Pentecostal1901–1906 (Azusa Street Revival); Assemblies of God 1914
Pentecostal (Assemblies of God)
📍 Topeka, Kansas; Los Angeles, USA
Spirit baptism, speaking in tongues, healing, and revival fire.
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Pentecostal1897
Church of God in Christ (COGIC)
📍 Memphis, Tennessee, USA
The largest Black Pentecostal church: holiness, healing, and the Holy Ghost.
Learn morePentecostal1974 (Kenn Gulliksen); expanded 1982 (John Wimber)
Vineyard Churches
📍 Southern California, USA
Third Wave charismatic: healing, words of knowledge, and the Kingdom breaking in.
Learn morePentecostal1923
International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
📍 Los Angeles, California, USA
Aimee Semple McPherson's Foursquare Gospel: Saviour, Baptiser, Healer, Coming King.
Learn morePentecostal1886
Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)
📍 Cherokee County, North Carolina; Cleveland, Tennessee, USA
America's oldest Pentecostal denomination: holiness, tongues, and divine healing.
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Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)
Pentecostal1886
📍 Cherokee County, North Carolina; Cleveland, Tennessee, USA
🌍 ~7 million globally
Origin
Founded in 1886 in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina by R.G. Spurling and his father, the Church of God is the oldest Pentecostal denomination in America - predating the Azusa Street Revival of 1906. Initially a Holiness movement, it received tongues-speaking in 1896 during a revival at Camp Creek, North Carolina, nine years before Azusa Street. Moving its headquarters to Cleveland, Tennessee, it spread globally under the leadership of A.J. Tomlinson.
Core beliefs
- Baptism in the Holy Spirit evidenced initially by speaking in tongues
- Entire sanctification as a second definite work of grace before Spirit baptism
- Divine healing through prayer and anointing as part of Christ's atonement
- Pre-millennial return of Christ
- Tithing as a scriptural obligation for all believers
Worship style
Exuberant Pentecostal worship: congregational singing, spontaneous prayer, tongues, interpretation, healing ministry, and shouting. Strong Holiness emphasis alongside Pentecostal gifts. Annual General Assembly governs the denomination centrally.
Key scriptures
- Acts 2:4
- 1 Thessalonians 4:3
- James 5:14–15
- Mark 16:17–18
Relationship to other denominations
One of the largest classical Pentecostal bodies alongside the Assemblies of God, COGIC, and Foursquare. Distinguished by its pre-Azusa origins. Not to be confused with the Church of God (Anderson, Indiana), which is Holiness but not Pentecostal.