John G.
Lake was known as God's "Apostle to Africa".
Born in
Canada in 1870, his family soon relocated to the United States, where he
grew up. His healing and preaching ministry spanned the years 1898 (when
he
saw his
wife instantly healed under the ministry of John Alexander Dowie) until
his death in 1935.
In 1908,
God sent him to Africa, where his anointed miracle ministry resulted in
what has been described as "the most extensive and powerful missionary
movement in all Africa."
As Gordon
Lindsay wrote, "during that time he spent five history-making years in
South Africa, engaged in a ministry which in some respects rivaled that
of the Early Church."
Upon his
return to America, Lake established a ministry in Spokane, Washington which
resulted in no less than 100,000 astounding miracles of healing within
the space of five or
six years.
He then established a similar work in Portland, Oregon, which also attracted
widespread attention.
Like Smith
Wigglesworth, John G. Lake had already experienced mighty breakthroughs,
powerful anointings and a real calling from God for many years before Azusa
Street and the Pentecostal Revival. The following is
a condensed
account of the spiritual hunger and preparation that Lake was taken through
by God, near the beginning of the most anointed period of his ministry.
(Taken
from the book, 'John G. Lake - Apostle to Africa', compiled by Gordon Lindsay,
and told in Lake's own words):
"Eight
years passed after God revealed Jesus the Healer to me. I had been practicing
the ministry of healing. During that eight years every answer to prayer,
every miraculous touch of God, every response of my own soul to the Spirit
had created within me a more intense longing for an intimacy and a consciousness
of God, like I felt the disciples of Jesus and the primitive church had
possessed...
Shortly
after my entrance into the ministry of healing, while attending a service
where the necessity for the Baptism of the Spirit was presented, as I knelt
in prayer and reconsecration to God, an anointing of the Spirit came upon
me. Waves of Holy Glory passed through my being, and I was lifted into
a new realm of God's presence and power.
After this,
answers to prayer were frequent and miracles of healing occurred from time
to time. I felt myself on the borderland of a great spiritual realm, but
was unable to enter in fully, so my nature was not satisfied with the attainment..."
(Pg 16).
"Hundreds,
and hundreds of people were healed by the power of God during these ten
years. But at the end of that ten years, I believe I was the hungriest
man for God that ever lived. There was such a hunger for God
that as
I left my offices in Chicago, and walked down the street, my soul would
break out, and I would cry, 'Oh God!' I have had people stop and look at
me, and wonder. It was the yearning passion of my soul, asking for God
in a greater measure than I knew.
But my
friends would say, 'Mr. Lake, you have a beautiful Baptism of the Holy
Ghost.'
Yes, it
was nice as far as it went, but it was not answering the cry of my heart.
I was growing up into a larger understanding of God, and my own soul's
need. My soul was demanding a greater entrance into God, His
love, Presence,
and Power.
And then
one day an old man strolled into my office, sat down, and in the next half
hour, he revealed more of the knowledge of God to my soul than I had ever
known before. When he left I said, '... God, if that is what the Baptism
of the Holy Spirit with tongues does, I am going to possess it.' Oh the
wonder of God, that was then revealed to my heart!..."
"Finally
I was led to set aside certain hours of the day that I dedicated to God,
as times of meditation, and prayer. Thus a number of months passed, until
one morning as I knelt praying, the Spirit of the Lord spoke within my
spirit, and said, "Be patient until autumn." My heart rejoiced in this
encouragement and I continued my practice of meditation and prayer as formerly.
It became easy for me to detach myself from the course of life, so that
while my hands and mind were engaged in the common affairs of every day,
my spirit maintained its attitude of communion with God... I said, 'God,
if you will baptize me in the Holy Spirit, and give me the power of God,
nothing shall be permitted to stand before me and a hundred-fold obedience.'
"I prayed
for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit for nine months, and if a man ever prayed
honestly, and sincerely in the faith, I did. Finally one day I was ready
to throw up my hands, and quit. I said, 'Lord, it may be for others, but
it is not for me. You just cannot give it to me.' I did not blame God.
One night a gentleman by the name of Pierce said, 'Mr. Lake, I have been
wishing for a long time you would come over, and we would spend a night
in prayer together. We have been praying for the Baptism for a whole year
and there is not one of us baptized yet. Brother, I do not believe that
you are either, so we can pray for one another."
I was so
hungry to pray, so I went with all intentions of praying for the rest,
but I had not been praying five minutes until the light of God began to
shine around me, I found myself in a center of an arc of light ten
feet in
diameter, the whitest light in all the universe. So white! Oh how it spoke
of purity. The remembrance of that whiteness, that wonderful whiteness,
has been the ideal that has stood before my soul, of the purity of the
nature of God ever since.
"Then a
Voice began to talk to me out of that light. There was no form. And the
Voice began to remind me of this incident, and that incident of disobedience
to my parents, from a child; of my obstinacy, and dozens of instances when
God brought me up to the line of absolutely putting my body, soul, and
spirit upon the altar forever. I had my body upon the altar for ten years,
and I had been a minister of the Gospel. But when the Lord comes, He opens
to the soul the depths that have never been
touched
in your life. Do you know that after I was baptized in the Holy Ghost,
things opened up in the depths of my nature that had remained untouched
in all my life, and that which was shadowy, distant, and hazy
became
real. God got up close and let His light shine into me.
"Shortly
after this experience, one afternoon a brother minister called, and invited
me to accompany him to visit a lady who was sick. Arriving at the home
we found the lady in a wheel chair. All her joints were set with inflammatory
rheumatism. She had been in the condition for ten years...While my friend
was conversing with her, preparing her to be prayed with, that she might
be healed, I sat in a deep chair on the opposite side of a large room.
My soul was crying out to God in a yearning too deep for words, when suddenly
it seemed to me, that I had passed under a shower of warm tropical rain,
which was not falling upon me, but through me. My spirit, and soul and
body under this influence soothed into such a deep still calm, as I had
never known. My brain, which had always been so active, became perfectly
still. An awe of the presence of God settled over me. I knew it was God.
"Some moments
passed; I do not know how many. The Spirit said, 'I have heard your prayers,
I have seen your tears. You are now Baptized in the Holy Spirit.' Then
currents of power began to rush through my being from the crown of my head
to the soles of my feet. The shocks of power increased in rapidity,
and voltage. As these currents of power would pass through me, they seemed
to come upon my head, rush through my body, and through my feet into the
floor... Even at this late date, the awe of that hour rests upon my soul.
My experience has truly been as Jesus said that He shall be within you
'a well of water, springing up into everlasting life.' That never-ceasing
fountain has flowed through my spirit, soul, and body day, and night, bringing
salvation, and healing, and the Baptism of the Spirit in the power of God
to multitudes.
"Shortly
after my Baptism in the Holy Spirit, a working of the Spirit commenced
in me, that seemed to have for it's purpose the revelation of the nature
of Jesus Christ to me and in me. Through this tuition and remolding of
the Spirit a great tenderness for mankind was to awaken in my soul. I saw
mankind through new eyes. They seemed to me as wandering sheep, having
strayed far, in the midst of confusion, groping and wandering hither and
thither. They had no definite aim and did not seem to understand what the
difficulty was or how to return to God. The desire to proclaim the message
of Christ, and demonstrate His power to save and bless, grew in my soul
until my life was swayed by this overwhelming passion." (Pg 16-20).
"I found
that my life began to manifest in the varied range of the gifts of the
Spirit. I spoke in tongues by the power of God, and God flowed through
me with a new force. Healings were of a more powerful order.
Oh, God
lived in me; God manifested in me; God spoke through me. My spirit was
energized. I had a new comprehension of God's will, a new discernment of
spirit, and a new revelation of God in me.
"Then a
new wonder manifested. My nature became so sensitized, that I could lay
hands on any man, or woman, and tell what organ was diseased, and to what
extent, and all about it. I tested it. I went into hospitals where physicians
could not diagnose a case, touched a patient, and instantly I knew the
organ that was diseased, its extent, condition, and location. And one day
it passed away. A child plays with a toy, and his joy is so wonderful,
he sometimes forgets to eat."
Before
obeying the call into full-time ministry, Lake felt the need to dispose
of his very successful business interests. He sold everything, giving the
money to God's work, and embarked on full-time ministry with a heart full
of the fire of God. Soon afterward, when he was ministering in a city in
Northern Illinois, God spoke to him clearly and distinctly: "Go to Indianapolis.
Prepare for winter campaign. Get a large hall.
In the
Spring you will go to Africa."
John G.
Lake continues: "One morning when I came down to breakfast, I found
my appetite had disappeared. I could not eat. I went about my work as usual.
At dinner I had no desire to eat, and no more in the evening. This went
on till the third day. But toward the evening of the third day, an overwhelming
desire to pray took possession of me. I wanted only to be alone to pray.
Prayer flowed from my soul like a stream. I could not cease praying. As
soon as it was possible to get to a place of seclusion, I would kneel to
pour out my heart to God for hours. Whatever I was doing, that stream of
prayer continued flowing from my soul ... On the night of the sixth day
of this fast, that the Lord had laid on me, while in the act of washing
my hands, the Spirit said, 'How long have you been praying to cast out
demons?' and I replied, 'Lord a long time.' And the Spirit said, 'From
henceforth, thou shalt cast out demons.' I arose and praised God." (Pg
21).
An opportunity
to test this newly-given anointing to cast out demons came the following
Sunday, when a violently insane man was brought to Lake, who commanded
the demon to come out of him in Jesus' name. The man was instantly delivered,
and two days later was released from the institution that he had been confined
in.
In April
1908, Lake and his family left for South Africa. Though they had no visible
means of support, they were miraculously provided for every step of the
way. And thus began a tremendous Revival, with mighty
healings,
miracles and deliverances, which was to profoundly impact the African continent
for years to come, even long after Lake was gone.
In 1913,
following the tragic death of his wife, Lake returned to America, but by
this time the torch had also been passed on to Elias Letwaba and others
in Africa, and the work went on there, in great power. Lake continued his
ministry in North America until his death in 1935, and like Smith Wigglesworth,
he fought an outstanding fight and ran a great race, right to the very
end.
