Contextual Pentecostalism from a classical Pentecostal movement to a contemporary Pentecostal church movement: a study of the Assemblies of God of Malaysia with special reference to Joel 2:28-32

The significance of this research is to understand the changes of the universality of classical Pentecostalism in the process of contextualisation in the Malaysian sociocultural and religious context from a historical perspective; and how the Assemblies of God of Malaysia (AGoM) from a Classical Pentecostal Movement (CPM) towards the new identity of a ‘Contemporary Pentecostal Church Movement’ (CPCM) can continue to be the cutting edge movement in missions and Pentecostal spirituality in this twenty-first century. This research indicates that the espoused theology of the AGoM is classical Pentecostal in nature being derived from Joel 2 – Acts 2 and field research analysis demonstrates its significance in their missiological, ecclesiological and ministerial practices. This study is on the contextualised Pentecostalism in AGoM and the changing nature of the movement from a CPM to a CPCM through the different historical periods with respect to Joel’s prophecy and the implications on its theology, missiology, ecclesiology, and ministerial perspectives and practices. The overall goal of the research is to understand these changes and the current gap between the espoused Pentecostal theology and its practice over the six decades from AGoM’s inception in 1957 to the present time. The methodology employed is qualitative research on AGoM’s historical and theological development as a Malaysian Pentecostal movement, with practical theology as the theoretical framework. It involves the identification of seven key theological themes of AGUSA’s main beliefs and practices from the foundational texts alluded to Joel 2 – Acts 2, in providing a backdrop of the development of Pentecostal pneumatology from classical understanding to the contemporary understanding as the theological framework/lens for the theological reflection on the contextualisation of the Pentecostalism in the Malaysian context. First of all, a study of the situation and its complexities over the periods; secondly, a contextual analysis and the main contextual factors; thirdly, a theological reflection and interpretation on AGoM’s theological development from classical to contemporary to identify any discrepancy or change of dynamics; and finally, proposing objective ways forward based on the findings.
It is anticipated that this research will make several significant contributions to contextual Pentecostal research, and to the advancement of the gospel in Malaysia through AGoM. This is a contribution of new academic knowledge of contextualised Malaysian Pentecostalism and invaluable insight on the significant element of Voice of the Spirit (VoS) in AGoM’s growth and development. This original study fills the knowledge gap on the contextual analysis and theological interpretation of paradigm shifts in regard to the Pentecostal distinctives and the practical theology of AGoM then and today. The research presents the need of a contemporary Pentecostal spirituality and suggests a future direction of missions for the next generation in this twenty-first century.