The RCCG was founded in 1952 by Rev. Josiah Olufemi Akindayomi (1909–1980). Adeboye was a mathematics lecturer at the University of Lagos and had joined the church in 1973. Adeboye was initially a Yoruba-to-English interpreter for Akindayomi's sermons. He was ordained a pastor of the church in 1975.
His appointment as the leader (styled 'General Overseer') of the church in 1981, was formalized by the posthumous reading of Akindayomi's sealed pronouncement. In 1990, the Redeemed Christian Church of God Bible School was founded.
In 1983, the land for the Redemption Camp in Mowe was purchased. In 1988, a students' body known as the "Redeemed Christian Fellowship" (RCF) was established. It is the youth wing of the church, concentrated that caters to students in tertiary institutions. In 1990, "Christ the Redeemer's Friends Universal (CRFU)" was established to garner financial and human resources from the very wealthy in the society. In 2005, the Redeemer's University was established.