Page 246 - LD215 History of the Church in Africa A4 final

A History of the Church in Africa

ministries and community development, and sending cross-cultural
missionaries around the world. The Nigerian church portrays the
model relationship that exists between itself and Assemblies of God
missionaries.

East Africa and the Indian Ocean Basin

I have been involved with the church in East Africa and the Indian
Ocean basin since 1967, and I have witnessed fantastic growth. Some
of the stories related to the development of Pentecostal churches in
this area read like another chapter from the book of Acts. Pentecostal
missionaries arrived in East Africa as early as 1912.

The Horn of Africa
I must mention the Pentecostal revival in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Earlier,
I wrote in detail about the origin, spread, and survival of Christianity in
the Horn of Africa or the lower Nile Valley. While the history of Coptic
Christianity makes an interesting story, the record of the development
of Protestant, Bible-believing churches is also inspiring, and we can read
about it in several African church history books.

Early Pentecostal missionaries arrived in the 1950s and planted
some small Pentecostal churches. However, Emperor Haile Selassie
was overthrown in 1974, and most missionaries were forced to leave
the country. About this time, God intervened in a sovereign way. As
Ethiopian and Eritrean students sought God for more of His power, He
responded with a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit. I have heard
several first-hand testimonies of those involved.

One of the churches that developed out of this movement was the
Full Gospel Believers Church. During the 1980s and 1990s, I helped train
the leadership for this movement at the East Africa School of Theology
in Nairobi, Kenya. During those days, I heard an evangelical missionary
say “all of the believers in our church in Ethiopia are Pentecostals.”

I was present in 1993 when Ethiopian church leaders said, “Our
greatest need is training.” In response to this expressed need, the
Assemblies of God of the United States of America established Addis
Ababa Bible College to train evangelical/Pentecostal leaders for this

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