Founder of the Living Faith Church Worldwide, David Oyedepo, has told members of his congregation to share his phone number with kidnappers in the event of abduction, insisting he possesses spiritual authority to intervene in their release.
Oyedepo made the remark during a sermon at the church’s Canaanland headquarters in Ota, Ogun State, a clip of which later circulated widely on social media.
“If anybody picks you, give them my number,” the cleric told worshippers during the service.
He claimed that previous cases involving church members had been resolved through what he described as divine intervention, recounting two separate incidents to support his assertion.
In one account, Oyedepo said a pastor of the church was kidnapped and that he directly warned the abductors of consequences if the victim was not released.
“I said, in 24 hours, if you don’t take him out, you are dead,” he said, adding that the situation was resolved shortly afterwards.
In another instance, he narrated how a female member of the church was allegedly held by kidnappers but declared by faith that she would regain freedom by 7 a.m. He claimed she was eventually released without him contacting the abductors directly.
“They started cutting themselves,” he said, describing the alleged reaction of the kidnappers before freeing her.
The cleric used the sermon to emphasise what he described as spiritual authority available to believers.
“You have been raised far above the devil. If the church does not conquer these devils, God has left heaven,” he told the congregation.
The message, shared under the church’s #SupersonicSunday tag, has since generated widespread reactions online, with the video continuing to circulate across social media platforms days after the service.