Azusa Street Revival

The Azusa Street Revival was a historic series of revival meetings that took place in Los Angeles, California.^[1] It was led by William J. Seymour, an African-American preacher. The revival began on April 9, 1906, and continued until roughly 1915.

Seymour was invited to Los Angeles for a one-month engagement at a local church, but found himself barred due to his controversial views on baptism with the Holy Spirit after his first Sunday. He continued his ministry in the homes of sympathetic parishioners, and on the night of April 9, 1906, first one, then six others in his meeting began to speak in tongues and shout out loud praising God, so loudly that the neighborhood was alerted. The news quickly spread; the city was stirred; crowds gathered; services were moved outside to accommodate the crowds who came from all around; people fell down as they approached, and attributed it to God; people were baptized in the Holy Spirit and the sick were said to be healed.^[2]

The testimony of those who attended the Azusa Street Revival was "I am saved, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost" in reference to the three works of grace of Holiness Pentecostals, the original branch of Pentecostalism.^[3] To further accommodate the crowds, an old dilapidated, two-story frame building at 312 Azusa Street in the industrial section of the city was secured. This building, originally built for an African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church, had more recently been used as a livery stable, storage building and tenement house. In this humble Azusa Street mission, a continuous three-year revival occurred and became known around the world. Stanley H. Frodsham, in his book, With Signs Following, quotes an eye-witness description of the scene: The revival was characterized by spiritual experiences accompanied with testimonies of physical healing miracles,^[4] worship services, and speaking in tongues. The participants were criticized by some secular media and Christian theologians for behaviors considered to be outrageous and unorthodox, especially at the time.

Today, the revival is considered by historians to be the primary catalyst for the spread of Pentecostalism in the 20th century.

^ Corcoran, Michael. "How a humble preacher ignited the Pentecostal fire". Cox News Services. Archived from the original on December 7, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
^ Pentecostal Church of God General Bylaws, Historical Perspective, Section 3 and History. [1]
^ Synan, Vinson (2012). The Century of the Holy Spirit: 100 Years of Pentecostal and Charismatic Renewal, 1901–2001. Thomas Nelson. ISBN 978-1-4185-8753-6. Wesleyan Pentecostal Churches. ...Most of the first generation of Pentecostals were from this holiness stream that had its roots in Methodism. ...When the Pentecostal movement began, these "holiness Pentecostals" simply added the baptism in the Holy Spirit with tongues as "initial evidence" of a "third blessing" that brought power for witnessing to those who had already been sanctified. With the news tongues experience, sanctification was seen as a prerequisite "cleansing" that qualified the seeker to experience the "third blessing" of baptism in the Holy Spirit. An early prophetic utterance stated ominously that "My Spirit will not dwell in an unclean temple." Seekers were encouraged to abandon all the roots of bitterness and original sin so that nothing would block their reception of the Spirit. In fact, it was told that Seymour would not admit seekers to enter the upper room to seek the baptism until he was satisfied that their sanctification experience had been certified downstairs. The historic Azusa Street testimony was "I am saved, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost."
^ Tommy Welchel, True Stories of the Miracles of Azusa Street and Beyond: Re-live One of The Greatest Outpourings in History that is Breaking Loose Once Again, Destiny Image, 2013

[humble_preacher-1] Corcoran, Michael. "How a humble preacher ignited the Pentecostal fire". Cox News Services. Archived from the original on December 7, 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2011.

[2] Pentecostal Church of God General Bylaws, Historical Perspective, Section 3 and History. [1]

[Synan2012-3] Synan, Vinson (2012). The Century of the Holy Spirit: 100 Years of Pentecostal and Charismatic Renewal, 1901–2001. Thomas Nelson. ISBN 978-1-4185-8753-6. Wesleyan Pentecostal Churches. ...Most of the first generation of Pentecostals were from this holiness stream that had its roots in Methodism. ...When the Pentecostal movement began, these "holiness Pentecostals" simply added the baptism in the Holy Spirit with tongues as "initial evidence" of a "third blessing" that brought power for witnessing to those who had already been sanctified. With the news tongues experience, sanctification was seen as a prerequisite "cleansing" that qualified the seeker to experience the "third blessing" of baptism in the Holy Spirit. An early prophetic utterance stated ominously that "My Spirit will not dwell in an unclean temple." Seekers were encouraged to abandon all the roots of bitterness and original sin so that nothing would block their reception of the Spirit. In fact, it was told that Seymour would not admit seekers to enter the upper room to seek the baptism until he was satisfied that their sanctification experience had been certified downstairs. The historic Azusa Street testimony was "I am saved, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost."

[4] Tommy Welchel, True Stories of the Miracles of Azusa Street and Beyond: Re-live One of The Greatest Outpourings in History that is Breaking Loose Once Again, Destiny Image, 2013

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