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to AmericaWhether this is your first visit to an Assemblies of God church,

you have attended before, or you have yet to attend, we want you to know that we care about you. Our Fellowship joins with the pastor and congregation of your local church to extend a warm welcome to you and yours.

Building the kingdom of God by touching lives is what our churches are all about. We care about people, and there are lots of opportunities for personal involve-ment in our churches: worship, Bible teaching, classes and ac-tivities for all ages. Whether you have a family or live alone, there is something for you.

All of our activities and relationships are under-girded by our values — the things we believe and practice. At the heart of all our values are what we call our core beliefs — important teachings from the Bible, God’s Word. There are four of them: salvation, divine healing, baptism in the Holy Spirit and the second coming of Christ.

In the pages that follow, four of our national lead-ers share from their hearts about the relevance and transforming power of each value. Sample testimonies from people whose lives have been changed are included. Each value has practi-cal applications.

Thank you so much for your interest. We hope that this intro-duction to the Assemblies of God will be the beginning of a good relationship with our Fellowship and many good friendships with

the people who attend our churches.If there is any way in which we may

serve you, this church stands ready. It is truly a wonderful thing to be a part of the family of God.

We hope to see you in church. May God bless you richly!

Ken HornE-mail your comments to [email protected].

It’s Good to Meet You!

All of our activities

and relationships

are undergirded by

our values — the

things we believe and

practice. At the heart

of all our values are

what we call our core

beliefs — important

teachings from the

Bible, God’s Word.

june • 13 • 10 / no. 5014

EDITOR: Ken HornmanagIng EDITOR: Scott Harrup aRT DIREcTOR: marc mcBridenEwS EDITOR: John w. KennedypROmOTIOnS cOORDInaTOR: Ron KopczickpRODucTIOn cOORDInaTOR: Lucas KeyTEcHnIcaL EDITOR: Jennifer mcclure aDvERTISIng cOORDInaTOR: Jodi HarmonOffIcE cOORDInaTOR: Kim HellmerEDITORIaL aSSISTanT: Emily TharpSpanISH EDITIOn cOORDInaTOR: Efraim EspinozacIRcuLaTIOn managER: Judy clore

DIREcTOR Of cOmmunIcaTIOnS: Juleen Turnage

Executive presbytery assemblies of god

gEnERaL SupERInTEnDEnT: george O. woodaSSISTanT gEnERaL SupERInTEnDEnT: L. alton garrisongEnERaL SEcRETaRy: James T. BradfordgEnERaL TREaSuRER: Douglas E. clayExEcuTIvE DIREcTOR Of wORLD mISSIOnS: L. John BuenoExEcuTIvE DIREcTOR Of u.S. mISSIOnS: Zollie L. Smith Jr.C. Dan Betzer, Warren D. BulloCk, riCharD l. Dresselhaus, Douglas e. FulenWiDer, J. Don george, saturnino gonzalez, a. elizaBeth grant, larry h. grisWolD, r. Bryan Jarrett, nam soo kim, John e. maraCle, Jesse miranDa, h. roBert rhoDen, ClarenCe W. st. John

InformatIon:The Pentecostal Evangel is part of the assemblies of god Division of communications and is published by the gospel publishing House.

AdvertisingDisplay rates are available upon request. By accepting an advertisement, the Pentecostal Evangel does not endorse any advertiser or product. we reserve the right to reject advertisements not consistent with the magazine’s objectives.

Manuscriptswriter’s guidelines are available via the link at the bottom of the pe.ag.org home page.

Pentecostal Evangel1445 n. Boonville avenueSpringfield, mO 65802-1894phone: (417) 862-2781fax: (417) 862-0416e-mail: [email protected]

member: Evangelical press associationInternational pentecostal press association

The Pentecostal Evangel subscribes to the Associated Press.all rights reserved. copyrighted material reprinted with permission.

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Pentecostal Evangel (ISSN 1540-9643) is published weekly. Individual subscription rates for weekly English version: United States, U.S. possessions and U.S. military personnel abroad – $28.99 per year, $55.00 for 2 years; Canada and other international – $52.00 per year (U.S. dollars). Individual introductory offer: United States only – $14.50 for six months (26 issues). Bundle subscription (6 copies or more to same address) rates for weekly English version: United States – $3.05 per copy for 13 weeks, $12.20 per copy for one year; Canada and other international – $6.00 per copy for 13 weeks, $24.00 per copy for one year (U.S. dollars). Thirteen-week bundle subscriptions are only available to churches. © 2010 by Gospel Publishing House, General Council of the Assemblies of God, 1445 N. Boonville Avenue, Springfield, MO 65802-1894, (417) 862-2781. Periodicals postage paid at Springfield, Mo. Printed in the USA.POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Pentecostal Evangel, 1445 N. Boonville Avenue, Springfield, MO 65802-1894.

SUBSCRIPTION qUESTIONS? CAll 1-800-641-4310For editorial information, call (417) 862-2781.

2806 18 24Baptism in the Holy SpiritThough not a requirement of salvation, the Baptism is an empowering experience for Christians in order that they may be supernaturally equipped to perform their ministries.

BY ALTON GARRISON

SalvationAre there ever any second chances in life? Surprisingly, the answer is yes. The Bible calls it salvation.

BY JAMES BRADFORD

Blessed HopeThe coming again of Jesus Christ is the Blessed Hope of the Church. Do you have that hope in you? If you were to die this day or if Jesus were to return, are you confident that your eternal home will be with Him in heaven?

BY GEORGE O. WOOD

Building a Foundation for LifeFour core beliefs express life-changing truths from generation to generation.

BY WES BARTEL

12Divine HealingThis demonstration of God’s love for us is also continued proof that Jesus really is the Messiah, Savior and Healer.

BY DOUG CLAY

the Bible is the inspired and only infallible and authoritative written Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16). there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (Deuteronomy 6:4; Matthew 28:19). in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, in His personal future return to this earth in power and glory to rule a thousand years (John 1:1). in the blessed hope — the rapture of the Church at Christ’s coming (Titus 2:13). the only means of being cleansed from sin is through repentance and faith in the precious blood of Christ (John 14:6). regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential for personal salvation (Titus 3:5). in water baptism by immer-sion (Matthew 28:19). the redemptive work of Christ on the cross provides healing of the human body in answer to believing prayer (1 Peter 2:24). the baptism in the Holy Spirit, according to Acts 2:4, is given to believers who ask for it. in the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a holy life (Galatians 5:16-25). in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost, the one to everlasting life and the other to everlasting damnation (Revelation 20:11-15).

We believe:

c o n t e n t S

Issue no. 5014

visit ag.org —the assemblies of God online

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pe.ag.org | evangel 76 evangel | pe.ag.org

When I had a medical checkup recently, the

nurse told me I had a runner’s heart. I’m always glad to hear that, although it’s not like I don’t work at it — even though I do love running. For me it’s fun and invigorating; running makes me press my limits.

It’s like the runners I see when I visit the track or a park. For some of them it’s all about fit-ness, or their competitive natures getting the best of them. Maybe they’re training for a goal, like a marathon, or maybe they’re just stressed out and need to run it off. All I know is that they’re out there — doing the run.

It’s all very much like life, actually. The apostle Paul, who wrote well over half of the Bible’s New Testament, said that, to him, reaching the end of his life would be like finishing a race (2 Timothy 4:7). And it’s

true. Even if you think that life is nothing more than a rat race, it’s still a race.

When I run, it’s like being locked into my own little world for a while, and I actually find myself thinking quite a bit about life, and God — you know, the big questions. What’s this race of life all about anyway? Where am I really going? And what about this runner’s heart of mine? What happens if it stops beating? I mean, it will stop at some point. What then?

Some things in life I wish I could just do over. It’s like a 5K race I entered a while back. It should have been easy, but a half-mile before the end of the race I got so dehydrated and overheated I had to quit. I kicked myself for the rest of the day, but the race was over. There were no second chances.

But are there ever really any

second chances in life? Surpris-ingly, the answer is yes. The Bible calls it salvation. Salvation is God’s great second chance for every one of us. You see, all of us have stumbled and come up short at some point in the race of life. God calls it sin. Our failures and the decisions we make trying to go it on our own, independent of God, get us running down the wrong track — out there, lost and on our own.

But here’s where God’s second chance comes in. The Bible tells us to picture a huge stadium filled with fans cheering you and me on. These are the people of faith who have already found God’s second chance and have run their race. They’re all the people I have met, and perhaps you have too, whose lives have been recharged and redirected through this thing we call salvation.

SALvAtIon

Debbie HedgcorthI didn’t have any hope. I was waking up and smoking a joint or doing a

line. But a neighbor would come and pick me up for church because she saw I didn’t have a car. We were reading the Book of Nehemiah in Sunday School, and it talked about how they were rebuilding the walls of Jeru-salem and how they confessed their sins. God’s Word became so real to me. I finally stopped trying to bargain with God. I confessed to Him that it was my fault that I was on drugs. I knew, even though I couldn’t hear an audible voice, that God would forgive me and give me a brand new life. He did, and He restored my marriage and saved my husband.

B y J a m e s B r a d f o r d

AG Core Beliefs

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The writer of the New Testa-ment Book of Hebrews puts it this way: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses [those are the cheer-ing fans!], let us throw off every-thing that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (12:1, NIV).

Pretty remarkable! lay aside sin — the Bible calls that repen-tance, or getting back on God’s course in life — and get rid of everything that might hinder the run. Believe me, it’s easy some days to come up with excuses not to run. But here’s the important part, the very next verse:

“let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus — He’s the center of salvation.

Once I was driving my daugh-ter to school. She knew I had gone out and run a few miles earlier that morning. So she asked me, “Dad, how do you decide how far to run? Do you just go until you get tired?”

I explained to her that if I focus on how I am feeling at any given point in the run, I get really tempted to give up. So instead I start by deciding ahead of time how far I am going to go, and then I picture the route in my mind. The key is to focus on the destination … not the distance and the obstacles.

In the race of life, our destina-tion is more than an accomplish-ment or even a place — it’s the lord Jesus. He is the finish line, as well as the One who gives us the breath to help us get there. He is the One who ran through the wall of shame and pain at the cross in order to die in our place and wipe away our imperfect re-

cord. And He’s the only One who offers forgiveness of our sins and invites us to start over.

On vacation a few years ago, my wife and daughters and I stayed overnight at Mammoth Village in California, at the base of the famous Mammoth Mountain ski resort. I got up the next morning and decided to do a run. The road from where we were staying rose gradually, turned left and then continued on to the base of one of the ski lifts. It was mid-August, a beau-tiful day. I started out just fine, but before long my lungs started burning. Every step got harder. I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me.

Suddenly I realized that al-though I was at the base of a ski mountain, the base itself was more than 7,000 feet above sea level. No wonder I was gasping. Too little oxygen.

The great news about salva-tion is that the lord doesn’t leave us to run this race alone, on our own strength and energy. The Spirit of God that raised Christ from the dead is the same “wind” that God puts into us when He gives us His salvation.

Of course, someday this run-ner’s heart of mine will stop beating. But here’s the really good part! This run here on earth is only the beginning. We are really made for eternity, created for an everlasting life bought and paid for by Jesus himself. Eternity in heaven — don’t miss it! e

JamEs BraDforD is general secretary of the assemblies of God. adapted from the ivaLUE video series available online at ivalue.ag.org. Used with permission.

E-mail your comments to [email protected].

O F S A L V A T I O NABCs

If you would like someone to pray with you concerning your deci-sion to follow Jesus Christ, please contact the church indicated on the back cover or call:

To know God and be ready for heaven, follow these steps:

A. Admit you are a sinner. “Thereisnoonerighteous,notevenone…forallhavesinnedandfallshortofthe gloryofGod.”Romans3:10,23(SeeRomans5:8;6:23.)

Ask God’s forgiveness and repent of your sins. “EveryonewhocallsonthenameoftheLordwillbesaved.”Romans10:13(SeeActs3:19.)

B. Believe in Jesus (putyourtrustinHim)asyouronlyhopeofsalvation. “ForGodsolovedtheworldthathegavehisoneandonlySon,thatwhoeverbelieves inhimshallnotperishbuthaveeternallife.”John3:16(SeeJohn14:6.)

Become a child of God by receiving Christ. “Toallwhoreceivedhim,tothosewhobelievedinhisname,hegavetherightto becomechildrenofGod.”John1:12(SeeRevelation3:20.)

C. Confess that Jesus is your Lord. “Ifyouconfesswithyourmouth,‘JesusisLord,’andbelievein yourheartthatGodraisedhimfromthedead,youwillbesaved.” Romans10:9(Seeverse10.)

for further help, contact the assemblies of God church near you.

FREE

1-800-4PRAYERAssembliesofGodNationalPrayerCenter

SALvAtIon

Greg AikenI was very involved in the church youth group and

other activities. I had the opportunity to go to Wake Forest University in North Carolina. At the time, I felt pretty strong in my faith. But when I got out there I didn’t know anyone, and I made the mistake of not getting plugged into a church or a Christian group on campus.

I made friends with students who didn’t share my values, and I got caught up in the whole party scene and drinking and girls. There was no happiness. There was a lot of depression. There was really no difference between me and someone who had no Christian background. The last semester in college I studied in Spain and got even farther from God.

When I came back home, I went to church. I can’t tell you what the pastor was talking about, but I remember God prodding my heart. How have you been living? Who have you become? I went home from that service and spent time in my room repenting and asking God to forgive me and take over my life. God is so ready to forgive. I experienced that so clearly.

Ron DoddMy wife and I were fairly successful in our

business. But there was something missing in our lives for the first 10 years of our marriage. We didn’t think we were going to have children. Then Karen made the announcement that we were going to have a child. Three and a half years later, we had our second son. We felt very blessed.

We placed Ronnie, our 5-year-old son, in a Christian nursery school. He started coming home and asking if we could pray before dinner. Then he wanted to read a Bible story he brought home with his books and say a goodnight prayer before bed.

One night he climbed up into my lap and asked me, “Daddy, when are you going to get saved?”

I thought, I’m a good person. I asked Ronnie, “Who told you to ask Daddy that?”He said, “Nobody.”I said, “Now don’t lie to me.” And I saw the tears in his eye.“Daddy,” he said, “I love you, and I don’t want you to go to hell.”I began to feel under conviction throughout the day and when I’d go to my

construction sites. One Sunday morning I got up before the family and turned on the TV. I don’t remember who it was, but a preacher pointed his finger at the camera and said, “Dads, I’m talking to you. What do your wife and children see in your life?”

I went and woke up Karen and said, “Would you like to go to church today?” We both accepted Christ as our Savior.

J

Discover the new AG World Missions Web site: worldmissions.ag.orgNew design. New articles. Streaming videos. All with one purpose … to bring the world of missions to your desktop.

More missions storiesRead current news and happen-

ings from AGWM missionaries

on the fi eld as well as articles

by AGWM editors.

ResourcesBrowse the current Missions Materials catalog. Download

logos, sermon outlines and

photos. It’s free.

Praying … Giving … GoingWould you like to be involved

in missions? Download prayer

requests, make a donation, or fi nd

short-term missions opportunities.

Photo galleryEnjoy a missions slide show or

photos from around the world.

Learn culture and see missions

in action.

Videos on demandWatch the latest missions musical

video or catch the Nelsonville

story. High-quality videos will take

you to the front lines of missions.

‘Missions minded’ blogsMeet Benny, JoAnn, Miriam

and Owen as they share their

thoughts and missions insights.

You can respond to their musings.

The Regions Like the home page, only di� erent.Regional pages feature AGWM stories with bios

of each director. AGWM ministries and related

organizations are just a ‘link’ away. The convenient

navigation bar makes it easy to travel quickly

around the world of AG missions.

Join us on Facebook. Search for “Assemblies of God World Missions”or go directly to our page at www.facebook.com/AGWorldMissions.

DIvIne HeALInG

B y D o u g C l a y

one of the things I’ve learned in ministry is that nobody

sails through life with perfect health. We are all human, and at some point we all get injured or sick — yes, even Christians. It may not be today or tomorrow, but eventually we will all find ourselves in an ER or a doctor’s office waiting for medical help. It’s not a pleasant thought, is it? But it’s part of life! Anybody who tells you differently, well, they’re simply ignoring the truth.

One of the amazing aspects of Jesus’ ministry was to watch Him live and move among people. As He walked among them, it was always with love and compassion — and, whenever He came upon the sick, He healed them.

In fact, it is interesting to note that Christ’s first “public” act of ministry (following His Sermon on the Mount teachings), was a series of three healings — a man with leprosy, a gravely ill servant of a Roman captain, and Peter’s

mother-in-law who was sick with a fever.

Do you know what I think? I think Jesus was showing us that healing is a big part of the gospel. And the fact is, Christ’s death on the cross not only provides for forgiveness of sin, but also heal-ing for sickness. At the moment that you accept Christ as your personal lord and Savior, you become a part of His family. Ac-cording to 1 John 4:4, you belong to God. Healing is a privilege that believers have. The One who gave you the gift of eternal life is the same One who can heal your body. This is an incredible privilege.

Healing is so interconnected with salvation (Matthew 8:16,17), we must make it a high prior-ity. We need to embrace it and practice it in our everyday lives. Whenever the opportunity arises, we need to pray for the sick. After all, healing may lead to someone’s salvation. I have no doubt that

one of the purposes of healing in Jesus’ day and ours today was to get the attention of those who are lost so they can come to know Him.

Jesus said, “God’s Spirit is on me; he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, sent me to announce par-don to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the bur-dened and battered free” (luke 4:18, The Message). “In the next two or three hours Jesus healed many from diseases, distress, and evil spirits. To many of the blind he gave the gift of sight. Then he gave his answer: ‘Go back and tell John what you have just seen and heard: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the wretched of the earth have God’s salvation hospitality extended to them’ ” (luke 7:21-23).

Christ was saying such heal-ings witness about Him. look, it’s no fun to be sick. There’s no joy

Benny McDowellI was playing football for Evangel University, and in the third

quarter a tight end was coming out for a pass. As he was going to catch the ball, I went in for the tackle. As soon as I hit him, my whole body froze. I felt like someone in a hospital when all the machines start shutting down. On my way down, I prayed, “God, don’t let me die.” And then I prayed, “Lord, don’t let me be paralyzed.” I had broken three vertebrae in my neck. On the emergency flight out of the field, I had an encounter with God. I saw a bright light, and I heard a voice say, “Everything is going to be OK.” I felt warmth over my whole body. I knew I was going to be fine. When the doctor looked at my initial X-rays and the follow-up images, they were totally different. It wasn’t instantaneous. I was in a HALO brace for three months. I had to learn how to walk again. But I was back in school the next semester. In those few months, God revealed to me His power, what He can truly do. People were amazed to see me back. It humbled me to see the love I had around me. It all helped me lean on God and His mercy, grace and love.

12 evangel | pe.ag.org pe.ag.org | evangel 13

AG Core Beliefs

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in pain or discomfort. So when-ever God relieves a cold, stops a throbbing earache, cures a cancer, or restores strength to a hopeless accident victim … it’s all part of Him demonstrating His love for us. And it’s continued proof that Jesus really is the Messiah, Savior and Healer that Isaiah prophesied about when he foretold, “The Mes-siah would be whipped so that we could be healed … and beaten so we can be whole” (The Message). It’s all there in Isaiah 53.

And here’s another ben-efit: Healing isn’t limited to just physical hurts; it’s for emotional wounds too. Aren’t you glad He cares about our mental anguish? Sometimes the emotional pain from broken relationships or our past is worse than any physical pain we experience. But God’s

among us who are sick, saying that the prayer of faith will heal the sick and the lord will raise them up (5:15).

Perhaps you have never seen or experienced God’s healing. God’s Word is true. He has the power to heal, and He wouldn’t command us to pray for the sick unless He cared and intended to act. let me encourage you to pray for your healing. Pray for those you know — a family member, a co-worker, a neighbor. You’ll be amazed what God will do when you give Him the opportunity. e

DoUG CLaY is general treasurer of the assemblies of God. adapt-ed from the ivaLUE video series available online at ivalue.ag.org. Used with permission.


grace and comfort is always there for us, and He’s able to comfort us in our darkest hours and re-store us to wholeness … if we call on Him. Psalm 147:3 assures us, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (NIV).

In all sincerity, I don’t fully understand everything about healing — especially as it relates to why some people are healed and others are not. Or why God sometimes uses doctors and hos-pitals as extensions of His healing and at other times provides heal-ings on His own. Nor do I fully understand the timing factor. But I have personally experienced healings. I have witnessed heal-ings, and I have prayed for people to be healed. Some were, others weren’t — but the Scriptures are clear that, on my part, I must

trust the Word, pray for the sick and expect God to perform the outcome.

Many health care policies have some sort of co-pay. In order to be seen by a doctor or get your prescriptions filled, you have to pay something. But as Christians, we’ve got a much better deal. You see, Jesus is our co-payment. He knows our need; He is touched with the feelings of our infirmi-ties; He’s seated next to God the Father interceding on our behalf and has the power and ability to heal!

Maybe you are battling an ill-ness. Or you may be struggling as you watch a close friend or fam-ily member suffer. questions and doubts may plague your mind, but the Book of James offers clear instructions to pray for those

T , W T , T , T , T , T , T , T , T , T , T , T ,

Women need to learn to be fi rst responders to the needs

of other women.

While events and programs are vital components of ministry, we must

intentionally establish ministry to the individual woman in our churches

and communities. In order to equip every woman to minister to the unique

needs of other women in her church and community, we are introducing

one amazing Web site!

Visit us at www.women.ag.org, and sign up for the“For Every Woman” e-letter for more information!

JulieDavenport

I had been married eight years and had three miscarriages before I had Natalie. She was a miracle. When she was 4 years old, and seemed perfectly healthy, a CAT scan revealed a mass at the base of her spine. The surgery revealed that it was malignant. The tumor was reaching through all her internal

organs and had fallen apart. The doctors were pretty sure they had not been able to get it all. They only gave Natalie a 25 percent chance of survival. They were calling for an 18-month series of chemotherapy and radiation that could end up leaving her deaf if she lived. Further exams indicated the cancer would almost certainly come back. After about a year of chemo and several surgeries she was down to 25 pounds and needed a feeding tube. She almost died, and she was in constant danger of severe infections because her immune system was so low. During those months, many times we could tangibly feel the support of our family, friends and people in our church praying for us. We were told several times she was not going to make it. Each time, she made it. Natalie has been cancer-free now for more than 13 years.

DIvIne HeALInG

BAptISMIn tHe

HoLY SpIRIt


For nearly 50 years, coal has been used in our country to

generate the lion’s share of elec-tricity for our homes, businesses and industry. This electricity has provided us with power for lighting, heating, cooling, cook-ing, washing, communicating, entertaining … well you get the idea. Electricity is essential.

At a typical power plant, a string of coal cars arrives every few days. That coal is sorted, ground into a fine powder, and

burned at a high temperature. Water running through a net-work of pipes at the furnace be-comes steam. The steam drives a turbine, turning an electrical generator.

Most people don’t realize this process is ongoing, creating power every day, 24/7, 365 days a year. And it all starts with a lump of coal.

When you think about it, the process of generating electrical power illustrates the process we

must follow as Christians for having spiritual power.

When we receive Christ at the moment of salvation, each of us becomes a new creation. The Holy Spirit indwells our being and resides within us. At that moment we are given a great resource. But like any resource, to be of any good it must be processed and put to use.

A lump of coal is of little value if I simply hold it. But if

B y A l t o n G a r r i s o n

Damon Duran I was at a service and I stopped trying to

seek speaking in tongues and just prayed that God would do something in my life. And all by myself, without anyone coming to pray for me, I just began speaking in tongues. It was finally just released in my spirit. Basically, speaking in tongues was the gift that resulted from me seek-ing after God himself.

AG Core Beliefs

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I process and use it correctly, it becomes a great tool.

It’s the same for us as believ-ers. If we have the Holy Spirit

inside us but we never tap into His power, we too are missing a great opportunity to do more and reach the full potential God offers us beyond our own talents and gifts.

Jesus said, “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, NIV). These final words of the Savior describe a powerful experience that we as Pente-costal believers hold dear. The

Bible refers to this experience by many names. Jesus and oth-ers called it “the baptism in the Holy Spirit.” He also called it

“the promise of the Father.”One of the first things we need

to realize is the baptism in the Holy Spirit is for every Chris-tian. On the Day of Pentecost the Bible says, “All of them

were filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:4). Peter told the crowd on that day, “The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off — for all whom the lord our God will call” (Acts 2:39). Peter was talk-ing about us, about all who are in Christ Jesus, including those then, those now, and those yet to come.

Second, we also must realize that the Bible teaches that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is a separate experience that follows salvation. It is not a require-ment of salvation, but rather a benefit made available to us as members of God’s family. The baptism in the Holy Spirit is not a saving experience for the non-Christian; it is an empower-ing experience for the Christian in order that he or she may be supernaturally equipped to per-form their ministry.

In speaking of this experience, Jesus said, “The world cannot accept him [meaning the Holy Spirit], because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:17). Furthermore, the record of Acts clearly demonstrates a pattern — believers were bap-tized in the Spirit only after they had truly accepted Christ (salva-tion). Before you are saved, the Holy Spirit convicts you of sin and draws you to Jesus. That’s salvation. The Holy Spirit re-sides in you after you become a Christian. However, there is an additional and distinct ministry of the Holy Spirit called the baptism in the Holy Spirit. This provides believers with an em-powering to witness and to live lives pleasing to God.

The historical record of the Book of Acts shows the Baptism

always being accompanied by speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance. On the Day of Pentecost “all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues [or languages] as the Spirit enabled them” (Acts 2:4). This is the recurring sign of Acts, and we believe that it is the “initial physical evidence” that one has been baptized in the Spirit. Everyone who is filled with the Spirit should expect to “speak in tongues” as the Spirit enables them.

I personally view the Baptism much like the furnace chamber at a power plant, or for that matter, even a steam kettle on the stove. Once the water gets hot and starts to boil, there’s no containing it. It’s going to release, and with it will come a sound. So it is when we ap-proach God in brokenness with a heart filled with love for God and with mouths full of thank-fulness for His wonderful salva-tion and the gracious work He has done in our lives. There will come a point when we are full and cannot contain what the Spirit is doing. At that moment, it will be released. It will not make sense to our human un-derstanding, but it does to God. And that’s what matters. It’s not about us. It’s about God and our need to worship and express our highest praise to Him.

let me share with you my own experience.

I was saved at the early age of 6 and immediately began to pray for the Holy Spirit bap-tism. Although I was young, I had been taught Scripture about the importance of hav-ing a special power to help me become a strong witness to my friends. Today there are more

BAptISM In tHe HoLY SpIRIt

Saehee DuranI got saved when I was in Thailand for six months where I met my husband. We

started to share our faith, and one day when we were praying together I noticed that he was speaking in a different language. I was like, “What was that? It’s kind of scary.” Even after we got married, I was skeptical.

A couple of years ago I attended a church camp. The speaker invited everyone to the altar to pray over them. Somehow I found myself in the center of the stage, and everyone started to pray for me. I wasn’t ready for it, but I felt that maybe I should pray. I heard people speaking in tongues, and even up to that point I didn’t believe in it.

It was then that God started speaking to me. I heard someone whispering in my ears, Just let it go. And I thought, How? How do I let it go? God told me, Just release. Just submit. And then I fell to the ground, receiving the Holy Spirit. I was there for an hour and a half, but I felt like it had only been a few minutes.

God had in His plan that He was going to give me His Spirit baptism on that day and that I would speak in tongues so that I would never doubt again.

If we have the Holy Spirit inside us but we never tap into His

power, we too are missing a great opportunity to do more and reach

the full potential God offers us beyond our own talents and gifts.


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than 600 million Pentecostals in the world, but in our little town back then there seemed to be just a few, and it didn’t seem cool to be one. Dad kept saying that the Holy Spirit would help me with an inner strength. I really wanted something to help me live my faith and at the same time “fit in with my friends.”

For about a year and a half, I would pray in every service to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, but just couldn’t seem to receive. I didn’t realize it at the time, but my inability to receive was a pretty simple problem to solve. The Holy Spirit is a gift that the Father desires to give everyone, but you have to receive. My problem was I just wouldn’t open my mouth. I would clinch my teeth so tightly I couldn’t speak in English, much less speak in a heavenly language.

One night in a prayer service I was really moved and began to cry. Dad was praying with me, and I needed his handkerchief to wipe my eyes. When I started to ask him for it, guess what? I opened my mouth. That was all the freedom I needed. I received and have been using my prayer language since that moment. I know what it is like to experi-ence a personal intimacy with God by praying in the heavenly language of the Spirit. When I don’t know how to pray, I pray in the Spirit for needs I am unaware of. For me, there is no greater form of communion and communication with God.

Out of this Baptism process, when our spirit is full, we are empowered beyond our abilities as our spirit overflows with His Holy Spirit. Human timidity is gone, replaced with boldness to share the gospel. lethargic spiri-

tual commitment is energized with an excitement for God and a deep devotion to serve Him. love for Christ becomes active and foremost, bringing a desire for holiness, with a longing to read His Word and win the lost. In other words, as a result of the Baptism we are supercharged with the mind and the heart of Jesus and enabled to do His work more effectively. That’s the purpose of the Spirit-filled life. We are filled so we can empty ourselves in serving oth-ers. Why? So that we can win them! It’s not about the tongues — it’s about winning the lost.

That’s the reason for the Baptism. That’s the purpose of the Holy Spirit. That’s why we preach it, and that’s why we speak it. But listen, the Baptism is not a one-time event. It’s a continuous process, a gateway to fuller life through the Spirit. A life of being filled and expended in service to others, then refilled and expended in service to others … that’s the cycle of the process.

There’s another energy re-source that’s once again being harnessed to help power our country — wind energy. Wind generators once found on old family farms have been rein-

vented and are now dotting the deserts of California and Texas and the rolling plains of the Midwest. Wind is great. It’s free for the taking, and it’s a renewable energy resource, meaning it’s never going to be diminished.

If that doesn’t sound like the Holy Spirit, what does? The mighty wind that was heard and filled the Upper Room at Pente-cost still moves among us today with an unlimited supply of fresh and powerful wind. But the question is, are you open to it?

What you may not know about the new wind genera-tors is that they can be locked down at any time to keep from turning. The greatest winds can blow, and the blades will not turn. And so it is with any be-liever who resists the Spirit and does not avail himself or herself of Him.

The choice is yours. Are you going to be a resource for the power of God’s promise, or are you going to lock Him out? I believe all followers of Christ are given the Holy Spirit for a purpose, to live beyond our natural abilities.

The day we accepted Christ, we were given a great opportu-nity: the power of His Spirit to be unleashed through His bap-tism in our lives. It’s power to live, to serve and to win others for eternity. let’s not squander it. I don’t know about you, but my heart’s cry is, “lord, send the Wind and the Fire.” e

aLton GarrIson is assistant general superintendent of the as-semblies of God. adapted from the ivaLUE video series available online at ivalue.ag.org. Used with permission.


BAptISM In tHe HoLY SpIRIt

DarrylMorton

An evangelist came to town and was preaching about the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and she gave the call, “Does anyone want to be filled with the Holy Ghost?” My brother jumped up and ran down to the front, not even two weeks into salvation.

He lifted up his hands and began to speak in other tongues. We’d never seen anything like that before in our lives — some of us wanted to run out the back door!

My wife said, “You’d better go down there and pray for him.” I’ll be hon-est, I was a little scared and intimidated.

My brother left that church on a Tuesday night speaking in tongues. We tried to talk to him and ask him what had just happened — he couldn’t tell us. My brother went home and got in the Word of God. He found out what had happened to him. He was endued with power to be a witness.

The evangelist gave that same talk on Friday night, and I raised my hands up and began to speak in tongues a little bit. I was so excited and so full I thought I was going to explode. I mean, when they say it’s joy unspeakable and full of glory, that’s what was happening to me down there at the altar that night.

When you don’t know what to pray and you don’t know what verse to quote, you can pray in the Holy Spirit.

BLeSSeD Hope

B y G e o r g e O . W o o d


When I visit the local cem-etery and look out over

the vast number of grave mark-ers, I wonder how many of the people buried there put their faith in Jesus Christ. Many wonder-ful Christian men and women lie buried in those graves. I know, because I labored with many of them.

Hundreds of those markers rep-resent laymen, pastors, missionar-ies and leaders of the church who sacrificed and gave of themselves so the gospel could go forward. Their impact was felt well beyond their lives and continues to ex-pand God’s kingdom today.

Most people don’t like cem-eteries because of their sorrow at being separated from their loved ones. It’s never easy to lose friends or family members who are dear to us. But death is a reality. The Bible says, “It is

appointed unto men once to die” (Hebrews 9:27, KJV).

Some deaths are more difficult than others. When a child dies or a spouse is taken or an entire family is unexpectedly ushered into eternity, we are left with a difficult and daunting “Why?” It’s a fair question, but often one with very few answers. Seldom on this side of eternity will we ever understand the timing, the circumstances, or the why. For many who are left behind, the pain of loss lingers.

We all grieve and experience pain, Christians and non-Chris-tians alike. But followers of the risen lord Jesus have the assur-ance of a wonderful hope, a re-union with our saved loved ones and, more important, with our Savior. We call this our Blessed Hope.

If I die before the lord returns,

someday my own body will be summoned to rise at the last trumpet call. As the Scripture promises: “For the lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air. And so we will be with the lord forever” (1 Thessalonians 4:16,17, NIV).

This is the Blessed Hope of the Church — the coming of the lord! That’s why our Fellow-ship’s doctrinal statement says, “The resurrection of those who have fallen asleep in Christ and their translation together with those who are alive and remain unto the coming of the lord is the imminent and blessed hope of

pe.ag.org | evangel 25

AG Core Beliefs

Miranda HaginLabor Day weekend of 2006, my sophomore year at Evangel

University, doctors diagnosed my mom with stage 4 lung cancer and gave her six months. My dad was already battling brain cancer.

One day in November, about an hour after I left Dad’s hospital room and went to the other hospital to visit Mom, I received a call that my dad had gone to be with Jesus. A few months later, the week before my 20th birthday, a chest X-ray showed my mom’s lung had filled with a solid cancerous mass. My birthday was the last day I got to talk to my mom. The next day she went into a coma, and she lasted another eight days.

My dad was one of my good friends and somebody I joked around with. I lost my best friend when I lost my mom. I have to look forward to what is ahead — to seeing them again someday. We have that promise of being reunited with loved ones and those we lost who are important in our lives who poured into us and made us who we are today.

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26 evangel | pe.ag.org pe.ag.org jan • 17 • 10 evangel 27

the Church.” That’s the teaching of the Bible.

I trust that I will be in the second shift, that I will still be among the living when the lord returns. like the Early Church, I’m not looking for the under-taker but the Upper-Taker!

So imagine that day when the graves will be opened. How many graves will be emptied out the moment when the trumpet of the lord sounds and the lord himself descends from heaven? My local cemetery and every cemetery around the world will look a lot different on that day.

Imagine the joy then, as fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, grandpar-ents, uncles, aunts, and the many, many dear friends waiting for us in heaven are all once again re-united. And not for a day, but for eternity. Can you picture it?

You see, the coming again of Jesus Christ is the Blessed Hope of the Church. Do you have that hope in you? If you were to die this day or if the lord were to re-

turn, are you confident that your eternal home will be with Jesus in heaven?

The hope of the lord’s return is not in the nature of a wish. It’s based on a historical fact. Jesus rose from the dead. If Christ is not raised, then our faith truly is futile. But, “if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised

Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who lives in you” (Romans 8:11).

Standing in a cemetery, we are confronted with a powerful mys-tery. On the one hand there are Christians’ bodies there await-ing the return of Christ. On the other hand, the apostle Paul tells us that they are “away from the body and at home with the lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). In these 10 words, “away from the body and at home with the lord,” we learn that:

1. Death is not the end.2. Reincarnation is not possible.3. The soul is not sleeping,

although the body is dead.4. Purgatory does not exist.We are faced with a question:

How can we be at home with the lord and yet our bodies await the resurrection? The Scripture is clear that, while awaiting the resurrection of the body, we enjoy the conscious presence with the lord. I don’t worry about this mystery because I know an all-powerful lord who has it all

figured out. At any moment, the lord Jesus can call us home — either through His coming or our meeting Him through the gate-way of death.

As a pastor years ago, I once spent time at the hospital with one of our dear church members who was dying. She always had an interest in prophecy and she asked me, “Pastor, do you think

we are living at the end of time?” I assured her that I thought we were. Of course, I knew that unless the lord intervened with healing, she was living at the end of her time.

That’s why I never get caught up in speculation about a date for the lord’s return, or who the antichrist might be. For each of us, this is the end of time, the end of our earthly time. It’s our last generation, because this is the only generation we have as individuals.

There’s a wonderful phrase in 2 Corinthians 5:4 where the apostle Paul talks about our longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, “so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.” Imagine that! Those buried followers of Christ have already been swallowed up — not by death, but by life!

It has been my custom for years to carry a seed pack of morning glories with me when I officiate at a graveside. I hold up a small seed from the packet and then show the picture of the morning glory. The seed looks nothing like what will be. But in order for the flower to emerge, the seed must be planted into the ground. There it will undergo a transformation.

Our bodies are like that. Whether the lord returns when we are still living or after we are dead, we know we are in for a tremendous metamorphosis. Paul puts it this way: “[The lord Jesus Christ] by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21).

We are all waiting for this extreme makeover when “the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality” (1 Corinthians 15:53). Are you living with hope?

BLeSSeD HopeStanley Horton

Jesus emphasized that He would come again. As you go through the whole New Testament, it’s clear that the Second Com-ing is an important truth; it’s our Blessed Hope. The gospel of the Kingdom must be preached into all the world, and then the

end shall come. This is the sign that really encourages me to believe that the Lord’s coming is nearer — because the gospel is being preached and people are being reached around the world.

I pray every day, “Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly.” My heart reaches out to Him. It will be wonderful to see Him and to be joined with those who have gone before. God had a plan with creation, and He carried that out. He had a plan of redemption, and He carried that out through the Cross. His plan is going to lead ultimately to the new heavens and the new earth that are so completely beyond our imagination. We’ll be brothers and sisters, and we will share in the Father’s house.

Are you living in daily expecta-tion that this could be the day? I hear echoing across the centuries the words the Holy Spirit put in the apostle Paul’s heart: “listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed — in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthi-ans 15:51,52).

What a day that will be! e

GEorGE o. WooD is general superintendent of the assemblies of God. adapted from the ivaLUE video series available online at ivalue.ag.org. Used with permission.


the hope of the Lord’s return is not in the nature of a wish. It’s based on a historical fact.

AG Core Beliefs

BuILDInG A FounDAtIon FoRLIFe

B y W e s B a r t e l


To the casual observer it was just a pile of stones. They had been there on the banks of the Jordan River since Israel had first crossed into the land of Canaan. However, to the father and his son, they meant more … much more. This simple pile of stones had been placed there by direct command of God (Joshua 4:1-9).

They provided an indispensable bridge from one generation to the next.

Seated beside his father, the son would hear the exciting stories of the miraculous exodus of God’s people from Egypt. He would hear about the years of wander-ing in the wilderness and of God’s miraculous provision.

The father could point to a place on the opposite bank where the priests had entered the water and describe how they had miraculously crossed into the Promised land on dry ground. Then, nodding toward the pile of stones, he would describe how they had been stacked on the

We all need something to remind us of important things. For the Assemblies of God, these are especially our core beliefs and our pentecostal heritage. We need to be clear on what we believe about God and know why we believe it.

continued on page 30

Illustrations by


bank of the Jordan to serve as a reminder of God’s faithfulness. His instructions to his son would be clear: “Remember! Don’t ever forget what God has done!”

The word remember is very important in our language. It is also a very important word in the Bible. It is used 168 times — first in Genesis 9:15 and finally in Revelation 3:3. The Hebrew meaning of the word translated “remember” is unique. It liter-ally means “a stone of remem-brance.” The story cited above is perhaps the clearest example of that meaning.

However, the admonition to remember is not a unique respon-sibility reserved for the Children of Israel. Every generation and every culture needs a “stone of remembrance.”

Anyone visiting the Assemblies of God national headquarters in Springfield, Mo., is confronted with a visual reminder of the Fellowship’s four core beliefs. Our “stones of remembrance” are four paintings by artist Ron DiCianni commissioned by our leadership in 2006.

In the scenes selected by the art-ist, viewers witness four key events in the life of Christ. The paintings depict Christ as Savior, Healer, Baptizer and soon-coming King.

In the amazing scene of Jesus Christ on the cross, we witness redemptive truth. He is “God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowl-edge of the truth” (1 Timothy

2:3,4, NIV). At the cross, every person is forced to confront the reality of personal sin and their need for a Savior. We must never forget that the doctrine of salva-

tion is central to our faith and must be reaffirmed and embraced by each generation.

We then view Jesus Christ as the Healer. It is important that we center this great teaching in the work of Christ, because it is through His death and suffering that divine healing is provided. “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). We are commanded, “Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well” (James 5:14,15). Divine healing is a gift to be received by anyone who, like the woman in luke 8, reaches out to touch Christ.

The baptism in the Holy Spirit is the third core belief portrayed. It is unique in that we do not see Christ himself depicted in the scene. Yet we know Him as the Baptizer. The apostle John testified of Christ: “After me will come one more powerful than I. … I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:7,8). The baptism in the Holy Spirit is a promise to all believers and is vitally important if the church is to

be effective in sharing the gospel with a lost world (Acts 2:1-21).

The night before Christ died He made a promise. He said: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.

Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. ... I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:1-3).

A fourth painting represents Christ in all His glory. The promise of Christ’s return is not science fiction but is a divine promise that will be fulfilled someday. Christ’s return offers hope and expectation that must be passed from one gen-eration to the next, and it brings us full circle back to the foot of the cross. After all, the cross is what prepares us to be a participant in this great event.

Four pictures function in the same manner as that ancient pile of stones. The pictures and the events referenced provide an opportunity we dare not miss: “In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them, ‘… He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the lord your God’” (Joshua 4:21,22,24, NIV). eWEs BartEL is director of Discipleship ministries for the assemblies of God.


BuILDInG A FounDAtIon FoR LIFe

the word remember is very important in our language. It is also a very important word in the Bible.

It is used 168 times.

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