He was born March 2, 1942, to a very humble background, he humorously recalls that even poor people called them (his family) poor.
He went to the University of Nigeria (UNN) in Nsukka but because of the Nigeria Civil War, he completed his first degree in the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) graduating with a bachelor's degree in Mathematics in 1967. That same year, he married Foluke Adenike.[4] They have four children namely: Adeolu Adeboye, Bolu Adubi (née Adeboye), Leke Adeboye, and Dare Adeboye. In 1969, he obtained a master's degree in hydrodynamics from the University of Lagos. He joined the Redeemed Christian Church of God in 1973 and began interpreting Yoruba to English by Pastor Josiah Olufemi Akindayomi. In 1975, he obtained a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from the University of Lagos. He holds a position as Professor of Mathematics at the University of Lagos.
Adeboye is considered a preacher of the Prosperity gospel, a claim he does not deny, saying that "Pentecostals have such an impact because they talk of the here and now, not just the by and by… while we have to worry about heaven, there are some things God could do for us in the here and now."