Pentecostalism

This is one of the Christian traditions that numerous people look unto for way of Yahoshea Meshiyach. The movement equally claim of processing traditions of the early apostles of Yahoshea. It equally claim that its root is taken from the acclaimed Pentecost day which is recorded in the New Testament account of the Bible. Pentecostal movement lay much emphasis on personal experience of Yahweh through its acclaimed baptism of the Holy Spirit. The movement took its name from “Pentecost” which means “Fifty” in Greek numerical numbers that was used as to represent the Hebrew Feast of First Fruits that was observed by the early followers of Yahoshea. The concept was taken from the scriptural account of the falling of Holy Spirit upon the early followers of Yahoshea Meshiyach. The tradition based on the scriptural account began to imitate the character of the early apostles who spoke in understandable tongues by the power of the spirit. Pentecostals abuses the spirit of speaking in tongues by uttering of unintelligible tongues which is in sharp contrast to early disciples who spoke identifiable languages of many nations without under learning them. In real concept, the term “Pentecost” only means “fifty” in Creek language and has no spiritual connotation as being used by the ancient Hebrews or apostolic brethren. The term was never used as identification prefix to the assembly of Yahosheans nor used by the early church or its acclaimed fathers. The term “Pentecost” became part of the Hebrew Scriptures during the Greek Interpretation in which the term “fifty days” from the date of death and burial of Yahoshea to the day of “Feast of the First Fruit” been used to explain the variation between the death of Yahoshea and the day that his follower were empowered spiritually and released from fear. The scriptures accounted that spirit visitation released the disciples of their fear, empowered them to preach boldly about Yahoshea and the ability to communicated freely with people of diverse tongues without having pre-learnt them. The term “Pentecost” was never a recognizable name of any feast in ancient Hebrew. Neither was it an identifiable festival of the Greeks rather it was a mere numerical number pointing to the Feast of the First Fruits of ancient Hebrew nation. History Of The Group The term was never used to identify any body of Christian tradition from the days of early apostles till the early 20th century when some Christian faithful of evangelical protestants began to identify their movement with the acclaimed baptism of spirit and speaking in tongues. In the period, radical Christians of the holiness movement carried out revivals as a method of renewal of the church spiritually. They claimed that such firebrand revival will restore the ancient accounted spiritual gifts and power of evangelism to all corners of the universe. One of the famous preachers of the baptism of Holy Spirit and restoration of the gift of tongues was Charles Parham (an American evangelist and faith healer) in 1900. The early ministry of Charles Fox Parham commenced by his establishing of a theological school he named Bethel Bible School where he taught that speaking in tongues was the scriptural evidence for the reception of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Accounts of his ministry bore that in 1901, his students received the baptism of the Holy Spirit with an evidence of speaking in tongues. Parham claimed to have received the spirit in one of his prayer moment which prompted him to conclude that missionaries would no longer need to study foreign languages but will be empowered by the Holy Spirit in their endeavours. Based on this conviction, Perham closed his Bible School and endulged into a four-year revival tour in Kansas and Missouri. Perham moved to Texas where he re-established his Bible school and William .J. Seymour - a one-eyed black preacher became one of his students. After learning from Parham, Seymour traveled to Los Angeles where his preaching led to the three-year-long Azusa street Revival in 1906. Christian theology held that despite the activities of Wesleyan converts like Parham, the Seymour Azusa Street Revival marks the beginning of the wide spreading of Pentecostal movement in the United States of American. The Azusa Street Revival attracted both religious and secular audience as it moved thousands of visitors who flocked to the revival to take the experience back to their home churches. Evolved Movements, Spread And Influence The Azusa Revival of Holy Spirit fire was the origin of Pentecostalism. The movement defiled the culture of racial discrimination that was pacified by the enacted Jim Crow Law. It engaged in inter-racial denominations and worships as contrary to the traditional Christianity in the United States. Pentecostalism spread faster than any other Christian tradition because of its charismatic experiences that resemble those of the early apostolic assembly. The Pentecostal consider the movement as a reactivation of the church's apostolic power. This prompted the Pentecostals to claim of an unbroken lineage from the early apostles and the present movement with regards to faith healing and manifestation of various spiritual gifts under the acclaimed strong force of Holy Spirit. The movement commenced with the formation of the Apostolic Faith Mission on Azusa Street which is considered the birth place of Pentecostalism and later spread to various parts of the continents. The Pentecostal movement had no direct root of governing body but allows for freedom of various churches or denominations. The groups were meant to exercise freedom of operations as well as to plant doctrines that might allow for intercultural operation. The groups were meant to operate in line with Wesleyan-Holiness heritage that distinguishes it from rest of evangelical Christian fundamentalism. Originally, the practices of the Pentecostal Movements were generally Wesleyan, Holiness or Methodestic Wesleyan. Pentecostals preach that a Christian life must experience conversion, sanctification and spirit baptism. The Pentecostalism inherited the Holiness Movement's practice of entire sanctification which the tradition holds as an indefinite occurrence that takes effect after salvation but before spirit baptism. Holiness Pentecostal denominations include the Church of God in Christ, Church of God (Cleveland) an the International Pentecostal Holiness Church. Another Pentecostal denomination that assert influence is the Baptist Pentecostals. In 1910, William H. Durham began to preach about his “finished works” doctrine. Durham's schism brought to life “the finished work Pentecostals” who were largely converts from Baptists and Presbyterian background. The body is identified as Baptist Pentecostalism. They are equally known as Reformed Pentecostals. This group teach that a convert is originally sanctified at the moment of conversion. This group hold that a believer is to experience two definite crises through conversion and spirit baptism. Some of the Pentecostal denominations that hold to the finished work position include the Assemblies of God, the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, and the Open Bible Church. Another strong denomination in Pentecostal movement is the Apostolic position. This position developed from British Pentecostalism that had its root from 1904-1905 Welsh Revival. The Apostolic Pentecostalism had a developed structure of prophets, apostles and charismatic officers. There are other Pentecostal groups that are known as “Oneness Pentecostalism,” or “Jesus Name”. This group identify itself as “Apostolic Pentecostals”. This group had some distinctive practices from other Pentecostal denominations. One of such differences is on Trinity doctrine which it does not belief on. This group do not believe Yahweh as three persons in one rather holds that there is one Yahweh with three manifestations. It equally believe on repentance, baptism in the name of the saviour whom they identify as Jesus Christ and spirit baptism as elements of conversion experience. Some of the major oneness Pentecostal churches are United Pentecostal Church International and the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World. There are equally many Pentecostal Churches that operate independently without relation to any denominational management. The independent churches freely choose their model of denominations and practices that may appear differently to mainstream Pentecostals. Some of the independent Pentecostals includes Word of Faith teachings or kingdom Now Theology. Pentecostal Figures And Practices Although, Seymour and his early converts were held as fathers of Pentecostalism, there are many faithfuls who played prominent roles towards formation of various denomination. For example, Albert Benjamin Simpson formed the Christian and Missionary Alliance which played prominent role towards development of the Assemblies of God. Others include John Alexander Dovies that found Christian Catholic Apostolic Church, Edward Irving founder Catholic Apostolic Church etc. Based on the liberal nature of Pentecostalism, it has increasingly gained acceptance in the Christian tradition. Pentecostal belief of spirit baptism and spiritual gifts have been adopted by non-Pentecostal bodies in protestant and catholic churches through the charismatic movement. Regarding to doctrinal practices, the Pentecostals believe on a direct personal experience of members with Yahweh through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The group strictly believe on the inerrancy of the Bible and the need for a believer to accept the saviour whom they identify as Christ as the personal saviour. The group hold to the efficacy of the “Foursquare Gospel” which it refers as “four fundamental beliefs”. Such includes – that Jesus Saves, baptizes with the Holy Spirit, heals the bodies of believers and that He is coming back to receive those that are saved. On salvation, the Pentecostals hold that the saviour whom it identifies as Jesus Christ's death, burial and resurrection meant forgiveness of sin and reconciliation with the creator that it term as God. The fundamental belief of the group is that each mortal must be born again by reception of the grace of Yahweh through faith on Yahoshea whom it term as Jesus or Lord. The tradition hold that through “Born Againism,” a convert is originated, justified and adopted into the family of Yahweh and the Holy Spirit's initiation in the work of sanctification. The group belief on the existence of Heaven for the righteous ones and Hell for the unbelievers as being held by mainstream Christendom. Pentecostal hold to three form of baptism, first being the baptism into the body of Christ which it refers as salvation. Every believer is meant to be part of the body of Christ and his church through baptism. The Holy Spirit is the agent and the church being medium. The second baptism is by water which it hold as a symbolic of dying to the world and living in Christ. The third is the baptism of the Holy Spirit which is the empowering force that generate experience to faithful. Pentecostalism is centred on the theology of the Holy Spirit operation or activities upon adherents. This is reason of various claims or beliefs of spirit working experiences in form of what it term as “spirits filling”.“Spirit falling upon” or “Spirit being poured upon” “spirit announcement” to believers etcetera. The movement hold that Holy Spirit baptism generate evidence in form of “speaking in tongues”, “praying” “having joy” and “desiring to witness for Jesus”. The fruits of the spirit under the glorification and revelation of Christ in a serious way, deeper passion for souls by witnessing of conversion of unbeliever, effective prayer life, greater love for the Bible and manifestation of the gifts of the spirit. One of the purported gift of the Holy Spirit is on divine healing. The movement endeavours to copy Yahoshea and his disciples on healing aspect of their ministry life. The movement held that with faith, healing of sick persons is fully achievable since such was one of the commandments of Yahoshea upon his followers – “to go into the world and make disciples of them and to lay hands upon the sick ones and make them whole”. The movement copying the apostles carries out healing process by laying of hands upon sick persons, praying for them and sometimes using of anointing oil, aprons or handkerchief for healing purposes. In the early Pentecostalism, some faithfuls taught that is sinful to use medicine or receive care from medical doctors. This belief later dropped but there are still handful of converts that hold exclusively to prayer and divine healing as only medication to ailments. Spirit Gifts, Members And The Sect The movement holds that the fruits or gifts of the spirit is given to the church through individual members for edification of the body. The body enumerated those gifts as illumination, word of wisdom, word of knowledge and discerning of spirits, action – faith, working of miracles and gift of healing and communication – prophecy, tongues and interpretation of tongues. The Pentecostals believes that under influence of Holy Spirit, a member can be moved to make some prophetic utterances that flow along the Biblical character to the church. The prophesy is aimed at fortification of members and the body in general, to incite obedience, service, faith, comfort and consolidation to adherents. The Pentecostal prophets are trained to direct the revelations in the third persons speech as “Thus saith the Lord” not to be spoken in the first person as – “I, the Lord sayeth”. Another great distinctive practice of Pentecostalism from other Christian tradition is on speaking of tongues. This practice is emulated from the real tongue speech of the early apostles as carried by the scriptures. In the original speaking in tongues that were carried in the Holy Scriptures, apostles were moved by the spirit to speak unlearned languages of the hearers. Critics And Debates Against The Faith Unintelligible and uninterpretable tongues is the main features of Born Againism or Pentecostalism. Equally, critics to the body ostracizes it from that angle of practice. Many Christians especially from the Holiness Movement from which the Pentecostals originated viewed the speaking in tongues as the greatest joke of the millennium. For instance, Alma White, the leader of the Pillar of Fire Church wrote a book against Pentecostal movement with a title “Demons and Tongues” in 1910. She called the speaking in tongues as “satanic gibberish” and its services as the “climax of demon worship”. Preacher Dr. R.A Torrey conclude the movement as not of Yahweh and found by a sodomite. Likewise, a Holiness preacher, W.B. Godbey summarized the Azusa street movement as “Satan's preachers, jugglers, necromancers, enchanters, magicians and all sorts of mendicants”. Dr. G. Campell Morgan expressed the movement as “The last vomit of Satan”. The mockery that associates the speaking in tongues made some Pentecostal movements to distance itself from the body. For instance, one of the famous Holiness Movement. Pentecostal Church of Nazarene demonstrated its opposition to the Pentecostal movement by changing of its name to the Church of the Nazarene in 1919. Challenges Of The Sect One of the early controversies of the Pentecostal movement was the issue relating to racial integration and doctrinal unity. From origin, the movement was popularized by an African American William Seymour and his converts who ignored all racial and discriminative laws and practices of the age and inter-fellowship together. With passage of time, the issue of racial difference began to play in the movement. Before 1914 many white ministers were ordained by the African American C.H. Mason under the Church of God in Christ (COGIC). These white ministers began to distance from the leadership of the African American. This made about 300 white Pentecostal ministers and laymen from all regions of United States to converge in Arkansas in 1914 to create a new national Pentecostal Fellowship – The General Council of the Assemblies of God. The national Council was convened without invitation to Bishop Mason and other African American Pentecostal figures. The new body adopted a congregational policy and dropped the concept of episcopalism of the Church of God in Christ. The new body equally rejected the finished work understanding of sanctification. The creation of Assembles of God brought to an official end of Pentecostal doctrinal unity and racial integration. The Pentecostal movement adopted two main ordinances as observable. These ordinances are Baptism and Holy Communion as done by mainstream Christianity. On worship, the body observe spontaneous practices which it term as an overwhelming experience of the presence of Yahweh. Faithfuls are unraptured with ecstacy and visible through this concept of a “slain in spirit” or falling under the power”, in which people falls backwards as if falling on anointing while being prayed for. The worships accompanied by songs, dances, praises, preaching and act of deliverance – a process where members fall under anointing and to regain strength after a while. The movement hold such as a method of deliverance and healing. Conclusion Statistically, Pentecostalism of mainstream and charismatic bodies in Protestant and Catholic Churches account of about 500 million faithfuls globally. This great number of humanity seek for Yahoseha Meshiyach and his methods of worship through Pentecostalism. These people believe that the accounted manifestation of Holy Spirit in the Bible is the source of their inspiration and equally made identical name out of the operation. Truly, the real assembly that is to continue of the works of early apostles must be comforter led but such comforter must be a real sent one but not a concoction or man-made concept. As already mentioned, all former or formal workers of Yahweh at various dispensations manifested in human forms and characters. From the beginning, there were prophets and judges. These were traditionally human persons. The dispensation of Yahoshea Meshiyach followed with all workers as Yahoshea himself and his apostle, disciples and every other workers as been on human forms and characters. The dispensation of the comforter must never be different with unseen spirit leading and anointing believers. As the saviour and his followers were in human modes and characters, so must the comforter and his elects be in human form and characters in order to continue from the foundation. Based on this truthful submission, the comfortership of the Holy Ghost requires thorough explanation. Why could the comforter manifest as an inhuman while the saviour who is superior to him manifested in a human form. Truly, the comfortership of the Holy Ghost is unacceptable to Yahosheans who strongly believe that the comforter must be in a human form and already manifested as Prophet Yahmarabhi Ha Meshiyach. This conclusion brings to the fact that Pentecostalism is never the true way of Yahoshea. This is visible by the doctrines and observations of the body which are wholly Greek and Roman traditions. The comforter must never abandon the real scriptural doctrines that were observed by early apostles and adopt the pagan doctrines of the Romans. The practices of Sunday worship, Easter Festival, Christmas festival, and many other major doctrines of church of Rome cut the movement out of the contest as a continuous apostolic assembly. So, the claim of continuesionalism to Yahosheanism is false and unacceptable. The adoption of the unholy names as Lord, God, Jehovah, Jesus Christ and Holy Ghost are practical evidence that it is a pagan-oriented movement and can never help a believer to arrive to Yahoshea Meshiyach. The major distinctive doctrines of the movement from other main-stream Christianity being speaking in tongues is totally mockery and unintelligible. Tongues without meanings and interpretations are wholly irrelevant to the assembly. Born-Againism and deliverance ministrations are totally acts of shame as it does not represent the true attitude of ancient prophets or apostles. Born Againism is the worst deceptive of all Christian tradition and cannot be a way of Yahoshea. May Yahweh help all that will listen to this advice, Alleluyah.