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11-98 Special edition on the
Argentinian revival (1)
Editorial note: Although the Holy Spirit is
clearly genuinely at work in Argentina and the whole of Latin America,
the enclosed reports focus mainly on the experiences of charismatic
churches in the area of Buenos Aires. Just to keep the right perspective
and at the same time long for more...!
Date: Mon, 2 Nov 1998
Argentina has been basking in Revival for almost 15 years. And I don't
mean the type of Revival where 3 people or even 30 people get saved in
one meeting. I am talking about a Revival where thousands are getting
saved and where God's miracle power touches people to the extent of even
filling their teeth!
Some facts about the Latin American Revival (from Charisma Magazine):
During the last decade, the population of Latin American Protestants
grew from 18.6 million to 59.4 million. That represents a 220 percent
increase, nine times the growth rate of the general population. Secular
researchers calculate that 400 Latin Americans convert to evangelical
Christianity every hour.
The revival is transforming the religious landscape. In Peru, a
Protestant church is planted every eight hours. In Rio de Janeiro, one
new congregation is born every day. Brazil's largest denomination, the
Assemblies of God, has grown tenfold since 1980, to 15 million members
and 90,000 local congregations.
The fastest growth has been among Pentecostal and charismatic churches.
Less than 2 percent of the Protestant population at the end of World War
II were in Pentecostal churches. Today, about 66 percent of Latin
American Protestants attend a Pentecostal church.
Guido Kuwas, editor of Global Revival News
A. CLAUDIO FREIDZON AND THE ARGENTINIAN REVIVAL
1. Change of Plans
In 1985 I had a vision of God in my room. It must have been two or three
in the morning. I was asleep. Suddenly, God woke me up and showed me a
vision on the wall, right before my eyes. I saw the picture of a public
square in the district of Belgrano (within the same city of Buenos
Aires). In the vision, the square was filled with people who were
celebrating in an evangelistic campaign similar to the ones that Carlos
Annacondia held. And the Lord said to me: "This is your new field
of work."
God showed me that He wanted me to reveal His glory in that place, and
that He wanted to move us away from the place where we had worked for so
may years. When I mentioned this to my wife, she did not understand it
immediately. Now that things were beginning to go well in Parque Chas,
ought we to move to another district? Nevertheless, I was sure of what
God had showed me. It was a difficult situation, and a highly
challenging one. While my heart was pondering over these things,
hundreds of men and women whom I had never seen before (but whom I would
meet later in that square) walked around lost, hopeless and without God
in this world. Daniel Perotti and Sergio Marquet (called "the
Frenchman") were among them. At present, thanks to the tremendous
change that God operated in their lives, they are two of my associate
pastors.
I went and had a look at the public square I had been shown. A sign said
"Plaza Noruega". There was a crowd of drug addicts sitting
around on the floor. I began to take measurements of the place, and to
find out where I would get electricity for my evangelistic campaign.
Someone in the neighbourhood watched my movements, came up to me and
said: "Look here, I don’t know what you are going to do, but I
hope you will cup the square, because here we have the worst of them.
This is the meeting place of the worst kind of drop-outs in Belgrano.
Last week they killed a man..." I prayed to the Lord silently:
"Father, are you sure this is the square you showed me?" The
man went on: "This is the territory of "El Francés" (the
Frenchman), a dangerous man."
A violent battle raged within me while he spoke. On the one hand I had
the comfort of my little flock which was beginning to multiply, and on
the other the great challenge of the unknown. There were also
difficulties in finding an evangelist willing to preach in that public
square.
All the preachers I invited were unable to accept for various reasons.
God wanted me to do the job of an evangelist! That evangelistic campaign
in February 1986 was historical. Great signs and wonders followed the
preaching of the Gospel. That is how the "King of Kings"
church was born in the Belgrano district. I have never repented of
having obeyed that vision!
2. A New Time
1992 marked a new era for Claudio Freidzon's ministry. In that same year
he received a visit from Pastor Werner Kniesel, who was well respected
by him. Actually Kniesel is a Pastor in the city of Zurich (Switzerland)
in the church called "Christliches Zentrum Buchegg" (Christian
Center Buchegg) having one of the largest congregations in Europe. He
knew Claudio from their student days at the Seminar. When Claudio told
him of his many ministerial activities, this man asked him: "How
much time do you dedicate to listening to the Holy Spirit?" That
question would change his life. He suspected that God had something else
in mind, for him and he needed to know God more intimately, a new
relationship with the Holy Spirit. Pastor Ibarra, a great man of God
with a great sensitivity to things related to the Holy Sprit, was always
a great blessing for Claudio, even though they didn’t see each other
very often. In those days he shared the great blessing that the book
"Good morning, Holy Spirit" by Pastor Benny Hinn of the
"Christian Center in Orlando" had been for him.
-God greatly blessed me through that book, so I decided to visit the
United States in order to share a time of prayer with brother Benny Hinn.
Pastor Benny Hinn's testimony, and his relationship with the Holy
Spirit, were a great inspiration for my own life. Betty and I went to
the Christian Center in Orlando with great expectations. The atmosphere
of that worship service was charged with glory, and worship went up to
God in a deep and magnificent manner. I did not want to miss the
smallest detail of that moment. All I longed for was to be with the
Lord, to meet him and to get to know him. When Pastor Benny invited me
to pray with him on the platform, I was amazed. He did not know me
personally, but the Holy Spirit guided him to pray for me in a
marvellous way. It was all part of a plan from above. God had planned
new times for my life and ministry. As the years went by, Pastor Benny
and I have cultivated a beautiful friendship. I love him and respect
him. Whenever we meet together we feel the affinity of being united by
this same passion: "to know the Holy Spirit more and more, and to
be guided by Him."
While seeking after Him, the Holy Spirit came upon Claudio in an
extraordinary way. A glorious atmosphere surround the services, and the
presence of God began to manifest itself in the church as never before.
Without inviting anyone nor promoting what was occurring, it began to be
known that something was happening at 2547 Olazabal Street, in the
"King of Kings" Church. Pastors came on their own to receive
the fresh anointing that transformed their lives and taking them back to
their first love. The Holy spirit came with such power that many laid on
the floor under the presence of God for hours, others rejoiced in the
Spirit, others cried when the Holy Ghost touched them and others left
"drunk" in the presence of God. God led Rev. Claudio Freidzon
to recognize His powerful and sovereign hand, producing fruit in many
lives and renewing a devoted life in Christians. The work of evangelism
and edification was spread over the radio and on television. In the
course of days, hundreds of pastors visited the "King of
Kings" Church in large numbers to receive the fresh anointing of
the Holy Spirit. Many came with their whole congregations. For weeks at
a time, on occasions, there were lines hundreds of meters long of people
waiting to get into the church. Many traveled from far away places by
hired buses to receive more from God.
3. Large Crusades and International Ministry
This situation prompted the church to weekly rent the indoor stadium
"Obras Sanitarias" (seating 6,000 people) in order to provide
a solution for the lack of space. In addition to the weekly meetings in
the Obras Sanitarias Stadium, a crusade was called in the largest indoor
stadium in the city: the "Luna Park" stadium.
Attendance went beyond the capacity of the stadium. Two meetings were
held on the same day; 15,000 attended each, while over 25,000 unable to
get into the facility, filled the streets. The police had to cut off
traffic on the avenues and streets around the stadium because of the
crowds of brothers waiting to get inside. The biggest crusade in
Argentina was held on 9 April, 1993. Over 65,000 people packed the
"Velez Sarsfield" soccer stadium. Brothers and sisters from
all denominations, from many far away places in our country came to seek
the face of God on a historic Good Friday.
The ministry of Claudio Freidzon began to spread outside the borders of
Argentina. Ministers and Christian leaders -even as teams- started to
travel from all over the world to Argentina to receive God's touch.
Rev. Claudio Freidzon has written a book called "Holy Spirit, I
hunger for you", which to date has been translated into six
languages: English, French, Japanese, German, Czech and American
English. Many Christians around the world have been inspired by this
book to develop a deeper and more personal relationship with the Holy
Spirit.
More than a million and a half people to date have been reached by his
ministry in a personal way, through crusades, conferences, special
events and meetings in churches.
Source: Claudio Freidzon’s website at http://www.reydereyes.org.ar/
B. REFLECTIONS ON THE ARGENTINIAN REVIVAL
By J. Conrad Lampan (missionary pastor from Freidzon's church to the
USA)
As I see it there have been three mayor steps so far in the outpouring
of the Holy Ghost in Argentina. The three steps have to do more with the
way God wanted to manifest Himself to us rather than what we did in
order to have revival. We cannot schedule revivals. We just pray and let
Him be God !
The first step or manifestation was through the ministry of Carlos
Annacondia. He was raised by the Lord to a ministry of power with great
manifestations of the Holy Spirit in healing and in casting out demons.
A highly powered ministry aimed toward reaching the lost. Bro Annacondia
says that he is not a good preacher, but the Lord gave him a heart for
the lost and also gave him the power to reach them and fill their needs.
Now, this first stage of manifestations of God could be seen in Bro
Annacondia's ministry but the church as a whole seemed to be unaffected.
I mean he preached to multitudes and thousands were saved and made free
and healed but the church was not changed from the inside. The power was
not inflaming the church as a whole.
It seems that God was telling the church "see what I can do, this
is my power" but at the same time God was asking the church
"what will you do with the thousands that are saved through
Annacondia's ministry? Are you going to take them and teach them your
own old ways?"
The church as a whole needed to be inflamed. That fire was spread
through the ministry of Claudio Freidzon. There was a plan in God's
mind. For that reason he had Claudio get close to Annacondia and later
on get in touch with other ministers that imparted him "spiritual
gifts" and the fire started. It was not now an evangelist holding
crusades or tent meeting; now it was a church that was on fire.
The difference I see in this second stage in relation to the first one,
is that the Holy Spirit raised Claudio to a ministry that does not have
to do directly with reaching the lost but rather to equip the church for
the task of preaching the gospel on time and out of time. As Pastor Jose
Manuel Carlos used to say: "The shepherd leads the sheep, feeds
them, but it is the sheep that have to reproduce. Only sheep can give
birth to other sheep"
The third stage has to do with Holiness. We experienced the power of God
in healing and casting out demons and saving the lost through Carlos
Annacondia's ministry. We also experienced an enduement of power within
the church, an empowering of his ministers through Claudio Freidzon's
ministry. But God still had something to do with his church.
It is impossible to have the Holy Spirit moving with power and stirring
us up without being holy. The message He gave us through Sergio
Scattaglini is that 98% of holiness is not enough. We love to have
power. We need his power. But we want to have his power and keep our own
ways. He is saying now: "I will give you power, I will use you, I
will bless you... but you must be holy"
The great secret behind this scene is that we should stop looking for
power, stop looking for manifestations or miracles. We should stop
trying to be holy on our own efforts and stop trying to sanctify people;
that is the work of the Holy Ghost.
If we start to search for the PERSON, the blessed Holy Ghost, if we come
close to Him and He becomes our friend and our master, our companion and
our Lord, we will have all what He is.
Preparation for Revival include prayer and action. This has been true in
all revivals. Churches in Argentina prayed for revival and prayed for
the unsaved people. God cannot stay inactive when a lost soul is being
prayed for!
Preparation included other people like Alberto Scattaglini taking some
unusual "risk" among evangelical circles inviting a not known
preacher. Or people like Ralph Hiatt planting the seed from which many
of the most outstanding pastors in Buenos Aires came forth. Or that
first "hit" in Argentina back in 1954 with another unknown
preacher Tommy Hick.
C. PERSONAL TESTIMONIES (as published by Pastor J. Conrad Lampan)
1. Pastor Rene Theules
"... I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me
though he were dead, yet shall he live." John 11:25
For about 15 years the Rev. Theules has been the Pastor of The Church of
Saint Paul in Buenos Aires, Argentina, an old Anglican Church that was
bought by the A/G when they planted a church in that area.
He has also been a member of the General Council of the A/G in Argentina
for a long period; also a Presbyter and the General Manager of the A/G
Publishing House in Argentina.
Now, what is so special with him? Well... besides being a man of God the
special thing with him is that he... should not be alive. He should have
died at the age of 27. (He still has the death certificate his doctor
extended the night he was supposed to die!)
He gave his life to Jesus and committed his life to the Lord when he was
still young. He was studying Medicine by that time. Now, he says that
even though he gave his life to Jesus he kept on doing his own will.
While he was leading that life of ups and downs, he was infected with
leprosy. Nowadays leprosy is a dangerous contagious disease, something
to be feared, but anyway there is a cure available... but 50 years ago
it meant to cast out of society, be sent to an island apart from
everybody and death. That was the future for a leper. Besides that he
had the worst form of leprosy that exists.
The family Doctor agreed to keep the facts hidden, so he could stay home
and lead a "normal" life. As the disease progressed he
gradually lost all his capacities and his body was turned into something
you would not like to see. Finally he was unconscious. His ears grew
till they reached his shoulders and his nose was eaten by the disease.
Then one stormy night the Doctor came to the house and told his mother
that since it was a bad night to go out and find a doctor he has decided
to sign the death certificate for her son because he was absolutely sure
he was not going to live through the night. His mother was aware of that
fact... but she was also praying !
After midnight while she was on a rocking chair half asleep she heard
someone entering the room: she heard the door open and close and felt
some wind blowing like a soft breeze, but she did not see anybody. She
placed herself on the chair and as she was doing that she look at his
son face: she almost hit the ceiling when she did... her son's face was
moving... and it was being restored!
The restoration process went on all night. The next morning he sat on
his bed and asked for food. He was completely restored.
Did you notice that the door opened and closed just once? The Mighty One
that entered that room that night was to stay there. When Jesus
enters... he means to stay!
He should not be alive. He had leprosy. Over 70% of the nerve cells of
his body are dead; you don't have to be a doctor to know that there is
something wrong with that figure! He is alive in a body that lacks the
minimum amount of nerve cells to keep it going. Isn't that a miracle?
2. Can God heal a barren land?
About 4 years ago a group from our church in Buenos Aires, Argentina (Iglesia
Rey de Reyes, Pastored by Rev Claudio Freidzon) started a mission work
in a Northern province in Argentina among some of the Indian tribes
still living in that area. They worked among those people helping them
spiritually and materially.
Our missionaries preached the Word of God to them and also gave them
medical assistance, clothing food and... seeds. The native people stared
at them strangely: Soon they discovered they were intending to have the
Indian people cultivate a barren land. Now what would those people do
with seeds in a barren earth? Nothing would grow in that earth, only
some weeds dare to show up there.
Our missionaries then decided that the best thing to do was... to pray
to the God that promised to heal the land.
They took some handfuls of earth in a bag to Buenos Aires and brought it
to the church that have sent them on that missionary work. The church
prayed for that earth laying hands on the bag. We prayed that God would
heal that land and restore it to produce food for those people. Later on
they took back the earth to the missions place and spread it all over
the area in the Name of Jesus.
Next thing the missionaries brought to the church was a basket full of
'first fruits', a kinds of crops, from the barren land that was healed
by the power of God.
3. Wilhelmina Schmidt ("how hear we every man in our own
tongue?")
Auntie Mina as we would call her.
When my mother died she raised me and my brother and two sisters. She is
a woman of God. For many years she has been the pastor of the Church of
the Brethren in my home town.
I never understood before these days what moved her to speak of the Lord
on time and out of time. She did not talk about any other thing but the
Lord. No matter what the conversation was about at its beginning... it
always ended with her giving testimony of her beautiful Jesus.
She would pray for a need just once. She uses to say: "I have
already prayed, now I wait on Him". The only exception is when she
prays for a lost soul; then she will keep on praying and praying until
that person is saved!
She is now over eighty years old. She cannot move too much and cannot
stand long hours in a service, so we bought her some video tapes and
cassettes so she may have the service at home when she is not able to go
to church. Among those video tapes there were some that were in English
with Pastor B. Hinn preaching. Now, she speaks German and Spanish but no
English.
I was talking with her one day and she told me how she had enjoyed a
certain video tape; she said that the sermon filled her soul. She told
me what the sermon was about and I realized that she had understood a
sermon that was preached in English. I said how did you understood that
sermon in English? She said, "I did not know that Pastor Hinn
speaks German, it was a surprise!" She was hearing in German a
sermon that was preached in English.
Source: Global Revival News, and www.joelnews.org
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