Efc2026: Easter Faith Convention Wings Of Faith Opening Night by Bishop David Oyedepo: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Convention Expectation

Everyone should expect a raw encounter with the resurrection power of Christ that will result in supernatural turnaround. Expect a supernatural shift in your spiritual life — that is the control room of your life. To be spiritually minded is life and peace; to be carnally minded is death.

At the age of 16, a conference was attended whose theme was "God is not slow." That encounter brought a baptism of patience in walking with God. Patience became part of that journey. Grace was received to keep pace with God so as not to lose peace.

Expect the dominion verdict of resurrection to be conferred on your life. When Christ rose from the dead, he declared: "I was dead and now I am alive forever more, and I have the keys of hell and of death." And not only that — when he rose from the dead, those in him were raised together with him in heavenly places far above all principality. There is a dominion seal that comes along with resurrection.

Expect the fire of the word to burn off every char in your life, thereby making you an honorable vessel on the earth and securing eternity. Luke 24:32 — "Was not our heart burning within us when he opened the scriptures?" God's word does not only enlighten — it fires. Jeremiah 20:9 — his word was like fire shut up in the bones.

Why Develop Wings of Faith

Towards developing the wings of faith — Part One. The question is: why?

Revelation 12:7-17 — There was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon was cast out — that old serpent called the devil and Satan, which deceives the whole world. And I heard a loud voice saying, "Now is come salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ — for the accuser of the brethren is cast down."

Now at salvation, we become citizens of heaven. We are made to sit together with Christ in heavenly places. "By grace you are saved through faith" — salvation repositions us into heavenly places. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell therein.

But woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea — for the devil has come down with great wrath, because he knows he has but a short time. Satan will go wild like a mad dog, tormenting humanity without God.

So salvation is not just about escape to heaven. It is about dominion on the earth over the wickedness of the wicked.

Revelation 12:13-14 — And when the dragon saw that he was cast out, he persecuted the woman that brought forth the manchild. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness — into her place — where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

Wings to her place.

Characteristics of the Eagle

1. Eagles Are Visionary Creatures

   Their eyes can see great distances — scientists claim five kilometers away. They don't get carried away by the present; they see beyond it. They are farsighted. And as the scripture says, where there is no vision, the people perish.

2. Eagles Are Diligent

   You never see an eagle eating meat it did not kill. An eagle is not a scavenger — it hunts and kills its own food while the prey is warm and alive. You cannot cheat your way to becoming an eagle. You walk your way there.

3. Eagles Use Challenges as Stepping Stones to Soar

   As storms approach, lesser birds head for cover. But the mighty eagle spreads his wings, and with a great cry mounts upon the powerful updrafts, soaring to heights of glory. While other birds are taking cover, eagles are out there with their huge wings spread, riding on the storms. The eagle uses the storm to lift him to greater heights.

4. Eagles Possess a Training Culture

   Though known for ferocity, no member of the bird family is gentler or more attentive to its young. The mother eagle can sight a predator five kilometers away and with lightning swiftness gets there to defend her eaglet.

   
   
   

   At just the right time, the mother eagle begins to teach her eaglet to fly. She takes the eaglet onto her back, spreads her wings, flies high, and suddenly swoops out from under the eaglet. As it falls, it gradually learns what its wings are meant for — until the mother catches it again on her wings. Then she removes her back, repeating the process — which is part of exercising the wings.

   
   
   

   Stop crying at the trial of your faith. Sit up and pass the test. You don't change class without passing the required test.

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   Bishop David Oyedepo

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   If the young eagle is slow to learn or cowardly, she returns him to the nest and begins to tear the nest apart until there is nothing left for the eaglet to cling to. Then she nudges him off the cliff.

5. Eagles Belong to the High Places

   They select the tallest trees, the tallest crack of the mountain, and live in solitude — hunting and feeding individually. Eagles don't flock. You cannot use another man's wing to soar. Everyone needs their own developed wings.

   
   
   

   A wise saying: they that walk, walk with many; they that run, run with a few; but they that fly, fly alone. Aircraft don't tow themselves in the air — every aircraft that must fly must develop and generate adequate ground power. Stop looking for who to carry you.

6. Eagles Possess Unusual Strength

   Able to carry weights three times their size. Strength is developed by putting the word to work. Proverbs 24:5 — a wise man is strong; a man of knowledge increases his strength. Engaging with the word strengthens the believer — you go from strength to strength as you engage the word.

7. Eagles Possess Unusual Speed

   Between 240 and 320 km per hour. 2 Samuel 1:23 — Saul and Jonathan were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions. As you develop your wings, expect unusual speed.

Why We Need Wings

Just as faith does not grow by wishes — faith is developed. In the same way, wings don't just grow; wings have to be developed. 2 Thessalonians 1:3 — "Thy faith groweth exceedingly."

Why develop wings of faith? The days of the flood are here again.

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It Has Ended In Praise

by Pastor Jerry Eze

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Matthew 24:37-39 — "But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days that were before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came and took them all away."

In the days of Noah, the flood covered all the trees and all the mountains. So men of high degree and men of low degree — put together, they are all lighter than vanity when the flood comes. Nothing living on the earth has power over the flood. That is why we need wings.

Satan knows that he has but a short time. He has deployed the destructive weapon of the flood against us. Revelation 12:15 — the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away. And the earth helped the woman.

The flood of Noah lasted 150 days. You cannot fast for 150 days. So we need wings that will empower us to fly to our place for nourishment — as Revelation 12:14 says — to our place in heavenly places.

When Noah sent out a pigeon to check how much the water had receded, the pigeon returned because there was no place to land. So the eagle must find its way to a place in space. Everybody needs these eagle wings.

Genesis 7:24 — the flood was upon the earth for 150 days. No market, no farm, no shopping, no school — nothing. All living creatures swept off. That is why we need the wings.

Malachi 4:1 — the day shall come that shall burn like an oven, and all the proud and all who do wickedly shall be stubble. But unto you that fear his name — he will make a difference. No lion can escape fire. No elephant, size notwithstanding, can escape fire. Only eagles could smile at the fire. And smile at the flood. No other living creature can.

The days of Noah are here. People are going about saying nothing will happen. You will soon know who is a servant of God and who is not. You better wake up and take responsibility in developing your wings. No one under the sound of this voice will be a victim.

Only eight people escaped in Noah's day. You will escape.

God is set to give wings to his church.

Who is this woman? Galatians 4:26 — "Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all." Hebrews 12:22-24 — "Ye are come to Zion, the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, where the church is seated."

As believers, we are only ambassadors for Christ here. But as the flood hits, we need wings to fly to our place — where we begin to draw on the resources of eternal life. 1 Timothy 6:17-19 — charge those who are rich not to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us all things richly to enjoy — that they lay up a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on their eternal resources.

Jesus said, "I am from above and you are from beneath." John 8:23. Upon salvation, we are seated together with him — so we are also now from above. When the flood hits, we take off to our place. But you cannot take off without wings. It takes wings to fly.

1 John 5:4 — "This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith." Nothing else has power to deliver victory but faith. And faith requires wings to overcome certain situations — such as flood and fire.

When the flood of Noah came, all living creatures were gone. No big elephant can stand the destructive power of the flood. It is the eagle with strong wings that can overcome the flood of evil in these last days.

Every child of God is redeemed as an eagle. Deuteronomy 32:9-11 — "For the Lord's portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in the desert land and in the waste howling wilderness. He led him about, instructed him, and kept him as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirs up her nest, hovers over her young, spreads her wings, takes them, and bears them on her wings."

Our Father God is the mother eagle. He stirs the nest. Puts the baby eagle on his back. Goes up into the sky. Gets the eaglet off his back. The eaglet, struggling for survival, is picked up again. This process is repeated.

The Lord alone did lead him. There was no strange God with him. He was not chasing after the wind. The Lord alone did lead him. Only God can make you ride in his high places.

That is your eagle nature in redemption. You are redeemed as an eagle. But no child is born an adult — you are redeemed as an eaglet. You need to now develop your wings, or you die of hunger, because eagles hunt and feed alone. After the babyhood stage, you are on your own.

You cannot fly with the wings of your parents. Rapture is on an individual basis. You cannot fly with the wings of your spouse. Develop your wings.

This is why we need to develop wings of faith. The flood is here. The fire is on the way. The only way of escape is to mount with wings like eagles to your place.