By Theresa Donatus, Uyo
Apostle John Okoriko, founder of the Solid Rock Kingdom Church, has stirred fresh debate with his latest sermon, declaring that demons were created by man and not by God, while also criticizing modern moral decay and the continued use of animal sacrifices by prophets and traditional priests.
Preaching on the topic “The Power of Attornment” during Sunday service, Okoriko drew his text from Genesis 3:21, where God clothed Adam and Eve with coats of skin after the fall of man.
He argued that Adam was spared despite the Biblical warning that “the wages of sin is death” because he was God’s representative on earth.
Quoting Genesis 3:22, he explained: “God loved Adam so much that instead of killing him, He sacrificed a wild beast and used the skin to cover Adam and Eve’s nakedness.”
The cleric further challenged conventional theology by asserting that demons were not part of God’s creation.
“In the book of creation, you won’t find anywhere that states that God created demons, Man created every other thing we see today, including demons. The Jews saw demons as idolatry, meaning objects of worship like Eka Abasi or Ndem Akpongo. It was the Greeks who interpreted them as evil spirits, and our people copied the Greeks.” Okoriko said
Referencing Mark 1:12–13, the preacher interpreted Christ’s 40 days in the wilderness as a divine meeting with animals, signaling the end of animal blood as a means of atonement.
“It is ignorance for fake prophets and juju priests to continue using goats, chickens, or other animals for remission of sins and power.
We are in the New Covenant through the blood of Jesus. No animal was created in the image of God, only man. Using animals for healing is an insult to divinity,” he declared.
He condemned such practices as delusional, alleging that some prophets and priests request animal sacrifices merely to obtain free food.
In a separate remark that drew mixed reactions among worshippers, Apostle Okoriko described human society as morally bankrupt.
“We are living in an age where everything is commercialized, including sex. Men and women now exchange intimacy for money as a means of survival. But in the animal kingdom, it is not so. That was why the swine in the Bible rejected man, because man wanted them to behave like men,” he stated.
Okoriko also likened society’s preference for unhealthy lifestyles to regulatory negligence in Nigeria’s food and beverage industry.
“Just as people prefer bad to good, soft drink companies thrive under NAFDAC’s approval even when it is known that high levels of preservatives damage the kidneys and excessive sugar harms the body,” he warned.
Many individuals has hailed Apostle Okoriko for speaking boldly against spiritual ignorance and moral decadence, stating that they most time read across the Bible potion mentioned without understanding.
