This is the story of Apostolic Faith Church, a very popular church in Nigeria. The church worked had in its beginning in the early part of the 20th century during a worldwide spiritual awakening. Believers living in the United States heard about the remarkable revival in Wales where 100,000 people had converted to Christianity in the months prior to June of 1905.
ORIGIN & PURPOSE
A desperate young father who was handed a Gospel tract just before he intended to commit suicide . . . a former Muslim who faced intense persecution because he committed his life to God . . . a tough young seafaring man who now finds his greatest joy in telling others about the Christ who changed his life . . . a rebellious teenager who surrendered to God and now is a minister of the Gospel . . . a vagrant bound by alcoholism who heard about a Gospel street meeting that turned his life around . . . these individuals and thousands of others like them are witnesses to the power of God to change lives. Their life stories are intertwined with an international organization whose goal for one hundred years has been to proclaim the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
It was founded in 1907 by Florence L. Crawford, who was affiliated to William J. Seymour and the Azusa Street Revival of Los Angeles, California. By 1908 Crawford had independently founded what would become the Apostolic Faith Church.
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Apostolic Faith organization has always been evangelism, endeavoring to present the Gospel in its fullness and to lead to God those who are unconverted. In addition, there is a focus on encouraging the development of Spirit-filled, Christ-like character in the lives of believers.
Just as God has an individual call for each believer, He also has a specific role for organizations in the general mandate to believers of every era, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). In the year 2000, the decision was made to formulate a written mission statement for the Apostolic Faith work, defining in words the purpose that has been in place since the organization’s founding.
The mission statement needed to accomplish three goals: to review what God had called the organization to do in the past and point the direction for the future, to provide both a corporate and individual challenge, and to express goals suitable for branch churches around the world as well as for the headquarters church.
After prayerful consideration and input from the Portland congregation, a team of ministers and workers developed the following statement as an expression of what God has called the Apostolic Faith organization to do:
The mission of the Apostolic Faith Church is to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It accomplishes this as Daniel 12:3 says, “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.” God could have given His message through words of fire written in the sky, a voice from Heaven, or angelic messengers. Instead, He chose men and women as His tools to spread the greatest news the world has ever known. He designed the message of the Gospel to be handed from person to person, and it is the purpose of the Apostolic Faith organization to dedicate every effort toward making that happen.
Production of a new Corporate logo took place in 2001. The design team determined at the outset that Jesus’ words in John 12:32 should be a key concept: “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” Based upon that Scripture, the logo features a phrase that has been with the Apostolic Faith work since its inception: “Jesus the Light of the World.”
This phrase was initially displayed in 1917 as an electric sign on the first Portland headquarters church building at Southwest Front and Burnside, which was known as “The Lighthouse by the Bridge.” At times, the words of this sign caught the attention of individuals who were thinking of ending their lives by jumping from the bridge into the river below. Arrested by its message of hope, some came into the services to seek God.
When the headquarters church was moved to Northwest Sixth and Burnside in 1922, the same message was displayed on top of the new building. It was proclaimed from that spot for about sixty years. Its dominant position at the heart of downtown Portland made it a well known landmark that was featured in local and national publications on several occasions. It touched countless lives.
In 1921, when the tabernacle was constructed on the newly obtained campground, a tenfoot gold star was placed at the top of the arch above the same words. Today, more than eighty years later, it is still there. People familiar with southeast Portland are aware of the big domed building with the words, “Jesus the Light of the World.”
As years have come and gone, branch churches in many locations have chosen to display the same heartwarming message. Today, from the Philippines to the West Indies and across the Atlantic Ocean to Africa, hundreds of Apostolic Faith churches display the words chosen to be on the corporate logo.
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