Samuel Adesoji Aderonmu leads New Life Baptist Church in Owode, Ajah, Lagos. In a recent interview, he discussed Nigeria's escalating security crisis and how young people grapple with the nation's economic hardships.
Nigeria faces severe insecurity across multiple regions, from insurgency to kidnapping and banditry. According to Aderonmu, no part of the country remains completely safe from these threats.
While some blame political factors for the crisis, Aderonmu said the previous government bears responsibility through selfish ambition and corrupt interests. He pointed to the tragic toll: countless lives lost, school children as young as two and three still held captive by criminals demanding rescue.
Soldiers and military generals have fallen to these criminals, he noted. The boldness of these perpetrators stems from collaboration with government officials, state agencies, and armed forces members, according to reports he cited.
Unemployment, out-of-school children, and religious intolerance also fuel the crisis, Aderonmu said. The government must strengthen its security framework to pull the nation back from this abyss, he added.
The church must maintain hope and intensify prayers for divine intervention, in his view. Citizens bear equal responsibility in tackling insecurity, he stressed.
"These criminals live among us but we sometimes protect them," Aderonmu told reporters. "We must adopt the principle: if you see something, say something."
All sectors must mobilize against insecurity before it consumes Nigeria, he warned. His vision for the church centres on developing genuine disciples of Jesus Christ whose conduct reflects authentic Christian living.
He envisions a congregation where God holds supreme authority and Christ reigns uncontested. His personal ministry aim is to remain laser-focused on Christ while adhering strictly to His pattern, Aderonmu said.
The legacy he hopes to leave is that of a pastor who never compromised God's word or standards. He wants to be remembered as someone whose life embodied biblical principles, he explained.
Young people today face mounting worldly pressures, Aderonmu acknowledged. Yet pressures have always existed and always will, he said.
He cited biblical examples of young men who resisted temptation. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were exiled in Babylon when King Nebuchadnezzar offered them royal delicacies, he noted.
These Hebrew youths refused to defile themselves despite the king's generosity, according to Aderonmu. They later rose to become administrators in exile, he added.
Joseph faced seduction in Potiphar's house when his employer's wife propositioned him directly. While others would have succumbed, Joseph maintained his integrity, Aderonmu said.
Young believers must understand that nothing new happens under the sun, he told them. Resisting worldly pressure isn't impossible—biblical figures proved it centuries ago, he emphasized.
Faith and purpose require unwavering commitment to God's standards regardless of circumstances, Aderonmu stressed. Those who remain steadfast will ultimately triumph, just as the biblical young men did, he concluded.
