Today 51% of Born Again Christians are Charismatic. In 20 years 80% of born again people will be Charismatic/Pentecostal. At that point we have reached a tipping point. Only a few hardcore dying denominations and congregations will deny Joel 2. God is pouring his spirit out on all flesh. Pouring out his spirit means pouring our his spirit. So, watch and see what the Lord is doing. Like Peter said on the first day of Pentecost, THIS IS THAT. (every day is a day of Pentecost for millions of people worldwide and now in AMERICA).
I am glad I was able to make this transition long ago. Being filled with the Holy Spirit, the Baptism of the Spirit promised by Jesus in the first Chapter of Acts is one of the most precious gifts he ever gave me. Not the most important. Being Born again was that. But the infilling of the Spirit changed me forever. I got a downpayment of heaven without having to die. That is why i am so passionate about the whole thing.
If you are a reader of this blog and you haven't yet entered in, ask yourself why? What hidereth you to be Baptized? Step in and see how good God really is. God is changing the worldwide face of Christianity in ONE GENERATION. Just as he said he would. He told Mike Bickle this 15 years ago. It's happening.
New Barna Report on Growth of Charismatic Churches Debunks Myths—Indicates Growth Will Continueby Teresa Neumann : Jan 13, 2008 : Jennifer Riley - The Christian Post"A decade ago, three out of ten adults claimed to be charismatic or Pentecostal Christians. Today, 36% of Americans accept that designation. That corresponds to approximately 80 million adults."
(Ventura, Ca.)—In response to the results of the recent Barna research on the growth of Charismatic churches in the country, the Christian Post has reported on the myths that were exposed in the survey.
Some of the myths that were debunked were:
1) –charismatic Christianity is exclusively Protestant. It's not.
2) –charismatic churches belong to a separate denomination. They don't.
3) –charismatic churches are small and relatively unsophisticated. They aren't.
Research leader George Barna is quoted as saying that he expects charismatic Christianity will continue to see strong growth.
"The freedom of emotional and spiritual expression typical of charismatic assemblies parallels the cultural trend toward personal expression, accepting diverse emotions and allowing people to interpret their experiences in ways that make sense to them,"he said. "It is not surprising that the Pentecostal community in America has been growing."
To read in detail about the results of the Barna report, follow the link provided above.
2 comments:
Gene, our church is opening part of the worship service a bit more to open praising from the congregation. It is interesting to hear more people voice out. We are a curious mix of people from many denominaions and backgrounds (including charismatic), but under a loose label of reformed baptist. The times we have opened up like this have been obviously spirit-led, to me at least. Once, after a particularly good gospel presentation, we all felt the Spirit, and the congregation replied in verbal praise. One man stated, "Lord, we are moved...." with a pause to draw a breath. We were quite literally moved, as in the drawing of his breath, the Lord brought an earthquake. Yeah, we live in California and a good Darwinian would attribute this to natural effects, but we knew better on that day.
Steve,
That is really quite a story.
I love it.
Reminds me of Isaiah 6:4
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
or Acts 4:31
31After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
God wants to do something among you.
Post a Comment