84-year old Nigerian revered church founder, William Kumuyi, speaks on successor, says he will preach till death

Pastor Williams Folorunsho Kumuyi, the founder and general superintendent of the Deeper Christian Bible Ministry (DCLM), has berated some members of the church for calling on him to step down and pave the way for a younger successor.

84 years old Kumuyi, while addressing the church congregation during a Bible study programme recently, said he won’t be intimidated out of his position by member because God would choose his successor at the right time.

He was responding to an unnamed church member who, while teaching, demanded his successor.

The renowned Pentecostal preacher warned members of the church and familiy not to kill his conviction or control him, vowing to keep teaching till his death.

Kumuyi founded the DCLM, in the 70s. At the time he founded the church, the preacher, who holds a doctorate degree in Mathematics, was a lecturer at the University of Lagos, South West Nigeria.

As of 2005, DCLM had over 800,000 affiliates.

Earlier this year, he was invited to preach at one of the events organised for the inauguration of President Donald Trump of the United States.

Read his full speech to the congregation monitored by The Christian.

I need to get all this corrected. That was too much of asking for a successor. Your father in the Lord is still here. Are you tired of me? You are not going to fight your pastor, fight your shepherd. I say it publicly, I reject any member of the church, my child, anyone trying to control me. I won’t even take it from my wife because I am the head of the home. And if she tries to control me, she knows ..

I think the brother who taught on Tuesday, I don’t want to mention his name, you know yourself…..but two times for mentioning successor, successor. I didn’t want to comment that day. In fact, I felt it was too much of asking for successor.

You father in the Lord is still here. And if God wants to give a successor, He will at His own time. And when you look at Abraham, you look at Moses, they were not the people that chose their successors. God chose Joshua. He announced that to everybody when Moses was still even in his 100s, 110 before he became 120.

I am wondering why this young man was emphasising successor, successor. Are they tired of me? Are you tired of me? (Congregation chorused no). And understand it is not only God’s church that a successor is made, the whole of Nigeria, beyond the whole of Africa. And if God gives you a pastor/founder that is stronger at this age and I stand and I preach, I move here and there and you know the voice by the grace of God, especially with the system that the headquarters operate, everything is clear. I run to the UK, Australia, Canada, to the US, I run to Ghana, I run to Liberia, run everywhere and you are asking for a successor, it makes me feel maybe you are tired of my being straightforward. (Congregation shouted in approval). Thank you very much.

You know, I need to get all this corrected so that you don’t make me feel really than I am imposing myself on you. How can a father impose himself on his children and God is using you wonderfully?

We have state overseers. We are developing. You know what we do here. We don’t say pastor so, so and so is a successor. We rotate our moderators. Why? We want to expose everyone to the congregation of the people of God so that that person was moderator, that person was moderator, so we have all the chance we need to have and when the time comes we see who can be a successor because everyone can easily fit in.

And also, we have state overseer, we have zonal divisions – the whole of South West, we have that zone, the whole of South East, a zone; South South, a zone; and we have North Central, a zone and North East, a zone; and North West, a zone. We rotate the coordinating zonal overseers too. And then we have the coordinating overseer, who coordinates all the overseers all over the world. Each time this person is coordinating, they know him, and I relate with him, we interact. And then we change him and we bring another one. Why are we doing that? We are doing that so that they may know all the key leaders that are here in Deeper Life. The successors are there and when the time comes, the Lord will choose a man after His own heart.

And so, I don’t want you to drag me away. Although, you can’t, but don’t make the attempt as if to say ‘we will make him tired, we will weary him.’ Let’s continue in faith, let’s continue in faithfulness and we will not fall at last. But honestly, we should look at the results of what we are doing, the impact of what we are doing, the depth of knowledge.

If I tell you how much it takes me preparing to serve the church…..I think those who know me closest and some people are here that know me, I don’t generally sleep until 2 a.m. Generally, that will be the average time. Sometimes it’s 2.30 a.m. What am I doing? I am digging deep into the word; I am searching into the word. I am using all my time to give the best to the church. Then I come to deliver. And from the time, ever before I stand….

There are some people that have not unlearnt all their practices. And I am wondering why. Why would they want to disturb, resist, or oppress the person that wants to give all his life – everything he has learnt he wants give out? They only allow me to stay where they want me to stay and to preach only as long as they allow me to preach. No. I will not take that. And so, I have to offer to train myself. Apart from reading the Bible, apart from digging into the Bible, I also train myself so that I will do what God wants me to do and I will say what God wants me to say. And I try to let everybody know. Unlearn those practices. They don’t work. They are useless. They don’t affect me anymore. Not only that, it is not rewarding in Heaven.

And we need to understand that you are not going to fight your pastor, fight the shepherd, fight the pilot. He is leading us in the way to Heaven. And I say it publicly – I reject any member of the church, my child, my son, my daughter – I reject any worker, somebody who should be under me studying, I reject anyone trying to control me. I won’t even take it from my wife because I am the head of the home. And if she tries to control me, she knows that I stand here and I have been preaching before I married the first one and before I married the second one after the first one died. I stand where I stand with conviction and nobody will put me under.

So, I want to plead again with you – choir, ushers, security, other people, family members, anyone – don’t try to kill my conviction. You will not succeed; it will only make me resist you. I still speak the truth so that when you get to the other side, you will not say ‘he didn’t tell us.’ I told you and I am telling you and I will keep telling under your will, under your knock, under your resistance…. I will keep on teaching till I go.