The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has issued a strong admonition to members of his church, urging them to refrain from spending millions of naira on extravagant weddings.
Speaking at the RCCG National Convention during a ministers’ conference held on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Pastor Adeboye criticized the growing trend of lavish wedding ceremonies within the church, describing it as a wasteful and worldly practice.
Pastor Adeboye lamented that some members of the RCCG have turned marriage ceremonies into extravagant jamborees, spending money that could be better used to secure the future of their children.
He recounted a more modest example, stating, “When you marry, you cut your coat according to your clothes. If you believe it or not, a family, a very wealthy family came all the way from America to conduct the wedding of their daughter in my office in Ebute-Metta, and they were blessed. Everything started and ended in my office. They had their baby within months.”
The revered clergyman also took issue with the practice of women applying makeup and elaborate decorations for their weddings, labeling it as an attempt to “improve on what God has already done.”
He asserted, “Those who do make-up are those who do not believe God did a good job. When God created you, He did a great job, you are wonderful, perfectly made, and you cannot find any other fellow like you; you are special.”
Pastor Adeboye did not mince words, stating, “When you begin to paint, and you think you can improve on what God has already done, you are a fool. You can never improve on what God has done.”
He urged RCCG members to embrace their natural beauty as God created them, warning against conforming to worldly standards and urging them to “stop all these attitudes.”
In his address, Pastor Adeboye also touched on a troubling trend among some pastors within the RCCG. He criticized the practice of pastors from different provinces or regions collaborating to plant churches abroad, only to use the opportunity to visit those churches under the guise of ministry work, while spending millions of naira on travel expenses.
“If it’s for church growth, we can understand, but when each pastor from different provinces in the name of visiting a church abroad does this, that must stop and stop right now,” he declared.
Pastor Adeboye condemned such actions as hypocritical and warned, “That is the sin of hypocrisy, and if you continue, you don’t change, God is at liberty to punish hypocrites, and I won’t beg on your behalf.”
He further admonished pastors who bypass the mission board and continental overseers while engaging in these activities, stating, “God is watching.”
The RCCG General Overseer’s statements serve as a stern reminder to members and leaders alike to uphold the values of humility, simplicity, and integrity within the church, aligning their actions with the teachings of the faith.