By ‘Gbenga Bankole
A renowned Book Writer in Christ Apostolic Church Worldwide and Director of Academic Planning Office at Joseph Ayo Babalola University (JABU), Pastor (Dr.) D.O Alabi has explained how Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola saw Jesus Christ face to face.
Pastor Alabi disclosed this while delivering a paper on the topic “The Immanence of God Through 1930 Revival” at the ongoing annual Odo Owa Holy Pilgrimage in Kwara State.
He explained that: “the great immanence of God started with the episode of sleepless night that Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola had beginning from 25th September, 1928. God showed Himself to Babalola in the spirit by taking away his sleep for almost two weeks – 25th September – 8th October, 1928. God proved to him that He is the owner of his life. If God is the owner of your life, He can do anything with it.
“Reading the Bible was the only option that Babalola had and that was reading the book of Psalm from 1-150. The stage one immanence of God to Babalola was to draw him as a child from childhood to adulthood, from infantile to maturity. Pastor Joseph B. Orogun stated this episode thus: on September 25, 1928, the matter took a new turn when Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola discovered that sleep has totally deserted him although he was not sick. He was filled with an indescribable joy and he started to read the book of Psalms. He read the whole hundred and fifty chapters of the book of Psalms many times until he memorized the Psalms, lines, chapter and all.
“God called Babalola at the beginning of the hour of darkness. God broke through to him at the very hour that high powers, principalities and demonic host of wickedness would also start their nocturnal activities in the day. The hour that pregnant women dared not to trek and walk freely in the name of anything. Should anyone dared these powers, she might lose the pregnant as a sacrifice to them. Or she might have the pregnant possessed with “born to die” baby or familiar spirit.
“Babalola in his personal testimony said;”it happened on 9th October, 1928, while I was beside the steam roller, which refused to work without any fault (or damage) in it at exact 12noon, I heard a great voice sounding like the thunderous sound of hundred times hundred sounds of barrels, and called my name thus; Joseph ! Joseph !! Jospeh !!! You should leave (or quit) this work you are doing, if you do not leave the job, this year, I said this year, you will leave the land of the living.”
“God roared and sounded out through His voice and called Babalola. The voice of God came to Babalola to indicate a time of definite change is over in the land. Babalola heard the voice of God at least for twelve times within three days, giving him a certain direction.
‘’The initial four days of fasting of Babalola was witnessed by the visit of angles and beast. After the additional three days fasting, making seven days, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour appeared physically to Babalola with a powerful angel whose height reached heaven. This is the great theophany of God and immanence of God of Babalola. The contents of the theophany were the following: the physical appearance of Jesus Christ, the physical appearance of unnamed archangel, the sign of a flower with three shining heads and words of divine wisdom.
“Babalola was also given a boiled yam tuber, cut into two equal halves. Then the angel standing beside Jesus Christ told him: you have been fed with half of the meal with which He fed the entire world. Babalola was given a prayer handbell, an iron staff which symbolizes authority and power over all powers of the devil and darkness and a bottle filled with water of life as an authority to go and heal people by faith and for both internal and external diseases. Babalola was also told that his head has been crowned and anointed from heaven. Therefore, he should never wear any cap throughout his days on earth. Like the Nazarites in ancient Isreal, Babalola did not wear any cap. Some of his followers imitated him in this practice.”