Answers | To Your Questions About the Bible, Theology and Christian Living

What Happened to the Azusa Street Mission, Birthplace of Modern Pentecost?

You wrote the following in a recent article about the building that was the home of the revival that launched modern Pentecost in 1906:

There was an old abandoned building on a run-down street nearby. It had been an African Methodist Episcopal church - before that, a livery stable and a warehouse. The meetings moved to the building, and 312 Azusa Street became the home of the revival.
…
The Azusa tabernacle didn’t last. It was eventually torn down. You can find no trace of the physical building today, just a small plaque. But you can still find its spiritual imprint - not only in Los Angeles, but also in virtually every corner of the globe.

[Read the full article here.]

What happened to it? Why was it torn down?

Answer:

The congregation thrived for three years of revival and remained a healthy church for several years after that. Pastor William Seymour died in 1922, and his wife, Jennie Moore Seymour, took over. Attendance dwindled and the congregation lost the building in 1931; the congregation dispersed shortly thereafter. The building was demolished and a building was built in the late 1970s and early ’80s that became the Japanese-American Cultural and Community Center of Los Angeles.

Like many important historical sites, the value of the mission building itself was not recognized until it was too late.

Ken Horn

Why are the Bereans so often held up as the best example of students of the Word?

The answer can be found in Acts 17:11, “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”

They did what we all need to do. They checked anything they were taught to make sure it was consistent with God’s Word. See “Look in the Bible” for more on this.

Ken Horn

When is God coming back to get me?
Aleesa, 11

God is preparing a place for all His children (John 14:2,3). He will come for each of us — either when we die or on the day He comes for all His family, a day called the Rapture.

Death should not be a fearful thing for the believer. Second Corinthians 5:8 tells us that if we leave our bodies at death, we are immediately with God, and that is something we can look forward to.

The Rapture is the other possibility. This is when Jesus returns to take His church out of this world. (See 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17.)

But no one knows the day of his or her death and no one knows when the Rapture will take place. “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only” (Matthew 24:36).

Ken Horn

What does God’s voice sound like?
Diana, 7

We don’t know. Though God has spoken to believers out loud, most of the time He speaks in a “still, small voice” (1 Kings 19:12), an impression on your spirit. Anything God says to you this way will always be in agreement with what He has said in the Bible, which is His written Word.

Ken Horn

Will God help me play sports better?
Drew, 11

You can count on God to help you with every good thing you try to do. The Bible talks about how we should want to do what God wants us to do. “What you ought to say is, ‘If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that’ ” (James 4:15). “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men” (Colossians 3:23, NKJV).

If you want God’s help with sports, be sure you are honoring Him by how you play. Be sure you have a strong Christian testimony during every game. That means you’re honest and fair, and that you’re as good a Christian on the field as you are at church. “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

But don’t ask God to help you win; He cares as much for the people on the other team as He does for you. Ask Him to help you do your best.

Ken Horn

Does God listen to my thoughts?
Chloe, 10

Yes, He does. God knows everything, and that includes your thoughts. “The word of God … exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God” (Hebrews 4:12,13, NLT).

God doesn’t just look for the bad thoughts you are thinking. What’s really important to Him is knowing if you love Him. Because God knows your thoughts, you can talk to Him silently and He will hear every word of your prayer.

Ken Horn

Does God have a family?
Gracyn, 3

Yes, He does. But not in the same way that you and I have a family.

First, the Trinity — God in three persons — includes God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

But there is also the family of God, which is all the followers of Jesus. How do you become part of that family? By receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior. Then God adopts you (Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 4:4-7). You’re still part of your earthly family, but now you are in a much larger family too. That’s why we sometimes call other Christians “brother” and “sister.”

It’s a wonderful thing to be in God’s family. These words from a gospel song say it well: “I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God.”

Ken Horn

Does God like everybody?
Brooklyn, 6

The answer is yes. And even more than that, God loves everybody. The best known verse in the Bible speaks of this: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”
(John 3:16).

God even loves people who don’t love Him. “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). In fact, “God is love” (1 John 4:8); it is His very nature.

Ken Horn

How big is God?
Cristan, 10

The Bible tells us that God is everywhere (Psalm 139:7-12). He is limitless, infinite. That makes Him pretty big. But since He is spirit, He does not have a large physical body. His size is spiritual.

Stuart Hamblen wrote a song titled “How Big Is God?” that sums it up well: “How big is God? How big and wide His vast domain? To try to tell, these lips can only start. He’s big enough to rule His mighty universe.
Yet small enough to live within my heart.”

Ken Horn

How come we can’t see God?
Chimere, 9

First Timothy 1:17 gives us the direct answer to this: “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen” (NIV).

God is invisible. But why is God invisible? Because “God is spirit” (John 4:24) and “a spirit does not have flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39, NKJV).

But Jesus, who is the Son of God and is God himself, did take on a physical body that could be seen. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory …. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known” (John 1:14,18, NIV).

So why can’t we see Jesus today? After His resurrection He returned to heaven and is with God the Father (1 Peter 3:22).

Ken Horn