27th August, 2014
Kazeem Ugbodaga & Joseph Oluwasanmi
National President, Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, Dr. Felix Omobude and other ministers of the gospel have mourned the death of the founder of the Gospel Apostolic Church, GAC, Rev. Samuel Sadela who died at the age of 114 years on Sunday.
Speaking with P.M.NEWS Wednesday, Omobude thanked God for the life Sadela lived, for standing for the truth and righteousness till the end.
“I thank God he lived a good life. We condole with his family and the church in general for the life he lived. Our prayers will continue to go to his family,” he said.
He described Sadela as a gift to Christendom, having spent over 80 years in the ministry and served God passionately for such a long time.
According to him, for him to have served God for such a long time without blemish was commendable, saying that “the life of a man does not consist in the abundance of riches, but the life he lived.”
Reverend Samuel Ogedengbe, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Christian Religious Matters, said Sadela had fought a good fight as a minister of God, describing him as a wonderful man of God and that he learnt under him.
“He was a wonderful man who touched many lives. He had lots of challenges, but he was focussed and never deviated. Young pastors should emulate him and not deviate from the word of God,” he said.
Pastor Ezekiel Mayowa of the Deeper Life Bible Church described Sadela as a very strong and revered man of God who kept the standard of the Christian faith with strong conviction and character.
“He did not retire until he died, ministers of God should know that there is no retirement from the work of God until death,” he said.
Pastor Adebola Oladeko, a lawyer and spokesman for the church, said: “Baba died in the early hours of Sunday, at 4.30 a.m. to be precise. We were not caught unawares. Baba had been telling us and preparing us for that day. He told his son that he was going home, but they did not quickly understand what he was saying. He had prepared us, even somebody else got the same vision. His major concern was for us to go out there and win souls for Christ.
“That Sunday, he was conscious, he knew what he was doing, he told them to bathe him. After exchanging pleasantries with everybody he said he wanted to rest. Immediately he laid on the bed, he died.
“Baba was an oracle of God. Everything concerning him and God was how to propagate the word of God; and that was what he has handed over to us, both his spiritual children to the glory of God. His son is a pastor in this church. His daughter is a deaconess in this church.
“He was a loyal disciple of Jesus Christ. He said you cannot condemn any church; that there must be unity of purpose. He even prayed for Muslims. He gave room to everybody, not discriminating against anyone. He was tolerating to a fault. I will miss his sermons and love he extended to the world.”
Sadela was born in 1900 and spent about 84 years preaching the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He died around 4:15 am on Sunday. Sadela established over 180 branches of the GAC worldwide and was said to have been ordained a preacher by the late founder of the Christ Apostolic Church, CAC, Ayo Babalola in 1932 when he was still a member of CAC.
It was gathered that he was with Pa Babalola when he fasted for 40 days and joined him in the praying and fasting. He was commissioned by Babalola who told him to establish a new church before he died when CAC was having problems.
It was learnt that Pa Babalola told him that he should retain the name ‘Apostolic’ in his church which was why it is called Gospel Apostolic Church,” a top member of the church said.
He was also instrumental to the bringing of Four Square Gospel Church to Nigeria. His wife died in 2005 and he remarried about six years ago to a 30-year-old woman when he was 107 years old,.
Sadela is survived by two children-Pastor Nathaniel Sadela and Deaconess Adewunmi Sadela. Pastor Nathaniel, who heads the Ikeja branch of GAC is touted to succeed him.
His burial plans have not been announced by the church yet.
Rev. Sadela was born on the last Saturday of August, 1900 at Ifon, Ondo State, Southwest Nigeria. His parents were Chief Olomonehin Sadela of Imoru (Second in command to the Olumoru of Imoru) and Princess Adetiye Sadela, a princess in the Adanike ruling house in Ifon.
It was not difficult for him to remember the year of his birth because it was the year the District Officer (a white man) under the colonial rule assumed duty at Ifon. Hence he was fondly called “Aboyinbode” (which means born the same year the white man arrived) by his parents, relatives and friends from childhood till he became an adult. Though his father came from the Olisa Chieftaincy House of Imoru, he was living at Ifon at the time of his birth. His grandfather, Adidi, was a warrior of repute, but Reverend Samuel Sadela was a warrior of Christ Jesus.
In 1902 as a toddler, little Akinbode was said to have been taught how to read the Holy Bible by the angels of God. Surprisingly, he could not read any other book apart from the Bible by then.
He completed standard six education in 1920. He was an active member of the Boys Scout. He narrowly missed an opportunity to travel to England in 1925 as part of the Nigerian Contingent of the Boys Scout. He could not make the trip because his father was sick.
He passed the Senior Cambridge in 1946 and London University Matriculation in 1949. Simultaneously while he was studying for Cambridge and Matriculation examinations he was a correspondence Law Student of Woolshall College, London. He studied Law for three and a half years and he was qualified to go to the Law School in London for 9 months after which he would have been called to Bar. When he informed Apostle Babalola he was advised not to go and he sacrificed the legal profession for the work of God. Apostle Babalola predicted that a time would come that Rev. Sadela would be surrounded by various professionals (Particularly Choristers with Musical Instruments) working with him in the vineyard of God. To the glory of God, the prophecy was fulfilled.