What began as Frank Gashumba’s bold criticism of Uganda’s Balokole pastors appears to have turned into a personal exchange between Gashumba and Pastor Robert Kayanja. (Read summary here) As a result, the ongoing exchange threatens to distract attention from the core issue.
This article steps back from the personalities to examine, through Scripture, the key controversies Gashumba raised about Uganda’s Pentecostal (born-again Balokole) church, as well as the responses to his criticism.
#1. Is Gashumba Persecuting the Church?
Many of the pastors who roared at Gashumba say he is persecuting the church of God, as happened in the early church. Gashumba has always affirmed that he is a Christian who believes in Christ.
So, the question is: can a Christian persecute a fellow Christian, or are there now two classes of Christians, the pulpit Christian who, when he is corrected, assumes persecution, and the floor Christian, who has no right to say anything because he will be branded as the enemy of faith?
Is the pulpit Christian “more Christian” and is the one that could be persecuted?
First, what makes anyone a Christian? Profession of faith in Christ. Simple. Scripture does not create two classes of Christians.
Galatians 3:28 – “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 10:9 – “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
A Christian is a Christian by faith in Jesus, not by title. Pastor and flock stand on the same ground. Modern Christianity often tends to push this aside with the idea of “spiritual maturity,” insinuating that some people are more spiritually grown than others. That may be true, but it does not give the more mature person the right to judge another’s standing in Christ.
Also, a believer’s shortcomings do not make them un-Christian; they make him a Christian still being sanctified, just like all pastors. Truth is, pastors are also secretly living sinful lives, being sanctified slowly. Disagreeing with pastors does not excommunicate anyone from the Body. Gashumba’s opinion may be unpopular among leaders, but unpopular is not the same as un-Christian.
#2. Church Exploitation
The Bible is not silent when religious leaders abuse their office. In the Old Testament, God Himself becomes the prosecutor. In 1 Samuel 2:12-17, Eli’s sons used the priesthood to take the best sacrifices for themselves, and they slept with women who served at the tent of meeting. God judged Eli’s house for it.
Malachi 2:8 – “But you have turned from the way and by your teaching have caused many to stumble; you have violated the covenant with Levi.”
Jeremiah 23:1 – “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!”
In the New Testament, Jesus calls out the Pharisees, teachers of the law of God, who were quick to point at people’s sins in public while sinning in private. They used the law to create two classes: the holy class and the sinful class that needed redeeming.
Matthew 23:27-28 – “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs…”
The Brokers of Faith
Jesus is our great High Priest, and any believer has direct access to God (Hebrews 4:14-16) and can ask Him anything and receive it. Yet many church leaders have long made themselves brokers between sinful people and God, with money flowing through that role as tithes and “sowing seed.” That’s the system Martin Luther was fighting.
In reality, tithe theology works like this: the tithe was collected for the Levites, who, by God’s law, weren’t given an inheritance in the Promised Land, were only to do temple work, and had their needs met by the other tribes (Numbers 18:21).
That system was tied to priesthood and a temple that Christ fulfilled and abolished; it stopped working when Jesus came. The New Testament law doesn’t appoint church leaders as the new Levites to have entitlement to the tithe. If anything, the New Testament encourages leaders to work not to burden the flock (Acts 20:33-35, 2 Thessalonians 3:8-9).
In fairness, Paul also teaches that those who preach the gospel may be supported (1 Corinthians 9:14). The point is not that leaders may never be supported, but rather that support is not a legal tithe, nor is it ever a licence for luxury. If the tithe is claimed as law, then all the laws should come with it (Galatians 5:3, James 2:10).
You cannot pick tithe out of the more than 600 commands in the Torah and drop the rest. Ask your leader why he emphasises the tithe while leaving out animal sacrifices and other things.
If we are to give a tithe offering to Christ, our new Chief Priest, it should not necessarily be to the church; Christ has told us where He receives it (Matthew 25:35-40) – “I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat… Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
How often do church leaders in Uganda encourage their flocks to visit the needy in their communities instead of focusing on collecting for the church’s needs? Why don’t leaders simply encourage people to give directly to the needy around them? Perhaps because many leaders do not want to lose the broker role, since they benefit from it.
In a typical Ugandan church, as Gashumba stresses, the pastor drives an SUV while the flock wallows in poverty. The pastor prays for the flock’s needs while his are taken care of by that same impoverished congregation. People even pay exorbitant prices for ‘special prayers’ and ‘holy rice.’ God has a harsh pronouncement on every one of these things:
Ezekiel 34:2-3 – “Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock.”
Micah 3:11 – “Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money.”
Jeremiah 6:13 – “From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit.”
Personalising Ministry
Another concern: ministry becoming a family estate. In Acts, churches were led by a plurality of elders (Acts 14:23): “Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord.”
Not one CEO pastor. Today, some churches are registered in the pastor’s personal name, with the wife as co-pastor and the son as an apparent heir. When Gen Sejusa said churches operate like family businesses, he raised a question worth considering, regardless of one’s opinion of the messenger. Jesus said:
Matthew 23:8 – “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Teacher, and you are all brothers.”
Should a ministry be passed down like a plot of land?
#3. The Trauma Economy
To understand why this fight is so loud, we have to look at where it is happening. Uganda is a traumatised nation: decades of war, the HIV epidemic, unemployment that keeps a whole generation waiting. Into that pain, pastors offer hope. Gashumba offers cynicism. Both, in different ways, feed on trauma.
The poor do not go to pastors because they are foolish. They go because the hospital has no drugs and the job does not come. When the system has failed you, and a man in a pulpit says “God will heal you,” that is not stupidity; it is the only door left open. Which is exactly why exploitation of that hope is so grave. The scripture that applies is not only the one that condemns false shepherds, but the one that describes the true one:
Matthew 9:36 – “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”
So, the church must also ask itself an uncomfortable question: why is its healing found in the cathedral and on the TV programme, and not in the street where the sick line up, and in the wards where people die waiting for medicine? Where is the compassion?
#4. Is It Biblical to Demand a Public Demonstration of God’s Power?
Yes, in a sense. Gashumba’s “show it” challenge sounds provocative, but the Bible records several public demonstrations of God’s power in response to unbelief.
Elijah did exactly that on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18). Jesus raised Lazarus publicly, after four days in the tomb, saying, “I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”
When Thomas doubted the resurrection, Jesus gave him proof: “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe” (John 20:27). When Daniel and his friends were threatened with death if they failed to tell and interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, God showed His power. So did He with Joseph before Pharaoh.
If Gashumba is genuinely struggling to believe, what he needs is an answer, not just criticism. It is an opportunity to strengthen his faith.
But we must also be honest about what Jesus said to people who demanded a sign merely to test Him:
Matthew 12:39 – “A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.”
The difference lies in the heart. Thomas wanted to believe; the Pharisees wanted to trap Jesus. If Gashumba’s challenge is a genuine search for truth, he deserves a patient answer. If it is meant only to humiliate, he may not receive the sign he demands.
Only God knows his intentions. But the Pentecostal church should not use that distinction to avoid accountability.
Could God Be Using This Confrontation for Good?
Two good things could come from Frank Gashumba’s demands.
Correction and revival: God has often used criticism to clean His house. God has often used criticism to bring correction. If the church is indeed corrupt, Gashumba’s challenge could force some self-examination and spark revival in Uganda’s born-again church.
Restoration of Faith in Miracles: If a pastor visits an ICU and a verifiable miracle happens, it would be a powerful testimony that John 14:12 still holds: “Whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these.”
This Is Important for Gashumba, though…
God’s ways are complex. He can use people like Gashumba to correct His people, yet still hold them accountable. In the bible, He used Babylon to punish Israel, then judged Babylon for it (Jeremiah 25:12; Zechariah 1:15). Satan entered Judas, whose betrayal served God’s salvation plan, yet Judas met a tragic end (Luke 22:3; Acts 1:18).
If God is using Gashumba to cleanse the church, he should also be mindful. Being used by God does not necessarily mean being approved by God. This is why Gashumba needs prayer, not just applause or insults.
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#5. The Test of a True Miracle
The church and its critics keep debating whether miracles happen. But Scripture points to another test: the character and teachings of the person performing them.
Deuteronomy 13:1-3 – If a prophet’s sign or wonder comes true, but he says, “Let us follow other gods,” you must not listen to him. “The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Matthew 7:22-23 – “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”
A miracle is not proof of God’s anointing. Character is. A leader who leads you into greed, dependence on him or something other than Christ has failed the test.
Theatre or Power of God?
Gashumba does not deny God’s healings; he questions whether what is presented on some pulpits is real. He suggests true miracles are logical, such as prayer working alongside cancer treatment. Here, he is mistaken. Medical treatment is one way God heals, but Scripture shows it is not the only way. Biblical miracles were often supernatural and defied ordinary explanation.
For instance, Jesus healed a blind man with mud made from saliva (John 9:6-7).
Acts 5:15 – “People brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by.”
Acts 19:12 – “Even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured.”
These miracles would look dubious today, and they would be called satanic. Yet they happened.
Why, then, are some modern Christians uneasy about miracles? Three possible reasons stand out: (a) the apparent absence of undeniable miracles, despite Mark 16:17-18; (b) allegations of staged miracles in churches; and (c) the commercialisation of miracles through appeals such as “sow a seed for a miracle”.
Consider also where Jesus healed people. Not in a brightly lit cathedral or on TV, but among the people:
Matthew 9:35 – “Jesus went through all the towns and villages… healing every disease and sickness.”
Luke 4:18 – “He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free.”
He went where the sick were because He had compassion, not for self-actualisation or glory. He did not advertise healing crusades or conferences. If church leaders are following Christ’s compassion, they should not be offended when Gashumba asks them to go to the ICU.
#6. Touch Not My Anointed: What Does It Really Mean?
The verse most quoted by angry pastors and those defending them in such situations.
Psalm 105:15 / 1 Chronicles 16:22 – “Touch not my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm.”
We must first ask how anointing works in the New Testament compared with the Old. In the Old Testament, anointing involved prophets pouring physical oil on kings and priests. In the New Testament, anointing comes through the Holy Spirit and belongs to every believer. The Bible calls believers a royal priesthood, and every believer shares in this anointing, including Gashumba himself, not only pastors.
1 John 2:20 – “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.”
2 Corinthians 1:21-22 – “Now it is God, who… anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us…”
#7. Gashumba’s Sin Was Not the Question, But the Mockery
The question “Are pastors faking miracles?” is fair, and Scripture invites us to test claims (Acts 17:11). Gashumba was wrong in how he raised the issue.
Ephesians 4:29 – “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs.”
Calling pastors “miyaayu” is a blanket insult. He was no longer testing fruit; he was touching believers, including honest pastors who never took a coin from the poor. Even if some are fake, the label hurts the genuine ones.
On the other hand, pastors hurling insults at Gashumba make two mistakes. First, they are touching God’s anointed too, because he is a believer. Second, they are trying to defend a God who doesn’t need defending. In the old statement, when the Ark stumbled, Uzzah reached out to steady it, and God struck him down (2 Samuel 6:6-7). The Ark did not need Uzzah’s help. If these pastors are truly anointed, God will fight for them. They did not need to curse back; instead, let God vindicate.
Romans 12:19 – “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord.”
#8. Robert Kayanja Cursing Frank Gashumba
It was reported that Pastor Kayanja pronounced a curse on Gashumba: “Your own blood will kill you.”
Scripture records prophets with the power to curse. Elisha cursed youths who mocked him, and bears mauled them (2 Kings 2:23-24). Elijah called fire from heaven (2 Kings 1:10). Peter confronted Ananias and Sapphira over their lie, and both fell dead (Acts 5:1-11). So, we cannot dismiss the possibility that such words can carry weight.
But those are not Christ-like attitudes. Look at what Jesus did when His own disciples wanted the same:
Luke 9:54-55 – “When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, ‘Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?’ But Jesus turned and rebuked them.”
The New Covenant ethic is restraint and forgiveness (Matthew 5:44; Romans 12:14). Having power does not make its use right, especially when anger drives it.
More seriously, the curse “your own blood will kill you” appears to draw on Old Covenant ideas of inherited family curses. Yet under the New Covenant, Christ took the curse upon Himself:
Galatians 3:13 – “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.”
Even in the Old Testament, God rejected the idea that children should bear the guilt of their parents:
Ezekiel 18:20 – “The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child.”
Using curse theology to silence a critic and frighten his family is not an exercise of apostolic authority. It is spiritual abuse.
#9. Why We Must Pray for Gashumba
Everything can be used for the good of the church. But like Judas, who played a part in the salvation plan through Jesus’s death, the vessel used for a difficult task often pays a price. If God has allowed Gashumba to be the irritant that provokes reform, he needs our prayers, not our stones, lest he end like those whom God used and then judged.
Romans 8:28 – “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
#10. The Way Forward for the Pentecostal Church in Uganda
Pastors must not use sacred things, such as miracles, reverence and authority, for personal gain (1 Peter 5:2).
Christians must read the Bible for themselves: The Bereans examined the Scriptures daily to see whether what Paul said was true (Acts 17:11). If they checked Paul, we must check everyone, even pastors. Do not just believe everything you are told.
Rediscover faith in miracles: Study what the Bible actually says about miracles, so that unbelief born of disappointment doesn’t replace faith in God’s extraordinary power.
Study church history: The rot in the church is not new. It has long existed, especially when kings and rulers infiltrated and shaped religion for money and power. The Catholic and Anglican churches are not innocent either. Modern Pentecostal excesses may be more visible because they involve individual leaders rather than entire institutions.
So Before Castigating Pastors:
Study how the early church in Acts lived. Sharing was for everyone, not just leaders. The church was powerful, not docile, and it practised accountability. Then ask how far our denominations have moved from that model.
Study how the Old Testament temple system, with Levites who depended on the tithe (Numbers 18:21), was fulfilled and abolished in Christ (Hebrews 7:12; 8:13).
Ask your leaders why some Old Covenant practices, such as tithing as a law, remain mandatory while others, such as animal sacrifices, do not. How much of the old worship system are we carrying into the New Covenant, and why? Why do priests still wear gowns and hats and swing incense in ways that resemble Old Testament practices? Did Christ not bring that system to fulfilment?
The church does not need to win an argument against Frank Gashumba. It needs to win back its credibility, compassion for the sick on the streets, and faith in the living Christ.
Compiled by Mwesigwa Joshua.
