Prophet Dele Ogundipe, founder, Genesis Global: Real reasons we pulled out of Celestial Church

By Ademola Aderemi

Pastor Israel Oladele Ogundipe is the founder and spiritual leader of Genesis Global Ministry, with headquarters in Lagos and branches in many countries. Born into a Muslim family, his parents and the entire family converted to Christianity while he was young. Following a difficult childhood fuelled by poverty, Pastor Ogundipe found himself gravitating towards the Celestial Church of Christ where a parish had given him shelter and shown him love. He later became a member, an instrumentalist and minister in the Celestial Church. He has since pulled out to start his own ministry, Genesis Global Outreach.
Pastor Ogundipe is a man of God whose teachings and practices are, according to him, not for religious purposes, but for the fulfilment of God’s glory and for the love of humanity.
In a chat with Saturday Sun, Oladele spoke about his controversies, his exit from the main Celestial Church, his foundation, as well as some of his struggles and triumphs.

How was your childhood like?
I am a young, small man with a big God. I was born into the Muslim family of Sanyaolu in Abeokuta,Ogun State, before my father changed to Ogundipe. My Muslim name is Wasiu and my wife’s name is Sakirat. My mother’s name is Risikat and my father’s name is Sulaimon. My younger sisters too bear different Islamic names before we all gave our lives to Christ. We joined the Christ Apostolic Church, located at 31 Church Street, Oshodi. We lived at Brown Street then.
My growing up was rough and tough, but our parents did their best to train us- the children in the way of the lord and most times in the hard way. To the glory of the most high God, my late father was a Deacon. My mother is still alive and she is a Deaconess. Her Christian name is Dorcas.
I went to Saint John Primary School Oshodi, and Ikeja Grammar School, also in Oshodi. We later moved to Alagbado and I proceeded to Ebenezer Comprehensive High School. I wrote my Senior Certificate Examination (WAEC) but I didn’t make my results at my first attempt.

You said growing up for you was tough and rough. Could you expatiate?
I’ll give an example. There was this experience I had during my secondary school days when we were to pay our Parents Teachers Association (PTA) levy. I couldn’t pay the money and those of us that didn’t pay were told to line up and the principal was about to beat us up. Then one of my colleagues fell on me and got my hand broken. My poor parents couldn’t afford the expenses to restore my broken hand. So my mother had to beg for money to take me to Igbobi Orthopaedic Hospital when the Plaster of Paris (POP) was applied. It was so difficult that we couldn’t afford the N150 to be paid for the POP to be removed. So when I realised that my mother was actually begging people to assist us with money to remove the POP, and the people were mocking us, I told her to stop begging people for money on my behalf.
I did the unthinkable. I had to soak the POP in a bowl of water to dissolve since there was no doctor to complete my treatment. And to the glory of God, the hand got healed. So my parents relocated to Alagbado here. It was a very lonely area, bushes all around and we lived in an uncompleted building.
My father started farming, and we had to join him. We planted cassava and all that to survive. Then as a young boy, I later decided to go to different sites to help as a labourer, working with bricklayers and assisting people to do tilling and all that. So when my mates were gaining admission into the university, it became a thing of mockery for me. Then I decided to move to Ile Ife, Osun State. I went to the Universal College of Technology for a few years studying Diploma in Computer Science then but I could not complete it. I later started developing myself through self development books.

Did you ever think you would end up as a pastor?
No, I never thought I would become a pastor. I started life struggling and sleeping in churches. So I got to one Celestial Church where I was sleeping and the pastor and the people I met showed me the love I needed at that trying time. It was that love they showed me that made me to become a member of Celestial Church. And that is why I have been a preacher of love and I am not a preacher of religion.
The church we were attending was not a white garment church. My initial thoughts and beliefs about the white garment church was that they were ritualists. I was trying to study them to know what they do and how they operate. I wanted to know whether they do something occult or not, but I later realised that they do nothing of such.
It was these people that gave me the white garment. And I said to myself that I would be going to the white garment church where people would not say that I couldn’t change my clothes because I couldn’t afford to buy clothes.
While in the church I embarked on several spiritual engagements like fasting and all that till it became part of me because there was even no food to eat. So, I turned it to fasting and spiritual cleansing. For many years, I slept in the church until the time I started participating as an instrumentalist. That was how it all began till the time God started using me for His people.

How did your parents convert to Christianity?
On that fateful day, we went for revival and during the sermon, a lot of Muslims at the revival converted and gave their lives to Christ. Maybe my parents were touched by the sermon. I was very young then, so I would not know. I just realised that my parents said we would be going to church and that was how it all began.
Some people see you as a non-conformist and a controversial prophet. How would you react to that?
I told you I didn’t go to the university. I only went to the university of adversity. I went through so many trials in my life, so I can’t really say. Whoever believes or says I am controversial has a right to his or her opinion. But as for me, I am a pure-hearted person. Imagine many people would just say anything, perhaps things they don’t know about their fellow human beings.
But let me tell you, controversy is very good because most times controversy is called success if it is well managed. So if you are not controversial, you might not be successful. When you are able to see that your crown is not in the crowd, people will say all sorts of unverified things about you and they will say you are controversial. At the Genesis Global, we do things according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In our church, we don’t go to the stream to bathe for people, we don’t go to the bush. We are not saying it is bad or that it is not good, but I pray daily for an abundant and advanced grace, digitalised grace that would not allow people to go to the stream or bush before they get their salvation. If anybody is against that, maybe, probably, such people are either jealous or envious of our grace. At Genesis Global, we don’t charge people for whatever reason and we are contented with the abundant grace of God. And we love ourselves for that.

Some say your problem with Celestial Church leaders started in December 2019 when you invited fuji musician, Wasiu Ayinde to your church. How true is that?
People did not talk bad about it; it was those with self-acclaimed righteousness. When Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde came here, he sang gospel music.

But was it Christ-like to have brought him to church, a secular singer?
It is Christ-like because hatred is not Christ like. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. Is Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde Satan? Is he evil? Many people are not Alhaji but they are worse than Alhaji. Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde is a man after my heart. I don’t care who loves him or who does not love him. I don’t care. If I love you, I love you.
Saying is it Christ-like is even irritating, because we have a lot of men of God who are not men from God. They discriminate. They pretend. Do you know what they do in their secret places? Do you know whether many of them have gone wide after their marriages? And they would be pretending to be holier-than-thou.
When Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde came, he sang. He didn’t enter into the altar. I didn’t invite Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde. He invited himself and he didn’t collect a dime from us. When he came, he praised God. He said he had promised God that one day he would come to Genesis Global and praise the Lord. I am not somebody that does things to impress people. There are so many things that come my way that I don’t really deserve, that I am not really going to pay money for.
There was a time someone gifted me with a car of N18 million. I asked the person, what exactly did you want to do with the car? He said he wanted to sell the car to raise money to help his family and I asked, so why do you want to give it to me? He said he was unable to sell it. And I said go and sell the car so that you can raise the money to help others. And I prayed. He sold the car and assisted his family. Those that he assisted eventually joined the church. Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde will still come a number of times because he was not here to sing adulterated songs but to sing gospel fuji.

Does that mean you can invite a Babalawo to the Genesis Church?
No. I can’t invite a Babalawo to the church, but he would come by himself for salvation. The church is not for everyone that is normal. Jesus himself said he came for sinners, not for those who are not sick. Not for those who are righteous. He came for sinners. Then, what is salvation if you cannot preach to them?
If a Babalawo comes to church and gives his life to Christ, fine. But I don’t have anything to do with Babalawo because I don’t believe in it. I am not fetish. I cannot be killing fowls, killing rams and doing all that. So it is not about me inviting a Babalawo to the church.
There was a day we were having a programme and some people who are herbalists gave their lives to Christ. Some of them went home to bring their Ifa and they submitted and gave their lives to the Most High God. They were at the church and they marvelled at the way God was using me for his people. They later came out and gave their lives to Christ. One of them was even the Oluwo. Now he is a preacher of the gospel. I have so many testimonies like that.
Sometimes, we discriminate. We tend to be fighting for God but let me tell you, nobody can fight for God. So, if an area boy should come to the church now, we should drive him away? Then, who are we preaching to? The church is a place where you have a lot of people that must be transformed. And if their minds cannot be transformed, their lives cannot be transformed.
How did you start Genesis Global Ministry? Some people have wondered whether you were really called…
If I am not called, there wouldn’t be several testimonies that we can point to as God’s grace. At Genesis Global, we have no signpost because God is on board. If I am not called, I wouldn’t be able to have countless testimonies. I told you about the church I grew up from. Prophets are made from the womb. I fasted, prayed and studied the words of God by myself.
You don’t need to go to a Bible School to be a prophet. Prophets are made from the womb. That was what God said to Jeremiah – ‘from the womb I made you a prophet of nations.’ Though, I have good mentors, I developed myself. I teach about the transformation of the mind. There are some things prayers will not do.
I have so many Bibles, so many books. I study the bible and the words of God are intact for us to study the Scriptures. Most people went to Bible School but they did not go to battle school. How can you teach people how to handle battles when you have not experienced one? You need to understand and apply the scriptures for the benefit of humanity. I don’t need to go to Bible School. What I need is to read and understand the scriptures and apply what God has given to me for his glory.
Of course, I have good mentors, good fathers. Because if you don’t have a mentor, you can not be mentioned. And when your mentors are outdated and barbaric, instead of them to become mentors they become tormentors. So, I endured the process. I read a lot. Half of my room at home is my library and you can see how I cherish books in this little space of my office. I have books on church growth, on marriage, entrepreneurship, and other aspects of life. I teach about transformation of the mind.
Some of the big names and founders of our faith didn’t go to Bible School. For instance, Ayodele Babalola didn’t go to a Bible School. So God has been there for me, building me, training me with the involvement of the Holy Spirit.

Our activities in the church are centred on the words of God. And as the prophet, I don’t touch church money and I am not on salary. I don’t force people to pay tithe.
So, how do you sustain yourself and family?
That is where the mercy of God comes in. If I am genuinely called by God and I pray for you and the lord blessed you as much as you didn’t expect under 24 hours, won’t you think of blessing me too? Transparency is supposed to be the major weapon of leadership.

What is the relationship between Genesis Global and the Celestial Church?
We have many pastors in the Celestial Church. We have Mobiyina Oshoffa who is the son of the founder. We have other leaders of the Celestial family. So it is your choice to be under whoever you like. Formerly, I used to be under Oshoffa. I don’t have any problem with them and I love them as my fathers. I don’t have any problem with the family. At Genesis Global, we are Celestial but we are not under any of those pastors. There are different leaders in the Celestial Church. There are so many internal crises that you wouldn’t know where to stand. But when Celestial becomes one family and we don’t have different pastors, I will now be under whoever is the leader. But for now, Genesis Global is standing as a church.

What was the problem between you and some leaders of Celestial Church?
For me as a young man, it is so frustrating. Part of why they summoned me was they said why would I raise money in the church and give it out to someone? They said what right have I to do that? You are not the one that bought this land for me. You are not the one that posted me here. You didn’t send me to Bible School. I am not owing you anything. Even if you are to correct me, you wouldn’t condemn me to the point that there was a letter they wrote that Genesis Global is no more with them, and that anybody that has anything against me should come and testify against me. I don’t know who wrote it. But that was crazy. I even posted the letter on my Facebook page. It was a way of selling me out to stab me. And only if you can stab God, that is when you can stab me because I don’t have anything against you. I was doing all my best to the glory of God. They even lied in the letter that I planned to pull out, which was a big lie. But I waited for over four years, thinking one of those elders would think of what they have done to this young man.
You cannot, because you want to flog a child, you go and carry a hammer to kill the child. I have not stolen anybody’s money and you have not caught me with any fetish item. Even all of you condemning our church, your churches are the ones that would drink alcohol on the harvest day. You are the ones that would do so many terrible things.
I have elders in our church now and they are security minded. We have police officers as members of this church and other security agents. We have lawyers. We have doctors. We have journalists that we worship together as one big family in the church. So there is no way we are going to be careless in our worship. But at the end, I saw it as pure hatred, confrontation without confirmation.
They talked about Wasiu Ayinde and I said he invited himself, and that when he sang, he sang gospel songs. So I am not under anybody. I am alone and I have God doing everything to fulfil the manifestation of His words.

Tell us about Israel Oladele Foundation.
Israel Oladele Foundation was a vision given to me by God because of what I have gone through in my life. I told God that anything that God has blessed me with, I will use it to support people that are vulnerable. And I will call some of my friends to support me too.
There is a community school that is very close to us here that we are renovating. It is a public school. My passion for education is to build a school and give it to the community. There are already many churches all over the world, so money that would be used to build churches should be used to build schools and we will hand it over to the community. That is one of the projects of the foundation and we are making a lot of progress by impacting our communities.
Our vision is to take care of small children, old people, widows and the vulnerable in our society. During the last Ramadan, we gave our Muslim brothers food for their breaking of fast, for the whole of 30 days that the Ramadan period lasted. We do this regularly.

There was a video where the Deeper Life General Superintendent, Pastor Kumuyi made reference to you when church members came out to donate money and you asked them to go and use the money to bless their neighbours?
This has being a part of me because my life has been a reflection of grace. It is not about what I am going to make in the church but about how the church can impact the lives of the people in the church and the society at large. It is about empowerment and developing people and impacting lives.

There are many churches in Nigeria, yet crime and sin continue to increase. Is that an indictment on the men of God?
It is not supposed to be only men of God that will preach the gospel. Even those that did not go to church are supposed to preach the gospel. You are a man of God. Muslims are men and women of God. So why only the pastors? We should all be involved in the act of spreading the gospel. But it is unfortunate that today, Christians are enemies to Christians. Today you see one pastor condemning another pastor, you see one Muslim Imam abusing his colleagues, especially on the social media.
Show me where you have seen one Babalawo condemning another Babalawo. Social vices come from our immediate homes and it is our duty to look into the way we build our various families that will make a larger percentage of the society. Pastors can only work on the spiritual. We are not the ones to train your children for you. Societal issues involve all of us. Christians, Muslims and everybody must be involved in building a society where there’s peace and tranquillity.

Many young men are into Yahoo Yahoo. What do you think is responsible for this?
I don’t know.

Why wouldn’t you know, being a pastor?
I said I don’t know. Before now, it was 419 or the act of duping people or extorting money. I always tell my members that if they should dupe you, it shows you are greedy. Only a greedy person will be duped. That is my own philosophy about it. How can you dupe me now, telling me that 20 cars are coming and that I should pay to one account and you say the car will cost one million naira each? May be that is the definition of the Yahoo Yahoo you are talking about. So the way they do it, I don’t know. But I hear they collect money from abroad. What I don’t know I cannot defend.

What has life taught you?
I am still learning because you cannot stop learning when you are still alive. Life is a school you cannot graduate from because you would never stop learning. Some of the things I have learned have to do with not relying on people and not trying to be a people pleaser. It is dangerous to try to please people. I have learned to be strong, believing that God is the most reliable.
I have been backstabbed, hurt, betrayed and lied upon, I have been set up, faced character assassination, faced media bullying and all that but I am still unwavering and strong. And all those challenges have really made me who I am today. But I am still learning.

Which day is your most memorable day ever?
That was the day I gave my life to Christ.