Holy Spirit baptism in Gold Coast: God’s theophanic presence on a temple top at Asamankese

The phrase “God’s theophanic presence” means manifestation.

Evidences of God’s theophanic presence abound in the Hebrew Bible (i.e. the Old Testament) and this phenomenon occurred once in the New Testament (Acts 2:4).

These unique happenings are a proof that God was and is with his people through the Holy Spirit.

 Instances of God’s presence: Hebrew Bible:

Moses saw God’s theophanic presence of fire on a lowly bush, (i.e. the burning bush-Exo. 3:1-15)

In their 40-year wilderness wandering, the Jews at night were guided by God’s theophanic presence by the pillar of fire on the rear (Exo. 13:21-22).

Elijah’s rhetoric question to the captain of a band of men, rained down fire and killed them all (2Kings 1:10-12).

On the day of Pentecost in the New Testament, God’s theophanic presence descended on the disciples in the form of tongues of fire (Acts 3:1-4).

God’s theophanic presence in contemporary history

God’s theophanic presence descended on a temple top indicating his divine presence

•     Azusa Street revival in 1906 brought God’s theophanic presence on the top of their temple.

•     God’s Holy Spirit fire descended on the top of the church building of the Christ Apostolic Church International on Sunday, May 20, 1923 at Asamankese.

100 Years

May 20, 2023 marked 100 years of the physical descent of the Holy Spirit in the Gold Coast (Ghana) at Anum, Asamankese.

That was when the founding fathers and mothers of the Christ Apostolic Church International sighted the Holy Spirit presence on top of their little church building.

This unusual flame of fire, believed to be divine presence on the top of the roof of Anim’s temple at Anum, Asamankese, came when the church was fasting and praying.

The event happened under the watchful eyes of men and women at Asamankese who rushed to the scene with buckets of water to put out the fire which supposedly was going to burn down the temple.

For a while, the fire disappeared and God assigned the church to mission for the transformation of society.

Theological scholars at the time, believed that the event, glaringly seen by many, was a mark of the beginning of Pentecostal awakening in the Gold Coast (Ghana).

Its kind happened in Biblical times in Jerusalem in AD 33, and Los Angeles, California, USA during the Azusa Street revival in 1906 under William Seymour an African American.

Significance: Asamankese

•     Pentecostal Christianity was born in Ghana after this event

•     Pentecostal churches sprung up and spread across the length and breadth of Ghana and Africa.

•     Apostle Peter Newman Anim and his group are credited with the origins of classical Pentecostalism in Ghana (Larbi2001: 33-34) and Anim honoured as the Father of Pentecostalism in Ghana.

•     Apostle P.N. Anim’s leadership in the Pentecostal Movement helped not only to make Ghana a Christian nation, but also birthed a great power, that is the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) to develop the nation.

Without him Ghana’s Pentecostalism history might have been different.

•     In 1932 the Holy Spirit released another wave of baptism, where ordinary members preached under heavy anointing of God and diverse miracles became the order of the day.

•     The Asamankese revival brought the U.K Apostolic church to the Gold Coast at the instance of Apostle Anim.  

God’s servants such as Apostle Daniel Powel Williams, Apostle William Jones Williams, Prophet Andrew Turnbull, Pastor James Mckeown and Adams Mckeown, among others, came to know Gold Coast for the first time and helped spread the gospel.

Apostle Peter Newman Anim

He was the first Pentecostal Leader in Ghana from the Gold Coast days.

Apostle P.N Anim, a man whose life has become a witness and a testimony today in Pentecostal Christianity in Ghana, was a man of fragile and of insignificant background, poor health, and average social standing with no economic power with little education of Middle School Leaving Certificate (MSLC).

He was born on February 4, 1890 at Boso in the Eastern Region of Ghana.

Apostle Anim was educated at the Basel Mission School and became a member of the Mission, now Presbyterian Church of Ghana, at Boso, his home town where he was the church’s pianist.

In 1916, he married his wife, Ms Dora Sakyibea, at the age of 27.

He received divine healing in 1921 after forming a prayer group in 1917 to pray for divine healing of his chronic stomach ulcer.

Apostle Anim founded the Christ Apostolic Church International in Ghana and was among those who spearheaded the Pentecostal Movement in West Africa – Pastor David Odubanjo and Prophet Joseph Ayo Babalola of Nigeria, Williams Wade Harris of Liberia and some early preachers in the west coast of Africa from 1915.

Formation

The formation of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) International started from one stage to another.

The church started as a prayer group and developed under different names:

•  Unity prayer group
•  Faith Tabernacle Church; 1917 - 1926
•  First Century Church; 1926 - 1929
•  Apostolic Faith; 1930
•  Apostolic Church; 1935
•  Christ Apostolic Church of Ghana; 1960
•  Christ Apostolic Church International; 1994

The writers are a former Director of Christian Education

Christ Apostolic Church International, and a staff of Gatus Pharma, LLC, Florida, USA.