The Question, “Who Is Feeding The Sheep”, Resonates As Oyedepo’s Son Resigns From Father’s Church To Form His Ministry -By Isaac Asabor

If there is any news in the Christendom that is virally trending online, it is the one that says Pastor Isaac Oyedepo’ second son has dumped his father’s Living Faith Church Worldwide to begin his ministry.

At this embryonic stage of this write-up, permit this writer to resort to journalistic gobbledygook to opine that the news was reported by not a few online platforms without providing in depth information about the resignation, and thus can be editorially be adjudged to be watery, bony and not fleshy. In fact, virtually all the news platforms that reported the story resorted to “herd Journalism”. For the sake of clarity, herd journalism is the kind of news reporting in which reporters from different news outlets homogenously cover the same story without bothering to be exclusive from each other in their reports.

However, Church Times Nigeria, an online news platform which specializes in reporting Church news, Bible commentary, and interviewing clergymen and gospel artistes distinguishes itself from the pack in its report published today, October 25, 2023, with the headline, “Isaac Oyedepo’s resignation: The untold story, why Winners Chapel is silent”, categorically stated,  “A top source within the church however confirmed that Isaac Oyedepo did resign but that the church would not want to comment on it. The source who pleaded anonymity said Isaac has been at loggerheads with the church over the miserable salary being paid to its staff.

“The source said Isaac had always been at loggerheads with the church since he came into full-time ministry. It was because of his hardline posture against the bad treatment meted out to staff, that he was first posted to South Africa many years ago. When he got to South Africa, the source said he increased the salary of staff he met on the ground because he felt the commission had so much money and also had the capacity to pay more than it pays its staff.

“This drew the ire of his father, Bishop Oyedepo.  Isaac was later recalled back to Nigeria and posted to a parish of the church in Abuja. When he got to Abuja the sources said Isaac still maintained his pro-staff posture. He was said to have unilaterally increased the salary of the staff of those working with him and had advocated that people working in the church should be paid some living wage.

That action according to the source led to some disagreement between Isaac and his father.  Bishop Oyedepo was said to have instructed that he be relieved of his position as pastor. But Bishop Abioye who was in charge of the Goshen Land in Abuja took Isaac in and handled him as his own son.  For a long time, Isaac and his father were said to be at loggerheads.

The source said “Isaac was not happy that many staff of the commission were not being treated well.  The church gets billions of naira in income but finds it difficult to pay reasonable salaries to its staff. They know he is gifted and anointed but they are not happy that he is against the church’s welfare policy which is not a friendly one.

Against the foregoing backdrop, it is expedient to ask, “Who Is Feeding the Sheep?” The foregoing question becomes expedient to recall the dialogue between Peter and Jesus Christ; that was before Peter was fully reinstated as one of the disciples of Jesus Christ. The threads of the dialogue can be found in the book of John chapter 21verse 15 to 23. No doubt, the kernel of the dialogue was that Peter should feed His sheep. In the same light, pastors of today’s churches are expected to feed their sheep (their followers, and even junior pastors in this case).

Permit me to confess at this juncture that this piece is not a sermon but a personal view on how the vices of hypocrisy, deceit, levity, worldliness, materialism and greed have collectively reared their ugly heads into the church. The situation is literarily nauseating at the moment that the sheep, who are invariably junior pastors in this context, are no more being fed. Rather, it is the shepherds (the senior pastors who are also referred to as General Overseers) that are collecting from the sheep by paying them peanuts as wages to feed themselves and their families or dependents. And the senior pastors usually justify this action with the scripture in 1 Corinthians chapter 9 verse 7 that says “Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk?”

This piece should not be seen as an expression of disrespect to our senior pastors and other men of God but it should be seen as a response to God’s commandment in Proverbs 27 verse 17 that urges us to be supportive to one another. The scripture says “Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Our General Overseers need the intercession of other Christians, many of who are their followers, as it is very obvious that most of them are seemingly racing through the wrong track in the Christian race. An African proverb says “When the elders seem to forget the tenet of the tradition, the younger ones should always remind them on what the tradition says.”  It may not be wrong to say that it is expedient to reprimand some of our pastors at this “jet-age” with the word of God.

Against the backdrop of the fact that Senior Pastors (General Overseers) ostensibly do not pay their workers well, of which most of them are junior pastors and followers who work within the their ministries, it is not out of place to opine that the question, “Who Is Feeding The Sheep” has once again resonated, particularly amidst the resignation of Oyedepo’s son from his father’s Church to form his own ministry.

To buttress the foregoing view, it is expedient in this context to make reference to a news story titled “Revealed: Nigeria’s rich mega churches pay pastors poor salaries” published in the Punch newspaper edition of 5th February 2017.

According to the news story, “An extensive investigation carried out by SUNDAY PUNCH has revealed that many of the country’s prosperity-preaching, super-rich mega churches pay their pastors poor wages. The newspaper’s findings revealed that a substantial majority of the pastors engaged by the churches, who are polytechnic and university graduates, earn between N25, 000 and N45, 000 a month.

“According to our correspondent’s findings, full-time pastors, in addition to preaching and teaching during midweek services and Sunday services are also expected to perform other sundry duties that leave them with little time for other business endeavors.

“Some of the churches reviewed were the Redeemed Christian Church of God, the Living Faith World Outreach, popularly known as Winners Chapel, Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries, the Deeper Christian Life Ministry (an holiness church that has of late embraced economic empowerment themes), Christ Embassy International and Lord Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries”.

At this juncture, it is germane to remind General Overseers in the Christendom, particularly in this part of the world that 1 Timothy 5:17-18says, “Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the Word and doctrine. For the Scripture saith, “Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn,” and, “The laborer is worthy of his reward”, and which they always mouth from the pulpits during church services to make sermons explanatory and convincing.