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THIS CHURCH OR THAT CHURCH – THAT IS THE QUESTION.
I have served as pastor in the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod (LCMS) for nearly 50 years and over that time I have been amazed at the lack of understanding about church denominations and other world influences around them.
If Christian denominations were flavors of ice cream, would I be Lutheran simply because I preferred that flavor? Or is there something more? Many people contend that different denominations are not really a big deal - that all Christian churches essentially teach the same thing. Is that true? Ultimately Lutheran concern about right doctrine is concern about justification, the doctrine upon which the church stands or falls. This teaching – that Christians are declared righteous and just on account of Christ’s suffering and death, entirely by grace and received by faith - forms the center and core of all church doctrine.
My intention over the next several months will be to help us understand what this means as I put before you in simplified fashion a look at denominations in the religious “flavors” found around us today.
This months discussion will be about the PENTECOSTAL HISTORY
The Pentecostal movement originated in 19th¬ century America. With roots in Methodist and Baptist theology. It sought a revival in the church through an out-pouring of the Holy Spirit, like the one described at and following Pentecost in Acts.
With epicenters in Kansas (Charles Fox Parham (1873-1929) at Bethel Bible College) and Los Angeles (William Joseph Seymour (1870-1922) and the Azusa Street Revival), the Pentecostal movement soon spread through the American South, Midwest and Southwest.
As members and leadership of churches began to embrace this controversial Pentecostal movement, they often left (or were forced out of) their churches and formed new ones with the labels such “Latter Rain,” “Full Gospel” and “Apostolic” or “Pentecostal.” Many of these churches eventually sought fellowship with others and formed new organizations, such as the Assemblies of God, an association of Trinitarian Pentecostals that today has over 70 million members worldwide.
In the mid-20th century, Pentecostal influence gave birth to the charismatic movement within mainline Protestant, Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, which sought a revival of the Spirit within these denominations, while at least ostensibly remaining true to their theology. Charismatic strains still exist in many of these churches today.
While exact numbers are impossible to acquire, the World Christian Encyclopedia (2020) estimates that there are currently 644 million Pentecostals/ charismatics worldwide, roughly 8.3% of the world’s population.
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CONFESSIONAL DOCUMENTS
The Pentecostal movement has no official statements of faith besides the Bible - with a particular emphasis on the Book of Acts and on the descriptions of “spiritual gifts” in 1 Corinthians 12-14.
However, many of the thousands of Pentecostal denominations have developed statements of faith, such as the Assemblies of God Statement of Fundamental Truths adopted in 1916.
KEY BELIEFS
While teachings vary widely among churches that have come out of the Pentecostal movement, here are a few of the movement’s core emphases:
• BAPTISM IN THE SPIRIT: Salvation is experienced as a “felt”, two-stage process. The first stage, regeneration, is the initial work of the Holy Spirit to remove the Christian’s old nature, giving him a “new birth.” After regeneration, however, the Christian awaits a second experience, known as Baptism in (or of) the Spirit. This pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the Christian (as at Pentecost) equips him and sends him out for service.
• GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT: Pentecostals believe that this Baptism in the Spirit will be accompanied by certain spiritual gifts. These include speaking in tongues (glossolalia), interpretation, faith healings, prophecy and miracles.
• CONTINUATIONISM: Pentecostals believe that various gifts of the Holy Spirit that were given to the apostles as recounted in the Book of Acts (including speaking in tongues, divine healing and prophecy) are still being distrib¬uted to Christians today. Thus, they look for these gifts as signs of the presence of God.
WE CONFESS
Lutherans insist that our confidence must not be placed in ourselves – whether our works, our thoughts, our feelings, or our experiences. We do not look for God’s presence for salvation by awaiting an emotional experience, or by taking stock of our own abilities or gifts in emphasizing these things.
Pentecostals look to and place their confidence in their own feelings rather than to Christ. This is a dangerous foundation of faith. We also do not chase down the Holy Spirit to give us new and flashy signs of His presence with us. We do not covet the astonishing ways in which He worked through His apostles at His first pouring out of the Spirit to insist that if He does not do the same with us, He is no longer present. Instead, we affirm that He has been with us all along as Christ promised, and we cherish those signs that He has continued to give the church throughout the millennia, namely, His Word and Sacraments. We believe there is one Baptism in which a person also receives the Holy Spirit.
