Dr. Emmanuel Johnson, the biological son of one of the first ordained evangelists in the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Rev. Dr. Johnson Osakwe, and currently the General Overseer of Christ Evangelical and Prayer Ministry, shares with Christian Benefits how his childhood exposure to Yoruba demonic movies inspired him to seek satanic power and aspire to become second-in-command to Satan at the tender age of eight.
In this interview, he expresses deep gratitude to Jesus Christ for stopping him in that dangerous pursuit, which ultimately led to his spiritual transformation and eventual elevation as the National Overseer of Christ Evangelical and Prayer Ministry, with branches across the globe, including the United States and India.
How would you like to be introduced?
I am Pastor Dr. Emmanuel Johnson, the National Overseer of Christ Evangelical and Prayer Ministry (CEPM).
Share with us the church’s background and its founder, Rev. Dr. Johnson Osakwe
The ministry was formerly known as Christ the Great Healer Evangelical Ministry. Our General Overseer, Rev. Dr. Johnson Osakwe, was among the first set of ordained evangelists in the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), alongside Pastor Tunde Bakare, who is now the serving overseer of Citadel Global Community Church. While in RCCG, Evangelist Osakwe conducted crusades for about 20 years, planting churches and handing them over to RCCG until 2001, when God instructed him to start his own ministry. However, he did not begin immediately. It took a few more years before the ministry was established.
He currently resides in the United States with his wife, while I coordinate all the churches under the ministry as the National Overseer. The General Overseer is my biological father. We hail from Kwale in Delta State and are Delta-Igbo by origin. I speak Yoruba fluently because I was born and raised in Yorubaland. My mother is Yoruba, from Osun State.
What is the mandate upon which the church was established?
The mandate of the church is found in Luke 4:18: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.”
According to the name of the ministry, we use evangelism and prayer as the two key instruments to fulfill this mandate, reaching beyond the physical church to every nation of the earth with messages of salvation, healing, deliverance, and hope to the brokenhearted.
Tell us about some of the church programs that align with this mandate, including testimonies
Aside from our weekly Sunday services for spiritual nourishment and Thursday deliverance services, we provide free food at each of our three mega services every Sunday to help alleviate the economic hardship faced by many people.
We minister not only to the spiritual needs of the people but also to their physical needs. Most of our messages are centered on hope, encouraging people not to give up on their situations. Our goal is to make lives whole rather than focusing on just one aspect of life.
We also organize periodic business and financial empowerment programs, including a monthly empowerment program for widows. Additionally, we provide scholarship support for indigent students to aid their education.
What is the spread of the church within and outside Nigeria?
We currently have four branches in Lagos, and we will inaugurate another branch in Lekki on Sunday, June 7, 2026. We are also planning two branches around the University of Lagos (UNILAG) in Akoka and another in Phase 2, Gbagada.
Outside Lagos, we have four branches in Ondo State and one in Abuja. Internationally, we have two branches in the United States and 42 branches in India. We previously had a branch in Ibadan, which has since been taken over by the branch pastor.
Share your upbringing experiences as a pastor’s son
I did not grow up directly under my parents. Around 1986, I went to live with my uncle, who is also a pastor, and his wife. It was a wonderful experience growing up under their care. They did their best to raise me, although becoming a pastor was never my intention. However, their influence played a role in shaping my life and made it easier for me to follow the way of the Lord. I thank God for saving me.
How long have you been following the way of the Lord?
If I am not mistaken, it has been about 33 years. I was ordained as an Assistant Pastor in this ministry in 2001.
Briefly share your salvation encounter before your call to ministry
It is a long story. Even my parents and uncle would be surprised by it. My salvation encounter was shaped by several experiences. While growing up, I sensed there was something special about me, but I did not understand its direction. Between the ages of 6 and 8, I developed a strong desire for extraordinary power. What started as a small thought gradually grew stronger until it consumed me.
At the age of eight, I became desperate to acquire supernatural power so that whatever I desired would happen. This desire was largely influenced by watching Yoruba magical movies, where actors performed incantations and demonstrated supernatural abilities and eulogized Satan and other demons for their great feats.
From those movies, I concluded that Satan was the source of such extraordinary power. I discussed this desire with a friend, who told me about an occult man his father once visited. He believed the man could help me obtain such power.
During a school holiday, we went to see the man. When he asked why I had come, I told him plainly that I wanted supernatural power. He confirmed that Satan could grant such power and asked if I was willing to serve him. I immediately agreed and even expressed my desire to become second-in-command to Satan. He gave us an appointment for the following Monday, when he said he would initiate me.
Divine Intervention
On the Sunday before that appointment, I attended a Redeemed Church parish in Ibadan. While the pastor was preaching, I suddenly had a vision. I saw a man being brutally beaten, nailed to a cross, and crowned with thorns. He cried out in agony and then called my name three times: “Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel, and said, “I am Jesus Christ of Nazareth. I died for your sins. If you give your life to me, I will use you all over the world.” The vision disappeared, and I was confused.
The next morning, as I was heading out to meet my friend for the initiation, I encountered the same man standing before me. He revealed Himself again as Jesus Christ and began to preach to me. He asked me to read John 3:16 from my uncle’s Bible. I opened it and read: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”After I finished reading, He said to me, “I am that begotten Son.”
He then explained His sacrifice and told me I was a covenant child. He said both He and Satan wanted to use me, and I had to choose. I asked Him who was more powerful. He said He was far more powerful than Satan and that the power He would give me would make me powerful than Satan. That was all I needed to hear.
I chose Jesus. Right there, He led me in the sinner’s prayer, and I surrendered my life to Him on that Monday morning in 1993, on the very day I was meant to receive satanic power. Since that moment, the Lord has continued to guide my life; visiting me thrice every week till now. I came into ministry as a child preacher in primary school and through my secondary and university education up till now.