evangelism

Outreach Ideas from the Past to the Present – Postal Card Sermon

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A friend sends a postal card with the following hints on prayer, in order that our prayers may be answered:

Postal Card Sermon

We must ask in the name of Jesus. John 14:13, 14

We must abide in Him, and have His word abiding in us. John 15:7

We must keep the commandments of God. 1 John 3:22

While we pray we must give thanks. Colossians 4:2

We must seek spiritual things first. Matthew 6:33

We must also pray for all saints. Ephesians 6:18

We must pray “in the Spirit” of God, and according to His mind. Jude 20; Ephesians 6:18

We must have no hard feelings toward any one. Mark 11:25

We must not babble, or use vain repetitions. Matthew 6:7

We must not ask for worldly purposes or fleshly desires. James 4:3

We must pray in faith. James 5:15

We must not doubt God will keep His word. Mark 11:24; 1 John 5:15

We must ask according to His will. Matthew 6:10

The Signs of the Times, October 23, 1879.

Editorial – The Facts

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  1. Jesus of Nazareth was a real historical person who preached, healed and taught in Judea and Galilee in the early part of the first century A.D.
  2. He was opposed by the religious leaders of His day, resulting in His being arrested, condemned and crucified by the Roman government under Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor of Judea. Secular historians from the first century A.D. corroborate this.
  3. He arose from the dead on the third day after His crucifixion and made at least ten appearances in public and private after His resurrection.
  4. He ascended to heaven 40 days later (Acts 1:3), but first He had, by the Holy Spirit, given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen (Acts 1:2).

The orders were to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19, 20.

“And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’ ” Mark 16:15.

“[Then] He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Then He said to them, ‘Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.’ ” Luke 24:45–47.

“Go to all nations, He bade them. Go to the farthest part of the habitable globe, but know that My presence will be there. Labor in faith and confidence, for the time will never come when I will forsake you.

“The Saviour’s commission to the disciples included all the believers. It includes all believers in Christ to the end of time. It is a fatal mistake to suppose that the work of saving souls depends alone on the ordained minister. All to whom the heavenly inspiration has come are put in trust with the gospel. All who receive the life of Christ are ordained to work for the salvation of their fellow men. For this work the church was established, and all who take upon themselves its sacred vows are thereby pledged to be co-workers with Christ. …

“Whatever one’s calling in life, his first interest should be to win souls for Christ. He may not be able to speak to congregations, but he can work for individuals.” The Desire of Ages, 822.

If you have been baptized as a Christian, are you fulfilling your commission from Jesus Christ?

[Bible texts quoted are New King James Version translation.]

What’s Up In Ghana?

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Ron: Joseph, could you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Joseph: I was born in Ghana and raised as a Catholic. I knew nothing about Adventism until I met a brother who shared with me about the law of God, and the gospel of Jesus whereby I could be saved from the guilt and power of sin freely through the grace of Christ. I decided to obey the law of God, including the seventh-day Sabbath and began looking for a church to go to. I joined a study group in 1979 and got to know a man form America, Brother Bankhead who sent me some books including some Ellen White books. I started to study them. That study group has developed into the Accra church of historic Seventh-day Adventist believers. More recently, I have been in the United States for about four years working to support myself and help the work in Africa. I plan to go back to Africa soon.

Ron: Why do you plan to go back to Africa?

Joseph: First of all two or three people have said to me, “Joseph, what are you doing here? You have to go to Africa and work there.” Secondly as I have been praying, I believe the Holy Spirit has impressed me to go back to Africa. Finally, all I have studied here, coming to the Bible training course here at Steps to Life and many other things, I can use to help the church there. Our goal is to reach not only the entire region of Ghana, but the surrounding countries with the three Angels’ messages. While the Adventists who are faithful to the historic message that God gave to Adventism are attempting in every way to spread the three angels’ messages, they are in need of assistance if they are going to reach the entire population.

Ron: What are the best ways that we can help them?

Joseph: First of all they do not have a place to invite non-Adventists to meetings or church services. You might say, why don’t they just establish home churches as in America and other parts of the world. Well, first of all, most of the members live in small one room houses or apartments. This one room is where the whole family lives. With four to eight people living in a one room apartment sharing a bathroom with the occupants of other apartments and sometimes sharing a public kitchen, inviting people there for a home church is not feasible.

John: So, they need a place to worship and conduct evangelistic services?

Joseph: That is correct. Secondly they need a place to organize and plan their work. They need a place to produce literature, for the world, and also communications for the churches.

Ron: The building that we are helping them to buy will not only satisfy the need for a place for production of materials, preparation and distribution of communications, but also it can function as a church, and one part of it will be used as a sanitarium, and another part for a clothing distribution center.

Joseph: We hope that these new facilities will be used by the Lord and our faithful people to bring a great evangelistic thrust in Ghana. Our people have fasted and prayed for a long time and we see in these developments an answer to our prayers that the three angels’ message may be finished soon in Ghana.

John: In what other areas may we help the work to progress more rapidly in Ghana?

Joseph: As you reported in your News Notes a few months ago, Rose has been operating an orphanage in Ghana. With almost no facilities, as photographed in your News Notes, she has been taking care of 16 orphans (children who are adoptable) and many other poor children, providing them with food and clothing etc. She is working very hard, from early to late to earn the money to support these orphans and poor children. With the help that you are planning to provide for the orphanage, the living conditions for these children will become much more healthful—they will not have the constant exposure to the elements, and also it will be much easier to keep the children clean.

Ron: For a more complete explanation of the situation about the orphanage read our August News Notes. In addition to the orphans being cared for, there are many poor children who would be in a terrible situation if it were not for the self-sacrificing efforts of Rose in caring for them. The orphanage also cares for some mothers and their children who have no means of support. This is a noble work. John Huss was in this same situation once. He was an orphan (no father) but his poor mother thankfully knew how to pray. Read the whole story in Great Controversy page 98.

Joseph: How close are we to being able to build this orphanage and help the brothers in Ghana to purchase the churches that they so desperately need?

Ron: We have raised over 75% of the funds needed to build the orphanage, $30,000. Steps to Life supporters have also sent over $40,000 for the churches. Rod Clark is planning to go to Africa this winter to oversee the construction of the orphanage. However, I want to know, are there other things that we can do to help our brothers in Ghana to speed up the work of giving the three angels’ messages to West Africa.

Joseph: We are in need of literature and materials to give to the people to help them understand present truth. I understand that you are planning to help us with literature too, is that right?

Ron: That’s exactly right. We have received money for literature for Ghana and we are hoping to send a shipment of tracts not only in English but also in Twi. Two people have donated slide projectors to help them in their evangelistic meetings. People have sent in over 200 pounds of clothes.

I have to say that I am so thankful for the way God’s people have supported this project and I believe they will finish giving the necessary funds to complete this very important gospel endeavors. I would like to end this interview by sharing a quote from Christ’s Object Lessons, 351. It says, “Money has great value, because it can do great good. In the hands of God’s children it is food for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, and clothing for the naked. It is a defense for the oppressed, and a means of help to the sick. But money is of no more value than sand, only as it is put to use in providing for the necessities of life, in blessing others, and advancing the cause of Christ.”

The End

Do We Want the World ?

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John 17 is the great high priestly prayer of Jesus. He prayed this prayer just before He went into dark Gethsemane and just before His great battle with the powers of darkness. He prayed it just before they beat Him and just before the shadow of a cross arose upon a lonely hill. Jesus prayed, “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory.” There is something about the glory of Jesus that He longs for us to see. Someday, you are going to see it. Sooner than you think, and with your own eyes, you are going to see the face of God. Can you comprehend that? It is an awesome thought. The Bible teaches that without holiness no man shall see God. (See Hebrews 12:14.)In order that we might be holy, Jesus prayed, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world , but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” Jesus refused to pray for his disciples to be taken out of the world. It must have been very important or He would not have mentioned it. We are going to look at this aspect of Jesus’ prayer. Why did Jesus refuse to pray to take us out of this world? We know that eventually we are going to be taken out of the world, but in A.D. 31, He would not pray that for His disciples.

There are two parts to the answer. Part one is that Jesus would not pray for them to be taken out of the world because the world needed them. If Jesus had taken His disciples out of the world, it would have been lost because that was the beginning of His church. Not only that, at the moment Jesus prayed that prayer, those disciples were not ready to be taken out of this world.

Do We Need the World?

Part two is a surprise—God’s people needed the world! How do God’s people need the world? Look at part one again. The world needs the message of Jesus, His love, His law, His grace, His Sabbath. The world needs the message of the warning against the mark of the beast, against the beast, against the anti-Christ power, against the image of the beast, against the national Sunday law. For all of this, the world needs God’s people.

It is easy to see that the world needs us, yet how do we need the world? First of all, let me state that the disciples needed the world because they needed its discipline, its reproach, and its ridicule. They needed its persecution to develop their characters, to cling to God in total surrender so that they would be ready for God to take them out of the world.

Do we also need the world to pound on us? Someone says, “I don’t need any persecution. I love the Lord. I don’t need to be persecuted, reproached, ridiculed, lied about, put in jail and lose my home.” Do I really need all that?

Jesus said, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” Jesus would not take them out of the world because the world needed God’s people and God’s people needed the world.

The Bible says, “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19. If we need to be pounded on, is that part of what God is going to give us before He takes us out of the world? Yes, that is part of what He is going to give us. We do need it.

Does God tell us that nothing can touch us without His permission? Yes He does. “The Father’s presence encircled Christ, and nothing befell Him but that which infinite love permitted for the blessing of the world. Here was His source of comfort, and it is for us. He who is imbued with the Spirit of Christ abides in Christ. The blow that is aimed at him falls upon the Saviour, who surrounds him with His presence. Whatever comes to him comes from Christ. He has no need to resist evil, for Christ is his defense. Nothing can touch him except by our Lord’s permission.” Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, 71. This shows that our mighty God gives permission for evil to come to us.

If God were to take every Seventh-day Adventist out of the world right now, what would happen? The same thing would happen if He had taken the disciples out of the world when He prayed that prayer. Most of us would die. We are not ready. Not only that, but are we willing to go now? That is a hard question, isn’t it?

An Example

“The Hebrews had expected to obtain their freedom without any special trial of their faith or any real suffering or hardship. But they were not yet prepared for deliverance.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 260. Many of us have expected that God would take us to heaven without any special trial, suffering, or hardship. But, like the Hebrews, we are not ready. “They had little faith in God, and were unwilling patiently to endure their afflictions until He should see fit to work for them.” Ibid. It is the same with us. We also have little faith in God and we are basically unwilling to patiently endure our afflictions until God sees fit to work for us. “Many were content to remain in bondage rather than meet the difficulties attending removal to a strange land.” Ibid. We also are content to remain in the bondage of sin “rather than to meet the difficulties attending removal to a strange land. The habits of some had become so much like those of the Egyptians that they [actually] preferred to dwell in Egypt.” Ibid. Could we say that our habits have become so much like the Egyptians that we prefer to dwell in this world?

“Therefore the Lord did not deliver them by the first manifestation of His power before Pharaoh. He overruled events more fully to develop the tyrannical spirit of the Egyptian king and also to reveal Himself to His people. Beholding His justice, His power, and His love, they would choose to leave Egypt and give themselves to His service. The task of Moses would have been much less difficult had not many of the Israelites become so corrupted that they were unwilling to leave Egypt.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 260. Could we say that the task of God would be much less difficult now had not many of us become so corrupted that we are unwilling to leave this world?

If we really wanted to leave this world, we would be doing what God said to do. Not only would we be drawing close to God and have a character like Jesus, but we would be going door to door, reaching people with God’s message. Working for God earns nothing, but those who want to go out of this world and want Jesus to come soon, will be seen working to save souls.

We may say, “Won’t it be wonderful when the Lord comes!” But we like our nice home, car and job, and so we say one thing and live another. That is why God will allow the taskmasters to pound on us. Just as He also allowed the king to say, “I’ll give you no more straw, gather it for yourself.”

Not only did He let the taskmasters pound on them, but God’s prophet says that God did not deliver them by the first, or even after, the first of the plagues. It is the same with us. God is not going to deliver us after the first of the plagues either. After the first plague, we still will not be ready to leave this world. Even though probation is closed, and we are sealed to never sin again, God still has more to do for us. God did not deliver them after just the first plague, but He would manifest all of His power through ten of those plagues. After the tenth terrible plague, then they were ready to leave Egypt. After the seventh plague we too, will be fully ready to leave this world.

You might say, “I never thought of such a thing. I thought we were ready to leave right now.” No, we are not. These things are going to come very rapidly and we are going to have to grow up fast. Many of you reading this will not go through the time of trouble. Your death bed may be your time of trouble, so I am pleading, please make a full, total surrender to God now. We do not know, only God knows.

Finishing the Work

Actions speak louder than words. When you see God’s people ready to be taken out of this world, you will see them going door to door and hear them praying, “Oh God, use me for souls.” However, they will not be taken out of the world until their work is finished. If Jesus came now, millions would be lost that could be saved.

Most people looking at Jesus the day He comes—those that will be God’s faithful Seventh-day Adventists, are now keeping Sunday. That is a shocking thought. Millions of them now keeping Sunday are going to join us soon. It is also true that millions who are sitting in Seventh-day Adventist pews now, will soon be honoring Sunday. There is going to be a big shift, very quickly after persecution comes. But we must not wait until then. We need to pray, “Oh God, give us Your souls. Give us Your tender love, the love that Jesus had. A love that loves the unlovely. Dear Father give us Thy love for souls.”

When you pray like that, God will perfect you in His love. When you are perfected in the love of God, you will be ready to be taken out of this world. And when you are perfected in the love of God you will be seen reaching souls continually, every day. Jesus said, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” That is why God is going to allow us to lose everything and suffer persecution. The lovely Jesus is in control and He knows just what He is doing.

Be careful how you judge and condemn other people. That is what the disciples were doing, trying to see who was the greatest. When you have that attitude you are absolutely unfit for heaven. We think we are rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing, but we are really poor, blind and naked. We need to examine our own heart and not judge or condemn other people. We need to pray, “God be merciful to me the sinner.” When persecution pounds on us, we are going to press together and present to the enemy a united front. We will not then think about who is the greatest.

God’s People in the End

Joel tells what is going to happen. We will study a number of verses from the second chapter. “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain.” Joel 2:1. The trumpet in Zion, where is that? It is in God’s church. If you sound an alarm in the church, wouldn’t you be an alarmist? Yes. If you have been accused of being an alarmist, say, “Thank you, Lord, for helping me to do what You said for me to do in Joel 2:1.” When you do it, be sweet, kind, humble, and loving. We need to blend the beautiful meekness of Jesus with the powerful message of God. It is hard to fight against love.

“Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: [Why?] for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.” Joel 2:1. While the devil is trying to get people to sing, swing, sin and celebrate, God says we need to be trembling because Jesus is coming. The day of the Lord is at hand. Every person will stand or fall individually. It is just you and God.

“Turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping . . . Rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.” Joel 2:12, 13. God is in control. He is going to give victory to His people. You are going to be with God’s people. Or, are you going to be without them? I want to be with Jesus and His people around the world.

Joel 2:21, says, “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the Lord will do great things. Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field.” It continues on in this language in verse 23, “Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately.” You can be like Jesus. You can receive the latter rain. You can be in heaven very soon. Jesus said, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but should deliver them from the evil.” John 17:15. God is going to do it. Whatever it takes, it will be worth it. “Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God.”

The End

Fellow Workers With God

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For we are god’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.” 1 Corinthians 3:9. This was a favorite text of Ellen White, and it is an incomprehensible privilege. To be considered a fellow worker with the president of the United States would be considered a high privilege. Here we are told that we are called to be fellow workers with God. Some people think the minister is paid to do this, but we are all called to be fellow workers with God.

We all have to make a living, but our primary work is to be a fellow workers with God in His work. “Christ has given to the church a sacred charge. Every member should be a channel through which God can communicate to the world the treasures of His grace.” Acts of the Apostles, 600. We must realize that every day we are meeting people who we may never meet again and we have a saving gospel which must be presented.

No one is converted without a burden for souls. Part of the gospel is that we are called to be missionaries for the Lord. Jesus told the demoniac, when he was healed, “Go home to your friends, and tell them the great things the Lord has done for you.” Mark 5:19. And that is what we must do.

To Grow Spiritually, We Must Be Witnessing

It is absolutely necessary for spiritual growth to spend time witnessing. If we are only feeding ourselves, we are going to grow fat, sluggish and critical. “The great outpouring of the Spirit of God, which lightens the whole earth with His glory, will not come until we have an enlightened people, that know by experience what it means to be laborers together with God.” Christian Service, 253

“To a great degree this must be accomplished by personal labor. This was Christ’s method. His work was largely made up of personal interviews. He had a faithful regard for the one-soul audience.” Christ Object Lessons, 229. We might think that most of Jesus’ work was public teaching and healing, but most of His work was one-to-one. Much of what Jesus did is not recorded, but we know by inspiration that He was in people’s homes and spent time teaching the disciples how to reach individuals.

Teaching Others How to Witness

We are told that the greatest help which can be given to church members is to teach them to work for God, not for the church or pastor. “Just as soon as a church is organized, let the minister set the members at work. They will need to be taught how to labor successfully. Let the minister devote more of his time to educating than to preaching. Let him teach the people how to give to others the knowledge they have received.” Testimonies, vol. 7, 20. When I read this statement, our church sat down and began to plan teaching weekends. We began to try to make the church a learning center instead of just a preaching center. In the process of studying, we found that the Holy Spirit will never be poured out unless we are out winning souls. So we said, “We better start doing this.” Then we began to study how to win souls. And the Lord blessed. “Every Christian should be a missionary, working for the salvation of souls.” Review and Herald, November 29, 1906

Our young people in school need to learn the science of soul winning also. To do this, they must learn about true psychology, how the mind works, how to meet people and how to reach them. They ought to know the Bible and the prophecies. If in first grade they had simply begun learning one verse a day, then by the time they got through academy they would have the whole New Testament memorized.

To be effective in our witnessing, we need to be storing our minds with the truths of God’s word. We may say, “I wish I’d started when I was five years old, but now I’m 45.” We are never going to be younger than we are today. If we are ever going to do it, we must start right now. And if we cannot memorize the whole Bible, we can memorize a whole chapter such as Romans 8 or 1 John 3.

“Our work has been marked out for us by our heavenly Father. We are to take our Bibles and go forth to warn the world. We are to be God’s helping hands in saving souls.” Testimonies, vol. 9, 150. “A great work can be done by presenting to the people the Bible just as it reads. Carry the Word of God to every man’s door.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 388

God established this church on a firm basis. And that firm basis was made because of a great shaking within the early movement. In the early Advent movement we went from approximately 100,000 down to just a few hundred people. But at least these few hundred people were solid. They had given their souls and their lives and all that they had to the Lord. They went out and spread the message and preached. The Lord blessed and the church began to grow.

S. N. Haskell’s Camp Meeting

In the far off state of California there was a man holding a camp meeting at which Ellen White and her son Willie were helping. His name was S. N. Haskell. His concerns were centered on the winning of souls. So for their camp meeting, they invited non-Adventists to the evening meetings. During the daytime they would teach people how to win souls, and other things that were more specifically for Adventists, but the evening meeting was always geared for non-Adventists as well as Adventists and was evangelistic in nature. During the day, many of the Adventists would hand out fliers in the community inviting people to come to the evening meeting. The result was that several hundred non-Adventists were in attendance at the evening meeting.

On one occasion, S. N. Haskell was ready to preach and all these non-Adventists were there to hear the message. It began to rain and thunder and since there were no microphones, people could not hear. It was a terrible catastrophe in any evangelist’s mind. He did not want to send people away. They might never come again. But our extremities are God’s opportunities. S. N. Haskell prayed earnestly and an idea came to him. He came out into the middle of the auditorium and had the people come around him—very unconventional. He stood up on a table, had everyone gather around him as close as they could and then he wrote texts down and distributed them to the people. He would call out a question and then have the answer read from the Bible. The people might miss a few words that were read when the thunder cracked, but they could follow it in the Bible. So it was question, answer, question, answer—all Elder Haskell was doing was reading the questions and the people were reading the Bible.

Willie White was there and was impressed. He could see the people being moved as they found the answers to questions from the Bible. He later told his mother. Shortly after this event, the Lord gave Ellen White a vision and showed her that this storm was from the Lord. He was trying to teach people how to give Bible studies and this was His method. Up to that point, no one in our church had ever, as far as we know, given a real Bible study, rather truth had been presented in sermon form.

A New Type of Bible Studies

Here was something so simple and yet so different, but very effective. S. N. Haskell began to train people how to use this method. Soon we had a paper where people would prepare Bible studies and send them in to this paper. A number of these were later gathered up and published in what became known as Bible Readings for the Home Circle.

During the 1890’s this became fully established in our church as the method of giving Bible studies and our church grew the most we have ever grown—almost 10% every single year— because our laymen were out witnessing.

Bible studies have gone through various developments over the years. About 1930, I believe, we developed the first film strip. Nine years later, a Bible study correspondence school was developed and the Voice of Prophecy became the main headquarters for Bible study through correspondence. When I was growing up in the 50’s, my father, brother and I used the 20th Century, on film strip, Bible studies.

While pastoring in the Washington D.C. area, we were training people how to give Bible studies. We were using materials we had, but we found it was not working well. I discovered the materials were written for the purpose of leaving them in the home as a correspondence course, and not for a Bible worker to use in giving a Bible study. Through a year of experimenting, writing, and testing, the Steps to Life Bible studies were developed. We had some interesting experiences. I remember a young lady who had never given studies. She said, “I can’t give a Bible study.” I replied, “Yes you can. Let me give you a few principles. Next week I can’t be here to give studies to this lady.” I reviewed the principles of asking questions and letting people answer them from the Bible. We gave her the Bible studies we had written. I never went back. She gave all the rest of them to this lady and the lady was baptized. That so excited her that she gave them to another and another and another. In a little over a year before I left, she had given Bible studies to four young ladies and all of them were baptized.

I believe that this work is going to be finished with laymen out witnessing to their neighbors. And I believe that the Lord expects us to qualify ourselves for this work. There is a human element involved. In Fundamentals of Christian Education, 217, Ellen White says, “The Lord does nothing for the salvation of the soul without the cooperation of man.” She goes on to say, in spite of this, how few have qualified themselves in the work of soul-winning.

Personal Bible Study

I would like to encourage everyone to, first of all, have Bible study everyday for your own spiritual growth. I spend at least an hour a day. I may be one of the weakest Christians in the world so I need a lot of special help, but I find that I need at least an hour a day with the Word and on my knees in order to survive. Personal Bible study is essential for personal witnessing. We must realize that everyone of us are God’s fellow laborers and we are called to be active witnesses for the Lord.

There are two things that are required in order to be successful workers for the Lord. One is personal effort, using all the intelligence God has given to us, learning how to do it, not stumbling over, and making the same mistakes time after time. If we learn that something does not work, let’s do it different. Let’s learn from one another. Let’s learn all the methods that we can learn to share our faith. Let’s give out literature. Like Jesus with the woman at the well, let us learn to approach people without offending them, learn different ways to share the Sabbath, and various other truths. Along with that, we must realize that not one of us will ever win a single soul in our own power or with our own strength.

The Holy Spirit

The other requirement is that we must have the Holy Spirit in our lives. To have the Holy Spirit in our lives requires that we be cleansed from sin.

“The latter rain will come, and the blessing of God will fill every soul that is purified from every defilement. Evangelism, 702. “Without the presence of the Spirit of God, no heart will be touched, no sinner won to Christ.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 21. Now you see, the work of gaining the victory over sin becomes important, not only that we can get to heaven, but so that we can be used by God to help others to be in heaven. We will never be effective soul-winners as long as we are retaining known sins in our lives. The greatest reason, the greatest purpose for a holy life is not just so we can be saved, but so that we can be used to be an instrument to help others to be saved; our children, our family, our neighbors, and members of the church.

When I fly on the airlines I always like to get a seat by myself so I can study. I tell the Lord, “If I can’t have that, put someone here to whom I can witness.” I have so little time to do all the work that needs to be done. In every situation we should be looking for someone, somewhere, to whom we can witness. There are many wonderful books that can be given away, such as the book Somebody Cares. This and other books can be given everywhere as a witness.

“There is no limit to the usefulness of one who, putting self aside, makes room for the working of the Holy Spirit upon his heart and lives a life wholly consecrated to God.” Ministry of Healing, 159. Starting today, would you like to dedicate yourself to become a fellow laborer with God for the work of winning souls?

The End

Financing God’s Last Army

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God Has Devised Methods Of Support For All His Plans

For every plan that God has devised for the finishing of His work, He has devised methods and left instructions about how that plan is to work and how it is to be supported. Some missionary workers are to receive money from the profits of their labors, such as literature evangelists, physicians and nurses, missionary farmers and tradesmen. But those participating in the work of the gospel ministry are not to receive their living from the profits of secular labor. This includes more than just those called “ministers”. According to Ellen White the work of the gospel ministry includes the following kinds of workers.

“Institutions that are God’s instruments to carry forward His work on the earth must be sustained. Churches must be erected, schools established, and publishing houses furnished with facilities for doing a great work in the publication of the truth to be sent to all parts of the world. These institutions are ordained of God and should be sustained by tithes and liberal offerings.” Testimonies, vol. 4, 464

“I have had special instruction from the Lord that the tithe is for a special purpose, consecrated to God to sustain those who minister in the sacred work, as the Lord’s chosen to do His work not only in sermonizing, but in ministering. They should understand all that this comprehends.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 1, 187

“Light has been plainly given that those who minister in our schools, teaching the word of God, explaining the Scriptures, educating the students in the things of God, should be supported by the tithe money. This instruction was given long ago, and more recently it has been repeated again and again.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 215

“The tithe should go to those who labor in word and doctrine, be they men or women.” Evangelism, 492

We Are Responsible for the Use of Our Tithe

The gospel confers individual responsibility upon each of us. In no case can this personal responsibility be avoided or transferred. God will not condone our using tithe for the preaching of apostasy or any use other than specified: “There are fearful woes for those who preach the truth, but are not sanctified by it, and also for those who consent to receive and maintain the unsanctified to minister to them in word and doctrine.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 261, 262

Diversion of Tithe

One of Satan’s major goals is to divert the money that should be coming into the Lord’s treasury and thereby dry up the financial resources to finish God’s work. He has successfully done this by causing men to neglect to give, to invest in worldly speculations that fail, to bequeath their property to children and grandchildren who do not love the truth, and by the needless use of funds for selfish gratification.

We have a responsibility to be sure that our tithe and gifts to God’s cause are supporting the preaching of the truth and that the devil does not out-general us and secure those assets that God has placed into our hands into the wrong storehouse.

What Is The Storehouse?

Only two storehouses exist in the world, “There are only two places in the world where we can deposit our treasures—in God’s storehouse or in Satan’s, and all that is not devoted to Christ’s service is counted on Satan’s side and goes to strengthen his cause.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 448

Where Is The Storehouse?

“Do not worry lest some means shall go direct to those who are trying to do missionary work in a quiet and effective way. All the means is not to be handled by one agency or organization.” Spalding Magan, 421

“Send direct to the people. God’s ways are not to be counterworked by man’s ways. . . . Have this money come direct to your destitute portion of the vineyard. The Lord has not specified any regular channel through which means should pass.” Spalding Magan, 498

Surplus Tithe Money

“If you have means that is not needed after settling with your ministers in a liberal manner, send the Lord’s money to these destitute places,” (missions and churches with limited tithe.) Manuscript Releases, vol. 1, 184

Regular And Irregular Lines

In Ellen White’s day the terms “regular workers” and “regular lines” referred to conference employees and programs and “irregular workers” were the independent ministries. “For years the same routine, the same ‘regular way’ of working has been followed, and God’s work has been greatly hindered. . . .

“God calls for a revival and a reformation. The ‘regular lines’ have not done the work which God desires to see accomplished. Let revival and reformation make constant changes. Something has been done in this line, but let not the work stop here. No! Let every yoke be broken. Let men awaken to the realization that they have an individual responsibility.

“The present showing is sufficient to prove to all who have the true missionary spirit that the ‘regular lines’ may prove a failure and a snare. God helping His people, the circle of kings who dared to take such great responsibilities shall never again exercise their unsanctified power in the so-called ‘regular lines.’ Too much power has been invested in unrevived, unreformed human agencies.” Spalding Magan, 175

“The people to whom God has given His means are amenable to Him alone. It is their privilege to give direct aide and assistance to missions.” Spalding Magan, 177

Special Counsel Concerning Bible Workers

The following quotation is helpful as we seek to answer the question of using tithe money to pay a person not in conference employ: “There are minister’s wives, Sisters Starr, Haskell, Wilson and Robinson, who have been devoted, earnest, whole-souled workers, giving Bible readings and praying with families, helping along by personal efforts just as successfully as their husbands. These women give their whole time, and are told that they receive nothing for their labors because their husbands receive their wages. I tell them to go forward and all such decisions shall be reversed. The Word says, ‘The laborer is worthy of his hire.’ When any such decision as this is made, I will in the name of the Lord, protest. I will feel it in my duty to create a fund from my tithe money, to pay these women who are accomplishing just as essential work in the same line as that of the ministers, hunting for souls, fishing for souls. I know that the faithful women should be paid wages proportionate to the pay received by ministers. They carry the burden of souls, and should not be treated unjustly. These sisters are giving their time to education those newly come to the faith, and hire their own work done, and pay those who work for them.” Spalding Magan, 117

Obviously this same counsel would apply to full-time Bible workers today.

Special Need For Bible Workers

It is God’s will that we prepare thousands to do Bible work. (See Testimonies, vol. 9, 126.) “In every school that God has established there will be, as never before, demand for Bible instruction.” Evangelism, 42. What is this Bible instruction to accomplish? The next sentence says, “Our students are to be educated to become Bible workers.” Ibid. “In every city there should be a corps of organized, well-disciplined workers; not merely one or two, but scores should be set to work.” Christian Service, 72

This work will require money. “It almost seems as if scarcely anyone dares ask a worker to go into cities, because of the means that would be required to carry on a strong, solid work. It is true that much means will be required in order to do our duty toward the unwarned in these places; and God desires us to lift our voices and our influence in favor of using means wisely in this special line of effort.” Evangelism, 42

If We Fail God’s Plan Will Succeed Through Others

If none of us feel a responsibility to fill the gap and become trained in Bible work and then help to train others, the Lord will pass us by and finish His work with others. If we do not feel a responsibility that all of our tithe support the giving of the three angel’s messages, God can at any time find other intelligences and other money or sources of support to finish His work, but we will be the losers. If we support apostasy with our tithe and offerings we are not hastening the Lord’s coming by getting the last message to all the world—rather we are delaying His coming and in dire danger of being accounted as an evil servant at the end. Matthew 24:44–51

“Let me tell you that the Lord will work in this last work in a manner very much out of the common order of things, and in a way that will be contrary to any human planning. There will be those among us who will always want to control the work of God, to dictate even what movements shall be made when the work goes forward under the direction of the angel who joins the third angel in the message to be given to the world. God will use ways and means by which it will be seen that He is taking the reins in His own hands. The workers will be surprised by the simple means that He will use to bring about and perfect His work of righteousness.” Testimonies to Ministers, 300

“There will soon be an awakening that will surprise many. Those who do not realize the necessity of what is to be done, will be passed by, and the heavenly messengers will work with those who are called the common people, fitting them to carry the truth to many places. Now is the time for us to awake and do what we can.” Loma Linda Messages, 83

“If we are to bear a part in this work to its close, we must recognize the fact that there are good things to come to the people of God in a way that we had not discerned; and that there will be resistance from the very ones we expect to engage in such a work. A man that is sincere in the wrong is not justified in the wrong.” 1888 Materials, 1024

Tithe and Educational Reform

God’s plan for the rapid finishing of His work in the world involved educational reform that would refashion people’s thinking about who and what the church is, who and what a minister is, who is qualified to receive tithe and what kind of education this person should receive.

“With such an army of workers as our youth, rightly trained, might furnish, how soon the message of a crucified, risen, and soon-coming Savior might be carried to the whole world!” Education, 271

This missionary training was to prepare young people as quickly as possible for a useful life as a self-supporting or mission board supported missionary. Adventist young people were to be taught the great reforms that God had given to His people—reforms in dress, diet, education, recreation, healthful lifestyle, methods of healing, and reforms in church organization. This training would also include manual skills, would not include games and amusements, and would be offered in a simple setting with simple buildings.

Adventist education was to train young people to be thinkers and to be able to govern themselves instead of being merely reflectors of other men’s thoughts and having to be governed by others.

The Connection Between Christian Education and Tithe

Many times in the past different ones were led to reject truth because they didn’t understand that God is not dependent upon the literary institutions to prepare His workers and they have looked only to the graduates of these institutions for instruction and have sent their tithe support only to these workers. God has often used those that He has trained in another manner to carry forward His work.

In the last great work of God for the world, “the Lord will work through humble instruments, leading the minds of those who consecrate themselves to His service. The laborers will be qualified rather by the unction of the Spirit than by the training of literary institutions.” Great Controversy, 606

The tithe and offering issue has to do with more than what organization you send it to. It has to do with more than just money and who is going to handle God’s money in this world. It has much to do with the finishing of God’s work. As long as your money goes to support apostasy there will not be revival and reformation for you because “where your treasure is there will your heart be also.” Matthew 6:21

The End

Work To Be Done In The Cities

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At this stage of our experience we are not to have our minds drawn away from the special light given [us] to consider at the important gathering of our conference. And there was Brother Daniells, whose mind the enemy was working; and your mind and Elder Prescott’s mind were being worked by the angels that were expelled from heaven. Satan’s work was to divert your minds that jots and tittles should be brought in which the Lord did not inspire you to bring in. They were not essential. But this meant much to the cause of truth. And the ideas of your minds, if you could be drawn away to  jots or tittles, is a work of Satan’s devising. To correct little things in the books written, you suppose would be doing a great work. But I am charged, Silence is eloquence.

I am to say, Stop your picking flaws. If this purpose of the devil could only be carried out, then [it] appears to you [that] your work would be considered as most wonderful in conception. It was the enemy’s plan to get all the supposed objectionable features where all classes of minds did not agree. And what then? The very work that pleases the devil would come to pass. There would be a representation given to the outsiders not of our faith just what would suit them, that would develop traits of character which would cause great confusion and occupy the golden moments which should be used zealously to bring the great message before the people. The presentations upon any subject we have worked upon could not all harmonize, and the results would be to confuse the minds of believers and unbelievers. This is the very thing that Satan had planned that should take place—anything that could be magnified as a disagreement.

Read Ezekiel, chapter 28. Now, here is a grand work, where strange spirits can figure. But the Lord has a work to [be] done to save perishing souls; and the places which Satan, disguised, could fill in, bringing confusion into our ranks, he will do to perfection, and all those little differences will become enlarged, prominent.

And I was shown from the first that the Lord had given neither Elders Daniells nor Prescott the burden of this work. Should Satan’s wiles be brought in, should this “Daily” be such a great matter as to be brought in to confuse minds and hinder the advancement of the work at this important period of time? It should not, whatever may be. This subject should not be introduced, for the spirit that would be brought in would be forbidding, and Lucifer is watching every movement. Satanic agencies would commence his work and there would be confusion brought into our ranks. You have no call to hunt up the difference of opinion that is not a testing question; but your silence is eloquence. I have the matter all plainly before me. If the devil could involve any one of our own people on these subjects, as he has proposed to do, Satan’s cause would triumph. Now the work without delay is to be taken up and not a [difference] of opinion expressed.

Satan would inspire those men who have gone out from us to unite with evil angels and retard our work on unimportant questions, and what rejoicing [there] would be in the camp of the enemy. Press together, press together. Let every difference be buried. Our work now is to devote all our physical and brain-nerve power to put these differences out of the way, and all harmonize. If Satan could with his great unsanctified wisdom be permitted to get the least hold, [he would rejoice.]

Now, when I saw how you were working, my mind took in the whole situation and the results if you should go forward and give the parties that have left us the least chance to bring confusion into our ranks. Your lack of wisdom would be just what Satan would have it. Your loud proclamation was not under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. I was instructed to say to you that you picking flaws in the writings of men that have been led of God is not inspired of God. And if this is the wisdom that Elder Daniells would give to the people, by no means give him an official position, for he cannot reason from cause to effect. Your silence on this subject is your wisdom. Now, everything like picking flaws in the publications of men who are not alive is not the work God has given any of you to do. For if these men—Elders Daniells and Prescott—had followed the directions given in working the cities, there would have been many, very many, convinced of the truth and converted, able men that [now] are in positions where they never will be reached.

All the world is to be regarded as one great family. And when you have such a fountain of knowledge to draw from, why have you left the world to perish for years with the testimonies given by our Lord Jesus Christ? True religion teaches us to regard every man and woman as a person to whom we can do good.

This has been in print many years: “A Balanced Mind,” testimony to Elder Andrews. The mind may be cultivated to become a power to know when to speak and what burdens to take up and to bear, for Christ is your teacher. And I feared greatly for you [when I saw you] exalting your wisdom and pursuing a course to bring in differences of opinion. The Lord calls for wise men who can hold their peace when it [is] wisdom for them to do so. If you would be a whole man, you need sanctification through Jesus Christ. Now there is a work just started, and let wisdom be seen in every minister, in every president of [a] conference. But here was a work for you to take hold of years ago where you were needed to lift your voice for this very work. Christ gave all His people special directions what they shall do and the things they shall not do. And there is a little time left us to work out the righteousness of the Lord.

You can understand the way of the Lord. I saw your purpose of carrying things after your own devising after you were placed as president. You had thought you would do wonderful things, which would be a work God had not placed in your hands to do. Now, your work is not to oppress but to release every necessity possible if the Lord has accepted you to serve. But you have very early given evidence that wisdom and sanctified judgment have not been manifested by you. You blazed out matters that would not be received unless the Lord should give light.

I have been instructed that such hasty movements should not have [been] made [such] as selecting you as president of the conference even another year. But the Lord forbids any more such hasty transactions until the matter is brought before the Lord in prayer; and as you have had the message come to you that the work of the Lord resting upon the president is a most solemn responsibility, you had no moral right to blaze out as you did upon the subject of the “Daily” and suppose your influence would decide the question. There was Elder Haskell, who has carried the heavy responsibilities, and there is Elder Irwin and several men I might mention who have the heavy responsibilities.

Where was your respect for the men of age? What authority could you exercise without taking all the responsible men to weigh the matter? But let us now investigate the matter. We must now reconsider whether it is the Lord’s judgment, in the face of the work that has been neglected, of showing your zeal to carry the work even another year. If you should carry the work another year with the help that shall unite with you, there should be a change take place in you and Elder Prescott.

And humble your own hearts before God. The Lord will have to see in you a showing of a different experience, for if ever men needed to be reconverted at this present [time]; it [is] Elder Daniells and Elder Prescott.

Seven men should be chosen that are men of wisdom and through the working of the grace of God [give] evidence [of] a reconversion. For any men who are so blinded that they cannot reason from cause to effect, that they would ignore the men who have borne the responsibilities of the work and these presidents of conferences, [that] men [who] carry the work for over two years should be disregarded and such an impulsive consequence take place that men would neglect the very work kept before them for years—work the cities—and no, or but very little, attention [be] given to the old men for counsel, but proclaim the things they choose to give the people, bears its own testimony of the unsafety of the men to be entrusted with such a grand and wonderful work.

Christ is not dead. He will never suffer His work to be carried on in this strange way. Let the books alone. If any change is essential, God will have the harmony in that change consistent, but when a message has been entrusted to men with the large responsibilities involved, [God] demands faithfulness that will work by love and purify the soul. Elders Daniells and Prescott both need reconversion. A strange work has come in, and it is not in harmony with the work Christ came to our world to do; and all who are truly converted will work the works of Christ.

We are every one [to] work out the work which shall glorify the Father. We have come to the crisis—either to conform to the character of Jesus Christ right in this preparatory time or not attempt [it.] Elder Daniells, [you are not] to feel at liberty to let your voice be heard on high as you have done under similar circumstances. And understand, the president of a conference is not a ruler. He works in connection with the wise men who occupy the position as presidents whom God has accepted. He has not liberty to meddle with the writings in printed books from the pens that God has accepted. They are no longer to bear sway unless they show less of the ruling, dominating power. The crisis has come, for God will be dishonored.

How does the Lord look upon the unworked cities? Christ is in heaven. Now its acknowledgement is to be, ‘There is no kingly rule. And now is the crisis of this world. Now I am the Power to save or to destroy. Now is the time when the destiny of all is in My hands. I have given My life to save the world. And “I, if I be lifted up,” the saving grace I shall impart will prove that all who will be fashioned after he divine similitude and will be one with Me shall work as I work with My power of redeeming grace.’ Whoever will, [let him] take hold with his brethren to do the work given them to do when in responsible places under the counsel the Lord gives, and seek most earnestly to work in complete harmony with Him who so loved the world He gave His life a full sacrifice for the saving of the world.

I speak to our ministers, that as they enter upon the work in our cities let there be a calm sacredness attending the ministry of the Word. We cannot make the proper impression upon the minds of the people if we . . . [Lower third of this page left blank.]

I copy from my Diary. The truth as it is in Jesus—talk it, pray it, believe every word in its simplicity. What would you gain if mistakes are brought before the men who have departed from the faith and given heed to seducing spirits, men who wee not long ago with us in the faith? Will you stand on the devil’s side? Give your attention to the unworked fields. A world-wide work is before us. I was given representations of John Kellogg. A very attractive personage was representing the ideas of the specious arguments that he was presenting, sentiments different from the genuine Bible truth. And those who are hungering and thirsting after something new were advancing ideas [so specious] that Elder Prescott was in great danger. Elder Daniells was in great danger [of] becoming wrapped in a delusion that if these sentiments could be spoken everywhere it would be as a new world.

Yes, it would, but while their minds were thus absorbed I was shown that Brother Daniells and Brother Prescott were weaving into their experience sentiments of a spiritual[istic] appearance and drawing our people to beautiful sentiments that would deceive, if possible, the very elect. I have to trace with my pen [the fact] that these brethren would see defects in their delusive ideas that would place the truth in an uncertainty; and [yet] they [would] stand out as [if they had] great spiritual discernment. Now I am to tell them [that] when I was shown this matter, when Elder Daniells was lifting up his voice like a trumpet in advocating his ideas of the “Daily,” the after results were presented. Our people were becoming confused. I saw the result, and then there were given me cautions that if Elder Daniells without respect to the outcome should thus be impressed and let himself believe he was under the inspiration of God, skepticism would be sown among our ranks everywhere, and we should be where Satan would carry his messages. Set unbelief and skepticism would be sown in human minds, and strange crops of evil would take the place of truth.” Manuscript 67. 1910, 1–8.

 

Editor’s Note

In Second Advent movement in the United States during the early 1840s there was unity of opinion on many major points of doctrine by the ministers who espoused the teachings on prophecy preached by William Miller. One of these points was the daily or continuance mentioned in Daniel 8:10–14 and Daniel 11 and 12. William Miller taught that the daily (or literally “the continuance in rebellion,” in Daniel 8:12) referred to paganism. The daily is an integral part of the 2300 day prophecy. This prophecy “above all others had been both the foundation and the central pillar of the advent faith.” The Great Controversy, 409, and therefore the daily is of not small interest to Adventist Bible students. Ellen White had some pointed things to say about this Scripture subject: “Then I saw in relation to the daily (Daniel 8:12) that the word sacrifice was supplied by man’s wisdom, and does not belong to the text, and that the Lord gave the correct view of it to those who gave the judgment hour cry. When union existed, before 1844, nearly all were united on the correct view of the daily; but in the confusion since 1844, other views have been embraced, and darkness and confusion have followed. Time has not been a test since 1844, and it will never again be a test.” Early Writings, 74, 75.

In the late 1890s, some Seventh-day Adventist ministers begin to preach what came to be called the new view of the daily. This new view of the daily is the idea that it referred to the continual mediation of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary. This new view was accepted by W. W. Prescott, A. G. Daniells, L. R. Conradi, A. T. Jones, and Waggoner. A number of crises developed within Adventism around the turn of the century, not the least of which was the pantheistic tendencies promoted not only by Kellogg but by a number of other leading men which probably delayed the open debate concerning the daily until the latter part of the first decade of the twentieth century.

A.T. Jones, in his characteristic direct style, used the daily as a proof to show that the testimonies of Ellen White were at variance with the Bible on the daily and urged that the new view was the only tenable position.

Meanwhile, the son of Uriah Smith and F. C. Gilbert (one of the few leaders at that time who had a competent knowledge of Hebrew and who was therefore qualified to evaluate the original sources on this subject) put out a tract attacking the new view and stating that the new view contradicts the Spirit of Prophecy.

Perhaps it was because of this tract that A. G. Daniells, General Conference president, decided to present his views (the new view) of the daily at union conference sessions in 1910.

Elder Washburn believed that the new view of the daily would usher in the greatest shaking our people have ever had. Elder Washburn was evidently enough disturbed by Elder Daniells’ presentation of the daily in 1910 that he was in an all-night conversation with him soon after and reported that in order to avoid the need to accept Ellen White’s plain statement about the daily in Early Writings, Elder Daniells referred to some of Ellen White’s statements as imperfect and said that she erred in encouraging J. E. White to accept tithe funds for his work in the South. Elder Washburn said that as a result of the Bible conference in 1919 (there the daily was discussed), many believed that the writings of Ellen White were not inspired in regard to history; and some considered her writings uninspired in regard to theology and health reform.

It was in the context of this debate about the daily that the following testimony was written by Ellen White. The reader might like to investigate the following:

How many times does Ellen White mention that the leading persons who were introducing this new teaching about the daily were in one way or another under the influence of the devil and evil angels?

When she says that silence is eloquence, notice the context—she is talking about saying that the daily is the ministration of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary or the new view. (She had never made statements like that about teaching the old view for over fifty years.)

In referring to men who wrote and taught the old view, she several times deplores picking flaws with their writings.

She requests of Prescott and Daniells that they listen to and respect the men who were teaching the old view, such as Elder Haskell.

She states that the teaching of this new view of the daily will result in sowing skepticism among our ranks everywhere and evil will take the place of truth.

She said that our people would become confused by this new teaching.

Interestingly, those who teach futurism, especially in Daniel 12, believe either the new view of the daily or some other view than espoused by Seventh-day Adventists for the first decades of our history.

The meaning of the daily is shown clearly from the Hebrew text of Daniel 8 in our book God Predicts Your Future. In addition to the present confusion as a result of the teachings of futurism, Desmond Ford has pointed out that the new view of the daily has been a major factor causing many scholars and leaders o leave the ranks of Adventism. In his research for the Glacier View meeting, he mentions not only Conradi, Ballenger, Fletcher, and Grieve but Hilgert, Brimsmead, and himself. Elder Washburn maintained that the new view of the daily was a major factor in the loss of Jones and Waggoner.

The old view teaches that the daily is the work of Satan, but the new view teaches that the daily is the work of Christ. (They cannot be reconciled.)

(A.G. Daniells was elected president of the General Conference in 1901. This suggests that this document was written in 1910, a time when Mrs. White was very concerned about Daniells’ neglect of the cities and his involvement in the controversy over the “Daily.”)

This Man Receiveth Sinners

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“Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.” Luke 15:1. The tax collectors were considered the worst of sinners in their society in Jesus’ day. If you were a woman, the worst thing that you could do was to become a harlot. And there were many tax collectors and harlots who came and listened to Jesus.

“And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receives sinners and eats with them.” Verse 2. Is this statement true? Yes, it is. Jesus came to save sinners. Although the statement was true, the people who stated it were not inspired by the Holy Spirit to do so, because within this statement there was a wicked insinuation. It is what we would call a covert negative.

You remember when the devil came to Eve in the Garden of Eden and said, “Has God indeed said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Genesis 3:1. Now was there anything wrong with that statement? There is a hidden negative in the statement. Anytime that you hear anyone, whether they claim to be a Christian or not, making a statement that is true but which contains a covert negative, be careful. That is the way the devil has worked for thousands of years to deceive people.

What was the covert negative in the statement of the Pharisees and scribes? First of all, though they did not actually say so, by their tone of voice and the words that they used, they implied that Jesus liked to associate with the sinful and with the vile. They also insinuated that Jesus was insensible to the wickedness of those sinful people with whom He associated. We need to examine our own hears to know whether we are developing a heart like Jesus or like that of the Pharisees.

Jesus was willing to endure the pain of associating with sinners, because He loved them so much and wanted to save them, but the Pharisees were indifferent and had no sympathy. They regarded themselves as too educated and refined to associate with social outcasts, and they were unhappy with Jesus, because His example laid bare their own selfishness. In The Desire of Ages, 42, we read, “It is not Christ’s follower that, with averted eyes, turns from the erring, leaving them unhindered to pursue their downward course. Those who are forward in accusing others, and zealous in bringing them to justice. . . .”” Did the Pharisees want to bring the sinners to justice? Yes, they did. Notice what Ellen White says about those kinds of people. “Those who are forward in accusing others, and zealous in bringing them to justice, are often in their own lives more guilty than they. Men hate the sinner, while they love the sin.” Ibid. In their minds, they are saying, “I wish I could have gotten away with that,” but they hate the other person who did it. “Christ hates the sin, but loves the sinner. This will be the spirit of all who follow Him. Christian love is slow to censure, quick to discern penitence, ready to forgive, to encourage, to set the wanderer in the path of holiness, and to stay his feet therein.” Ibid.

If Jesus treated us the way that we often treat each other, we would all be lost. Have you ever thought about that? What is your attitude? Do you love sin and hate the sinner? That is what the Pharisees did. Or do you hate the sin, but love the sinner? That is what Jesus did, and that is what all will do who have His Spirit.

No Compromise With Sin

Do not misunderstand, we are not talking about compromising with sin. When Jesus talked to the publicans and sinners, He talked to them about repentance, about getting sin out of their lives; and He showed them that it was possible. “Jesus Himself never purchased peace by compromise. His heart overflowed with love for the whole human race, but He was never indulgent to their sins. He was too much their friend to remain silent while they were pursuing a course that would ruin their souls,—the souls He had purchased with His own blood.” Ibid., 356. If we really love our brother, when we see him going down a course that is going to end in the lake of fire, we will love him too much to be silent. When Jesus received sinners, He did not compromise with their sin. He showed them how to be delivered from their sins.

First, Jesus showed them that escape from sin was possible. Jesus set them free, and He is no respecter of persons. He will set you free, too.

Second, these people were used to receiving from the Pharisees nothing but scorn and condemnation; but Christ came and greeted them as the children of God. “The souls who came to Jesus felt in His presence that even for them there was escape from the pit of sin. The Pharisees had only scorn and condemnation for them; but Christ greeted them as children of God, estranged indeed from the Father’s house, but not forgotten by the Father’s heart. Christ’s Object Lessons, 186. Whoever you are, whatever has been your past, no matter how many sins there have been in your life, the Father’s heart yearns over you. If we all could understand how much the Father’s heart yearns over us and how much love He has for us, we would be just like the sinners in Jesus’ day; we would come to Him to receive of His love.

“And their very misery and sin made them only the more the objects of His compassion. The farther they had wandered from Him, the more earnest the longing and the greater the sacrifice for their rescue.” Ibid. The more miserable your condition and the more you need Jesus, the more He wants to save you. The sinners flocked to Jesus because it really was true that, “This man receives sinners.”

Unless we receive sinners, we cannot be saved. “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Matthew 6:14, 15. Then in Luke 15, Jesus gave a powerful illustration of what He was talking about. “So He spoke this parable to them, saying: What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost! I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.” Verses 3–7.

Jesus said to the Pharisees, “These people whom you despise and scorn are God’s property, and they are of value in His sight. They are of such great value in His sight that all heaven would be risked just to gain back one.” As I have read this story, so often the realization has come to me that God puts a higher estimate on us than we put on each other.

Oh friend, you are of value in God’s sight. “As the shepherd loves his sheep, and cannot rest if even one be missing, so, in an infinitely higher degree, does God love every outcast soul. Men may deny the claim of His love, they may wander from Him, they may choose another master; yet they are God’s, and He longs to recover His own.” Christ’s Object Lessons, 187. Do you realize how much you are worth to God? Does that include you? That includes everybody, friends. “In the parable the shepherd goes out to search for one sheep—the very least that can be numbered. So if there had been but one lost soul, Christ would have died for that one.” Ibid. If everybody else in this world would have rejected the gift of God’s grace and you would have been the only one who would have accepted it, Jesus would have died for you. That is the estimate that God places on your soul.

The Love of the Shepherd

The Shepherd does not wait and say, “Well, when that sheep comes to his senses, then I will take it home.” But is not that the way that we treat each other sometimes? That is the way the Pharisees treated the sheep. “It was taught by the Jews that before God’s love is extended to the sinner, he must first repent. In their view, repentance is a work by which men earn the favor of heaven. And it was this thought that led the Pharisees to exclaim in astonishment and anger, ‘This man receiveth sinners.’ According to their ideas, He should permit none to approach Him but those who had repented. But in the parable of the lost sheep, Christ teaches that salvation does not come through our seeking after God, but through God’s seeking after us.” Ibid., 189.

So often we say, in effect, “You change. Then, when you change, things will be all right.” Now the Pharisees taught that “there is rejoicing in heaven when one who has sinned against God is destroyed.” Ibid., 190. That was a lie, friends. Jesus did not teach that. The Bible says that God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked—none! He is joyful when they are restored.

Very often a person who has wandered in the fields of sin and has decided to come back to the Lord encounters all kinds of suspicion and distrust and criticism. Have you ever noticed that? People say, “Well, I am not sure that his repentance is really genuine. We had better wait and see.” So everybody just sort of stands off and looks. That is the condition of a lot of churches, and this is one of the reasons that there is a multitude of sinners who never darken the door of the church. They are afraid to come in.

“When one who has wandered far in sin seeks to return to God, he will encounter criticism and distrust. There are those who will doubt whether his repentance is genuine, or will whisper, ‘He has no stability; I do not believe that he will hold out.’ These persons are doing not the work of God but the work of Satan, who is the accuser of the brethren. Through their criticisms the wicked one hopes to discourage that soul, and to drive him still farther from hope and from God. Let the repenting sinner contemplate the rejoicing in heaven over the return of the one that was lost. Let him rest in the love of God and in no case be disheartened by the scorn and suspicion of the Pharisees.” Ibid., 190.

The devil has plenty of Pharisees around, and he has them scattered through all of the churches; but there are far too few people who are filled with sympathy for those who are tempted and erring. If we are going to save the lost, friends, we must have a heart that is filled with the mercy and love of Christ and not a heart that is vindictive and always seeking to point out or discover mistakes of others.

Jesus then gave the parable of the lost coin. “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost! Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:8–10. There is a reason that Jesus told these stories to describe the situation of the lost. There are some people who are lost like the lost sheep. They know that they are lost, but they cannot find their way back; and they will never find their way back unless somebody goes and searches for them. There are Christian homes today in which family members are attending church and going through all of the motions of Christianity, but they are not vitally connected to Christ. They are lost, but like the coin, they do not even know it.

The Value of One Soul

When you follow Jesus to His trial and see His wounded head, when you see His pierced side, when you see His marred feet, when you recognize that all heaven was placed in jeopardy to save mankind, then you start to comprehend, friends, the worth of a soul. If we ever begin to understand the value of a soul and realize that one soul is worth more than a whole world of material things, we will begin to have a shepherd’s heart. Friends, when we print Christian literature, every piece is important, every tract is important. Every aspect of our work is of vital significance because we are dealing with souls. Just one soul is more important than the wold world.

If we are going to save souls, we must have the heart of the Shepherd. The Pharisees said, “This man receives sinners.” They said it with scorn; they said it with anger, they said it with hatred, distrust suspicion, and a wicked insinuation. Nevertheless, they told the truth. “This man receives sinners.” Do you receive sinners? If you have the heart of a shepherd, you will go searching and will bring the sinners back to the Father’s house. We will never bring very many back, friends, unless we have the mercy and love of Christ in our hearts, unless we have the love of the Shepherd, the heart of the Shepherd.

When you have the heart of the Shepherd, you will not be criticizing the lost, but will be doing whatever you can to help them to come back to the Father’s house. If you want to understand the worth of a human being that is lost, go to Gethsemane. There you will see the Saviour enduring, not seconds or minutes, but hours of agony. He suffered super-human agony that you and I will never comprehend.

None of us are going to heaven alone. We need a shepherd’s heart. We need the mercy and love of Christ in our hearts, and we need to be searching for lost sheep. Perhaps there is a lost coin right in your own home. Do you want to have the heart of the Shepherd and to receive sinners back to the Father’s house? It is the most wonderful work that anyone can do.

Well Armed for the Battle

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Few Adventists object to the idea of tract work, while the prospect of actually knocking on the door of a stranger’s house fills them with fear. The most commonly voiced fear is that they do not feel that they know their Bible well enough to be able to give a Bible study. While this is understandable, it does not correctly reflect the reality of the situation. Simply stated, most Adventists have little appreciation of how much of their Bible they really do know, at least relative to the average population. A little reflection, however, will reveal how great an advantage we really do have when presenting the truth to others.

A direct and simple approach is to, first of all, simply ask what subject your prospective student would like to study. Having them pick the subject will virtually guarantee that they will be eagerly anticipating the Bible study. It also makes a very excellent reason for us to say, “I have some good material on that subject at home. Let’s get together next Tuesday evening after I have had a chance to organize the study for you.” You will now have at least a week to gather up all of the necessary information on the subject.

Second, almost all Adventists have a Bible concordance. This places us far ahead of the vast majority of all non-Adventists who have never even heard of such a book.

Third, most Adventists have some form of access to the seven volume set of Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentaries. Every verse in the Bible is expertly exegized there, and volume 7A is inspired exegesis.

Fourth, we all either have or have access to an extensive collection of Spirit of Prophecy books, in addition to the three volume set of indexes. By way of example, in the single volume of Christ’s Objects Lessons alone we have the definitively inspired commentary on each of Jesus’ parables. And remember, you do not have to tell the Bible student that you borrowed the material from Mrs. White! All your student wants from you is to know what is the truth is that is in the Bible. He does not care who taught you.

While these are all advantages that are working for you in presenting the truth to others, there is one more advantage which is, perhaps, of more value than all of the rest. Let me share a short story to illustrate what I am talking about.

A lady on my tract route once surprised me with the question, “My son was born out of wedlock. The Jehovah’s Witnesses tell me that he can never go to heaven. Is that true?”

I gave her the only answer I ever give to any non-Adventist about theology, “May I show you from the Bible?” This answer virtually guarantees that I am going to be invited into the home to open the Word of God.

As I went to get my Bible, my thoughts were racing. I did not have any idea what verse I might use that would deal with the salvation of illegitimate children. But we do not enter into the conflict alone. Heavenly intelligences guide our every step when we are seeking to carry the message to a perishing world.

The only reference that came to mind was the eighteenth chapter of Ezekiel. I remembered that it spoke about salvation being lost by the righteous man who turned away from righteousness and gained by the wicked man who turned away from wickedness. I was confident that I could reason my way to the truth from those statements. For some peculiar reason, however, my mind was blocked to Revelation 20:13, a favorite text of mine, which clearly states that we are judged by our own works. Opening my Bible to Ezekiel 18, verse 20 seemed to just leap off of the page at me. I cannot explain, in physical terms, why my attention was drawn to it other than by divine influence.

I was not at all familiar with the text, but on faith I read aloud the first sentence of that verse. “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” I thought, all right, I can reason my way to the truth with that alone. But when I read the next sentence, I was stunned. “The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father.”

I do not believe that we ever finished reading all of that verse. The lady was overjoyed! Her whole face just lit up to see the plain statement that her young son was not condemned because of her sin. She profusely expressed her thanks for the relief she felt.

I never knew that such a statement about illegitimate children even existed in the Bible and yet, when the need arose, I had gone directly to the text.

Brothers and sisters, when we go to fight the battles of the Lord, we do not go into the conflict unarmed, neither do we go alone.

The End

Tracts

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Good news is always welcome and so it is a delight to share with you a follow-up report on an article that was published in the October issue of Historic Adventist Landmarks. Since that article, “The Leaves of Autumn,” was printed, faithful Adventists in thirty-two states and six foreign countries have requested tracts as a way of sharing the three angels’ messages. This is exciting news because if we Historic Adventists do not reach out to others with the good news, we face the deadly peril that inactivity brings.

The Saviour’s denunciation of the fruitless fig tree is a warning to all who claim to be Christians, and yet remain in blind unbelief…. “the words spoken to the fig tree are applicable to all whose lives, though pretentious, are fruitless. The tree may have every indication of prosperity, but the Lord takes not its luxuriant foliage as an evidence of fruitfulness. His search for the fruit which alone makes the tree of value is close and critical. How is it with us? Can we bear the search made by him who never makes a mistake, or do we bear only the leaves of profession? Profession is nothing if it is only a mask to spiritual barrenness.” Youth’s Instructor, July 31, 1902

The first love experience of every true, new Christian is outreach. On the second Sabbath of February of this year, we welcomed a lovely family of three to our church who had been reached by the tract work. They have now become vegetarians and have discontinued the use of tobacco, coffee, and alcohol. We have found that very typically those who have just been introduced to the truth immediately begin to radiate their newfound knowledge and love for Jesus to their relatives and acquaintances. A question for each of us to ponder is, How alive is that first love in our own experience?

The Lord has continued to bless through Bible studies, tracts, and other literature. A young man recently joined one of the studies and asked how we could be sure that the Bible was not just a book written by men. We were studying Daniel 7 that evening. After seeing the historical fulfillment of these prophecies in detail, including the 1260 years of papal reign, he exclaimed, “He hit the nail right on the head every time!” I then asked if he still had any question as to who authored the Bible, and he replied, “No way! This book is inspired by God!” One week later he joined us again. At the end of that session he announced that he was going to quit smoking, a subject that we had not raised. He also promised to return the following week.

Have you ever experienced the thrill of having someone come running through the snow in below zero weather, without hat, gloves, coat, or even shoes, to get a tract? I have. She told me, “These tracts just make my week!” Currently, as a result of tract work, I have four weekly Bible studies scheduled with non-Adventists.

A young mother, living about three miles from our church building, received a piece of literature about the seventh-day Sabbath. After checking it out in the Bible, she, along with her small daughter, got a one-way ride the following Sabbath and joined us for services. Regarding the Sabbath she said, “If that is what the Lord wants me to do, I am going to do it.” During the course of this last week, she has broken her caffeine addiction and is preparing to deal with cigarettes.

Call Steps to Life at 1-316-788-5559 if you are interested in obtaining witnessing tracts of your own to share with others.

The End