Nigerian preacher, Obiora Ezekiel of CPM is dead

Barely two weeks after the Senior Pastor of Fountain of Life Church, Taiwo Odukoya, lost his wife, the Christian community has again lost another church leader, the General Overseer of Christian Pentecostal Mission (CPM) International, Lagos, Rev. (Dr.) Obiora Ezekiel. Ezekiel, one of the founding fathers of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), died at 78.

The news of his death was announced by the church in a statement during church service at its headquarters in Ajao Estate, Lagos, yesterday.

A Senior Pastor and Imo State Co-ordinator of the church, Rev. (Dr.) John Eze, who made the official announcement, said the late revivalist and televangelist died in the early hours of Friday, November 19, 2021.

Eze said: “To our friends in Nigeria and across the world, this is to officially announce to you the transition and transformation to greater glory of our father, mentor and General Overseer, Rev. Dr. O. Ezekiel. We are not mourning but celebrating because his mantle is with us.

“He has gone ahead to prepare a place where we all shall be gathered forever more. It is by divine will. His last moments on earth were spent in the service of God. This is what he was born for, lived for and died for.

“The Ezekiel family, our National/International Co-ordinator, Rev. (Dr.) Mercy Ezekiel and the entire CPM church across the world appreciate your love, prayers and concern at this time and request a time of privacy for the family,” he said.

According to the church management, an update would be given on the burial arrangement.

In his biography obtained by The Guardian, the deceased operated under the five fold ministry gifts as an apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher. He was a dynamic man full of integrity, transparency and discipline, who truly wanted to please God and would not touch anything that is not validated by the scriptures.
 
As a child, his mother always told him of how he would mount a small kitchen stool with a Bible in his hand and would preach the gospel. As a young lad in the village, he knew what he wanted and always went for it. As a result of God’s call upon his life, he came to Lagos in 1954. His ministry became known for deliverance that he is often called Demon Bulldozer. Having entered into the 3rd phase of his ministry, many gospel ministers within and outside Nigeria are subject to his spiritual authority and regard him as the Apostle of our time.
 
The deceased is survived by wife, children and a grandchild.