A Call for Action
The only way that Satan can ever rule over men is by deceiving them into setting up his system. Only when he has secured his power base and the nations are too enmeshed to extract themselves will Satan show his hand.
We know that Satan's strategy is to deceive the world, but it is not enough to know this. God expects us to do something to oppose Satan's plan. Since we have been given minds with which to think, we need to look around at the world in which we live and ask the question, "How does Satan deceive the masses of the people of the world?"
It seems to me that for Satan to deceive the world, he must gain control of the news media and the educational institutions. Of the two, the educational institutions are by far the more important. People who are well educated in truth can not be easily misled nor fooled over a long period of time. For example, people who know the true history of what has happened to the economy of nations ruled by communists cannot be fooled by learned professors who extol the virtues of the prosperity of the communist worker's paradise. Only those who do not know the true history of the endless economic disasters would believe these platitudes and lies. The ignorant cannot long remain free.
Freedom's Requirements
There are two indispensable requirements for a free society. There must be a large enough segment of society to stabilize and direct the society in the ways of freedom, and this controlling segment must be (1) moral and (2) educated. It must be moral in its values and actions. It must be educated in truth and wisdom. Immorality and ignorance are always destructive to a free society.
What does this have to do with America's freedom and future?
President Reagan, at the beginning of his term in office, asked a group of qualified people to evaluate the status of education in America. In their report they stated that the level of education was so bad that if an enemy nation had done this to us, it would have called for a declaration of war.
Starting in 1963, when the federal government began spending billions of dollars on education, the Scholastic Aptitude Test scores for high school seniors began a steady decline that by 1980 had gone down 74 points. At the present the decline in scores has stopped, but there has been no substantial recovery in spite of spending over $300 billion per year on education.
Adult illiteracy is increasing at a rate of 1.5 million per year. A nationwide math test of 17- year-olds asked the question, "How much would it take to repay a $850 loan for one year at 12% simple interest." Only 6 percent could solve the problem. Fourteen percent of adults could not identify the United States on a world map. Almost half could not find the state of New York or Illinois. Twenty-five percent could not identify the Pacific Ocean or the Soviet Union.
But the greatest tragedy of all is the appalling ignorance of history. The vast majority of Americans have not been taught meaningful history of Western civilization and therefore do not understand why it has been the predominant civilization and what the principles, values and morals were that created it.
It has been in the Western civilization where the common man has gained relative freedom and the United States has gained the highest pinnacle of liberty for its people. FromWestern civilization has come the great advances in science, industry and government. The printing press, automobile, airplane, radio, electric light, and nearly the total array of power and scientific tools of the modern world are the products of Western culture.
And the major distinctive factor of Western culture from the other cultures of the world has been its Christian religious foundation. Freedom and scientific knowledge have emerged from a Christian heritage. No one can understand Europe, and more particularly America, unless they have some knowledge of the Bible and its influence on men and governments. A man may reject God, but he cannot understand the modern world and be ignorant of the Scripture.
Could You Pass The Test?
On a plane trip I interviewed eight adults, all of whom had graduated from high school and two of whom were college graduates, and asked them 14 questions to test their general knowledge of the Bible and history. I asked them if they had ever heard the expression and could explain: "Manna from heaven," "being a good Samaritan," "as old as Methuselah," and "the patience of Job." I asked if they could identify and tell me anything about John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, John Calvin, and John Wesley.
Five scored zero, and the highest score was 22 percent correct. These were intelligent people, but the educational system had failed to educate them about the scripture and some of the most important men who shaped western civilization.
The dominant figure of all history is the Lord Jesus Christ. There have been more songs and books written about Him than about all other people. He has been a major influence on art. He has had more influence on more people within the Western civilization than all other men. Today, after 2000 years, there are buildings in nearly every city and village in Europe which honor His name, and in North and South America which are still being used to teach His truth. Can any man call himself educated who does not have some basic knowledge of Jesus Christ? Yet, our public education totally ignores Him and His influence on history.
The result is that our country is rapidly declining. Government has influence on both public morals and public education. Great changes for good could be wrought if our leaders in government were brought under the awesome power of prayer. This is our task.
Used by permission of Call to Action, P.O. Box 180788, Dallas, TX 75218-0788.
Up one level
Back to document index
The Real Jesus: Who is the Real Jesus? Ever since the dawn of modern rationalism, skeptics have sought to use textual criticism, archaeology and historical reconstructions to uncover the "historical Jesus" -- a wise teacher who said many wonderful things, but fulfilled no prophecies, performed no miracles and certainly did not rise from the dead in triumph over sin. Over the past 100 years, however, startling discoveries in biblical archaeology and scholarship have all but vanquished the faulty assumptions of these doubting modernists. Regretably, these discoveries have often been ignored by the skeptics as well as by the popular media. As a result, the liberal view still holds sway in universities and impacts the culture and even much of the church.
|
This presentation explodes the myths of these critics and the movies, books and television programs that have popularized their views.
Presented in ten parts -- perfect for individual, family and classroom study -- viewers will be challenged to go deeper in their knowledge of Christ in order to be able to defend their faith and present the truth to a skeptical modern world – that the Jesus of the Gospels is the Jesus of history -- "the same yesterday, today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8). He is the real Jesus. Speakers include: George Grant, Ted Baehr, Stephen Mansfield, Raymond Ortlund, Phil Kayser, David Lutzweiler, Jay Grimstead, J.P. Holding, and Eric Holmberg. Ten parts, over two hours of instruction! Running Time: 130 minutes
|
| The Beast of Revelation: IDENTIFIED
Who is the dreaded beast of Revelation? Now at last, a plausible candidate for this personification of evil incarnate has been identified (or re-identified). Ken Gentry's insightful analysis of scripture and history is likely to revolutionize your understanding of the book of Revelation -- and even more importantly -- amplify and energize your entire Christian worldview! Historical footage and other graphics are used to illustrate the lecture Dr. Gentry presented at the 1999 Ligonier Conference in Orlando, Florida. It is followed by a one-hour question and answer session addressing the key concerns and objections typically raised in response to his position. This presentation also features an introduction that touches on not only the confusion and controversy surrounding this issue -- but just why it may well be one of the most significant issues facing the Church today. Ideal for group meetings, personal Bible study -- for anyone who wants to understand the historical context of John's famous letter "... to the seven churches which are in Asia." (Revelation 1:4) |
(Available in DVD only) $17.95 ORDER NOW!
|
INCLUDES A FREE Sixteen Christian leaders and scholars answer some of the most common questions and misperceptions related to this volatile issue: Download the free |
Perfect for group instruction as well as personal
Bible study. Speakers include: George Grant, Howard Phillips,
R.C. Sproul Jr., Ken Gentry, Gary DeMar, Jay Grimstead, R.J. Rushdoony,
Steven Schlissel, Andrew Sandlin, Eric Holmberg, and more!
Ten parts, over four hours of instruction! Watch over 60 streaming videos from God's Law and Society at:
Price reduced! |
| Amazing Grace: The History and Theology of Calvinism
Over four hours of instruction! Just what is “Calvinism?” Does this teaching make man a deterministic robot and God the author of sin? What about free will? If the church accepts Calvinism, won’t evangelism be stifled, perhaps even extinguished? How can we balance God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility? What are the differences between historic Calvinism and hyper-Calvinism? Why did men like Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Spurgeon, Whitefield, Edwards and a host of renowned Protestant evangelists embrace the teaching of predestination and election and deny free will theology? This is the first video documentary that answers these and other related questions. Hosted by Eric Holmberg, this fascinating three-part, four-hour presentation is detailed enough so as to not gloss over the controversy. At the same time, it is broken up into ten “Sunday-school-sized” sections to make the rich content manageable and accessible for the average viewer. |
$19.95 ORDER NOW!
|
|
The Forerunner Forum is the discussion group for this web site. The purpose of the group is to engage in discussion about the articles on-line. If you want to discuss any article or video on this web site, visit The Forerunner Forum. |
| VIDEOS | WORDS | BLOG | DISCUSSION | WHAT'S NEW | ABOUT US | FEEDBACK | SEARCH | DONATE | JAY'S BIO | HOME |
For more information, contact:
| The Forerunner jrogers@forerunner.com |
|
P.O. Box 362173 Melbourne, FL 32936-2173 |
