say she is rejecting the song because she studied the Bible and she found the song as incorrect based on what the Bible says. She is criticizing the song because “God told her”. And, because God told her, she believes she is right while the composer is wrong. This is typical of many Charismatics.
3. Sister Tope Alabi said that if you receive a song “divinely” and do not meditate on it together with the Holy Spirit, you will sing nonsense. I wonder how the Holy Spirit will give me a “song” or lyrics and I would still need to meditate on it with the Holy Spirit to avoid singing nonsense. Is she saying the Holy Spirit “directly” gives us nonsense via “inspiration” and then the same Holy Spirit will now need our meditation to change the nonsense to sense? What sort of Holy Spirit is Aunty Tope Alabi talking about? I want to believe that a song that needs to be reworked is not divine. Simple! How will you work on what God has already worked on?
Like, who the hell are you?
4. Sister Tope Alabi said we are to use our brain to digest and chew what is received from God before sharing it. Wow! Didn’t she read in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned”? How can our brain digest what we claim God has revealed DIRECTLY and then come up with a different wording other than the wording God gave? Or am I missing something?
5. Sister Tope Alabi said God is not her guarantor. Who is a guarantor? According to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary (photo 1), it means:
(a) a person who promises to pay back a loan if the original borrower does not pay it back.
As sinners, we were debtors and unable to pay. Jesus not only promised to pay but He paid our debts in FULL!
WHAT A GREAR GUARANTOR!
Another meaning of guarantor is:
(b) one that guarantees
What does it mean to guarantee? Same Merriam Webster’s Dictionary (Picture 2) defines guarantee as: “an assurance for the fulfillment of a condition.” The Holy Spirit is the guarantee of our inheritance (Eph. 1:14).
A guarantor is also someone who gives guarantee. If the Holy Spirit is our guarantee and the Holy Spirit was given to us by the
Father and the Son, then:
The Father is our guarantor
Jesus is guarantor with respect to our debts against God. The Holy Spirit is our guarantor with respect to our future inheritance as co-heirs with Jesus. In short, the Trinity is our Guarantor!
5. Aunty Tope Alabi admitted that she had also goofed in her songs in the past. That’s a good one. She can do more by recomposing such songs and pointing out the errors there. On this note, I leave the podium.
Thanks for reading!
By Anthony Opeyemi Ibn Fawole
First Published On: Naijagospelradio
