Apostolic Church

This is one of the Christian denominations that profess Pentecostalism and claim of continuity of first century Yahoshea's assembly.

     Apostolic Churches traces its origin from the 1904-1905 Welsh Revival that played prominent role towards formulation of Pentecostalism.  The movement started from a Welsh-speaking village of South Wales.

     The movement is presently made of some millions of converts scattered in many cities who seek for Yahoshea Meshiyach and his method.

Origin Of The Group

Records bear that in 1909, William Oliver Hutchinson started a Pentecostal Church that later metamorphed into the Apostolic Church in Britain.

      In 1916, Rev. Daniel Powell Williams and some Welsh congregations broke away and found the Apostolic Church in Wales.

      In 1917, another Pentecostal group in Burmighan joined up with the Apostolic Church of Wales.  The next year, another congregation known as the Burning Bush Pentecostal in Glasgow and Apostolic Church in Hereford came into alliance with Apostolic Church of Wales.

      History bear that constituting congregations met in Bradford in 1922 and formally established the Apostolic Church.  Four main groups that made up the church were the Apostolic Church in Wales, the Burning Bush congregation, the Apostolic Church in Hereford and the Apostolic Church of God.

Polity And Governance

Through the arrangement, an administrative Union was formulated. Apostolic Church of Wales in Pen-Y-Gross in Carmarthenshire became the administrative centre, Glasgow became the financial centre and Bradford became the missionary centre of the amalgamated Church.

      The International Apostolic Convention is the highest governing body of the movement and has been held at Pen-Y-Gross Carmarthenshire in every First Week of August annually since 1916.  The hosting of the convention changed from 2003 to 2011.

     As a Pentecostal congregation, the Apostolic Church observe virtually all central traditions of Pentecostalism.  It holds to the doctrine of justification of grace through faith alone.

      The movement has great influence by ecclesiology.  The body give all reverence or leadership to the saviour whom it identify as Christ and holds that his headship is expressed through the ascension ministries of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.

Doctrine And Greed

The body holds to the sacramental doctrines of Calvinist's spiritual presence.  The body had traditional beliefs that are known as the Tenets which serves as its Confession of Faith.

      Those tenets include – the belief of trinity, the inherent corruptness of man through fall; the necessity of repentance and regeneration by grace through faith in the Christ alone and the eternal separation from God of the refused repentance.

      The third tenet is – the virgin birth, sinless life, atoning death, triumphant resurrection, ascension and continuing intercessions of the messiah, his second coming and the millennial reign upon earth.

       Fourth Tenet – The justification and sanctification of believers through the finished work of Christ.

      Fifth Tent – The baptism of the Holy Spirit for believers with supernatural signs, empowering the church for its mission in the world.

      Sixth Tenet - The gifts of the Holy Spirit for the building up of the Christ and ministry of the world.

       Seventh Tenet – The sacraments of Baptism by emersion and of the Lord's Supper.

      Eightieth Tenet - The divine inspiration and authority of the Holy Scriptures. Nineth Tenet – Christ's leadership of the church through apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers, elders, and deacons, for unity, maturity and growth of the church.

      Tenth Tenet – The security of the believer as remains in Christ.

     Eleventh Tenet – The privilege and responsibility of bringing tithes and offering to the Lord.

These are basic religious constitutions of the Apostolic Church in U.K. States which it held to be unchangeable in any way  of whatever.

      The Apostolic Church in Australia, Acts Churches in New Zealand and Ascension fellowships International in America go by revised sets of Tenets.

Spread And Missionary Institutions

The Apostolic Church is credited to establishing of the first and oldest Pentecostal college in Great Britain.  The name of the school was the Apostolic Church school of Ministry which was founded as the Apostolic Church International Bible School in 1933.

The Apostolic Church is one of the Pentecostal member of churches that were developed in 20th century to carter for individual liberty and experience in religious matters that were lately enjoyed by the clergy class alone.

      In Pentecostalism, each member is subject to one particular gift or the other and such blessings are used to promote the movement.

      Although there is strong elements of ecclesiology in Apostolic Church but each adherent enjoys liberty of his or her religious practices and their experiences.

Observations and Summary

     The Apostolic Church claim to have taken its root from early apostolic assembly that was laid by Yahoshea Meshiyach, but such claim is unrealistic because there was a bold devastation between the works of the early apostles of Yahoshea and those of the present day Pentecostal tradition.

      For instance, Yahoshea and his apostles held upon the divine laws and worked towards their fulfillment while the entire Christendom is out of the protectorate of the laws in their practices.  The church is of the claim that Yahoshea has nailed the law on the Cross of Calvary, therefore they believe on the grace and faith alone.

      This ecclesiology is totally erroneous because in absence of the law, there could be no sin and in absence of sin, there will be no grace.  So, grace is an unmaritable favour granted upon a sinner who had previously committed sin.

      The belief of the downfall of man and the inherent corruptness is a fraudulent tenet to misguide the gullible from claiming the efficacy of their personal fall through disobedience of the laws of Yahweh.

     The fall of Adam has no relationship to any of his offsprings because whatever each person sow, same shall such person reap.  Therefore, Adama and Shawa reaped the fruits of their works and each of their offsprings will certainly reap according to ones works.

      The Apostolic Church being member of Pentecostal family is rooted upon the concocted Holy Ghost Doctrine of the church that was made part of their scriptures.  The Holy Ghost doctrine is a deceptive ploy by the heathen Romans and Greeks to accommodate their evil practice of the trinity. It was never a divine inspired doctrine.  So, any movement that take its root from the Acts of the Holy Ghost of the Bible is deceptive and incapable of leading its adherents to Yahosheanism.

     This is a divine verdict and may Yahweh help people of sincere heart to realize of such – Alleluyah.