Pentecostals magazine [Sample]

PENTECOSTALS PEOPLE OF THE SPIRIT pg. 4

STATE OF THE PENTECOSTAL MOVEMENT pg. 16

HEALED OF STAGE 4 CANCER pg. 29

WHO IS THE H O LY SPIRIT? A L L - C H U R C H C A M PA I G N K I T This 4-week campaign makes it easy to help everyone in your church connect to the Holy Spirit.

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CONTENTS

h e story of the Assemblies of God is one of ordinary

People of the Spirit...................................4

people of all ages who have done extraordinary things

Holy Spirit Confirms God’s Love

through the power of the Holy Spirit. If there ever was an appropriate theme verse for the Assemblies of God, it is

for Teen..................................................8 Spirit Baptism: How Do We Know?..... 10 Holy Spirit Baptism for Kids.................. 14

Zechariah 4:6, “‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’

State of the Pentecostal Movement..... 16

says the Lord Almighty.”

Q & A: Spiritual Gifts.............................. 20

Our founders 105 years ago committed the Assemblies of God

Healed of Stage 4 Cancer..................... 29

to “the greatest evangelism the world has ever seen.” In that time, the Movement has grown to nearly 70 million people

Empowered to Reach the Nation......... 26 The Spirit’s Role in Missions................. 30 9-1-1 Train Ride...................................... 34 Spirit-Empowered Lifestyle.................. 36

around the world, with a new salvation decision for Christ an average of every 41 seconds! Certainly, what God has done through the Assemblies of God has been a work by the Spirit.

And God wants to do so much more — through you!

In this magazine, you’ll find real accounts of miracles and practical insights for what it means to be Pentecostal. My prayer is that your faith will grow as you read these articles and that you will be inspired to live completely led and empowered by the Spirit.

– Doug Clay GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT The General Council of the Assemblies of God

Mark Forrester

John W. Kennedy Keith Surface

Dan Van Veen © 2019 The General Council of the Assemblies of God. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (AMP) are taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMP). Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

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PEOPLE OF THE SPIRIT

T

he Pentecostal Church was birthed on the

now accounts for one in four Christians around

Day of Pentecost, when early Christians

the globe — an estimated 669 million people.

received the Holy Spirit. But the Feast of

Pentecost was celebrated hundreds of years before

The U.S. Assemblies of God continues to grow

the birth of the Church. Pentecost was a celebra-

along with the Pentecostal movement. Between

tion of the summer harvest that occurred 50 days

2001 and 2016, the number of young adults (ages

after Passover, thus the term Pentecost.

18 to 34) within the Fellowship increased more than 18 percent.

But on the Day of Pentecost, as recorded in Acts 2, the Church started its mission to spread the gospel

But apart from the numbers, who are we as Pente-

to the whole world. This took place 50 days after

costals?

the resurrection of Jesus and fulfilled prophecies by both Jesus and John the Baptist about people

WHAT IS THE HOLY SPIRIT DOING?

being baptized in the Holy Spirit.

Another way to frame our identity as Pentecostals is to see what the Holy Spirit is doing in the

It’s doubtful the Early Church could have fath-

lives of individuals. It’s never sufficient simply

omed what the Holy Spirit would do in the future.

to describe the Holy Spirit; we must personally

It’s been nothing short of miraculous. In fact, the

experience the life change He brings. We can read

relatively young Pentecostal/charismatic movement

about the Spirit, have discussions about the Spirit,

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or ponder the Spirit, but until we encounter Him

The power to follow Jesus and grow in relation-

ourselves, we will never understand how His

ship with Him comes directly from the Holy Spirit.

power and presence change everything.

In fact, the same power that drew you to Christ lives in you to help you overcome whatever threat-

Jesus promised that the Spirit would be an

ens to steal your freedom.

Advocate who helps us, instructs us, reminds us of God’s Word, testifies of Jesus, guides us into all

The Holy Spirit inhabits our lives in a powerful

truth, glorifies Christ, and empowers us to spread

way. The moment you experienced the baptism

the gospel (John 14:16,26; 15:26; 16:13,14; Acts 1:8).

in the Spirit, you willingly yielded yourself to the Spirit’s control. That is something Scripture

When Jesus told His disciples, us included, that

encourages us to do regularly (Ephesians 5:18).

He would be with us always (Matthew 28:20), it’s understood that this takes place through the

The Spirit walks with us. The word that John

ministry of the Holy Spirit.

uses to describe the Holy Spirit is¯ parakletos or “paraclete.” It means advocate, helper, intercessor,

Three words best express this relationship with

counselor — or one who comes alongside. I don’t

the Spirit: in, with, and through. As we encounter

think it’s a stretch to describe the Holy Spirit as

the Spirit in these ways, God transforms us into

a personal coach. He moves with us to direct our

people of the Spirit.

lives, bringing us closer to Jesus and making us more like Him.

The Spirit lives in us. When we become followers of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit resides in us (Romans

One place that happens is in our time in Scripture.

8:9). The moment you received Christ as Savior,

Without the Holy Spirit driving us to God’s Word

the Holy Spirit took up residence in your heart.

and opening our eyes to its meaning, the Bible can

Your body became the temple of the Holy Spirit.

seem like just another book. A mark of Spirit baptism

God infused your life with His presence.

should be a hunger to read and know God’s Word.

The Holy Spirit residing in us makes commu-

Pentecostals don’t desire experience for experi-

nion with Jesus possible. As Spirit people, we are

ence’s sake. It is a hallmark of our expression that

actually Jesus people. We do not follow one at the

we rely upon the Spirit in our heart, but this never

expense of the other.

happens at the expense of God’s Word as revealed in Scripture. He is “the Spirit of truth”

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The Holy Spirit inhabits our lives in a powerful way.

Everywhere the people of the Spirit go, they live in

(John 14:17). Much like the Risen Christ did on

we do is speak in tongues (1 Corinthians 13:1,2).

the way to Emmaus, the Spirit stirs our hearts and

such a way that the power of Christ is visible. Missional living is about being witnesses to the gospel.

Being people of the Spirit is of little value if all The Holy Spirit in us unites us to Christ. The Holy

illuminates the Scriptures (Luke 24:32).

Spirit with us is making us more like Jesus. And

The Holy Spirit’s voice will always agree with

mission, full of love and courage.

Scripture. We must reject any inner impression that conflicts with the Bible. Our own desires can mislead us, but God’s desires never will. The Spirit’s guidance will become clear only when we

the Holy Spirit through us means we live lives on

When we love like Jesus, we express that outwardly.

Much is made of the expressive way Pentecostals worship. But are we loving with the same passion?

surrender our will to God’s will.

Jesus ministered with compassion (Matthew 9:36),

A Spirit-led church will focus on the Word of

truth (John 8:32,40). People of the Spirit do the

God transforming minds and permeating lives, by changing the way people think and live. That means we rely on the Spirit living with us and walking with us — not only to help us live holy lives but also to share Christ with a lost and

extended mercy (Mark 5:19), and always spoke same through love.

The Holy Spirit gives us courage beyond our human nature. Look no further than the example of the apostle Peter to see how this plays out. Before

dying world.

Pentecost, Peter’s human nature was to get even,

The Spirit acts through us. People of the Spirit are

just hours before our Lord’s crucifixion. But the

people on mission. Since the first chapter of Acts, that mission has been front and center: to tell the world about Jesus, as the Spirit empowers. Our Lord promised, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

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get mad, or run and hide — all of which happened Holy Spirit’s empowerment gave Peter courage to proclaim the truth of Jesus. He faced down prison and certain death time and again. Becoming a person of the Spirit made the difference.

The message of Christ delivered by people full of Spirit-empowered courage is what will change hearts — not the strength of our convictions or

the volume of our protests. Is it possible that we have redefined the Pentecostal experience into a worship style instead of a lifestyle of mission? If so, we’ve lost our foundation. The Holy Spirit intentionally dwells within us to empower us missionally so that people can know Christ!

PASSING IT ON I love the diverse expression of worship within our Fellowship. As I look at Assemblies of God

The message of Christ delivered by people full of Spirit-empowered courage is what will change hearts — not the strength of our convictions.

churches, I know there is a desire for more of the Spirit. But I fear we may be coming up short.

Growing up, I spent regular times at our church’s altar seeking the Holy Spirit. Mentors gathered around younger believers in times of prayer, lingering until we found a breakthrough.

Today, however, it seems those times are lost to a busy church schedule or relegated to a weekend retreat or summer camp.

My heart’s desire is to see the many baby boomers who have experienced their Pentecost to share that experience with succeeding generations. Millennials and Generation Z need to have their Pentecost. Each subsequent generation must seek the Holy Spirit in fresh ways. My concern is that a lack of Pentecostal experience will have an impact on our Pentecostal effectiveness and outcome. We must find and create space for Pentecostal experiences to happen!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE PENTECOSTAL?

S

o, what do we mean when we say, “I

am a Pentecostal”? An accurate answer

includes three elements. First, Pentecos-

tals read the Book of Acts as a model for their

lives. Second, Pentecostals emphasize that we should not confuse the baptism in the Spirit

promised to every believer in Acts 1 and 2 with regeneration or conversion. Third, the

Pentecostal movement from its inception (Acts 2:4; 10:46; 19:6), linked speaking in tongues with the baptism in the Holy Spirit. The early Pentecostals thus described tongues as a

unique marker, a sign, or evidence of baptism

in the Spirit. Many historians insist that without this connection between tongues and Spirit baptism, there would be no Pentecostal movement.

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We have to be intentional in creating spaces that are infused with the Spirit’s power — not just for adults, but for youth as well. If we limit students’ potential for this kind of change to a camp or retreat, we miss out on so many avenues

AG NEWS // WORKS OF THE SPIRIT

HOLY SPIRIT CONFIRMS GOD’S LOVE FOR TEEN

by Dan Van Veen

in which we could see lives transformed. Seeing believers baptized in the Holy Spirit should never become a rarity in our Fellowship if we hope to continue in Pentecostal power.

The challenges we face as a nation and as a Church require us to equip the next generation. We live in a post-Christian society. Biblical literacy is on the decline, while immorality is increasing. Young people have traded a sacred sexuality for gender confusion. As people of the Spirit, we are empowered and equipped to step up.

Who we are as Pentecostals is not a matter of a shared label, a common expression of worship, or even an agreed-upon doctrine. It is found in the experience of a vital relationship with the

E

ight years ago, Nyo Chaw and his family moved to Worthington, Minnesota, leaving his father behind in Myanmar (Burma). It was a difficult introduction to a new life for the elementary-aged boy.

Person of the Holy Spirit. The dynamic power that can shake the world will come only when we fully depend on Him.

Doug Clay

General Superintendent

The General Council of the Assemblies of God

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John Nau, then youth pastor for Solid Rock Assembly in Worthington, distinctly remembers when Chaw and several of his friends began coming to youth group as 13-year-olds. It wasn’t pretty.

“I called them future leaders,” Nau says with a laugh “They were a real handful — desperate for attention and demanding it by causing disruptions on a regular basis.”

Although some of the pack of boys stopped attending, Chaw continued to come as the church demonstrated patience and an understanding of the boy’s needs. In 2015, Chaw joined other teens in attending his first church camp, where he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

Nau explains that Chaw learned his father had died in 2014 in Myanmar. Chaw’s choosing to follow Christ and believe in the Trinity (including God the Father) was huge because of the lack of contact with or support from his own father.

Chaw plugged into the church and his faith grew, but Nau knew the conflict the teen was experiencing not having his father in his life. “Chaw also knows there is only one way to heaven, and that’s through Christ,” Nau says. “His father died a Buddhist.”

But then God intervened. In September 2016, Chaw was visiting the home of his friend Fernando Rodriguez, the boy (now 17) who originally invited Chaw to church. The father of the family, Carlos, a native Honduran, asked to pray over Chaw, who agreed.

“Nyo had started talking about his dad, and we could see how sad he was, so we all started to pray for him,” Carlos Rodriguez, 40, explains. “All of a sudden, I started feeling the Holy Spirit in me, like a fire in me, the Lord told me to start talking, so I started talking in English so Nyo could understand as my language is Spanish. Then the Holy Spirit prompted me to speak in tongues, so I did, but I didn’t know what I was saying.”

Suddenly Chaw began weeping and responding to Rodriguez’s prayers, then reached out and gripped Rodriquez in a tear-filled hug. Rodriquez returned Chaw’s hug and then concluded the prayer.

Following the time of prayer, Fernando pulled Chaw aside and asked him why he cried so hard. Chaw explained that Carlos, while praying in the Spirit, had been speaking in Chaw’s native language, Karen (a tonal language of Southeast Asia and Myanmar). In Karen, he had told Chaw that God loved him like a father!

At first, Fernando couldn’t believe it, but Chaw confirmed that he could understand everything Carlos had been praying over him in tongues.

“It was an awesome experience to be used like that,” Carlos says. “I praise the Lord for that!”

Since that time, Chaw has grown deeper in his faith and become a testimony to his friends, demonstrating what it means to be a follower of Christ. Nau says that Chaw’s testimony about how the Holy Spirit communicated God’s love to him has been an incredible encouragement.

“To see what this has done for Nyo Chaw’s life is amazing,” Nau says. “And to hear stories like this brings refreshment and confirmation in a lot of people’s lives, myself included.”

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SPIRIT BAPTISM: HOW DO WE KNOW?

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D

oes God still pour His Spirit on be-

received the Holy Spirit after the apostle Paul

lievers today? How do we know when a

laid his hands on them and prayed for them

person has received the baptism in the

(Acts 19:1-6).

Holy Spirit?

Tension can arise from trying to use the When the leaders of the new Church were trying

Scriptures to explain an existing personal ex-

to determine if God had truly baptized the

perience or interpret Scripture from a learned

Gentiles in the Holy Spirit, they based their

perspective. Historically, the rediscovery of the

decision on what they heard.

doctrine of speaking in tongues as the initial physical evidence of the Holy Spirit baptism

While Peter was still speaking these words, the

began with a Topeka, Kansas, Bible school

Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The

assignment that asked students to search the

circumcised believers who had come with Peter were

Bible and find out what it had to say about the

astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been

subject. The students had not yet received the

poured out even on Gentiles. For they heard them

Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in

speaking in tongues and praising God. Then Peter

tongues. Preconceptions or personal experience

said, “Surely no one can stand in the way of their

did not cloud their perspective. They only had

being baptized with water. They have received the

the Bible, each other, and an assignment.

Holy Spirit just as we have” (Acts 10:44-47, emphasis added).

After much study, they eventually concluded that the only repeatable sign of Holy Spirit baptism

The question of some is, “Do we need evidence

was speaking in tongues, and nowhere in

of the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and if so,

Scripture was the importance of Spirit baptism

should we use tongues as the evidence?” If there

ever diminished. So, they sought the experience

is not a unique evidence, or some sign that it has

with the evidence of speaking in tongues for

happened, then anyone can say they have been

themselves, and one by one began to be baptized

baptized in the Holy Spirit and all that comes

in the Holy Spirit.

with it, even when they really have not. Peter knew believers at Cornelius’ house had received

Since then, many theologians have undertaken

the Holy Spirit because they spoke in tongues,

the same assignment, with much emphasis given

just like on the Day of Pentecost. Tongues was

to the writings of Luke and the apostle Paul. But

again the evidence when Ephesian believers

what if we started our research way before Paul

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