By Lauren Sedemeester
24/07/2025
With over 200 million people, Nigeria is not only Africa’s most populous nation but also one of its most religiously dynamic. From bustling cities to rural villages, faith shapes everyday life—informing values, politics, education, and community structures. It is a nation rich in cultural diversity and blessed with abundant natural resources.
Nigeria is a major religious hub, home to deeply rooted faith traditions. Christianity and Islam dominate the religious landscape, and vibrant religious expression influences nearly every aspect of daily life. In particular, Christianity has experienced rapid growth over the past century, making Nigeria a significant spiritual and missional force on the continent and beyond. While Christianity is declining in many Western countries, the centre of global faith is shifting southward—and Nigeria stands at the forefront. What happens in the Nigerian Church today may significantly shape the future of global Christianity.
Historical Overview of Christianity
Christianity was introduced in the 15th century with the arrival of Portuguese traders and European missionaries. However, early efforts were limited and largely unsuccessful, as local rulers prioritised trade over religion. In the 19th century, Christianity gained significant traction, especially in the southern and central regions. Following the abolition of slavery in the British Empire, many freed slaves became Christians and returned to Nigeria to preach the Gospel—including Samuel Ajayi Crowther, who became the first African Anglican bishop and translated the Bible into Yoruba.
From the 1950s, Pentecostal and charismatic churches grew rapidly, and in the 1970s, many campus revivals gave rise to youth-led ministries and megachurches.
Today, Nigeria is home to Africa’s largest Christian population, with a wide range of denominations. Christianity more than doubled size during the latter half of the 20th century, with approximately 46.5% of Nigerians now identifying as Christian. The South and Middle Belt are predominantly Christian, while the north is mainly Muslim. By 2050, Nigeria is projected to have the third-largest Christian population globally—potentially over 200 million believers—according to demographic forecasts. This reflects both natural population growth and continued religious momentum.
The Church continues to influence education, healthcare, agriculture, rural development, and community life. Christianity’s blend of global influence and local rootedness makes it a central part of Nigeria’s identity.
Participation in the Great Commission
Nigeria has become a leading voice in the global Christian mission movement, reflecting a deep-rooted commitment to the Great Commission—Christ’s command to “go and make disciples of all nations’ (Matthew 28:19). Across denominations, there is a strong focus on evangelism, church planting, and disciple-making—both within Nigeria and abroad.
Our local contact shared that his church is actively involved in outreach, including education programmes, housing for university students, and donations of medical equipment to under-resourced health centres. He said, “The Church is supporting the work of healing, restoration, and redemption in the community through these donations.”
From small congregations to large church networks, a missional mindset defines the Nigerian Church. Regular activities include community outreaches, crusades, door-to-door evangelism, and youth missions. Evangelism is not seen as a mere programme but as a shared way of life. Many churches have global mission departments, investing in training, logistics, and financial support for missionaries.
Nigeria has increasingly assumed the role of a mission-sending nation in the global missions landscape. According to the Lausanne State of the Great Commission Report, Nigeria has sent approximately 20,000 missionaries in total. Meanwhile, the Nigerian Evangelical Missionary Association (NEMA) reports that more than 6,000 Nigerian missionaries are currently serving abroad—indicating a strong and sustained presence globally.
Nigerian missionaries and church planters are present in over 100 countries across Africa, Europe, North America, South America, the Middle East, and Asia—including urban centres in London, New York, and Johannesburg. Indigenous mission organisations like Nigerian-based CAPRO (Calvary Ministries) are reaching out into Muslim countries. Many believe that sharing the gospel and church planting in the mainly Muslim north could be a key turning point in the years ahead.
Nigerians living abroad often see every place they live as a field to serve God’s Kingdom. These missionaries often face challenging conditions—crossing cultural and linguistic barriers and working in politically unstable or religiously hostile regions. When believers embrace their role as everyday missionaries, their impact can be significant.
Unique mission movements are emerging, such as Nigeria’s Vision5015 Plus, which aims to raise 50,000 workers to promote, train, send, and support 15,000 of them to 34 chosen countries across North Africa towards Jerusalem over the next 15 years. A key factor driving this momentum is Nigeria’s investment in theological education through Bible colleges, seminaries, and mission institutes.
Religious Freedom and Challenges
Nigeria, being a large and diverse country, experiences varying levels of religious freedom from north to south. Tragically, it is now regarded as the world’s epicentre of Christian martyrdom. According to Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List, Nigeria ranks seventh globally for Christian persecution, with annual death tolls from religiously motivated violence often exceeding 4,000—more than the rest of the world combined. Violence against Christians is most severe in the North, where the Muslim-majority states declared sharia law in 1999, leading to ongoing discrimination. Since the emergence of Boko Haram in 2009, Christians have faced unprecedented levels of violence, including bombings, kidnappings, and killings. A 2023 report estimates that at least 52,250 Christians have been killed since the violence began.
In recent years, the violence has moved beyond the far North into Nigeria’s central Middle Belt region, where radicalised Fulani herdsmen have targeted Christian communities—often with the intent to seize their land. Extremist groups continue to persecute believers, while the central government’s inability to stop the violence has fuelled the ongoing crisis.
The situation in the South is somewhat different. Though Christians do not face the same level of persecution, they still experience subtle opposition, including efforts to obstruct ministry work and restrict Christian expression. According to our contact, churches in the South are responding through persistent prayer and faith in God’s purposes.
Spiritual Challenges in the Church
However, alongside this remarkable growth, the Church faces significant spiritual challenges. Despite its best efforts, a spiritual challenge that it still faces is discipleship. The Church has grown so rapidly that many new believers lack proper opportunities for spiritual formation. As our contact notes, “Only a small portion of God’s people are actively serving, while many are not, simply because they are not equipped.”
He also believes that another major issue is the limited empowerment of lay Believers. Many churches still operate with a divide between clergy and congregation, hindering the mobilisation of everyday Christians for ministry.
The rise of false teachings, particularly the prosperity gospel, has also affected many congregations, distorting Biblical truth. As a result, some Christians appear to live by values inconsistent with Scripture. While many young people—especially in university communities—are passionately pursuing Christ, others have grown disillusioned. Since the early 2000s, increasing numbers of youth have begun turning towards Indigenous African religions, often seeking spiritual formation.
Syncretism is another ongoing challenge. Some Believers attend church on Sundays while also consulting traditional healers, reflecting the need for deeper theological education and grounding in God’s Word.
A Christian Reflection: Hope, Responsibility, and Future Potential
There are people that are genuinely pursuing God. Our contact sees this especially among young people in the university communities, who go the extra mile to follow Christ, love Him, and grow in their faith. It brings him great joy to witness people boldly standing on the truth of God’s Word—especially in a culture increasingly shaped by relativism.
He envisions a more integrated Church—one that bridges the gap between clergy and laity. He believes the Church in Nigeria will have greater influence when this divide is removed. “We need to give agency to the people of God—to recognise those whom God has called to minister. It would transform Nigeria if believers were empowered to represent Christ, to do greater works, and to live out their ministries.”
This vision of a mobilised, united Church offers real hope—not only for Nigeria, but for the global Body of Christ.
Please join us in prayer:
- Pray for peace and protection for Christians in the northern and Middle Belt regions of Nigeria, where violence, persecution, and displacement remain ongoing challenges.
- Pray for spiritual maturity and discipleship within the Church, that new believers would be equipped and grounded in God’s Word to grow in faith and serve effectively.
- Pray for the Nigerian Church’s mission efforts, both locally and globally—that God would strengthen, provide for, and guide missionaries as they reach across cultures and continents.
- Pray for unity and integrity in the Church, that the divide between clergy and laity would be bridged, false teachings exposed, and all believers empowered to live out their God-given calling.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Nigeria
https://globalchristianrelief.org/christian-persecution/countries/nigeria/
https://nemanigeriamissions.org/
https://operationworld.org/prayer-calendar/09-21/
https://www.britannica.com/place/Nigeria
https://www.opendoors.org/en-US/persecution/countries/nigeria/
https://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0259-94222021000100002
State of the Great Commission Full Report
