Mark 7:6-7
He answered and said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: 'This people honors me in their lips, but their heart is far from me. And in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'
RELIGION COMES FROM the word 'Ligare' which means reconnecting to a source. For Christians that source is God and Jesus is the connection to him. Remember the verse where Jesus says no one can come to The Father except through him. Right then Jesus establishes the religious agenda. God is just a word for all that is Divine so Jesus mentions The Father. Yahweh Elohim to be specific about our source. Different other religions have a divine being in which they believe is the source they need to be connected to.
In fact those days the reason the people were called christians wasn't because they went to church but because they were Christ-like. If you were Christian you were being branded as a satanist because you were drinking of blood and eating of flesh, as Jesus said which they didn't understand.
Now in this generation many people are trying to portray religion as a propaganda that seeks to restrict people to a certain way to act as monotonous christians, and that they need to escape from that life in order to truly see God. All over social media people talk about things like how it's all about having that deeper relationship with Christ-not that it's wrong-but they do it in a way that paints religion in a bad light. For them religion is a matrix they need to escape from in order to truly have that bond with God.
See how they neglect important things in their ignorance to make everything about feelings, and not conviction.
'But in the end everyone has to believe in something, right?' Akin thought, sitting under a mango tree in a mechanic park with a stick of cigarette in between his fingers. Some of the workers came early, about the same time families were entering buses to go to church. For these mechanics it was work first God later, they worried about feeding their families first. God be damned right?
The average Christian isn't seeking God.
Akin blew out a puff of smoke as he thought about himself being immersed in the whole religious act. It seems far-fetched. They wouldn't even allow a devil like him to set foot in a holy ground if they knew of the things he'd committed.
He scoffed. Christians were such hypocrites, many of them in the church. Immediately they stepped out of that building after crying, praying and singing praises to God they'd go back to gossiping, speaking bad about their neighbor behind their back, cursing and just tossing out everything they learned. They only went on Sundays to make themselves feel good.
And he would know. His father made sure to drag them to church every Sunday and then he would come home to beat his wife, drink his arse off till he was wasted and do heinous things to his children as a form of "punishment" to give him sick pleasure.
Does God condone that? Of course not. It's better to serve one master, and for Akin serve no one at all.
The ringing of his phone disrupted his train of thought. An image of a fair young man in his early twenties flashed on the screen with the name client-G$. After being on the run for almost a week now he'd started thinking of the next place to go. He tried contacting old friends and people who owed him favors but none responded till now. Client-G is a rookie he remembered helping a long time ago when he got himself in trouble with the police and the parents he was living under refused to help him. Akin helped him hide until the issue blew over.
"Hello?" Smoke came out of his mouth as he spoke.
"My man, how far? I've been trying your number and it's not going through. Where you dey? You know who this is right? I get some serious work for your crew."
Akin contemplated telling his client of his current position. "Red is dead, guy. Everything is fücked up now," he took a drag, "It was an accident sha. Believe me. So now I'm on my own, I've got no place to stay. You know the rule. Bro, my smartphone died days ago. You're lucky to get through to me now sef. I picked up this phone from somewhere. If the work no be stressful I go run am for you on two conditions."
"Omo things happen but don't worry, anything you need I've got your back. I trust you."
Akin was skeptical.
"I need a place to crash for some time. Don't know how long and no one must know about my whereabouts. Cool?"
"Cool...cool. I need a real hard guy for this mission o. No slacking."
"I be small guy before? No vex me this afternoon."
"Sorry, sorry. I'll send you my current location, make we link up then go to the place from there." He hung up.
A moment later his phone pinged.
The address led to a busy market. Lagos markets are known for its crookedness and crowding, even on a Sunday. Looking beyond the flatter of items to buy he could see clearly the clueless people being extorted and swindled, pickpocketed, ignorant shop owners being stolen from when their backs were turned and young boys moving wheelbarrows singing along to the song blasting from the speakers at the bus station.
This is the hustle of the day. "Man must chop." As they say.
Akin waved at him from afar. Client G sat in front of an electronic shop trying to vibe a lady but waved her off once he arrived. The girl grumbled and walked away.
"What's up? You ready?" He dapped him up. "But first let's get you settled in."
"I still don't know the details of whatever this is." Akin said. He chewed on a mentos gum to hide his smoky breath.
"I got you. Trust me." In the streets trust is the one thing that's hard to give away.
After haggling a fair price from the motorbike driver they left the market and headed into the city. It was a fifteen minute drive back. His client paid then led him up the elevator of the building.
The inside had a large foyer with a huge plasma screen television that had a gaming console next to it, along with several laptops and computer gear. There was a dining area merged with the kitchen along with three bedrooms and two balconies. Light shades of paint have been used everywhere adding to the beauty of the apartment.
"This is my place," he tossed the key on the glass center table, then walked into the kitchen to pour two glasses of whiskey for his guest and himself. "You're welcome to stay as long as you like, till you can get your own space of course. No rush." Client G said, handing him his glass which he drank quickly. Akin had trouble remembering his real name but didn't care to ask.
"This place looks like it costs millions." A flat sitting in the middle of the finest sides Lagos mainland had to offer.
Client G was a certified Yahoo boy, a term given to scammers and fraudsters who went to extreme lengths to make money. Client G was ready to do anything if it guaranteed him money in his pocket. You could tell by the look in his eyes and the way he smiled. Beginning from his teenage years he'd developed a sociopathic behavior many couldn't detect and it made him lose any sense of remorse or morals he had.
He flashed Akin a grin. "You're not a saint yourself."
Akin decided to be wary of the guy standing in front of him.
"Here's the guest room. Rest up. We're having a briefing tonight."
"We?"
"Me and a few of my trusted inner circle members."
He wondered what exactly was the nature of this job his client was so happy and well prepared for.
He shrugged. "No qualms. Thanks for helping me out." When client G left to attend to other things he opened his bag to make sure everything he had was intact. As expected his stolen supplies had finished, and he was only left with some of the cash he stole. Twenty million naira.
He'd have to scope the area out for quick exit points in case the need arose for him to make a quick getaway.
In the meantime Akin stashed his bag in the bathroom cabinet.
He would have to ask client G for the key later.
∞
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What kind of christian are you?