God's Church
Prophecy in Motion
by C. Elden McNabb
The Thomlinson Phenomenon
Perhaps one of the most significant events of 1903
was the first successful heavier-than-air flight, on a sandy beach at Kitty
Hawk,
We see a prophecy of the advent of man's mastery of aviation in Isa. 60:8. In verse one, He said, "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee." Then, in verse, eight He asked, "Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?" These verses in Isaiah chapter sixty show us that God's Church would rise up, this side of the dark ages, together with the development of airplanes.
It came to pass, on June 13, 1903, in the mountains
of
Almost every student of modern religious
development in America has heard of A. J. Tomlinson. For some years, at the
turn of the century, he did missionary work as a salesman for the American
Tract Society and the American Bible Society. In his labors in that missionary
effort, he went to western
In 1903, he took a covenant with the Holiness Church at Camp Creek and declared that they were the Church of God. During the next forty years, he directed the establishment and growth of two prominent, international, Pentecostal organizations.
The Great Revival
In different places, and at various times over
the centuries, people have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. However,
the true beginning of the modern Pentecostal movement in America occurred in
western
A great Sanctification [8] revival had been burning in that region for several years. Consequently, a wonderfully receptive spiritual atmosphere existed, into which God could, and did, send a great outpouring of His Spirit.
Three zealous evangelists: William Martin, Joe
M. Tipton, and Milton McNabb, [9]
from Monroe County,
Though many were blessed, others saw it only as a threat to their religious world, and those enemies of Christ raised a great persecution against them. Mainstream church leaders joined with civic officials to stamp it out. They forced the worshipers out the old school house, but they could not stop the revival.
As the meetings continued in an old log church nearby, the Spirit moved mightily, and several were baptized with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance. It was not long until about one hundred and thirty people had been Baptized with the Holy Spirit.
The phenomenon spread across the country; sometimes in remarkable fashion. Yet, it was to be a full ten years before the notable revival would burst upon Brother Seymour and the other saints on Azusa St. in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, the fire was kindled that would transform the religious community worldwide.
It was this vibrant spiritual arena, into which
Ambrose Jessup Tomlinson stepped, on July 14, 1899, to begin his missionary
work among the poor mountain folk of western
The Star Is Born
As those revival fires blazed in the hills of
As he went about his labors on the farm, he prayed and sought God until he pressed forth into the wonderful realm of spirituality. His own account of those days of prayer and perseverance, during which he killed "the old man," is truly inspiring. You will find it in his book, "Answering The Call Of God." [10]
Soon, like many of us who were not raised in a particular church, Mr. Tomlinson began to wrestle with the problem of which church to join. He described his struggle this way.
"Then came the real conflict: What church should I join? If there had been but one, as was the case in the time of the Apostles, I would have been saved that trouble. I searched and prayed and sought for information from people, books and papers. I was perplexed. I felt I was at a crisis. I did not know what to do. They were all different, and none of them really satisfied me, but I felt I must be a member of some church. I finally decided to join the one nearest my home, merely for convenience, as I thought I could do more good in one near by, as I could attend more regularly."
When he had worked but a short time as Superintendent of a little Sunday school there, it doubled in size. Some time later, a revival broke out upon that little church and the work of it was thrust upon him. Not having studied the Bible before that time, he struggled with text and subject. With uncertain steps, he labored at his new responsibilities with much prayer and searching. So began what was to prove to be one of the greatest ministries of the twentieth century.
As he labored and sought God, in much prayer and
supplication, Bro. Tomlinson's desire to meet the spiritual needs of mankind
grew, and opportunities to minister began to open to him. Being stirred with
a great missionary zeal, he volunteered his services to assist in the labors
of a noted missionary named J. B. Mitchell. It was Bro. Tomlinson's association
with Bro. Mitchell which ultimately brought him to
From time to time during those years, Bro. Tomlinson sought out religious groups that he had heard about, which sounded as if they might be worthy of his consideration. No doubt he found good qualities in different groups that he encountered, and held each in due respect. One brief record of such an excursion is found noted in his diary, September 22, 1901.
"After a few days of haste and special providences of God, my birthday finds
me on the Atlantic Ocean aboard the 'Howard' speeding away toward Boston, bound
for Shiloh,
Bro. Sanford's dynamic ministry, which was based in Shiloh, apparently provoked some particular interest in Bro. Tomlinson. Several years later he made the statement that he felt Shiloh behind him; pushing him. Perhaps it was Bro. Sanford's doctrine, about God having an anointed prophet to lead his people, who caught his spiritual ear. However, there is no indication that Brother Tomlinson had any association with Bro. Sanford after that visit.
But God was working something, there in the hills of
Revival flames burned, blessings flowed, and persecutions beset those zealous worshipers. Of course, the enemy also tried to discredit the work from within, by expressions of fanaticism and religious excesses. R. G. Spurling, Sr., who was a frequent attendant at those meetings, tried for some time to effect some organization among the various groups. He believed the Bible taught that the Church of God must have government. He also thought that such government would help curtail the excesses in which some were engaging.
On August 19, 1886, he called a special meeting
at the Barney Creek Meeting House, in Monroe County,
By the Spring of 1902, a small group, including W. F. Bryant and a few others, had also begun to feel the need for government. So, on May 15, 1902, Bro. Bryant and those concerned saints gathered at Bro. Bryant's home, near Murphy, N. C. There, with the guidance of Bro. Spurling, they organized under the name of The Holiness Church at Camp Creek. Bro. Spurling became the pastor and W. F. Bryant was ordained a minister. [11]
THE WORD CREATES
On June 13, 1903, A. J. Tomlinson went up onto a mountain, near where the Holiness Church at Camp Creek had their meetings, to a place alone to pray. He later testified to a small group, in the home of W. F. Bryant, that the Lord had inspired him, during his prayer, that they had espoused a faith and attitude toward the word of God that, if they would accept it, they were the Church of God. Of course, they did accept it.
Brother Spurling immediately submitted the leadership to Brother Tomlinson, and the work began to grow. In two and a half years, it had grown to such an extent, that they thought it was necessary to call a general conference.
They did not adopt the name "Church of God" until 1907, but their beginning can neither be dated from the time of organization in 1902, nor from the time of the official name change. They became the Church of God when the bold declaration was made by the man to whom God had given the revelation of it. The blessings given by patriarchs in the Old Testament are a good example of this phenomenon.
In the years which have passed, several groups, large and small, have developed from that small beginning. In 1951, it was claimed that 44 different groups had grown out of that work. [12]
I will not attempt to address all of these groups, because, in the light of the prophetic advancement of God's Church, they are of small significance. I only hope to point out clearly, that the formation and development of the Church of God was the work of an Apostle of God, whom God has confirmed beyond doubt with many signs.
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[8] The second work of grace, Rom. 5:1,2.
[9] "Upon This Rock" by C. T. Davidson, Vol. 1, Pg. 294
[10]
White Wing Publishing house, Cleveland,
[11] "Upon This Rock" by C. T. Davidson, Vol. 1, Pg. 300.
[12] Handbook of Denominations in the United States, by Frank S. Mead. Abingdon Press.