Nigerians and the online community have reacted to the latest sermon by Pastor Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy. According to Pastor Chris, masturbation is not a sin.
Pastor Chris made this statement during a recent Sunday service. According to him, it is not a sin to pleasure oneself. Self-touching one’s self for sexual satisfaction is not self-abuse as many believe it to be.
The Christ Embassy Pastor also said God is not offended by the practice but by any habit that takes hold of one’s mind, and this has resulted in widespread condemnation.
He used Bible quotations to support his claim saying :
“The Bible says if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. This is one of the ways Jesus explained sin in the Bible. The question you need to ask yourself right now is:
Can your hands or eyes cause you to do something wrong? Not! Jesus said that it is not what goes into you that causes you to sin, but what comes out of you. Remember, when Jesus said this, the disciples had a hard time understanding it.”
“When the disciples met him for further explanation, he told them that anything that comes out of your heart is a sin. Now the question arises, where is the real sin? Matthew 15:19 (New Living Translation) says, “Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, lying, and slander.”
So this means that the sin of adultery with your body is not actual sin, but just a manifestation of what your heart desires. The real sin is in the heart. Your eyes cannot make you sin because you do not have a mind of your own. Evil thoughts are born from the heart.”
This has stirred reactions from many on the media who argue that masturbation is a sin. Many accuse the Pastor of blasphemy and that he is confused with the gospel.
