A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

A History of Christian Doctrine
Lord. Many ministers in his organization would enter the
Pentecostal movement.
In sum, adherents of both Wesleyan perfectionism and
Keswick holiness advocated the life of holiness, but the
former stressed the eradication of the sinful nature while
the latter stressed the endowment of power to subdue the
sinful nature. Both groups used much the same terminology,
encouraging people who had repented to seek for a
subsequent baptism of the Holy Spirit to give them victory
over sin and enable them to do the will of God.
There was a strong call to go back to the doctrines
and practices of the apostles in the New Testament
church. In describing this desire, the adjective
“Pentecostal” became common, and a rallying cry was,
“Back to Pentecost.” Some leaders began to press for the
restoration of spiritual gifts, including prophecy, healing,
and miracles. A minority of Holiness people, including the
Fire-Baptized Holiness Church, began to seek for the
“baptism of the Holy Ghost and fire” as a third crisis
experience, but again not associating it with tongues.
Charles Parham and the Topeka Outpouring
In this atmosphere, Charles Fox Parham (1873-1929)
opened Bethel Bible College in Topeka, Kansas, on
October 15, 1900, at age twenty-seven. At the end of the
first term, Parham asked his students to find the biblical
evidence for the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Together they
concluded that the initial evidence is speaking in tongues
(foreign languages unknown to the speakers) as the Spirit
gives utterance. (See Acts 2:4; 10:45-46; 19:6.)
Parham conducted prayer meetings with his students
as the twentieth century dawned. On the evening of
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