“Gatherings for social intercourse may be made in the highest degree profitable and instructive when those who meet together have the love of God glowing in their hearts, when they meet to exchange thoughts in regard to the word of God, or to consider methods for advancing His work, and doing good to their fellowmen.”
Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, p.82 First of all, I would like to point out that the appeal I will make here IS NOT JUST for the seventh-day adventist whose faith consists solely in going to church on Saturday. I want to make it clear right away that the main recipient of this brief text is the adventist that holds to Present Truth, who is aware of the need for all character reforms, understands the message of country life, is fully convinced that victory over sin is possible through Jesus and has overcome the fear of directing tithes and offerings to evangelistic projects that truly fulfill the Great Commission. That said, let us consider the passage from Testimonies for Ministers, which lists some conditions or alternatives for social exchange meetings between Christians to become useful and instructive: * The brothers must have the love of God burning in their hearts; * There must be an exchange of ideas about the word of God; * Good must be done to others; * The occasions should be for the brethren to consider methods for advancing the work. Is there any doubt that God's people have His love burning in their hearts? Is there any doubt that when God's people come together, they exchange valuable ideas about God's Word or do good to their fellow men? The answer is no to both questions. However, when meeting together, even informally, do God's people spend time considering methods for advancing the work? God's people actually talk about issues such as:
* Neighborhoods or nearby cities that have NOT yet been reached by the gospel? * Neighborhoods or cities that have ALREADY been reached by the gospel, but continue to receive more evangelistic resources than necessary? * How many resources, workers or families are needed to evangelize a region? * Ways to summon families to settle in places in need of adventist presence? * The possibilities of evangelism outside their own country and how to finance them? * The necessary tools that need to be taught to adventist young people who want to go to work in foreign lands? * Establishing evangelistic training campaigns for youth and families? * The ways in which resource holders can be sensitized to contribute to the hastening of the Lord's return?
Are these things really dealt with among God's people? Or remain taboo? That the brothers avoid talking about these things is perhaps just my feeling. I hope with all my heart that it is, but if it isn't, it's worth remembering that when those people of God who are simple and not in a position of leadership fail to talk about methods for advancing the work under the allegation that it is a matter for leaders, those leaders themselves run the risk of getting lost in their own ideas.
“The Lord desires to break up the course of precision which has become so firmly established, which has hindered instead of advancing his work. He desires his people to remember that there is a large space over which the light of present truth is to be shed. Divine wisdom must have abundant room in which to work. It is to advance without asking permission or support from those who have taken to themselves a kingly power. In the past one set of men have tried to keep in their own hands the control of all the means coming from the churches, and have used this means in a most disproportionate manner, erecting expensive buildings where such large buildings were unnecessary and uncalled for, and leaving needy places without help or encouragement. They have taken upon themselves the grave responsibility of retarding the work where the work should have been advanced. It has been left to a few supposed kindly minds to say what fields should be worked and what fields should be left unworked. A few men have kept the truth in circumscribed channels, because to open new fields would call for money. Only in those places in which they were interested have they been willing to invest means. And at the same time, in a few places, five times as much money as was necessary has been invested in buildings. The same amount of money used in establishing plants in places where the truth has never been introduced would have brought many souls to a saving knowledge of Christ.”
Spalding and Magan Collection, p.174,175
Someone might say (with reason): "this text is referring to bad leaders, not good ones". However, what are the chances that even a good leader will not end up getting lost in continuous cycles of bad decisions when his followers give up promoting a healthy space of good, holy and Christian ideas?
Note that “IT WAS LEFT for some supposedly gentle minds to say which fields should be worked and which should be left out of work”, which shows a clear sign of passivity. If a leader has no ideas to fall back on other than his own, obviously his only option is to go by himself (and likely make mistakes).
Someone might say (with no reason): the leader needs only direct instructions from God and nothing else. Ellen White writes, of Jethro's instruction to the burdened Moses, who judged the people of Israel alone:
“The Lord had greatly honored Moses, and had wrought wonders by his hand; but the fact that he had been chosen to instruct others did not lead him to conclude that he himself needed no instruction. The chosen leader of Israel listened gladly to the suggestions of the godly priest of Midian, and adopted his plan as a wise arrangement.” Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 301 The great leader of Israel, who spoke to God Himself, was greatly relieved of his burdens thanks to a simple visit and a seemingly unpretentious conversation, which culminated in a wonderful, simple, and efficient idea. This story is a good illustration of the suffering a leader can go through when immersed in an environment barren of ideas. Guided only by your own ideas, sooner or later you will fail... As a matter of fact, I am even being discreet and shy in my arguments in favor of the need for constant exchange of ideas and joint plans between brothers. Mrs. Ellen White didn't take it easy like I'm doing. On the contrary, she denounced as an opportunity for Satan the dangerous situation that arises when brethren fail to consult with one another. "Counsel together," is the message that has often been given me by the angel of God. By influencing the mind of a man, Satan may direct matters his way. He may succeed in leading in a wrong direction the spirit of two people; but when several consult with each other, security is greater. Every plan will be more meticulously studied. Thus there will be less danger of rash, reckless acts, bringing confusion and perplexity. There is strength in unity; in division, weakness and defeat."
Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 29, 30.
Of course, this is just one of several reasons why it's healthy to cultivate and exchange practical ideas about evangelism: the healthy environment of good ideas and thinking beings created in the image and likeness of God is a powerful support network for both leadership and followers. It should also be reflected on how much this joint counseling can increase communion among the brothers, stimulate research and study, and inject encouragement in anguished and sick hearts.
And that God's people are not content to simply accept that they need to take advantage of social gatherings to talk more about methods to advance the work, but also question themselves about the reasons that lead them to remain silent on the subject of evangelism (if this actually happens): is there shyness or fear? Is there a spirit of discord, heightened passions or non-negotiable positions? Sooner or later, we will need to be intellectually and spiritually convinced that conversations about practical aspects of evangelism are good, healthy and proper to the meeting among the brothers: "The rest which Christ and His disciples took was not self-indulgent rest. The time they spent in retirement was not devoted to pleasure seeking. They talked together regarding the work of God, and the possibility of bringing greater efficiency to the work."
The Desire of Ages, p.361
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