The Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo and former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, have said that the Bible is a catalyst for societal transformation and development.
They made this assertion while speaking at a Christian Leadership Summit with the theme “The Holy Bible: Our Reliable Foundation for Maximizing Personal and National Well-Being” organized by The Bible Society of Nigeria (BSN) in Lagos recently.
The Vice President maintained that there was no developed civilization that had not benefitted from the gospel of Jesus Christ in its development, adding that the gospel is the reliable structure on which personal and national development can truly be founded.
He admitted that the biblical principles of honesty, forthrightness, integrity, hard work, service, trustworthiness in business, and respect for credit and obligations were instrumental to the development of America and the West.
According to Prof. Osinbajo, for this to be achieved in Nigeria, “This Word of God must find its way into the hearts of men, but it must do so first by finding its way into their hands. We must be able to get the Bible across to people all over the world and that is up to us.”
He lauded The Bible Society of Nigeria for all it has achieved over the years but challenged the organization to adopt technology for fundraising and shorten the duration of Bible translation. The Vice President expressed readiness to partner with the BSN to make the word of God available and accessible.
The Chairman of the occasion, Chief Obasanjo said that God revealed Himself in several ways and the Bible enables us to know more about Him, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Church.
The former President said, “The Bible made it clear to us that it is only when we know the truth that we can be free. It is only when we are free that we have personal, family, community, national and global wellbeing, and God is the foundation of the Word. Without the Bible we are lost.”
He called on the Nigerians to rally round the BSN to get a befitting office complex as its current office is not ideal for the Bible work.
Also speaking, the President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Olasupo Ayokunle, said the importance of the Bible to both our Christian faith and national lives cannot be overemphasised. He said that without the Bible, evil would be on the increase. He added that if the bandits, terrorists, and kidnappers had the Word of God, Nigeria would have been more peaceful. He called on Christians to support the BSN to continue to make the Bible available.
Earlier, the President and Board Chairman of the BSN, Bishop Dr. Timothy Banwo noted that the BSN is the only Bible Society in Africa that has a centre dedicated to the translation of the Bible into Sign Language for the deaf.
The General Secretary of the Society, Pastor Samuel Sanusi assured Church leaders that the BSN will continue to complement their work by ensuring that the Bible is available.
Benjamin Mordi
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