Church of God (Cleveland)
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The Church of God (Cleveland) is a Protestant Christian denomination whose headquarters are in Cleveland, Tennessee. The movement's origins can be traced back to 1886 with a small meeting of Christians at the Barney Creek Meeting House on the Tennessee/North Carolina border. It has grown to become one of the largest Holiness Pentecostal denominations in the world.
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Name
The name of this body is the Church of God, but it is referred to as Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) in order to distinguish it from other bodies called the Church of God. The church's worldwide membership exceeds 7 million people in over 160 countries. The Church of God (Cleveland) operates several universities, the oldest of which is Lee University in Cleveland, established in 1918. The Church of God also has Bible Colleges in countries around the world, including International Bible College in Canada. In response to the need for a seminary, the Church of God Graduate School of Christian Ministries (now known as the Church of God Theological Seminary) opened in 1975. The Church of God Publishing House is a major gospel music resource.
Early history
Elder Richard Spurling (1810-1891), an ordained Baptist minister, rejected some of the views of the Baptists in his area as not in accord with New Testament Christianity. In August of 1886, he and seven members from Holly Springs and Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Churches in Monroe County, Tennessee and Cherokee County, North Carolina organized the "Christian Union". They agreed to free themselves from man-made creeds and unite upon the principles of the New Testament. In 1902, Richard Green Spurling (Richard Spurling's son) and W. F. Bryant founded the Holiness Church at Camp Creek (North Carolina). A. J. Tomlinson, a former Quaker, united with the church at Camp Creek in 1903, and was selected to pastor the congregation. Other churches were organized in Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, and the name Church of God was adopted in 1907. In 1909 Tomlinson was elected General Overseer. In 1923, Tomlinson was impeached, causing a division which lead to the creation of the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) and the Church of God of Prophecy.
The definitive history of the Church of God can be found in Like a Mighty Army, written by Charles W. Conn, Lit.D.(1920-). This is recognized as the essential history of the movement.
Theology
Theologically, the Church of God is Wesleyan/Arminian. That is, it is "committed to the Wesleyan/Pentecostal interpretation of Scripture"-according to the Church of God Theological Seminary. As such, conditional security of believers is taught (as opposed to eternal security), Holiness, and Full Gospel Pentecostalism-the belief that the baptism and gifts of the Holy Spirit as recorded in the New Testament(beginning in the book of Acts), are still just as much in operation today as they were almost 2,000 years ago, and available to all believers today. Though generally committed to Wesleyanism/Arminianism, there are many Calvinist and moderate Calvinist ministers in the denomination, and their numbers are growing. While frowned upon by some, there is nothing denouncing Calvinism in the C.O.G.'s Doctrinal beliefs. Traditionally and historically however, it has been Wesleyan/Arminian.
Missions
Missions is the strongest area of ministry in the Church of God. With over 5 million members overseas, the missions program has exploded since its humble beginnings of one missionary to the Caribbean. The missions programs in Africa, China, India, South America and Southeast Asia have grown tremendously. The focus is currently on one of the most neglected mission fields: Europe. Its success is in part due to the fact that while the initial work in each country is usually done by foreign missionaries, great care is taken to hand over the work to indigenous workers as soon as they have been trained to lead the programs.
Music
Something that makes a Church of God service unique from many other Southern Protestant denominations is the concert-like atmosphere. Music, in general, usually plays a very important part in the local churches. Depending on the individual church, the music played can vary anywhere from old-time gospel and hymn-singing to contemporary Christian and Christian rock.
Basic Beliefs
The Church of God subscribes to the following foundational Christian doctrines:
- The verbal inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible.
- One God, eternally existing in three persons; namely, the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost.
- Jesus is the only begotten Son of the Father, conceived of the Holy Ghost, and born of the virgin Mary. He was crucified, buried and raised from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is today at the right hand of the Father as the Intercessor.
- All have sinned and come short of the glory of God and that repentance is commanded of God for all and necessary for forgiveness of sins.
- Justification, regeneration and the new birth are wrought by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ.
- Sanctification is subsequent to the new birth, through faith in the blood of Jesus, through the Word and by the Holy Ghost.
- Holiness to be God's standard of living for His people.
- Baptism with the Holy Ghost is subsequent to a clean heart.
- Speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives utterance is the initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Ghost.
- Water baptism is by immersion and all who repent should be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
- Divine healing is provided for all in the atonement.
- The Lord's Supper and washing of the saints' feet are ordained by Christ for our observance.
- The premillennial second coming of Jesus is, first, to resurrect the righteous dead and to catch away the living saints to Him in the air and, second, to reign on the earth a thousand years.
- The bodily resurrection for all, resulting in eternal life for the righteous and eternal punishment for the wicked.
Presently, there is an on-going effort to work closely with the Church of God of Prophecy (created by the division in 1923). Both churches hold very similar doctrine, and there has been much more cooperation between the churches and leadership.
Related bodies
- Church of God (Charleston, Tennessee) (org. 1993)
- Church of God, House of Prayer (org. 1939)
- Church of God (Huntsville, Alabama) (org. 1943)
- Church of God of Prophecy (org. 1923)
- Church of God with Signs Following (org. circa 1922)
- (Original) Church of God (Chattanooga) (org. 1917)
- The Church of God for All Nations (org. 1981)
- The Church of God of All Nations (org. 1957)