Development of ACOP Doctrine

[Karlena]

As was stated in the video, many of the early Pentecostals had no theological training or little education. They had a life-changing, encounter with Jesus Christ (and therefore one can say they “had been with Jesus”) and had been empowered by the Holy Spirit. These early Pentecostals were, like Peter and John, bold and unashamed in their proclamation of the Full Gospel. Concerning what I have observed among Pentecostals today, there are groups of Pentecostals who actually shun theological training and want to, instead, rely on personal experiences or revelation. I was pleased to hear affirmed in this video that ACOP has a legacy of sober-minded Pentecostal theologians who were (and still are) bold and passionate in their proclamation of the Full Gospel, yet they were (and are) so from a solidly biblical and orthodox foundation. I appreciate the deep and reflective theological engagement of these Pentecostals. Both my understanding of Baptism in Spirit as well as my own personal experience line up with this topic’s video.

[Micah]

As a current student at Eston College (and someone who is taking this course), I continually wrestle with passages like these, asking the question “why am I doing all this special training?”

I easily miss the line “They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.” I think that, during my time at Eston College, a substantial part of my growth and training has been learning to be with Jesus and let him correct the garbage in my heart as well as letting the body of Christ push me towards looking more like him.

As I reflect on this passage and pentecostals, I am not surprised that it took some time before they recognized church history and had some level of Bible training in place before aligning with common “orthodox” beliefs. Though this is true to an extent (especially in terms of the weak being made strong in the power of the Spirit), I immediately think of areas where this was pushed and borderline heresies were preached, reminding me that there must be Biblical backing, church accountability now and historical), as well as the empowerment of the Spirit; God didn’t give us those gifts separately.

[Caleb]

This verse describing perter and John could be seen describing the early Pentecostals because of their focus on getting back to the roots of scripture. many of early Pentecostals who were in the church previously didn’t like the liturgical format found in the modern churches, so they wanted to get back to the basics which for them meant the love of Jesus Christ and the great power of his death and resurrection. This included experiential power and testimony of what he had done recently. other early Pentecostals fit the bill to a tee because many of them had been converted based on experience and had no education on the scriptures. it was Purely based on the saving grace of Jesus, the power manifested in that grace, and belief in the Gospel.

For many Pentecostals today, I don’t think this verse in Acts would do as great as a description because there is more value in biblical training and theology, even though much of belief is still experiential. This could still be true though for brand new believers who have just experienced great things and great change. though they are uneducated, new Pentecostals are some of the strongest Christians I have ever known.

There is still some hesitancy in older Pentecostals for the younger generations getting biblical educations because of the beauty of the simple Gospel. Some today think biblical training will eat away at the faith of the younger generation and we should place more value on what God is physically doing today. I’m not saying this is a totally irrational or unwise to think, biblical studies can be a very dry experience without the living breathing power of God. I think maybe we need to study the scriptures diligently and well, but we also need to remember the childlike faith we once had. studying scripture be a tool to empower the work of God we see today. If we can successfully combine living experience with a scriptural backing, I believe that is what makes our faith the strongest.

[Sarah]

This would also be used to describe early pentecostals because they believed that if you were baptised in the spirit you were equipped for ministry. I think that this still generally reflects pentecostals today in that they still empower many people to witness, minister, and teach as they experience the Holy Spirit, but I think that the structures for leadership has become more formalized.