Tobias Sylvester
The presiding Bishop of the Living Faith Church Worldwide aka Winners’ Chapel, David Oyedepo, has said that it was a waste of time insulting him.
The cleric made the comments during a sermon on Tuesday following an earlier statement by President Muhammadu Buhari’s aide on social media, Lauretta Onochie, who criticised him for condemning the Companies and Allied Matters Bill, 2020.
President Buhari had signed CAMA into law on August 7, 2020. The law gives the government power to remove the board of trustees of churches without recourse to the court.
KanyiDaily had earlier reported that Bishop Oyedepo said such laws were borne of out the government’s jealousy about the prosperity recorded by the church.
He questioned the rationality behind subjecting churches to the same laws as companies, describing the church as God’s heritage on earth and therefore does not operate under the rules of men.
Reacting to his comments, Onochie declared that Bishop Oyedepo will have to live by the laws in Nigeria or manufacture his own country, if he was not satisfied with the government’s decision.
Speaking on Tuesday morning in a message tagged, ‘Breaking Limits’ aired via the church’s social media platforms, Bishop Oyedepo said:
“If I ever preached a message where there is no laughter, don’t listen to it. I have been laughing like this 76 till forever since I found Matthew 6:33. I have been laughing at the devil and smiling as I serve. You insult me, I enjoy it. You insult me and I stop going to work because you insult, I will be a big fool. I am going to work.”
“They said, see his legs. Yes, I thank God for my legs. See his nose, yes, He made it and He did it beautifully. See how short he is, that’s the size He made me for so I can save more clothes.
“You know, He that sits in heaven shall laugh. If you are not laughing, you are not seated in heaven. And we are seated in heavenly places, so what should we be doing? Laugh. As they insult you? Laugh. As they mock you? Laugh. As they abuse you? Laugh.
“Anybody insulting me is wasting his mouth. One, I didn’t hear. Two, even if I heard, it won’t pain me. Anybody praising me is expressing his opinion. One, I didn’t hear. And even if I heard, it won’t blow my head because if you praise anything in me, it is Jesus.”
“Nobody has the power to determine how many people worship Jesus. No force on earth has the power. When I’m lifted up, I will draw all men to myself. So, get all the facilities ready. The devil is tired. You ask him and he will tell you. I am tired because there are churches today that are just pushing the frontiers of the gospel in spite of the devil.
“As at last night, we got the report of 520 of our new churches planted. The Lord shall send the rod out of Zion, rule thou in the midst of thou enemies. It’s a divine agenda. No policy under heaven can stop it. 520 churches planted on the 16th of August. If I were the devil, I will start mourning now. Shame on the devil.”
This is coming two weeks after Bishop Oyedepo threatened that ‘fire will fall’ if the Federal Government shutdown churches again in Nigeria.
