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Revision as of 22:24, 22 September 2006 by Spm2006 (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Pentecostal Mission, also known as Ceylon Pentecostal mission is a pentecostal christian denomination.
The mission began its work in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The founder of this church is Ramankutty. He was born in the year 1881 to hindu parents in the district of Trichur in Kerala, a southern state in India. While in Sri Lanka, at the age of 18, he got to know Jesus Christ personally, and there he accepted Him as his savior and became a follower. From then on Ramankutty dedicated himself to praying to and meditating on Jesus Christ without the knowledge of his parents.
Then in the year 1902, at the age of twenty two, he had a personal encounter with Jesus which changed the course of his life. He no more was a hidden christian but he openly confessed about his faith in Jesus and was baptized in the name of the Father, Son and of the Holy Ghost. At baptism he was given the name Paul.
A higher call
Later Paul felt a strong call from the Lord for his life and began to preach and share the gospel in various parts of Kerala. In the initial stages he was helping Robert F. Cook, a foreign evenglist in interpreting the gospel in South Indian languages. Later, Paul felt that he had been called for a higher calling and so he obeyed the Lord in doing so according to the revelation that he recieved from God and founded the mission in 1924. His ministry grew and witnessed several miraculous healings including the raising of the dead. He passed away in the year 1948.
About the Church
The church was initially named Ceylon Pentecostal Mission. Over the years, the church spread to many parts of Sri Lanka and India and later to the Americas, Europe, Africa, islands of the Carribean, Middle East, South Asia, Australia and neighbouring islands. In the year 1983,due to the LTTE movement in Sri Lanka, issues arose with the name "Ceylon Pentecostal Mission" and therefore had to be changed to The Pentecostal Mission (TPM) Today the church is known by different names in different countries, but all stand under the banner of "The Pentecostal Mission". The International headquaters is situated in Irumbaliyur, Chennai, India. It is from here that the Chief Pastor and his associates reside and operate from.
In the United States the church is known as "New Testament Church" and is headquarted in Newark, New Jersey. It has its annual convention in July at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. In the United Kingdom it is known as "Universal Pentecostal Church". In other parts of the world, the church is known by the following names:
· Pentecostal Church of Malaysia
· Pentecostal Church of Singapore
· The Universal Pentecostal Church - Great Britain
· Eglise de Pentecote Primitive – France
· Grace New Covenant Pentecostal Church – Canada
· New Testament Church – Trinidad & Tobago
· Iglesia Communion Cristiana – Puerto Rico
· Iglesia Communion Cristiana – Dominican Republic
· New Testament Church – Sierra Leone
· New Covenant Pentecostal Church – Australia
· New Testament Church– Papua New Guinea
· New Testament Church – Nepal
· New Testament Church – Fiji
· Iglesia del Nueva Testamento – Mexico
· Iglesia Communion Cristiana – El Salvador
· Iglesia Communion Cristiana – Costa Rica
· New Testament Church - Kenya
· Christliche Gnaden Gemeinde – Switzerland
· Neue Testament Kirche – Germany
Leadership and Ministry
The leadership of this church is very different from other churches. Three elders, namely the Chief Pastor and 2 Associate Pastors are in charge of this worldwide ministry. They ordain Center Pastors in charge of regional churches. Every regional center oversees several local assemblies. Another senior minister is ordained to oversee the work in the Americas and Europe. Candidates choosing to serve in the full time ministry are selected and ordained by laying on of hands by the Chief Pastors, under the direction and anointing of the Holy Spirit. While most of the ministers are celibates, a few married couples answer the call to full time ministry too. The current Chief Pastor is Pastor T.U. Thomas and the Associate/Deputy Pastors being Pastor Wesley and Pastor Wilson. The work in the West is under the leadership of Pastor Michael Thomas.
In India and other Asian countries the ministers are easily identified by theirwhite attire. In the western countries they adopted a formal western attire.
Doctrines and teachings
The doctrines of the church include: Salvation, Water Baptism, Baptism of Holy Spirit as evidenced by the gift of tongues and other gifts, Seperation, Sanctication, Holiness & Perfection. Divine healing is one of the unique teachings of this church. They teach and practice healing for physical ailments solely by putting their faith in God and not resorting to medicine or human help. Another area of emphasis is Holy Living and an Overcoming Life necessary to be ready for the imminent rapture of the church.
International Conventions
The International convention is held in Tamil Nadu every year and people from all over the world participate in this event. One of the largest pentecostal conventions in India takes place here every March/April, where a crowd of over 100,000 worshipers attend for a single meeting. All the people who come are freely fed three square meals a day and basic accommodations are provided free of cost for 5 days.
Every year in the month of November an International Youth Camp is held in the same place Irumbaliyur , Chennai, India. Young people converge in this place from different parts of the world.
Other Activities
The church has a Magazine ministry where magazines in several languages are printed and distributed to subscribers. The english magazine published from India is called Voice of Pentecost. Pilgrims Journal is another magazine which is published and printed in USA.
Pastor Don M. Spiers
Most of the work in North America was pioneered by the late Pastor Don M Spiers.He was formerly Director of Youth for Oral Roberts Ministeries and worked with Pastor David Wilkerson. He was also known as "Apostle of Love". He passed away on Friday 20th August, 2004 in U.S.A. Funeral was held on Thursday the 26th at 507, Orange Street, Newark, U.S.A. Pastor Don was a Missionary, Evangelist, sound Preacher, a Pastor, and a man of forgiveness too. Many things are spoken about his love towards them that hated him.Sweet Memories
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