Popular Nigerian cleric and founder of Power City International, Abel Damina, has dismissed the widely held belief that tithing is a pathway to wealth, insisting that there is no biblical basis for linking financial prosperity to religious giving.
In a video shared on social media by user ChuksEricE, Damina criticised what he described as a “dangerous and unscriptural mindset” promoted in some churches, which encourages worshippers to associate giving with guaranteed financial blessings.
“There’s no scripture in the Bible that says when you give to God, you’ll be a rich person. There’s no such scripture,” he said.
He argued that prosperity is not automatic or transactional, adding that individuals often experience financial strain after giving because resources leave their possession.
“When you give, you lack. Because when you give, it leaves you and there’s a vacuum,” he said.
Damina also shared a personal account of a man who reportedly donated all three of his cars to his church in expectation of divine financial reward, only to remain without transportation.
He further challenged testimonies linking tithing to billionaire status, arguing that wealth is instead driven by education, labour, and entrepreneurship rather than religious offerings.
“I never saw anybody who, because he tithed, became a billionaire,” he said, adding that those who attribute wealth to tithing often overlook the role of business and employment.
According to him, divine blessings are already embedded in nature and the earth, and human effort is required to unlock them.
He pointed to natural resources such as oil, gold, and diamonds as evidence of what he described as God’s provision in the earth, saying prosperity comes from knowledge and the ability to harness these resources.
“So because God has blessed the planet, all we need to do is go to school, learn what to do to get into what has been blessed and turn it into commercial property,” he said.
Damina’s remarks add to ongoing debates within Nigeria’s Christian community over tithing and prosperity teachings, a subject that has long divided religious leaders and congregations.
