Miracle Life Family Church

The Walkers (Senior Pastors of MLFC)

I could be wrong, but it is my opinion that MLFC has built something of a bad reputation with Reformed Baptist church leaders and enthusiasts in Lusaka for pilfering the young people in our churches. Last Sunday, I decided to go and see what the fuss is all about. What I found there was not what I expected.

I, like my counterpart, had been to Miracle Life before but never on a Sunday to attend the service. I think it would be fair to say that we were both astounded at what we found there, and pleasantly so. Obviously attending one church service doesn’t offer the most comprehensive perspective of what a church is all about and there's more to a church than it's Sunday service. One thing is sure; Reformed Baptist church folk in Zambia can learn a thing or two from MLFC.

A quick run through of our time there would go like this:

We attended the second, 10.30am, service. Traffic thickened as we approached the building with a hoard of first-service attendees leaving as a whole other hoard, like us, were making our way to attend the service that followed. We quickly got parked and made our way in. Ushers showed us where we would find free seats. We didn’t want to miss anything so we opted for the middle column, third row from front where the pulpit would be directly in front of us. The praise team stood on some make shift ascending steps on the left. Directly in front of us and right behind the pulpit were three individuals who led the praise team. Directly behind them going towards the right hand side were the musicians. The praise team were already leading the worship with some vernacular selection, shifting left and right with the enthusiasm that would make a Reformed Zambian Baptist’s skin crawl. The rock n' roll concert coloured background lights which were flashing didn't really help in settling our reformed hearts though they were turned off from the point we took communion onwards.

Things settled down as they led us through several songs of worship. All words were projected and the congregation stood throughout the singing. A group of suited men walked in through a front side door to occupy the front row of the right column and quickly joined the rest of us in standing and raising hands in praise and worship.

A relatively man young man who appeared to be one of the pastors came up and welcomed us all asking first time visitors to raise their hands so that we could be identified and given some cards and brochures for filling in. He invited the Senior Pastor, a white man named Walker, up front who explained that we would have communion after a song among other things. The praise team led us in another song and the bread and cup were passed around in a beautiful routine where as soon as you got yours, you stood up waiting for everyone to get theirs so that together, at the end, everyone ate together. When that was done there was a prayer and we were all seated. When we raised our heads at “Amen,” the stage which at first was filled had only the Pastor and two young ladies behind him on either side of the pulpit. The one holding a guitar gave their agenda away. The Pastor announced that the offering bags would be passed round and left the stage as the young ladies immediately broke into an extremely well presented song. When they were done, the young looking man, likely a pastor, returned to make announcements and invited Pastor Walker up to preach. The Pastor re-echoed a few announcements and opened to Proverbs 5 right after announcing that if any parents didn’t want their children to listen to the sermon on sexual purity, they could go to the exit where they would find ushers to take their kids to ‘Children’s Church’. He did however state that he wouldn’t say anything that would be thought explicit that the bible didn’t say. After an excellent sermon that would pass in any Reformed Baptist church, the Pastor asked us all to bow our heads. A musician rush up the pulpit area to begin playing the keyboard softly as the Pastor said a few stirring words and invited those who wished to give their lives to Christ to come forward. About six people came up and they were ushered through a side door on the opposite end of the one used by the Pastor and his team. As the Pastor invited anyone who needed help on any spiritual matter to come up front and see the people in front, about five individuals with name tags stepped up from the front row and walked towards the pulpit area and turned to face the people and we were dismissed.

I'll be honest. I'm not sure what MLFC is all about yet but from what I saw, I could move there. The gospel was certainly preached and emphasised. The man pretty much sounded reformed to me with some pentecostal influence. I read through their core beliefs and saw things like their emphasis on scripture and family. Obviously, some elements would be taken with a pinch of salt, but from my brief visit, we are beating the same drum especially as far as the gospel in concerned.

My preference is the Reformed Baptist churches because of our beliefs and gospel drive but I understand why we are losing our young people to MLFC. To put it in a word, I'd say "excellence". In fact, excellence, like the emphasis on scripture was mentioned among their core beliefs and values and boy did it show. I noticed it in at least two areas where we are, in my opinion, desperately lacking in our own churches.

1. Aesthetics

From the moment you drive/walk through the gate of MLFC you can't help but notice the aesthetic touch. The place is clean and beautiful. All the booths are well set up with labels. The pulpit area and pulpit itself is adequately lit and well set up and mapped out. Not too busy, not too plain. I have heard that they invested quite significantly to make sure the place ended up looking as good as it looks. The seats for the congregation are orderly and uniform, their floor is carpeted and well tiled. The paint on the walls looks fresh and void of markings or stains and even the placing of speakers and microphones is orderly and clearly thought through.

2. Organization

As soon as you drive through the gate, traffic control people in yellow traffic vests line the parking lot, directing you to where you should park. As you make your way to the doors of the building, all the exits and conveniences are well marked with signs to lead to them. There is something of an information desk for anyone needing any direction or information. There are several well marked booths for those who wish to register for certain seminars and courses announced during the service. For those interested in joining a midweek church group that meets for prayer and bible study, there is a well marked booth. All ushers are immediately identifiable and are eager to help and welcome. One is stationed at each exit and they line the aisles. Their sound and instruments are well balanced with no single microphone too loud or too low. The projector is well managed and used both during the singing and preaching. Each verse read appeared on screen in the version the preacher read it. Two or so times, a message appeared on the screen calling for the parents of so and so to make their way to the back. The musicians and praise team were in sync with no interruptions. Even the dressing of the choir and musicians is thought through. They are well placed on the pulpit area and well spread out. Even their exiting and getting onto the pulpit area is seamless and easily goes unnoticed. You cannot miss the work that they have put in to ensure that they are well prepared for the Sunday worship service. One may attempt to criticize them as maybe too prepared but at least they are organized and make an effort to ensure the best environment and aura for guest and member alike.

We as reformed baptists sin in our failure to apply ourselves in preparing for the sabbath worship, especially those who play specific roles and oversee the worship service for God's people. The aesthetic element is altogether missing. Our pulpit areas generally look terrible. You certainly do not return to the church because of how well organized and laid out it is. Yes, many churches go to an extreme and overemphasize this at the expense of the message but the opposite is just as inexcusable. I looked around and saw the diversity of people around, even Indians, in the congregation and quite easily understand how they achieve such a high attendee retention rate. We need to improve, beauty must follow from truth!

What MLFC does takes work and commitment to ensure that the people playing a role during the service are well prepared and set for the service. Everyone knows what they are doing and where they should be. Everyone has done their homework and is ready to play their part with excellence. Worshipping in a Reformed Baptist church can at times be a complete put off. We have settled for mediocrity and it is a shame on us because it is really treating the Lord's day with contempt. Because we do not apply ourselves, we don't even think of ways to make things better. One of the announcements the Pastor made at MLFC was the need to upgrade their projectors. Also, he spoke of a new system they would employ where all those who arrived for the 10.30am service before 10.30am would park in a special car park so that they had priority to leave first and not get caught up in traffic. That is excellence, that is a sign of people who take the Lord's day and worship of God's people seriously trying to always improve the systems and routines they employ. Perhaps we need to form "Excellence Ministries". Whatever the solution may be, I hope we reverse this unfortunate situation in our churches where we are content with mediocrity!

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The Prime Danger Of Being Reformed

I’m proud to be reformed. I’m proud to be a five pointer. Don’t get me wrong. Being reformed doesn’t make me proud – at least I hope it doesn't – but rather, I am ready to wear my convictions on my sleeve. I am not ashamed of them.

However, there are times when I find myself ashamed of wearing the reformed colours. There are times I walk away from a discussion or meeting embarrassed to be associated with my own. The compelling convictions of the reformed faith have a tendency to make one think they are more superior and knowledgeable than the rest. And when I see this happening I, to some degree, despise myself and my own.

Paul, aware of this danger for those who espouse to the truth, elevates love over knowledge in one instance saying in effect, better an ignoramus who loves than a know-it-all who doesn’t and again, in a different instance, elevates love over even faith and hope. In 1 Corinthians 8.1, he says knowledge puffs up but love builds up going on to say in effect that the minute you think you know it all is the very minute when you must realized that you’ve missed it! It's not likely that you'll find a reformed person claiming to know it all but sometimes we behave like it! And do not be deceived, actions do, in fact, speak louder than words. In 2 Corinthians 15.2, Paul says, faith and hope are great but the greatest thing is love. Knowledge is good. But without the endearing ingredient of love, it can be an ugly, obnoxious and repugnant thing. Elsewhere, he encouraged that truth be shared but with one qualification, that it be done ‘in love’ (Ephesians 4.15).

Too many times, the language, both audible and visible, of reformed people is indicative of a people who look down and despise others for their beliefs and convictions that are contrary to the teachings of scripture.

I recently came across some reformed brethren saying in a rather public forum that the belief that one can cover their houses and cars in the blood of Jesus, as many believe, was ‘silly’ and ‘rubbish’. And an individual who practiced this covering of property in the blood of Jesus witnessed it all. A few Sundays ago, someone called the catholic church 'unserious' in a meeting where, unaware to them of course, at least one catholic person was present. The response from the audience was laughter and I think I laughed too. No doubt, that person won’t be visiting our church or any Reformed church any time soon. That’s the kind of thing I am talking about.

The paradox here is that the reformed faith emphasizes God and de-emphasizes us, that’s what I find compelling about it in fact. It takes the man off the center of the stage removing the stage lights off him and illuminates God, putting Him on center stage instead.

Take limited atonement for instance. Christ died for some and not all. And those for whom he died were chosen not because of anything good in them but by his grace alone. How does one come away from such a doctrine and bash other people for wrong beliefs and convictions? It’s a contradiction. What about irresistible grace? You do not come to God by your own strength and desire but by the irresistible call of the Spirit. It’s not you, it’s God. Yet with that kind of knowledge we go on to look down on those who refute the teachings of scripture. It doesn’t make any sense.

It could be that our knowledge ends in our heads but doesn’t successfully make it down to our hearts to effect change in our lives. In which case, the ignorant are better than us, at least they have an excuse.

For many though, it could be mere ignorance, a bashing of people who hold on to wrong doctrine that happens unawares for them. Whether it’s the former or latter, we all need to repent and realize that we embrace truths we hold on to simply because the Spirit has been pleased to reveal them to us through His word. We are not smarter and we are certainly not superior. Those who remain misled and misguided are not stupid. They are simply what we were before God was pleased to open our eyes to the truth. Shame on us if we think we’re any better, shame on us if we sit on the truth and shame on us if we share it but fail to do so in love.

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Who Killed Goliath?

I haven't been doing much writing lately, I wish I could say I have been doing a lot more reading instead but that wouldn't be true. Truth be told, I have glanced at a few pieces of writing here and there, and this particular set of articles has been most intriguing to me. Dr. Mariottini, a Professor of the Old Testament, runs a blog I follow and has done a few articles an apparent contradiction in the bible:

1 Samuel 17:49-50 affirms that David killed Goliath:

“David put his hand in his bag, took out a stone, slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, striking down the Philistine and killing him; there was no sword in David’s hand” (1 Samuel 17:49-50 NRSV).

2 Samuel 21:19, affirms that Elhanan killed Goliath:

“Then there was another battle with the Philistines at Gob; and Elhanan son of Jaare-oregim, the Bethlehemite, killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam” (2 Samuel 21:19 NRSV).

Some translations have murdered the 2 Sam 21:19 text by adding, 'the brother of' before 'Goliath the Gittite' such as the KJV, if I am not mistaken, but this is a very misleading (if at all anything can be 'very'  misleading) insertion.

In his post, the Doctor offers four arguments that have been peddled to explain this apparent contradiction, namely:

1. David got credit for Elhanan's defeat over Goliath, in other words, David didn't do it. Quite a radical point of view!
2. David and Elhanan are the same person.
3. Elhanan killed Goliath's brother which is derived from 1 Chronicles 20:5 in which the Chronicler actually said that Elhanan did not kill Goliath, but the brother of Goliath and this even in the original translation. The doctor proposes quite an interesting view in refuting this.
4. And finally, a fourth which is the unfortunate alteration of the 2 Sam text by some translations.

Dr. Mariottini goes on to propose a fifth explanation in his final post which he derives from a clue given by an archeological discovery. He mentions that until more/other evidence is found, he holds on to his proposed view.

I encourage you to read the set of posts, they are most intriguing, the posts are linked below:

Who killed Goliath? Part 1

Who killed Goliath? Part 2

Who killed Goliath? Part 3

Feel free also to comment on his posts to ask any questions of clarification, he is quite friendly!

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When Love So Desires

I sent this article to Dr. Claude Mariottini, the Professor of Old Testament at Northern Baptist Seminary in Illinois, USA (whose blog I follow, click here to visit his blog) asking him to assist me by letting me know what he thought of it. He was very kind and took time out to do so. Needless to say, I was found *very wanting yea even begging. I've attached his thoughts below the write up: Enjoy.

Of the 1005 songs Solomon wrote (1 Kings 4:32), one is considered to be his finest and is thus called Solomon's song of songs (Song of Songs 1:1). For some strange reason some believe it not to be his song either entirely or partly. I'll go with the text- 1:1. It is a brilliant and graphic description of the love between a lover and his beloved. In the course of this great poem, Solomon mentions a particular phrase at least three times over. The wisest man who ever lived admonishes, in the voice of the beloved (the woman), the daughters of Jerusalem (other women) not to arouse or awaken love until 'it' so desires. This phrase occurs after some sort of embrace in all three cases:

Song of Songs 2: 6-7 ~His left arm is under my head, and his right arm embraces me. Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.

Song of Songs 3: 4-5 ~Scarcely had I passed them when I found the one my heart loves. I held him and would not let him go till I had brought him to my mother's house, to the room of the one who conceived me. Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.

Song of Songs 8: 3-4 ~His left arm is under my head and his right arm embraces me. Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.

This raises all sorts of questions. Perhaps I should squeeze in a disclaimer before I go any further. Having done no studies in Hebrew or Greek, I am working with the NIV's translation, something which implies the possibility of error.

Now, I do not believe that this wise man and writer of this song, Solomon, would have done anything for no reason and would like to pick out a few things.

1. The woman (beloved) is the most vocal in the entire song/poem. 
2. The statement is uttered three times.
3. The statement is uttered by the woman particularly on all three occasions.
4. The statement (do not awaken love...) occurs after some sort of embrace each particular time.

First of all, the most prominent voice/speaker in this poem is that of the beloved (woman). This must not be ignored. I think Solomon was on to something. Its almost as if the woman is 'more in love' than the man. This comes as no suprise for that is the way God has ordained things to be. In my defence of this position I have two arguments, one lying on top of the other. The first and foundational argument is scriptural (thank God).

Genesis 3:16 ~To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."

Just as a side note, I think the New Living Translation along with the Douay-Rheims Bible go off on a tangent here, they say respectively:

~Then he said to the woman, "I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth. And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you."

~To the woman also he said: I will multiply thy sorrows, and thy conceptions: in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children, and thou shalt be under thy husband's power, and he shall have dominion over thee.

Well, that aside, there is my first argument. God has created women to have a unique and strong desire for their husbands and this regardless whether they have a husband or not. It is actually unfortunate, in my opinion how much time young women spend fantasising about their Knight-in-shining-armor-to-be, about courtship and about the wedding and ring etc. A young man will be content to be independent, with a job and living either with friends or by himself for a while. Not so, young women. They wouldn't mind leaving their father's house to go straight into marriage and live with their husbands. That is how God has wired them.

For a man, that in-between stage of independence from parents and commitment to wife is one he would not want to miss out on. But young women, they'd do just fine without it. Young ladies can get so consumed with getting into courtship and marriage. When they do get into courtship, they are soon overwhelmed with love for their partner. The young man is quite satisfied to know that he has secured the young lady for himself and can now concentrate on other things. This is not to say that he is not in love with the young lady but unlike her he can occupy himself with other things. This follows the women into marriage where they are satisfied only when their husband is beside them. (Am sure a couple of women after reading this will exclaim, "how dare he..."). This is lessened when children come along, but after the children enter teenage years (and become somewhat independent), the women revert to their husbands. It is simply a fulfilment of what God told Eve. The husband on the other end loves his wife no less but can easily be occupied with work and gadgets and appointments and sports, etc. But not the wife, her desire is for her husband. And that is why I am convinced that the woman's (beloved) voice in the Song of Songs is the most vocal. That is why she is restless until her lover is beside her.

My second argument which builds on the first is that God introduced betrothal in seeking to protect the heart and emotions of young women, knowing that he has set the hearts of women to desire their husband. When a man's father found him a wife in the Old Testament, the young woman was betrothed to the man and even though they only married months later, she was as good as his wife. Once a girl was betrothed to you, the only escape was death! Well, if she misbehaved you could leave her and it would be said that you divorced her! The best example being Joseph who planned to divorce Mary (called his wife when they weren't married yet) secretly when they hadn't even married yet, Matthew 1:18-19. Betrothal, therefore, was a way of protecting this tendancy God gave to the woman to desire, dare I say in a bid to paraphrase, "live" for or towards her husband or boyfriend or fiancee.

God protected the hearts of young women of that day from being broken by betrothal. In fact, men to whom women were betrothed were not allowed to go to war lest they perish and grieve the hearts of the women they left behind.

Secondly notice that apart from the woman being most vocal in the book, it is she who warns the daughters of Jerusalem not to awaken love until it so desires in all three cases. This again, I say, is not a coincidence. I think Solomon is trying to communicate something. Why wasn't it the man even just once? Well, this woman, has experienced the great feeling of requited love. She has felt the awesome experience of being consumed with love for another who is equally consumed with love for her. It has caused her to go through emotions that she has never gone through before. And she knows fully well that if a girl too young to experience such emotions were to do so, the outcome could even destroy her. She realises that these feelings and emotions are too intense for someone immature to handle. And at three seperate times when she is in the arms of her lover as he speaks to her and her to him and they are there overwhelmed with love for each other she turns to the girls watching on. She knows that they can't wait for their turn because it was once her watching on. And so she cautions them, "Young girls, do not awaken these emotions and these feelings too early!" Yes its great to be in love, but at the wrong time it can be destructive. At the peak of her feelings of love and emotion towards this man, as they embrace, she remembers her younger years and knows how destructive it would have been to go through such a thing when she was younger and immature. She therefore turns to the younger girls watching on and cautions them.

The feelings and emotions of love are just as intense for the man and thus it is not prudent for boys to experience them. And so this caution can be applied to both. It is unwise to enter a relationship when too young. How do you know that you are mature and old enough to handle these feelings and emotions? Well, thats were parents and guardians come in. Those who watch over you and know you inside out. They can tell you when you're ready because your welfare is closest to their heart. This book speaks to the husband who neglects his wife while giving attention to everything else. It speaks to the young man who enters the relationship with a young lady and does not take care to regulate the rate at which their hearts are knit together causing the young lady to be overwhelmed with love for someone who is not yet positioned to wed her. It speaks also to the young man who after engaging the heart of this lady begins to contemplate leaving her for invalid reasons. It says to them that they should not be ignorant and must therefore tread circumspectly. We must all be wise and be careful not to awaken love until the time is right.


Dear Mwindula,


Thank you for visiting my blog. I hope the material you are reading in my blog is helpful to you.

I have read the material you sent me and I have a few comments about what you wrote:

1. It is quite certain that Solomon did not write Song of Songs. The Hebrew of the text is late and contains many words that reflect the Aramaic of post-exilic times.

2. In your presentation, Solomon is the lover of the woman. However, it is possible that there are three people involved in the story: Solomon, the woman, and the shepherd. If there are three people, then Solomon wants to bring the woman to his palace but the woman is in love with the shepherd. Reread Song of Songs again and read it from the perspective of three lovers rather than two and you will gain a different perspective on the book.

3. Your views about women, love, and marriage is a little bit too idealistic, a view that does not match the reality of the biblical text and what happens in real life.

4. Your view of betrothal does not reflect the realities of Israelite society. Maybe you should read a book or an article dealing with the status of women in Israelite society and on marriage and betrothal.

I could go into moral detail on what you wrote, but what I wrote will give you an idea of what additional research you must be done in order to improve what you wrote.


Thank you for your email and for sending me this material.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

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