The General Superintendent of Deeper Life Bible Church, Pastor William Kumuyi, has firmly addressed growing murmurs about his succession, declaring that no member has the authority to pressure him into stepping down.
The 83-year-old cleric made his position clear during a Bible study session, parts of which were later shared online and reported by Church Times Nigeria on August 7.
“Are you tired of me?” Kumuyi asked the congregation, to which the audience responded with a resounding “Nooo.” His remarks came in response to comments made by an unnamed young preacher during a recent teaching session, where the individual repeatedly emphasized that “there is no leadership without a successor.”
“The brother who taught the other Tuesday kept saying there is no leadership without a successor. He said it twice. I felt that was too much, more so since your father is still here. God will give a successor at His own time,” Kumuyi stated. He reinforced his stance by citing biblical examples, stressing that leadership appointments are divinely ordained rather than subject to congregational influence.
The revered pastor issued a stern warning against any attempts to undermine his authority, declaring, “You are not going to fight your shepherd, your pilot. I reject any member of the church, whether you are a worker, choir member, or security person, who tries to control me. I won’t even take that from my wife because I am the head of the home… I stand where I stand and nobody will put me under pressure.”
Kumuyi cautioned that resistance to his leadership would only strengthen his determination, saying, “Don’t try to kill my conviction. It will only make me resist you so that when you get to the other side, you won’t say I did not tell you. I will keep on telling you that under your resistance until I go.”
While acknowledging he has actively platformed numerous gifted ministers within the church, Kumuyi maintained that the selection of his successor remains God’s exclusive prerogative.
“If God gives you a pastor that is still very active at this age, with a good voice running everywhere to preach the gospel, and you are asking for a successor, it makes me think you are tired of seeing me around. You don’t want to make me feel I’m imposing myself on you,” he explained.
The cleric concluded by affirming the inevitability of leadership transition while reasserting divine sovereignty over its timing: “When the time comes, God will choose a man after His own heart. Don’t try to drive me away, even though I know you cannot.”
