The Assemblies of God: A Popular History

by Edith Blumhofer

Publishers:

Gospel Publishing House; Radiant Books

, 1985

Overview

They didn’t want a denomination, they wanted an experience. But once they had the experience, they found they had to organize to preserve it and pass it on. This is the story of the Assemblies of God, how it came into being, developed, grew—until today it is an acknowledged force in the evangelical world.

Key Features

• Presents a concise, readable history of the largest American Pentecostal denomination
• Draws from the political, social, and religious events following the Civil War
• Tells the story of the development of the Assemblies of God in the seven decades that followed

Contents

• The Evangelical Heritage
• The Rise of Pentecostalism
• The Doctrinal Consensus
• The Developing Outreaches
• The Evangelism Imperative
• The Tumultuous Forties
• The Evangelical Community
• The Ministry to Youth
• The Recent Past

Top Highlights

“In holiness Pentecostal ranks, some claimed that in justification only ‘actual transgression and guilt’ were forgiven; ‘the heart [remained] full of inbred sin’ until the believer experienced a ‘second definite work of grace.’ Until this second work, so the teaching went, ‘enough sin remained in the believer to damn him.’” (Pages 40–41)

“When that remarkable revival broke out in Wales,’ wrote Elizabeth Baker (cofounder” (Page 22)

“Spirit was a Person ‘infinitely wise’ and ‘infinitely tender,’ they maintained, He coveted fellowship. Carelessness and sin grieved Him. If permitted to do His work in the individual, however, He would overcome sin, make the believer aware of His constant presence, and accomplish, moment by moment, His sanctifying work.” (Page 12)

“Keswick teaching said that most Christians were ‘grievously destitute of real spiritual power and often essentially carnal.’” (Page 15)

“Compelled by their premillennialism to win their world, they prayed for power to fulfill that task.” (Page 12)

Product Details

• Title: The Assemblies of God: A Popular History
• Author: Edith Waldvogel Blumhofer
• Publisher: Gospel Publishing House
• Publication Date: 1985
• Pages: 160
• Christian Group: Pentecostal & Charismatic
• Resource Type: Histories
• Topic: Church History

About Edith Blumhofer

Edith Waldvogel Blumhofer, was an associate professor at the Assemblies of God Theo­logical Seminary and Evangel College in Springfield, Missouri. She received her Ph.D. in American Religious History from Harvard University written articles for several periodicals and is a member of the American Society of Church History, the American Historical Association, and the Society for Pentecostal Studies.