We are going to be talking about afflictions, especially because we’re focusing on health. Health is vital for anyone who stands as a gate protector. If your assignment is as important and critical as guarding the gate, then you must walk in sound health and wholeness. The sick can achieve very little, and the dead can achieve nothing.
Our topic is “Conquering the Gate of Affliction.” The objective is to address physical, emotional, and spiritual afflictions so that we can walk in divine health.
Our text is from Psalm 22:24 (KJV) – “For He hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath He hid His face from him; but when he cried unto Him, He heard.”
This Psalm of David was inspired by the Holy Spirit, speaking about what would happen to Jesus Christ after His suffering. It shows us that God is always present, ready to listen and hear when we cry to Him for help.
As Christians, we know that afflictions will come, because as long as we walk in a world ruled by Satan, the enemy will surely attack. But one thing you must know is that God understands how you feel every time. From birth till now, He knows everything about you.
Hebrews 4:15 (KJV) tells us that we have a High Priest who understands our weaknesses. That’s why we can rejoice even in times of affliction, as long as we are walking in God’s will. However, there’s another kind of affliction that comes when a person strays from God.
When you walk uprightly before Him, obey His word, and serve Him by the Holy Spirit, afflictions may still come—but take joy in this: Jesus has felt it all.
Matthew 10:30 (KJV) reminds us, “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” Tell someone, “God loves you.” Imagine that—He knows you so deeply that if you pluck one strand of hair, He can tell you its number. That’s how special you are.
So, don’t let your heart be troubled. Jesus has gone through everything you could ever face. Trust in Him and let the joy of the Lord fill your heart, because that’s where your strength lies. Say to yourself, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.”
In John 10:10, Jesus said, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
You may wonder what the devil wants to kill. There are three key things: He wants to steal your joy, because once your joy is gone, your dreams and vision begin to die. Have you ever seen a sad person planning for the future? It doesn’t happen. Sad people don’t dream or envision great things.
So when he steals your joy, he kills your dreams and visions. And when a person walks around with dead dreams and goals, their destiny is destroyed.
But thank God for the One who is deeply interested in you and me. The One who made us so beautifully says, “I have come that they may have life.”
So, rise above every affliction, guard your joy, and walk in the divine health and victory that Christ has given you.
Now, what is affliction?
Affliction is anything that causes pain, harm, disorder, or distress. It can come in different forms—physical, emotional, or spiritual.
• Physical afflictions are pains and illnesses that affect the body, such as chronic diseases, cancer, ulcer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, blindness, lameness, or deformities from birth or accidents.
• Emotional afflictions affect the mind and are very dangerous because a person may look fine on the outside but be deeply troubled within. Examples include depression, low self-esteem, mental health struggles, heartbreak, and emotional trauma.
• Spiritual afflictions include loss of hunger for God’s word, prayerlessness, neglecting fellowship with other believers, doubt, adultery, fear, and various addictions. We will look more closely at addictions later.
Now, you may wonder—how do these afflictions come, and why do they come? One thing we must understand is that Jesus Christ experienced everything we go through. You might ask, “How could Jesus have felt loneliness or heartbreak? He wasn’t married, so how could He know what it feels like to lose a spouse or face delay in childbirth?”
But remember, when Jesus was on His way to the cross, the Bible says He was beaten with thirty-nine lashes—each one extremely painful. Scholars and medical experts have said that all known human diseases and disorders fall into thirty-nine categories.
So, in taking those thirty-nine stripes, Jesus not only identified with every form of human suffering, but He also released healing for each one. Every stripe He received carried the power to heal—body, mind, and spirit.
When Jesus was about to be tempted, He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights. The wilderness was not a place where people passed by; it was a place of complete loneliness.
Do you ever feel alone, as if no one notices you? The good news is that Jesus has been there too. After fasting for forty days and nights, He was hungry, weak, and tempted, yet He overcame.
Have you ever felt betrayed by someone you loved and trusted? Jesus experienced it. One of His closest friends denied Him, saying, “I do not know Him.”
On the cross, as He hung with nails in His hands and feet, every movement caused great pain. And in that moment, even His Father turned away. Have you ever felt abandoned or rejected by family or friends? Jesus experienced it in an even deeper way.
But thank God, He now lives in us through the Holy Spirit, given to us as a precious gift.
Now, let’s talk about addiction.
There are many types—addiction to food, sex, gambling, pornography, stealing, and so on. Addiction is one of Satan’s weapons of mass destruction in these end times.
Simply put, addiction is when a person’s body and mind become so dependent on something harmful that they feel they can’t function normally without it.
We’ll focus on drug and alcohol addiction for now. How do such afflictions begin? The first cause of addiction is disconnection from God.
In John 15:5 (KJV), Jesus said, “Without Me, ye can do nothing.” So, He warns us not to disconnect from Him.
I gave my life to Jesus around 1968 or 1969, when I was still in primary school. I grew up in a home where we prayed morning and night and studied the Scriptures. But even after being born again, I didn’t fully understand what it meant.
Later, I drifted away. Through secondary school, I became rebellious and disobedient—the black sheep of my family. I started smoking and drinking. It took me three years to gain admission into the university—then called Ife, now OAU. When I got there, I joined a cult. At that time, there were only two cult groups, and the one I joined was notorious.
I disconnected from God because I wanted to belong. I abandoned the One who gave His life for me and chased after emptiness.
Please, never forsake God—that’s exactly what the devil is waiting for. Whatever it costs you, never return to drugs or alcohol once you’ve given your life to Christ. The devil is angry because he knows his time is short (Revelation 12:12).
It’s like a woman who catches her unfaithful partner and then goes back to him—he will only hurt her more. Don’t go back to what once destroyed you. Stay with Jesus; He is your strength and freedom.
The second cause is emotional vulnerability. Satan often takes advantage of emotions like grief, rejection, fear, and isolation.
I was once chatting with one of my sons in the Lord who had just completed a rehabilitation program. He was deeply worried about his wife and son—his wife was angry and wanted to stay apart from him. I told him, “Don’t be anxious. This is the time to soak yourself in the Word of God, in prayer, and even fasting.”
The devil loves to play on our pain and attack the mind. If he could tempt Jesus after forty days and nights of fasting, telling Him to turn stones into bread, then he will surely try us too. But thank God, Jesus was not deceived.
In John 1, the Bible says, “He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God.” That’s who you and I are—children of power.
If Jesus overcame, we too can overcome, because He has already shed His blood for us. What remains is for us to keep our testimony alive.
So, let your thoughts be shaped by the Word of God, not by what the world says. Don’t let your situation or people’s opinions control your mind. Let every thought, word, and action be patterned after God’s Word, because that’s where victory begins.
The third cause is bad influence.
In 2 Corinthians 11:13–15 (KJV), the Bible warns that even in the church, it’s easy to be led astray. Some people may come among us, but they are not truly of us. That’s why you must be discerning about who you allow to influence your life.
When I was in Form 4, preparing for my school certificate exams, I had a group of friends—about 15 or 16 years old like me. We were all looking for ways to study better and stay awake longer. One of them suggested a drug called Ephedrine Hydrochloride, saying it would keep us awake all night.
I went home, bought a small pack, and began taking one tablet each day. About 30 minutes after taking it, I would start feeling light and energetic—it felt good at first. I could read from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. without sleep. I did this every day until severe headaches began. The pain only stopped when I took the drug again.
Thankfully, I had good parents. I told my dad, and he took me to the doctor. The doctor advised me to stop immediately and gave me medication to help. That’s how I was delivered from it.
Be careful of bad influences. The people may not seem evil, but the devil can use anyone. The Bible says, “Flee from every appearance of evil.” If something or someone is not rooted in Scripture, stay away. Protect your mind and your walk with God.
The fourth one is pride.
Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” Pride is one of the easiest ways the enemy gains access into a person’s life. It makes a man feel self-sufficient and unwilling to depend on God.
Isaiah 14:12–15 describes how pride led to the downfall of Lucifer. He said in his heart, “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God,” and because of that pride, he was cast down.
So, we must guard our hearts against pride. It blinds people to correction, hardens the heart, and separates them from God’s help. Always stay humble and dependent on the grace of God. Those four things—disconnection from God, emotional vulnerability, bad influence, and pride—are key gateways through which affliction and addiction enter a person’s life.
How does healing come?
1.According to James 4:7–8, 10 (KJV), the key to healing begins with submission and humility.
In verse 6, the Bible says, “He giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” Grace means unmerited favour —God doing for you what you don’t deserve.
So if you want God to bring healing and restoration into every area of your life, submit yourself to Him and walk in humility. When you humble yourself before God, you open the door for His grace and power to flow freely in your life.
2. Healing comes through daily study and meditation on God’s Word.
Psalm 107:20 (KJV) says, “He sent His word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions." The Word He sends is the Word that becomes life in us—and we have all experienced that, which is why we are here as gate protectors.
Joshua 1:8 explains how this works: “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night.” You can fast from music, news, social media, or even food—but never fast from the Word of God. Feed on it daily.
After reading the Word, the next step is to meditate on it. Ask yourself, “How has this scripture affected me today? What is God asking me to do through it?” The reason we study and meditate on the Word is not just to prosper, but—as the scripture says—to observe and do all that is written in it.
So, you have a daily assignment: never remove the Bread of Life from your life. Thank God for devotionals like Open Heavens—they guide us, teach key lessons, and even come with hymns that lift the spirit. God bless our Daddy G.O; he will not miss his reward, in Jesus’ name.
When you study the Word daily and apply it to your life—whether it’s crossing the street, dressing for a meeting, or handling a project—always ask, “What does the Bible say about this?”
As you keep doing this, the Bible says, “Then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” God has already given you His Word and His Spirit; what remains is for you to follow and obey.
And as you meditate on the Word day after day, it becomes rooted in your heart. The Bible says, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.”
This is how healing comes—by filling your heart with God’s Word until it overflows with faith, strength, and life.
3. You must be born again.
Matthew 11:28–30 (KJV) says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
I once strayed far from God after first meeting Him. Because of my reckless lifestyle, I joined a cult while at OAU and was eventually expelled in 300 level. Thankfully, I got another chance and gained admission into UNILAG—not in Law, but Political Science.
In my final year, there was a crusade on campus. I attended mainly because of a beautiful lady I had noticed—she was a strong believer, a Scripture Union (SU) sister. Unknown to me, she and her friends had been praying for my salvation. She would invite me to church, but I never went; I would invite her to parties, but she refused.
In one of my quiet moments, I remember praying to God to help me marry right. The first time I ever spoke to her, I was drunk, yet I told her I would one day walk her down the altar.
She later invited me to that crusade, and I went. On the first day, it seemed ordinary, but something happened that drew me in. I loved music, and there was a brother named Tunde who played the hymn “On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand”, with a jazz touch—it was the first time I heard Christian music played that way. Because of that, I kept attending.
On the last day, Daddy G.O preached from Matthew 11:28, speaking about addiction and immorality—exactly the struggles I was battling with. Then he said, “Jesus wants to give you rest. Come forward and surrender your life to Him.”
That night, I went forward and gave my life to Christ. From that moment, everything changed—the nightmares stopped, the addictions ended, and the afflictions were broken.
So if you are in a similar situation today, give your life to Christ. Surrender completely to Him, because He alone can give true rest.
There are still many out there waiting to hear this same message of hope—and you and I are the ones God wants to use. I plead with you, don’t delay. Today is the day of salvation.