Christianity Through the Ages Part 3 Outpouring of the Holy Spirit in 1906     From The Apostolic Faith Historical Account, Copyright 1965

As Jerusalem had been chosen for the setting of the early-day Pentecost, so was Los Angeles , California , chosen for the latter-day Spiritual outpouring.

The Prophet Joel, who had foretold the "early rain" which fell on the Day of Pentecost, also spoke of the "latter rain" which was to come in the last days, prior to the coming of the Lord.

"Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month" (Joel 2:23).

The "first month" was the time for the latter rain to fall. According to the Jewish religious calendar, the first month is Abib, which includes part of our month of April.

On April 9, 1906, in the city of Los Angeles , the long-awaited Outpouring of the Holy Spirit began.

A small group of humble, interdenominational people had arranged for a ten-day cottage prayer meeting at 214 N. Bonnie Brae Street in Los Angeles , where they were to tarry for the baptism of the Holy Ghost. These people were born-again Christians, subsequently sanctified, all in one accord, as were those in the Upper Room on the Day of Pentecost when about 120 tarried in prayer. Upon this group on Bonnie Brae Street , God poured out His Spirit and baptized a number of them with the Holy Ghost. They experienced the same outward evidence of having received the baptism—the enduement of power—as did the disciples on the Day of Pentecost, and spoke in other languages as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:4).

The news of what was transpiring at that cottage prayer meeting quickly spread throughout Los Angeles and the surrounding area. So many hungry souls came to seek more of God that the place could not hold them and an overflow crowd had to stand out on the sidewalks. This group was then compelled to obtain a larger place in which to meet.

The Azusa Street Revival Center

An old, whitewashed frame building, once used for a Methodist church, located in the downtown commercial district of Los Angeles, at 312 Azusa Street , was secured for the meetings. And there the revival broke out with such intensity that it knew no bounds.

Attending the services were missionaries, evangelists, pastors, members of various churches, self-righteous sinners and down-and-out sinners. There were also numbers of curiosity seekers, as well as outright critics.

Mainly in attendance were spiritually hungry Christians seeking more power for service. Included in this group was Mrs. Florence L. Crawford who—as stated before—was one among the many who had been praying for an outpouring of the Spirit. Some had traveled hundreds and thousands of miles to be in these services.

Heart-searching sermons went forth by Spirit-filled ministers with such power that it seemed as if a great searchlight from Heaven was turned on all manner of sin. Men and women from all walks of life were converted. Many lives were transformed. The drunkard was delivered from his "drink" and no longer craved the contents of the "bottle." The thief became an honest man and took back what he had stolen. Other bound slaves to sin were freed, and evil habits were broken off their lives.

Nominal professors of religion and the proud moralists, who knew little or nothing about the baser sins of the world, prayed to God and received the same salvation as that found by the deep-dyed sinner. Many who were saved prayed through to the experience of sanctification; and sanctified believers received the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Numbers of these converts became zealous workers and helped to spread the Good News to others in the surrounding area.

At this revival center, the presence of God was manifested in every meeting. Prayer services were wonderful. Row after row of seats had to be used for altars, where many knelt to pray. People came and stayed all day. It was a continuous revival not timed by the hour of the clock—day or night.

Some who came were so intensely absorbed with seeking God that they forgot to eat. Hundreds received the baptism of the Holy Ghost as the revival continued. In these services were people of different nationalities; and they heard those who were filled with the Spirit speak the wonders of God in their own native tongue. They marveled as did the Cretes, Arabians, Medes and men of other nations who heard the disciples magnify the Lord in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost.

Prayer was made in those days, as today, for God to restore the faith "once delivered unto the saints" (Jude 3). The Word of God was preached in all its fullness in the Azusa Street church at that time. Included with the doctrines of Justification, Sanctification, the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, and the Coming of the Lord, was that of Divine Healing. In accordance with the teaching found in James 5:14, the sick and afflicted were anointed with oil, prayed for by the ministry, and God manifested His power in performing miraculous healings.

Throughout the city of Los Angeles the scenes of old were repeated among groups of people whose hearts were pure and honest before God. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit which centered in Los Angeles in 1906 was not confined to that area alone or anywhere else in this country. From India , Europe, China , Egypt , Syria , South Africa , and other places, came word that their people, too, had received similar spiritual outpourings.

High Standard Held

The ministry who preached the Word in the beginning at the Azusa revival placed special emphasis on clean, holy living. Christians were exhorted to conduct their lives according to the standard of God's Word. It was stressed in their teachings that those who had been born again must seek and receive the second work of grace—sanctification—before they were eligible to receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

From among those who held to the high standard of Christian living and embraced sound doctrine, there came forth spiritually equipped men and women who have been instrumental in the salvation of thousands of souls.

Many who were filled with the Holy Ghost went forth to carry the Good News far and near. Some concentrated their efforts in this country. Others became missionaries in foreign countries. The Gospel in its fullness and power was carried back to the Holy Land, into the city of Jerusalem from whence it originated almost 2,000 years ago.

Religious Leaders Promote Own Work

Different religious leaders who left the Los Angeles revival promoted the Latter Rain Gospel work throughout the land, establishing churches under their own particular organization's name.

Most of the leaders held true for a while to the teachings they had embraced at the time of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit but it was not long until some began altering their beliefs and standards. However, the Apostolic Faith organization with headquarters in Portland , Oregon , founded in 1907 by the Reverend Florence L. Crawford has, through the years, continued to stand upon those original doctrinal foundation stones.