The history of the Assemblies of God Church goes as far back as 1931 when a group of young men and women in South Eastern Nigeria became convinced that the Pentecostal experience in the Bible was relevant to the present age.
As a result of this conviction, these people began praying for that same experience and by 1934; many of them claimed to have received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues.
This led to the establishment of a number of churches in this region and beyond. However, at some point in their growth, the group realised that they needed to be properly discipled. As a result, they wrote to the American Assemblies of God Church and requested for help.
This led to the arrival of Rev. & Mrs Williams Lloyd Shirer in June 1939. However, these missionaries didn’t come to Nigerian but they weren’t too far off as they landed in Ghana.
The group in Nigeria which was called the Church of Jesus Christ sent some pastors to meet these missionaries. The two parties were able to work out an affiliation agreement in August of that same year and the Assemblies of God Church in America subsequently sent a missionary couple to Nigeria. They were Rev. and Mrs. Everrest L. Philips. The couple arrived in Nigeria in 1940.
Over the next few years, these missionaries were quickly followed by other missionaries. These missionaries were involved in training the young men and women and subsequently they saw the need to establish a bible school in Old Umuahia, Abia.
This bible school has since grown to 10 other schools located in several parts of the country. Also, the missionaries established a printing press in order to provide printed materals for the young, growing and multiplying churches.
This printing press has rapidly grown over the years and currently supplies material to the many branches of the Assemblies of God Church and many other churches in the country.
Some other affiliations include:
- World Assemblies of God Fellowship (WAGF)
- Africa Assemblies of God Alliance (AAGA), the continental counterpart of (WAGF), which bodies exist principally to promote, coordinate, and monitor the missionary effort.
- World Pentecostal Conference.
- West Africa Assemblies of God Leaders Regional Conference, a consultative forum for Assemblies of God Leaders in the sub-region.
- Africa Theological Training Service (ATTS) a service agency that promotes, coordinates and monitors Assemblies of God Theological education in Africa.
Currently, the General Council of the Assemblies of God Nigeria maintains a closely knit fraternal relationship with the Assemblies of God of United States of America. The church in Nigeria also partners with other autonomous Assemblies of God Churches around the world.
The logo of the Assemblies of God Church is quite simple with the name, Assemblies of God Church written on it. Also, there is a symbol depicting a bible with the words, “All the Gospel,” which conveys the importance of preaching the gospel.