Our Distinctive Doctrine
The doctrine which distinguishes the Assemblies of God from other churches deals with one of its four cardinal doctrines; the baptism in the Holy Spirit. The Assemblies of God believes the baptism in the Holy Spirit gives believers several benefits as indicated in the New Testament. These include power to witness and serve others; a dedication to the work of God; a more intense love for Christ, His Word, and the lost; and the bestowement of certain spiritual gifts. (See Acts 1:4, 8, 8:15-17)
The Assemblies of God believes that when the Holy Spirit initially fills the believer, that person will speak in an unknown language as did the 120 believers in the Upper Room on the day of Pentecost.
Our Primary Message: REDEMPTION.
While the Assemblies of God is noted for its Pentecostal distinctive, the primary message of the Church is Salvation. A belief that people can find forgiveness of sin through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ who willingly gave His life for us. Because of Christ's love and forgiveness each person can be cleansed from wrong and saved from the real and impending Hell prepared for the devil and those who follow him. By accepting Jesus Christ as Savior and putting Him first in their lives, people are guaranteed an eternal home with God in Heaven. We believe this is the central message of Christianity and the key issue for man today. (See Titus 2:11; Romans 10:9-19; John 3:3-5)
Our Characteristic of Praise
Worship plays a major part in our church services. Freedom in worship is encouraged. Many will pray and thank God audibly during times of corporate thanksgiving and prayer. Some will pray silently, expressing little outward emotion, while others will weep openly before the Lord communicating their love and adoration in tears. Regardless of style, each sincere expression is welcomed. As these expressions of faith and love blend together in communication to God, each service will develop its own unique worship personality.
Common in most Assemblies of God churches is the clapping and raising of hands. Hand clapping often occurs during the singing of choruses. It is also used spontaneously in the adoration and love of God. Raised hands during times of prayer is another expression common in the church. to the believer it is an outward sign of surrender to God and His will. These visible expressions are not for show, but rather avenues for communitcating with God. (See Psalm 47:1; 134:2)
The Assemblies of God grew out of the Pentecostal revival, which began in the early 1900s in places such as Topeka, Kansas, and the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles. During times of prayer and Bible study, believers received spiritual experiences like those described in the book of Acts. Accompanied by “speaking in tongues,” their religious experiences were associated with the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Jewish feast of Pentecost (Acts 2), and participants in the movement were dubbed “Pentecostals.” The Pentecostal movement has grown from a handful of Bible school students in Topeka, Kansas, to an estimated 600 million in the world today.
Many participants who were baptized in the Holy Spirit during revivals and camp meetings in the early 1900s were not welcomed back to their former churches. These believers started many small churches throughout the country and communicated through publications that reported on the revivals. In 1913, a Pentecostal publication, the Word and Witness, called for the independent churches to band together for the purpose of fellowship and doctrinal unity. Other concerns for facilitating missionaries, chartering churches and forming a Bible training school were also on the agenda.
Some 300 Pentecostals met at an opera house in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in 1914, and agreed to form a new fellowship of loosely knit independent churches. These churches were left with the needed autonomy to develop and govern their own local ministries, yet they were united in their message and efforts to reach the world for Christ. So began the General Council of the Assemblies of God.
Assemblies of God churches form a cooperative fellowship. As a result, the organization operates from the grass roots, allowing the local church to choose and develop ministries and facilities best suited for its local needs.
