Pastor W.F. Kumuyi has emphasized the importance of a wife giving proper attention to her marriage relationship, pointing to the biblical instruction that wives should submit to their own husbands. The statement, “Wives, submit yourselves to your husband and not to your pastors,” draws attention to the distinction between spiritual leadership in the church and the responsibilities that come with marriage.
The teaching is consistent with Kumuyi’s longstanding emphasis on Ephesians 5:22, where wives are instructed to submit to their husbands, while husbands are commanded to love their wives sacrificially. In his teachings on Christian family life, he has described submission as part of the biblical portrait of a godly wife and connected it with faithfulness, love, obedience to God and the building of a stable home.
The statement also raises an important point about marital boundaries. A pastor can provide spiritual counsel, guidance and biblical instruction, but marriage carries its own responsibilities between husband and wife. For Christian couples, the goal should not be to place a pastor in competition with a spouse, but to allow biblical principles to guide both the church relationship and the home. At the same time, the biblical instruction on submission appears alongside the husband’s responsibility to love his wife sacrificially, showing that Christian marriage involves responsibilities for both partners.
