A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

The Healing Revival and the Latter Rain
troversy, the initial evidence doctrine, and many lifestyle
choices were not important to them.
6. The complete autonomy of the local church. As a
corollary to the preceding point, they felt that local
churches should not submit to organizational decisions
regarding doctrine, lifestyle, and fellowship. Essentially,
each church should operate independently in theology
and government.
7. The “manifest sons of God” or “kingdom” theology.
According to this view, Latter Rain believers would
achieve such a place of spirituality that they would
become visibly identified as sons of God by various miracles
and victories in spiritual warfare. In this way, the
kingdom of God would be visibly established on the earth,
characterized by a supernatural life in this world.
This last theme was vital to Latter Rain theology. As an
example, J. Preston Eby, a former Pentecostal Holiness
minister, said that the coming outpouring of the Spirit
would bring “the fullness,” which he described as follows: 281
The FULLNESS [will be] a company of overcoming
Sons of God who have come to the measure of the
stature of the fullness of Christ to actually dethrone
Satan, casting him out of the heavenlies, and finally
binding him in the earthlies, bringing the hope of
deliverance and life to all the families of the earth.
This . . . great work of the Spirit shall usher a people
into full redemption—free from the curse, sin, sickness,
death and carnality.
Typically, Evangelicals and Pentecostals have identified
this scenario with the millennial reign of Jesus
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