1990 - Breaking Up the Eastern Bloc
By Jay Rogers
Published March 1990
Just a short time ago, few people would have believed that communism would fall so suddenly and drastically without the intervention of U.S. military forces. Yet the Iron Curtain, which for so long seemed to be a permanent fixture, has miraculously begun to dismantle itself. By July, free local or national elections are scheduled to be held by all six of the Soviet Union’s Warsaw Pact allies. A return to Stalinist dictatorships is unlikely. As a result of a waning Soviet threat, the United States is expected to make swift cuts in the military force stationed in Europe.
Most people are yet unaware of the role of the Christian Church in bringing change to the Eastern Bloc. A yearning for religious freedom, a right taken for granted in the West, has been at the heart of the cry for freedom in these nations for many years. Christian dissidents have been the most outspoken opponents of communism in Eastern Europe and some are now being exalted as leaders in newly liberated nations.
Our national press has not reported the role of the Eastern European Church in toppling communist governments; we have missed one of the most exciting stories of the past decade. In every nation, Christians have performed acts of heroism and, in some instances, have directly brought the downfall of communist governments. As the rushing wind of the Holy Spirit has been sweeping through Europe, God’s servants have been used mightily to vindicate the oppressed people of the Communist Bloc.
Romania holds the best example a revolution that was sparked through the direct influence of the Church. According to a Time magazine report, “A Revolution’s Unlikely Spark” (Jan. 1, 1990), the Rev. Laszlo Tokes, of the Reformed Church, drew the wrath of the communist authorities after his repeated denunciations of Ceausescu’s regime.
In November, Tokes was beaten and stabbed by government thugs, yet refused to give into church officials who ordered him to transfer to a less volatile part of Romania. When a court order was obtained for his conviction, hundreds of supporters formed a human chain around Toke’s building to protect him.
This triggered the crackdown that helped to inspire the nationwide demonstrations that toppled Ceausescu. Tokes, a once obscure minister, has joined the ranks of Eastern Europe’s foremost fighters for freedom.
Many remaining communist governments are presently viewing the growing democracy movement with shock and amazement. China’s Li Peng regime has been reportedly stunned by the news of the Romanian dictator Ceausescu’s trial and execution. The similarity between Ceausescu’s brutal use of force against the Romanian people and the Chinese government’s massacre of students in Tiananmen Square ends only with the demise of the Romanian leader. Political analysts speculate that the Chinese government has only one or two years before a fall from power occurs.
Other nations, long dedicated to the ideals of communism, are seemingly destined to be shaken by the emergence of pro-democracy forces. Other European nations, long dominated by the Soviet Union such as the Ukraine, Moldavia, Yugoslavia, and Albania have also experienced a movement toward democratic reforms. In addition to these European nations, observers of world politics are looking to the nations of Vietnam, North Korea, Cuba, Nicaragua and Libya to experience political transformations in the early 1990s.
Forerunner - Home » The Forerunner Newspaper » Tenth Anniversary Issue
Your comments are welcome!
A Revival Account: Asbury 1970 (DVD)
What is true Revival and Spiritual Awakening?
Discover the answer in this eyewitness account by Dennis Kinlaw, President of Asbury College, Wilmore, Kentucky, who recounts the story of a visitation of the Holy Spirit in 1970. This is the presentation that has continued to spark the flames of Revival in the hearts of people around the world. Contains eyewitness footage from the Revival at Asbury College in 1970 in Wilmore, Kentucky.
Certain to challenge you to greater holiness and a deeper commitment to full-scale revival. Original news and private footage has been included. If you are a student who longs to see a spiritual awakening at your school, you must see this video!
“This simple video does a wonderful job of conveying something of God’s heart and power, Everyone we have ever shown this to has received an immediate impartation of faith for revival and the power of prayer.”
— Bob and Rose Weiner, Weiner Ministries Int’l
Running Time: 40 minutes
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
Click here for more information
Dr. Francis Schaeffer - A Christian Manifesto (DVD)
That Swiss Hermit Strikes Again!
Dr. Schaeffer, who was one of the most influential Christian thinkers in the twentieth century, shows that secular humanism has displaced the Judeo-Christian consensus that once defined our nation’s moral boundaries. Law, education, and medicine have all been reshaped for the worse as a consequence. America’s dominant worldview changed, Schaeffer charges, when Christians weren’t looking.
Schaeffer lists two reasons for evangelical indifference: a false concept of spirituality and fear. He calls on believers to stand against the tyranny and moral chaos that come when humanism reigns-and warns that believers may, at some point, be forced to make the hard choice between obeying God or Caesar. A Christian Manifesto is a thought-provoking and bracing Christian analysis of American culture and the obligation Christians have to engage the culture with the claims of Christ.
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
Click here for more information
The Four Keys to the Millennium (Book)
Foundations in Biblical Eschatology
By Jay Rogers, Larry Waugh, Rodney Stortz, Joseph Meiring. High quality paperback, 167 pages.
All Christians believe that their great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will one day return. Although we cannot know the exact time of His return, what exactly did Jesus mean when he spoke of the “sign of His coming” (Mat. 24)? How are we to interpret the prophecies in Isaiah regarding the time when “the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:19)? Should we expect a time of great tribulation or reformation and revival before the Lord returns? Is the devil bound now, and are the saints reigning with Christ? Did you know that there are four hermeneutical approaches to the book of Daniel and Revelation? These, and more questions, are dealt with by four authors as they present the four views on the millennium. Each view is then critiqued by the other three authors.
$9.95 — ORDER NOW!
Click here for more information
God's Law and Society (DVD)
Download the Free on-line Study Guide!
God’s Law and Society powerfully presents a comprehensive worldview based upon the ethical system found in the Law of God.
Speakers include: R.J. Rushdoony, George Grant, Howard Phillips, R.C. Sproul Jr., Ken Gentry, Gary DeMar, Jay Grimstead, Steven Schlissel, Andrew Sandlin, Eric Holmberg, and more!
Sixteen Christian leaders and scholars answer some of the most common questions and misconceptions related to this volatile issue:
1. Are we under Law or under Grace?
2. Does the Old Testament Law apply today?
3. Can we legislate morality?
4. What are the biblical foundations of government?
5. Was America founded as a Christian nation?
6. What about the separation of Church and State?
7. Is neutrality a myth?
8. What about non-Christians and the Law of God?
9. Would there be “freedom” in a Christian republic?
10. What would a “Christian America” look like?
Perfect for group instruction as well as personal Bible study.
Ten parts, over four hours of instruction!
Running Time: 240 minutes
Watch over 60 on-line video interviews from God’s Law and Society.
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
Click here for more information
Massacre of Innocence (DVD)
Exposing The Occult Roots of Abortion
This presentation looks at the spiritual roots of abortion and exposes the myths surrounding child killing. Little known historical facts about abortion and how they relate to modern feminism are presented logically and accurately. Has been effective in converting many to a pro-life position.
Massacre of Innocence goes where no pro-life presentation has gone before in “tearing the lid off abortion” to reveal the spiritual realities we must battle if we will bring an end to this crime. The presentation is absorbing, fast-paced, informative and incredibly devastating to any attempt to justify abortion.
“… an extraordinary statement … a powerfully articulate presentation about what abortion really means, and why a great and moral nation like the United States must not allow the slaughter to continue.”
— Congressman Robert K. Dornan
Running time: 85 minutes
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
