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Personal Ministries Handbook, page 1

This Handbook is a guide for Per-sonal Ministries personnel worldwide.It is based on policies and proceduresestablished by world advisories, the ad-ministrative entities of the world Sev-enth-day Adventist church, and sug-gestions and ideas from Personal Min-istries personnel around the world. Itoffers guidelines designed to help orga-nize and run efficient and productivePersonal Ministries programs in the lo-cal church.

While the Handbook contains somepolicies set by the world Seventh-dayAdventist Church which are applicableto all Seventh-day Adventist churchesthroughout the world, it is not designedto be an inflexible policy book. It con-tains many ideas and suggestions thatmay be used in a way that best suits

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the circumstances of local churches indifferent areas of the world.

Boxes and sidebars are used to ex-plain which sections of the Handbookapply to all churches and which referto ideas and suggestions.

Contents of the HandbookThis Handbook contains statements

of the purpose and mission of PersonalMinistries, worldwide, Personal Minis-tries policy, Personal Ministries orga-nization and procedures, job descrip-tions for Personal Ministries personnelin the local church, outlines and ideas forPersonal Ministries programs, and in-formation on how to set up and run aPersonal Ministries program in thechurch.

Preface


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The Mission of PersonalMinistries

The mission of Personal Ministriesis to provide resources and train churchmembers to unite their efforts with theministry and church officers in the fi-nal proclamation of the gospel of sal-vation in Christ. The aim of the depart-ment is to enlist every member in ac-tive soul-winning service for God.

Objectives of PersonalMinistries

The Personal Ministries Depart-ment was established as a major set-ting for soul winning activities in theChurch. It exists to teach and proclaimthe gospel of Jesus Christ in responseto the command of Jesus, in the con-text of the three angels’ messages ofRevelation 14:6-12. To honor this origi-nal purpose, the Personal MinistriesDepartment continues to communicatethe good news with the objective to win,hold, and train for Jesus Christ, men,women, youth, boys and girls, in all theworld, and to design programs and re-sources to help those areas of the worldwhere church growth is limited.

The Mission and Objectives of Personal Ministries

Personal Ministries Methodsand Activities

The local church Personal Minis-tries Department has historically spe-cialized in certain soul winning meth-ods, although they are in no way lim-ited to these:

? Door-to-door evangelism? Distribution of literature? Giving personal Bible studies? Lay preaching? Organizing and running the

Community Service program ofthe church, including theDorcas Society

? Organzing and running the an-nual Ingathering program

? Managing local church BibleCorrespondence Schools

? Cooperating with the SabbathSchool Department in organiz-ing and running SabbathSchool Action Units.

? Cooperating with the localchurch pastor in the organiza-tion and management of smallgroup ministries

“Every true disciple is borninto the kingdom of God asa missionary.” The Desire ofAges, p. 195.


3History of

Personal Ministries

Personal Ministries is a facet of thechurch whose beginning can be tracedto a women’s group established in 1869in South Lancaster, Massachusettscalled the Vigilant Missionary Society.

The Tract and Missionary SocietyThe work of the Vigilant Mission-

ary Society gave S. N. Haskell the ideaof establishing “Tract and MissionarySocieties” in various New England con-ferences in 1870. These conference “Tand M Societies,”either directly orthrough district or local societies, en-listed lay members to circulate Seventh-day Adventist tracts, pamphlets, books,and periodicals through sale or free dis-tribution. They also conducted personalevangelism through visits, correspon-dence, and helping the needy.

In 1874 the General Conference es-tablished the General Tract and Mis-sionary Society, later renamed the In-ternational Tract and Missionary So-ciety. When the General ConferencePublishing Department was estab-lished around 1901, it absorbed the In-ternational Tract and Missionary So-ciety. In 1913 the fostering of lay evan-gelism was assigned to a separate sub-division called the “Home MissionaryBranch of the Publishing Department,”with Edith M. Graham as secretary. Af-ter functioning thus for five years, theHome Missionary Branch was made aseparate department in 1918.

The Home Missionary DepartmentIn 1915, the General Conference rec-

ommended the appointment of home mis-sionary secretaries in both the GeneralConference and the North American Divi-sion to promote church missionary work.Home Missionary Department leaders,then called “Secretaries,” were also ap-pointed in unions and local conferences.

General Conference president A. G.Daniells said, “The Home MissionaryDepartment is not a campaign, it is areligious movement. It is a revival ofpure religion in the church, and the go-ing forth to bear it to others. . . . Thisdepartment is to train men and womenall over the world to go out about theirhomes to win souls to Christ.”

Specific AssignmentsAs time went by, five areas of de-

partmental evangelistic activities de-veloped:? Bible correspondence course

enrollments.? Community services involv-

ing the work done by Dorcas-WelfareSocieties in local churches and Com-munity Services centers and units.Specific programs included emergencyprovision of food and clothing, inter-viewing and referral, adult educationclasses in first aid, home management,summer camps for disadvantaged chil-dren, and disaster relief.


? Ingathering. This annual ap-peal has made millions of personal con-tacts, enrolled thousands in Bible cor-respondence courses, and raised fundsfor medical, educational, communityservice, and evangelistic work aroundthe world.? Lay Bible evangelism,

including personal Bible stud-ies and public meetings. Manychurches have organized groupsspecializing in lay preaching,prison evangelism, and specificCommunity Services projects.? Literature distribu-

tion, including systematichouse-to-house distribution,mailing programs, tract racks, and in-dividual or church lending libraries.

The Lay Activities DepartmentAt the 1966 General Conference

session the General Conference HomeMissionary Department became theLay Activities Department. It was as-signed the tasks of fostering the activi-ties of laity in local missionary service.“Missionary service” meant personal orpublic evangelism or Community Ser-vice, once known as Health and WelfareService. There were corresponding de-partments in the divisions, unions, andconferences.The Church Ministries Department

At the 1985 General Conferencesession the Lay Activities Departmentbecame part of the newly formedChurch Ministries Department.Church Ministries was a merger of fourformer departments of the General Con-ference: Lay Activities, Sabbath School,Stewardship and Development, Youth,and Home and Family Service.

Church Ministries was not intendedto change the organization of depart-ments at the local church level. As ex-plained at the 1985 General Confer-ence session, the action to bring theseformer entities together into one depart-ment would apply “only to the General

Conference and its divisions.” Later itcould “be implemented at the union andthen the local conference levels.”

Personal MinistriesSome world divisions felt that Per-

sonal Ministries better described thework of the department than “lay ac-tivities,” and began using this title forthe department. The title was officiallyadopted in 1995.

Sabbath School and PersonalMinistries Department

In 1995, the Church Ministries De-partment was dissolved and SabbathSchool and Personal Ministries werecombined into one department. This or-ganizational pattern functions at theConference/Mission, Union, Divisionand General Conference levels. At thelocal church level Sabbath School andPersonal Ministries continue to func-tion as two separate entities.

The Personal MinistriesStatement of Purpose

Equipping and Mobilizing the Membershipto Accomplish the World Mission of theChurch.


4Personal Ministries Organization

and Personnel

Personal Ministries Leader

The RoleAccording to the Seventh-day Adven-

tist Church Manual, “The PersonalMinistries leader is elected by thechurch to lead in training and direct-ing the church in active outreach (mis-sionary) service and is chairperson ofthe Personal Ministries Council. It isthe leader’s duty to present to thechurch, in the monthly Sabbath Per-sonal Ministries service and in thechurch business meetings, a report onthe total outreach (missionary) activi-ties of the church.”— p. 94.

An Important CallingMost of the heroes of the New Tes-

tament church were evangelists. Thepersonal ministry of Jesus in saving thelost (the woman at the well, Zacchaeus,etc.) continues to be the primary model;but Peter, Paul, Barnabas, Philip,Steven, Timothy, and John Mark allfigure prominently in early church his-tory because they worked tirelessly andeffectively to win new converts to JesusChrist and to make the first centurychurch grow. That pattern has contin-ued through the centuries to our day.

You are called to that noble heritageas you become involved in coordinat-ing the outreach of your local church.You have two thousand years of suc-cess on which to build. You have the

model of thousands of successful menand women in history.

Line of AuthorityThe Personal Ministries leader will

work closely with the pastor of thechurch or district and be a member ofthe church board. Unless your churchis quite small, the Personal Ministriesleader will chair a committee usuallycalled the Personal Ministries Coun-cil.

The following people report to thePersonal Ministries leader:

The community services leader, in-terest coordinator, the leaders respon-sible for Bible studies, lay evangelism,literature distribution, Ingathering,and missionary magazines. Those incharge of lay witness training, prisonministries and other outreach pro-grams also report to the Personal Min-istries leader.

It is the leader’s responsibility tohelp them be successful in their activi-ties and bring these together in a totalstrategy for church growth.

Sabbath School Action UnitsIf the church uses Sabbath School

Action Units, the Personal Ministriesleader should be actively cooperativein working with the Care Coordinatorsof the Action Units.


Time Commitment -Two Eveningsa Week

This is a major responsibility in thechurch and requires significant time.A Personal Ministries leader shouldplan to devote two evenings a week orone evening and a Sabbath afternoonto personal Ministry activities. Onetime period is probably devoted to plan-ning and meeting with committees, theother to active soul winning activities.

Duties and ResponsibilitiesThe duties and responsibilities of

the Personal Ministries leader include:

? Working with Volunteers .The personnel for outreach in the localchurch are volunteers, and much of theleader’s work is the re-cruiting, training, andoverseeing of this volun-teer workforce. Supervis-ing volunteers is not thesame as working withemployees. Volunteerswill do what they enjoy orare convicted to do, notnecessarily what needs tobe done. Pleading withthem from the pulpit ortrying to make them feelguilty will not succeed.Personal contacts are more effectivethan public appeals. Building a supportteam is essential for long-term success.The leader will be working with a mi-nority of the congregation. Churchgrowth specialists say that 10% of thechurch should be involved in directevangelism. That is a worthy objective,but it will take great persuasiveness

to achieve even that percentage.? Planning. The Personal Minis-

tries leader is the key person in help-ing other leaders of the congregationdevelop outreach and soul-winningplans. It is the leader’s responsibilityto get the key people together early toset goals. Get ownership for the goalsfrom the church leadership, and theywill help meet them. Remember thattoo many goals are confusing to the con-gregation and more difficult to reach.Experience demonstrates that mostcongregations can only handle one, two,or three outreach goals at a time, andthis “time” usually spans two or threeyears.? Education and Communica-

tion. The Personal Ministries leader’sfirst goal is to help every church mem-

ber become aware thathe or she is witnessingin his or her own way.Every believer is amissionary to the fam-ily members, work as-sociates, neighbors andothers that they touchevery day, whetherthey intend it or not.It is a surprisingthought to many of ourmembers who “hatewitnessing” that they

witness anyway, whether they realizeit or not. The Personal Ministriesleader’s task is to help church mem-bers use the unique opportunities andspiritual gifts that God has given toeach to accomplish His will.

You can make use of the time al-lotted each Sabbath. This time may becalled “King’s Business” or “personalministries time” or something else, and

Specific tasks withclearly defined limits.

Short terms in office.Plenty of people power

to use in attaining the goal.Simple, direct feedback

about how they are doing.Lots of affirmation.

What Today’sVolunteers Want

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it is essential that the Personal Minis-tries leader communicate regularlywith the church members regularlyabout their witness and opportunitiesfor service. This is a “non-negotiable”part of what it means to be an Adven-tist church. It is equally important tomake this time interesting and rel-evant to the members, and not a timeof haranguing, selling books or ritual-istic readings.? Program Management. The

Personal Ministries leader will be themanager of a number of programssponsored by the congregation. Someare denomination-wide, internationalcampaigns. Some are local ideas thata small group of members have devel-oped. Each requires careful prepara-tion, adequate supplies and peoplepower, and steady attention to detail.Check lists and work sheets to helpmanage these projects are published inmany different program manuals,handbooks and “how-to” volumes. Ev-ery project is a process, not a goal. Re-member this, and no one will feel de-feated if a project fails. The goal is tosave men and women for heaven. If onething does not work, another will.

Inspired Thoughts onLeadership Qualities

People of Prayer. “Nothing is more needed in ourwork than the practical results of communion with God.We should show by our daily lives that we have peaceand rest in the Saviour. His peace in the heart willshine forth in the countenance. It will give to the voicea persuasive power. Communion with God will ennoblethe character and the life. Men will take knowledge ofus, as of the first disciples, that we have been withJesus. This will impart to the worker a power that noth-ing else can give. Of this power he must not allowhimself to be deprived.” - The Ministry of Healing, p.512

People of Faith. “God’s workers need faith in God.He is not unmindful of their labors. He values theirwork. Divine agencies are appointed to co-operate withthose who are laborers together with God. When wethink that God will not do as He has said, and that Hehas no time to notice His workers, we dishonor ourMaker.” Christian Service, pp. 233, 234

People of Courage. “Hope and courage are essen-tial to perfect service for God. These are the fruit offaith. Despondency is sinful and unreasonable.”Prophets and Kings, p. 164. “Courage, energy, andperseverance they must possess.”- Gospel Workers,p. 39

People of Action. “The cause of God demands menwho can see quickly and act instantaneously at theright time and with power. If you wait to measure ev-ery difficulty and balance every perplexity you meetyou will do but little.. . . It is even more excusable tomake a wrong decision sometimes than to be con-tinually in a wavering position, to be hesitating, some-times inclined in one direction, then in another.”- Tes-timonies, vol. 3, p. 497


Personal Ministries Secretary

The RoleThe work of the Personal Ministries

secretary is behind the scenes, but it isvery important. Duties include servingas the business agent by ordering sup-plies from the Adventist Book Center,conference office and/or other distribu-tion facilities regularly used by thechurch; caring for the records, suppliesand clerical details of church activitiessuch as Sabbath School, communityoutreach, soul-winning, family life pro-grams, children’s and youth ministries,stewardship education, etc.

The Personal Ministries secretaryserves as the secretary of the churchPersonal Ministries Council. Dutiesinclude keeping the minutes and, with-out fail, handling correspondence. Heor she may also be a member of theChurch board and various other com-mittees.

It is important to see that one ormore assistant secretaries are ap-pointed, because it is vital that some-one function in this role every Sabbathand at every meeting of the relatedcommittees.

In some places, especially if thechurch membership is small and thechurch finds it difficult to fill all theoffices, it may be better to combine thepositions of Sabbath School and Per-sonal Ministries secretaries into asingle position. This combination alsoprovides a single contact point for theSababth School and Personal Minis-tries Department at the conference/mission office when sending informa-tion and materials to the church.

Line of AuthorityThe Personal Ministries secretary

works under the direction of the churchpastor and the Personal Ministries di-rector, and in close cooperation withthe Sabbath School leadership team.

Time Commitment -Two hours aweek

This can be a time-consuming re-sponsibility. Certain details must beattended to every week.Committeemeetings must be attended eachmonth.

Even in the smallest church, a mini-mum of one hour a week will be neededjust to sort the mail, stock supplies,type and copy minutes of meetings, andread and respond to correspondence. Ifyour local church has more than 200members, it may take up to two hoursa week for the paperwork.

If the congregation is a larger one,some duties can be delegated to assis-tants. Assistants can cover meetings,but some of the sessions will requirethe regular involvement of the Per-sonal Ministries secretary to knowwhat is planned by the church leadersand provide the support they will need.

Duties and ResponsibilitiesThe Personal Ministries secretary

is elected by the church and serves asthe representative of the AdventistBook Center for all departments of thechurch. The secretary works closelywith the Personal Ministries leader indeveloping the outreach (missionary)programs of the church.—Church Manual,p. 94


Specific responsibilities. Thespecific duties of the Personal Minis-tries secretary are:? To serve as secretary of the Per-

sonal Ministries Council, recording theminutes of Personal Ministries’ meet-ings and taking an active part in imple-menting departmental plans. The sec-retary should record reports of outreach(missionary) work done by churchmembers and complete and send allrequired reports and other informationabout such activities to the conference/mission/field Personal Ministries De-partment promptly each quarter.? To give a report of Personal Min-

istries activities to the church duringthe monthly Sabbath Personal Minis-tries service and during church busi-ness meetings.? To be responsible for all local

church transactions with the AdventistBook Center or other suppliers. Thesecretary will maintain careful ac-counts with the suppliers, using a du-plicate order at all times and, in coop-eration with the church treasurer, willsee that accounts are settled speedily,with clearance of outstanding items ona monthly basis.? To call the attention of the

church to resources that are availablefor use.? To plan periodic offerings to pro-

vide Personal Ministries supplies forthe members when such are not pro-vided for through the church budget orthe conference/mission/field approvedoffering schedule. A church PersonalMinistries offering for this purpose maybe received on the first Sabbath of themonth. If this offering does not providesufficient funds, offerings may be takenat the weekly Personal Ministries

meeting. The disposition of such Per-sonal Ministries funds shall be madeby action of the Personal MinistriesCouncil.? To record details of services and

reports of work done by church mem-bers, and to be prompt in sending asummary to the Personal Ministriesdirector of the conference/mission/fieldat the appointed time. Church Manual,p. 124.

General responsibilities . Thepastor and elders, Sabbath School lead-ers, coordinators of outreach, soul-win-ning, youth and children’s ministries,family life, stewardship activities, andmany other local church leaders, willall depend on the Personal Ministriessecretary to routinely care for suppliesand detailed information. It is impor-tant to plan on certain routine activi-ties as a regular cycle in your respon-sibilities:? Mail distribution. The mail

must be processed each week. It willcome to the church and possibly to thePersonal Ministries secretary’s home.In it will be items that must be handedor sent to the person in the congrega-tion who needs the information. Be-cause many different job titles are used,read carefully to be sure each letter orpublication gets into the right hands.Do not hold it until the date on the pub-lication. Get it to them so they will haveas much time as possible to prepareand plan ahead.? Distribution of materials.

Materials must be distributed eachweek to the Sabbath School classes anddivisions, as well as to church leaders,the literature rack or table in the


church lobby, etc. Leader’s guides,teacher’s quarterlies, magazines andother bulletins for leaders must be dis-tributed the very next Sabbath afterthey arrive.? Supply cabinets. Supply cabi-

nets should be established where youcan sort and store materials. Thesemust be organized and labeled so oth-ers can find what they need when youare not there. You may want to set upa notebook or clipboard where itemscan be “signed out” when they are re-moved, but it is not your place to pro-hibit other church officers from gettingto the materials. Your role is a minis-try of service, not one of control andauthority.? The weekly Sabbath School

offerings. The weekly Sabbath Schoolofferings as well as offerings taken inmissionary meetings, special rallies,and small groups must be collected,counted and given to the church trea-surer. The church treasurer should pro-vide you with a receipt for the fundsyou turn in and monthly statements ofthe accounts you work with.? Standing orders. If your area of

the world church uses a system of stand-ing orders, each quarter’s standing or-der blanks for Sabbath School suppliesand other materials will arrive auto-matically. Carefully review these withthe leaders in charge of each divisionand program, and make any changesthat are needed in the order. If theyare not mailed back promptly, thechurch will receive the same items andamounts as indicated in the print-outfor another quarter.? Purchase of materials for

church members. One of the tasks ofthe Personal Ministries secretary in lo-cal churches is taking orders and pur-chasing literature and books for indi-vidual church members from the Ad-ventist Book Center or local Adventistsupply source. Whether the PersonalMinistries secretary will carry this re-sponsibility depends on how the pur-chasing system works in your part ofthe world. The local conference/missionwill decide this and inform localchurches.


IntroductionThe Great Commission to go to all

the world with the gospel is beyond ourability to accomplish on our own. Howcan we fulfill God’s challenging man-date?

The New Testament ChurchThe church grew rapidly during the

time of the New Testament. Accordingto Acts 1:15, 120 disciples gathered inthe upper room. Acts 2:41,42 tells usthere were 3,000 new converts. Accord-ing to verse 47, God added to that num-ber daily. Acts 4:4 mentions another5,000 men as new converts. If only halfof those men were married and hadchildren, the church membership couldhave been over 10,000 by that time.And it continued to grow. Acts 21:20says many thousands (the Greek wordmeans myriads, multiples of ten thou-sand) of Jews believed.

Why Did the Church Grow So Fast?It was because everyone was in-

volved in witnessing. Through thepromises of God, the Lord will bring aharvest of souls as lay members becomeinvolved. “The work of God in this earthcan never be finished until the menand women comprising our churchmembership rally to the work, andunite their efforts with those of minis-ters and church officers. . . .” —GospelWorkers, p. 352.

This statement clearly indicatesthat the work will never be finished

unless all church members work to-gether with ministers and church of-ficers. The army of active lay preach-ers is growing rapidly, and with it isthe need for more effective trainingand guidance.

Ellen White writes: “There shouldbe no delay in this well-planned effortto educate the church members.” —Tes-timonies, Volume 9, p. 119

Why Are People Not Involved?There are many reasons why people

do not participate in soul winning, butsix basic reasons stand out:? Lack of self-confidence? Unrecognized potential? Have never been asked? No training? Limited understanding of role? No motivation

??Never been asked. Some pas-tors prefer to do all of the work them-selves and are not used to delegatingresponsibility to others. There aremany people who would be involved ifthey were asked to participate.??No training. “Many would be

willing to work if they were taught howto begin.”—Christian Service, p. 59Training is vitally important so peoplemay be equipped to participate in wit-nessing activities.

5Motivating Members to Witness


?? Limited understanding ofroles.

Some members feel that preachingand teaching are the respon-sibility of the pastor. They feelthey only need to come tochurch and give an offering.

“The dissemination of thetruth of God is not confined toa few ordained ministers. Theidea that the minister mustcarry all the burdens and doall the work is a great mis-take.”—Christian Service, p. 68??No motivation. Know-

ing that lay persons are pow-erful forces for finishing God’swork, it is important that allchurches become training cen-ters. Ideas for motivatingchurch members to do witnessing willbe discussed in further detail below.

“Every church should be a trainingschool for Christian workers. Its mem-bers should be taught how to give Biblereadings, how to conduct and teachSabbath School classes, how best tohelp the poor and to care for the sick,how to work for the unconverted.There should not only be teaching butactual work under experienced instruc-tors.”—Christian Service, p. 59

Organization of Christian ForcesIs Essential

“The church is God’s appointedagency for the salvation of man. It wasorganized for service, and its missionis to carry the gospel to the world.”—Acts of the Apostles, p. 9

“Well-organized work must be donein the church, that its members may un-derstand how to impart the light to oth-

ers, and thus strengthen their own faithand increase their knowledge. As theyimpart that which they have receivedfrom God, they will be confirmed in the

faith. A working church is a livingchurch. We are built up as living stones,and every stone is to emit light. EveryChristian is compared to a preciousstone that catches the glory of God andreflects it.” —Christian Service, pp. 72,73

The church is an army. “Thechurch of Christ may be fitly comparedto an army. The life of every soldier isone of toil, hardship, and danger. Onevery hand are vigilant foes, led on bythe prince of the powers of darkness,who never slumbers and never desertshis post. Whenever a Christian is off hisguard, this powerful adversary makesa sudden and violent attack. Unless themembers of the church are active andvigilant, they will be overcome by hisdevices.

“What if half of the soldiers in anarmy were idling or asleep when or-dered to be on duty; the result would bedefeat, captivity, or death. Should anyescape from the hands of the enemy,

Unrecognized Potential:The Story of Yate’s Pool

A man named Yates was a well-to-do farmer whohad a very large field. He tried to plant variousplantations, but was unable to grow good crops.He tried again and again, but failed each time. Soafter trying many times, he finally gave up. Hebecame very poor and had to live on aid from thegovernment. One day someone came to see Yatesand said he would like to test his soil. Yates said,“Yes, you can do anything with my field.” So thesoil was tested and yielded 90,000 barrels of oil inone day! Now, 30 years have passed, and thatland is still producing 150,000 barrels of oil per day.


would they be thought worthy of theirreward? No; they would speedily re-ceive the sentence of death. And if thechurch of Christ is careless or unfaith-ful, far more important consequencesare involved. A sleeping army of Chris-tian soldiers—what could be more ter-rible! What advance could be madeagainst the world, who are under thecontrol of the prince of darkness? Thosewho stand back indifferently in the dayof battle, as though they had no inter-est and felt no responsibility as to theissue of the contest, might betterchange their course or leave the ranksat once”—Testimonies, Volume 5, p. 394

Responsibility for providingtraining. “Those who have the spiri-tual oversight of the church should de-vise ways and means by which an op-portunity may be given to every mem-ber of the church to act some part inGod’s work. Too often in the past thishas not been done. Plans have not beenclearly laid and fully carried out,whereby the talents of all might beemployed in active service. There arebut few who realize how much has beenlost because of this.

“In every church the membersshould be so trained that they will de-vote time to the winning of souls toChrist. How can it be said of thechurch, “Ye are the light of the world,”unless the members of the church areactually imparting light? Let those whohave charge of the flock of Christ awaketo their duty, and set many souls towork”—Christian Service, p. 61

More speedy advances. “In thiscountry and in foreign countries thecause of present truth is to make morerapid advancement than it has yetmade. If our people will go forth infaith, doing whatever they can to make

a beginning, and laboring in Christ’slines, the way will be opened beforethem. If they will show the energy thatis necessary in order to gain success,and the faith that goes forward unques-tioningly in obedience to God’s com-mand, rich returns will be theirs. Theymust go as far and as fast as possible,with a determination to do the verythings that the Lord has said shouldbe done. They must have push and ear-nest, unswerving faith. . . . The worldmust hear the warning message”—Evangelism, pp. 18, 29

Greater intensity. “We needgreater earnestness in the cause ofChrist. The solemn message of truthshould be given with an intensity thatwould impress unbelievers that God isworking with our efforts, that the MostHigh is our living source of strength.”—Evangelism, p. 697

Choose qualified leaders. “Theelders and those who have leadingplaces in the church should give morethought to their plans for conductingtheir work. They should arrange mat-ters so that every member of the churchshall have a part to act, that none maylead an aimless life, but that all mayaccomplish what they can according totheir several ability. . . . It is very es-sential that such an education shouldbe given to the members of the churchthat they will become unselfish, de-voted, efficient workers for God; and itis only through such a course that thechurch can be prevented from becom-ing fruitless and dead. . . . Let everymember of the church become an ac-tive worker,—a living stone, emittinglight in God’s temple.”—Christian Ser-vice, p. 62


The great need of the hour .“There should be no delay in this well-planned effort to educate the churchmembers. . . . The people have had toomuch sermonizing; but have they beentaught how to labor for those for whomChrist died? Has a line of labor beendevised and placed before them in sucha way that each has seen the necessityof taking part in the work? . . . It is byeducation and practice that persons areto be qualified to meet any emergencywhich may arise; and wise planning isneeded to place each one in his propersphere, that he may obtain an experi-ence that will fit him to bear responsi-bility.”—Christian Service, pp. 58, 59

I am afraid. The Bible tells us that Moses was also afraidto carry out his leadership responsibilities. Nevertheless, theLord used Moses and enabled him to do his assigned task.

I am not good enough. It is impossible to become per-fect before we begin to witness.

I don’t have power to do that. Only Jesus, through the power of the HolySpirit, can empower us to do His work. We do not have the strength alone.

I am too old (too young). The Lord can use us no matter how old or youngwe are.

Discussion - Explain why people lack confidence.

Small Group Activity

Notes


“Therefore go and make disciples of all na-tions, baptizing them in the name of theFather, and of the Son, and of the HolySpirit, and teaching them to obey every-thing I have commanded you. And surely Iam with you always, to the very end of theage” (Matthew 28:19, 20).

The Church Is MissionThe church, as the body of Christ,

has the same purpose as Christ. Theconcern of Christ must be the concernof His church.

Key texts. “For the Son of mancame not to be served, but to serve, andto give His life as a ransom for many”(Mark 10:45).

“For the Son of man is come to seekand to save that which was lost” (Luke19:10).

“For God sent not His Son into theworld to condemn the world; but thatthe world through Him might be saved”(John 3:17).

I am come that they might have life,and that they might have it more abun-dantly” (John 10:10).

Jesus Established the ChurchI will build my church . . .(Matthew

16:16). The church, God’s people, likeChrist, are those who pour out theirlives in service for others.

“The church is God’s appointedagency for the salvation of men. It wasorganized for service, and its missionis to carry the gospel to the world.”—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 9

The Great Commission. Christ’sGreat Commission is given to Hischurch. It continues to be Christ’s pri-

The Theology of Soul Winningand Involvement

mary marching orders for His followers:Therefore go and make disciples of allnations, baptizing them in the name ofthe Father, and of the Son, and of theHoly Spirit, and teaching them to obeyeverything I have commanded you. Andsurely I am with you always, to the veryend of the age (Matthew 28:19, 20).

Primary ministry. The church’stask certainly includes ministry to thebody. But it must always have a pri-mary focus to those outside the church.

It is too small a thing for you to bemy servant to restore the tribes of Ja-cob and bring back those of Israel I havekept. I will also make you a light forthe Gentiles, that you may bring mysalvation to the ends of the earth(Isaiah 49:6).

But you are . . . a people belonging toGod, that you may declare the praisesof him who called you out of darknessinto his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).

Committed to mission . To beGod’s people is to be involved in andcommitted to His mission.

“The Saviour’s commission to thedisciples included all believers inChrist to the end of time.” —The Desireof Ages, p. 822

The obedience of the local churchto this God-given mission affects itssubsequent health, strength andgrowth. God wants to bless His churchand see it grow, so that we in turn maybe a blessing to others. God’s originalpromise to Abraham was that otherswould be blessed through him, andthen through us. I will bless you . . . sothat you will be a blessing . . . and byyou all the families of the earth will beblessed (Genesis 12:1-3).


“Every true disciple is born into the kingdom of Godas a missionary. He who drinks of the living waterbecomes a fountain of life. The receiver becomes agiver. The grace of Christ in the soul is like a springin the desert, welling up to refresh all, and makingthose who are ready to perish eager to drink of thewater of life.”— Christian Service, p. 9

Jesus declares this principleclearly: For whoever would save his lifewill lose it, and whoever loses his life formy sake will find it (Matthew 16:25).

Ellen White comments , “Thevery life of the church depends uponher faithfulness in fulfilling the Lord’scommission.”—The Desire of Ages, p.825

We find true purpose onlyby pouring out our life in mis-sion and service to the world forwhich Christ died.

The Role of God’s PeopleGod’s people need to be

caught up in Christ’s assignedmission for them. Without thissense of mission, there is littlemotivation for becoming involved inministry.

Mistaken identity. The idea thatthe clergy is spiritually strong, has aspiritual calling and special rewards,while the laity is spiritually weak, witha secular calling and ordinary rewards,lurks on the edge of people’s minds. Thisdivision is not biblical. It comes frommedieval Europe and the attempts bythe clergy of the popular church of thetime to dominate the populace.

Wrong concepts. Gratian, a priestwho died in 1160, wrote, “There are twokinds of Christians, clergy and laity.”Stephen of Tournai, another writer ofthe times (d.1203), wrote, “[there are]two kinds of people; one lower and onehigher,” referring to clergy and laity.

In contemporary societies with a hi-erarchical organization, i.e. someone isin charge and the rest follow the leader,it is easy for church goers to assumethat the “clergy” is the leader and the

“laity” is the follower.Protestant protest. During the

Protestant reformation, Martin Lutherand other reformers took a different po-sition, a view called the “priesthood ofall believers.” God wants to accomplishHis work through the laity and does nothave different kinds of people.

Only one kind of believer. The“oneness” of church membership is seenthroughout Scripture. All of the Biblepassages are addressed to the churchas a whole, not to a selected few leadersin the church. There is one body and oneSpirit—just as you were called to onehope when you were called—one Lord,one faith, one baptism; one God and Fa-ther of all . . . but to each of us grace hasbeen given as Christ apportioned it(Ephesians 4:4-7).

For there is no distinction betweenJew and Greek; the same Lord is Lordof all and bestows his riches upon allwho call upon Him (Romans 1:12-13).

The laos. The English word “laity”comes from the Greek word laos, whichsimply means “people” and refers to thepeople of God in general, not to a groupdistinct from the clergy. “They shall bemy people [laos]”(2 Corinthians 6:16).“But you are . . . God’s own people [laos]”(1 Peter 2:9,10).

In the biblical meaning of laity laosdoes specify special people, all of God’s


own people. In the Old Testament, theHebrew equivalent pointed to Israel, orGod’s remnant. In the New Testament,it is used to indicate those who believein Christ and accept Him as their Lordand Saviour.

Kleros, the inheritance. The ori-gin of the word clergy refers to thosewho share in the inheritance of God’sredemption, not a group in the churchdistinct from the laity.

That they may turn from darknessto light . . . and . . . receive . . . a place(kleros) among those who are sancti-fied by faith in me (Acts 26:18).

May you be strengthened with allpower . . . giving thanks to the Father,who has qualified us to share in theinheritance (kleros) of the saints in light(Colossians 1:11, 12).

Everyone is a disciple. The re-sponsibility for the church’s mission isgiven to God’s people as a whole.

When Jesus said to his disciples,You shall be my witnesses to the endsof the earth” (Acts 1:8), the original lan-guage word you meant you the group,not you the individual.

You are the salt of the earth . . . . Youare the light of the world (Matthew5:13, 14).

But you are . . . God’s own people,that you may declare the wonderfuldeeds of him who called you out of dark-ness into his marvelous light (1 Peter2:10).

For you are all one in Christ (Gala-tians 3:28).

An important concept. The im-plications of this scriptural concept ofthe laity are important: Laity who feelinferior to the clergy will not feel re-sponsible for the church’s mission. Aslaity receive their proper biblical sta-

tus in the church, they become readyto assume responsibility as disciples.

The Role of Spiritual GiftsBelievers have differing functions

and gifts. Every Christian is gifted forsome ministry; therefore, all believersare ministers (1 Corinthians 12:7-8).

There are different kinds of gifts, butthe same Spirit. There are differentkinds of service [ministries], but thesame Lord (1 Corinthians 12:4-5).

For as the body is one and has manymembers, but all the members of thatbody, being many, are one body, so alsois Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12).

To each is given the manifestationof the Spirit for the common good . . .now you are the body of Christ and in-dividually members of it . . . since youare eager for the manifestation of theSpirit, strive to excel in building up thechurch (1 Corinthians 14:12).

The Role of Pastors and TeachersThe role of pastors and teachers is

spelled out in the New Testament. AndHis gifts were that some should be . . .pastors and teachers for the equipmentof the saints for the work of ministryfor building up the body of Christ (Eph-esians 4:11, 12).

The first task of ministers is toequip, teach, and strengthen the laityto carry on its ministry in the world.

The Role of the LaityThe primary ministry of church

members is in the work for the procla-mation of the gospel and service tohumanity.

“The minister should not feel that itis his duty to duty to do all the talking


“This fact, that every Christian has a gift and therefore a responsibility,and that no Christian is passed by and left without an endowment, is funda-mental to the New Testament doctrine of the church. It should also transform thelife of Christians and churches. Many church leaders complain that the con-gregation lacks gifted lay leadership, and this is the standard excuse for at-tempting little. But Scripture addresses each local church with the same wordwhich Paul used to the Corinthians: ‘You are the body of Christ.’ Thus, Scriptureand assumptions in the church are often at variance with each other; appear-ances indicating that the congregation is destitute of gifts, while Scripture says,‘It is not so! You are the body of Christ.’ If we take God at His word, then we arecommitted to believe that He has endowed, or at least is willing to endow, eachlocal church with all the gifts it needs for life, health, growth, and ministry.”—John Stott

and all the laboring and all the pray-ing; he should educate helpers in everychurch.”—Christian Service, p. 69

The necessary gifts. The localchurch has the necessary gifts for effec-tive ministry and growth. The fact thatevery Christian has a gift and, there-fore, a responsibility, that no Christianis passed by and left without endow-ment, is fundamental to the New Tes-tament doctrine of the church. It shouldalso transform the lives of Christiansand churches.

Cooperative EffortsPastors and members need to work

together. “Let ministers and lay mem-bers go forth into the ripening fields.”—Christian Service, p. 67

“Every soul whom Christ has res-cued is called to work in His name forthe saving of the lost”—Christian Ser-vice, p. 10

“To every one work has been allot-ted, and no one can be a substitute foranother.”—Christian Service, p. 10

The greatest help. Not preaching,but teaching how to do soul winning.

“Let the minister devote more of histime to educating than to preaching.Let him teach the people how to giveto others the knowledge they have re-ceived.” —Testimonies, Volume 7, p. 20

“The greatest help that can be givenour people is to teach them to work forGod, and to depend on Him, not on theministers.”—Testimonies, Volume 7, p.19

Too much sermonizing . “Thepeople have had too much sermoniz-ing; but have they been taught how tolabor for those for whom Christ died?—Testimonies, Volume 6, p. 431

Supervision and help. Lay work-ers need supervision and help oncethey begin their work. This help willbe given by the pastors and by experi-enced lay persons.Problems of Inactivity

Inactivity breeds church problems,criticism, and a variety of other prob-


lems.“ Those who do not take up thiswork, those who act with the indiffer-ence that some have manifested, willsoon lose their first love, and will be-gin to censure, criticize, and condemntheir own brethren.”—Christian Ser-vice, p. 115

If leaders don’t enjoy keeping mem-bers busy, Satan does.

“When the churches are left to in-activity Satan sees to it that they areemployed. He occupies the field, andengages the members in lines of workthat absorb their energies, destroyspirituality, and cause them to fall asdead weights upon the church.”—Tes-timonies, Volume 6, p. 425

Motivating Factors ForWitnessing

“No sooner is one converted thanthere is born within him a desire tomake known to others what a preciousfriend he has found in Jesus. The sav-ing and sanctifying truth cannot beshut up in his heart.”—The Desire ofAges, p. 141

There are many factors that maymotivate church members to witness.Some of the primary ones are:

Factor 1: Witnessing is a bibli-cal command.

Go ye therefore, and teach all na-tions, baptizing them in the name of theFather, and of the Son, and of the HolyGhost, teaching them to observe allthings whatsoever I have commandedyou, and Io, I am with you alway, evenunto the end of the world (Matthew28:19, 20).

Arise, shine, for your light has come,and the glory of the Lord rises upon you(Isaiah 60:1).

For this is what the Lord has com-manded us: ‘I have made you a lightfor the Gentiles that you may bring sal-vation to the ends of the earth’ (Acts13:47).

But you will receive power when theHoly Spirit comes on you; and you willbe my witnesses in Jerusalem, and inall Judea and Samaria, and to the endsof the earth (Acts 1:8).

Return to your house and describewhat great things the Lord has donefor you (Mark 5:19).

Factor 2: The Lord calls each ofHis followers to be:

• Witnesses (Acts 1:8)• Ambassadors (2 Corinthians

5:20)• Participants in the ministry of

reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:17-19)• Co-laborers with God (1 Corin-

thians 3:9)• The light and the salt of the

earth (Matthew 5:13, 14)

Factor 3. Witnessing is theheart’s response to love.

The love of Christ constrains us (2Corinthians 5:15).

It is by this that we know what loveis: that Christ laid down His life forus. And we in our turn are bound tolay down our lives for our brothers. Butif a man has enough to live on, and yetwhen he sees his brother in need shutsup his heart against him, how can itbe said that the divine love dwells inhim? My children, love must not be amatter of words or talk; it must be genu-


ine, and show itself in action (1 John3:16-18).

“No sooner is one converted thanthere is born within him a desire tomake known to others what a preciousfriend he has found in Jesus. The sav-ing and sanctifying truth cannot beshut up in his heart.”—The Desire ofAges, p. 141

“Christ came to the earth and stoodbefore the children of men with thehoarded love of eternity, and this is thetreasure that, through our connectionwith Him, we are to receive, to reveal,and to impart.” —The Ministry of Heal-ing, p. 37

Factor 4: Witnessing brings joyto the heart of God.

The well-known parables in Luke15 about the lost sheep, the lost coinand the lost son tell us that wheneverthe lost is found there is joy in heaven.

“I tell you that in the same way therewill be more rejoicing in heaven overone sinner who repents than overninety-nine righteous persons who donot need to repent” (Luke 15:7).

“In the same way, I tell you, there isrejoicing in the presence of the angelsof God over one sinner who repents”(Luke 15:10).

“But we had to celebrate and be gladbecause this brother of yours was deadand is alive again. He was lost and isfound” (Luke 15:32).

If there is joy in heaven when thelost is found, we will experience thissame joy in doing our work for souls.What we do also gives joy to God’s heartand demonstrates that the sacrifice ofJesus was not in vain.

Factor 5: Witnessing contrib-utes to spiritual life. There is a rela-tionship between witnessing and char-acter development.

“God could have reached His objectin saving sinners without our aid; butin order for us to develop a characterlike Christ’s, we must share in His work.In order to enter into His joy, the joy ofseeing souls redeemed by His sacrifice,we must participate in His labors fortheir redemption.”—The Desire of Ages,p. 142

The Lord could plan a special pro-gram or send a special dream so every-one would know about the second com-ing of Christ within one night. Hedoesn’t do that for two important rea-sons:

The Lord wants us to de-velop a character like Christ’s.

He wants us to experiencethe joy of seeing souls re-deemed by His sacrifice.

A Christlike character is the onlything that we will bring to heaven. Andit is possible to be developed if we areworking together with Him. Those whoare involved will have stronger powerto resist evil. It is important to involveas many people as possible in witness-ing activities.

“Strength to resist evil is best gainedby aggressive service.”—The Acts of theApostles, p. 105


Factor 6: The church is thebody of Christ. The human body con-sists of systems such as the respiratorysystem, the digestive system, the car-diovascular system, the muscular-skel-etal system.

Illustration. For instance, whatparts of the body are included in therespiratory system? The nose, thethroat, the lungs, etc. What is one verysmall body part in the respiratory sys-tem that is very important? A very tinything called the cilia.

Without the cilia, it is very easy forone to have a problem with emphysemaor lung cancer. Therefore, although acertain part of the body is small, it isstill important.

Everyone using spiritual gifts.The same thing is true with churchmembers. Everyone has a special workto do. There is no one in the church whois not important.

As each one has received a specialgift, employ it in serving one another,as good stewards of the manifold graceof God (1 Peter 4:10).

Factor 7: Witnessing is relatedto Jesus’ second advent. And thisgospel of the kingdom shall be preachedin the whole world as a testimony toall nations, and then the end will come(Matthew 24:14).

All true believers would like to goto heaven as soon as possible to be re-lieved of this sinful world, and it is veryclear that the preaching of the gospelis related to the time of Christ’s secondcoming.

“Time is short, and our forces mustbe organized to do a larger work.”—Testimonies, Volume 9, p. 27

“We are now living in the closing

scenes of this world’s history. Let mentremble with the sense of the responsi-bility of knowing the truth. The ends ofthe world are come. Proper consider-ation of these things will lead all to makean entire consecration of all that theyhave and are to their God.”—Reviewand Herald, July 23, 1895

The latter rain cannot come untilthe “largest portion of the church are. . . laborers together with God.”—Re-view and Herald, July 21, 1896

Factor 8: The glory of God. “Weare to encourage souls, to attract them,and thus win them to the Saviour. If thisis not our interest, if we withhold fromGod the service of heart and life, we arerobbing Him of influence, of time, ofmoney and effort. In failing to benefitour fellow men, we rob God of the glorythat should flow to Him through theconversion of souls.”—Testimonies, Vol-ume 6, p. 427

Factor 9: Recognition and creditto lay members. Since lay membersoffer such great help, they deserve tobe given credit and thanks in publica-tions and special meetings. It is alsopertinent to offer incentives such as cer-tificates, books, and outreach relatedequipment, etc. to help in their soul win-ning projects. Recognition that is givento our lay members can motivate themto do more witnessing activities becausethey feel that they have achieved some-thing for the Lord.


Discussion 1 - “The Church Is Mission”

1. What does the statement “The Church Is Mission”mean?

2. Why is it important? Discuss its implications for indi-vidual members and the congregation as a whole.

Discussion 2 - Laos and kleros

1. What is the meaning of laos and kleros? What difference does it maketo understand these two words?

2. Discuss the role of the pastor and the church members in the light ofthese two words and explain how they seem to be applied in your local church.

Discussion 3 - Nine motivating factors

1. How can you employ the nine motivating factors for witnessing in yourchurch?



6The Process of Witnessing

IntroductionIt is important to learn from the

methods of Jesus and others in theBible how they were successful in wit-nessing activities.

Jesus used five steps in witnessing

? He mingled with people asone who desired their good.? He showed sympathy.? He ministerd to theirneeds.? He won their confidence.? He bade people “follow me.”

“Mingling” means doing thingstogether. This may be visiting, work-ing, playing, or just sitting and talkingtogether. By mingling we discoverpeople’s needs.

“Sympathy” means an attitude ofpersonal concern. Sympathy does notwait until the person asks for help. Itis always expressed by some kind of ac-tion that communicates an honest, un-selfish concern for someone who has aneed.

“Ministered to their needs” meansmeeting the needs of people, whetherphysical, mental, or spiritual. This isdone by serving, waiting on, or attend-ing someone in real need, although realneeds are not always easily recognized.

“Won their confidence.” This isthe result of meeting people’s needs.

“Follow me” is the appeal to fol-low Christ and become a member of theKingdom of God, the real answer tohuman needs. The appeal came afterJesus met the needs of the people andhad won their confidence.

“From Christ’s method of labor wemay learn valuable lessons. He did notfollow only one method; in variousways He sought to gain the attentionof the multitude, that He might pro-claim to them the truths of the gos-pel”—Welfare Ministry, p. 59

Jesus identified and worked withfelt needs

Experience Felt Need

Wedding feast

Felt need is toavoid socialembarrassment.

Nicodemus Felt need is forgenuinespirituality.

Woman at thewell

Felt need is foremotional security.

Man at the pool Felt need is fordivine healing.

Hungrymultitude

Felt need is forphysical food.


Examples of PersonalEvangelism Principles

Discussion 1 - Describe and discuss the five things Jesusdid when he witnessed to people.Discussion 2 - What are the five things you should dowhen you initiate a conversation in witnessing?


Discussion 3 -If people are not interested, what are the two things youshould do?Discussion 4 - If you feel led by the Spirit to witness, discuss the six thingsyou should do.

Jesus and the SamaritanWoman

?Contact others socially.

?Establish common ground.

?Arouse interest.

?Get the ball rolling.

?Don’t go too far.

?Don’t condemn.

?Stay with the main issue.

?Confront the person directly.

If The Opportunity to ShareYour Faith Arises

?Begin by speaking aboutworld conditions.

?Some of those interestedmay require further visitation.

?Start the conversation on apoint of interest.

?Share some of yourself first,then ask a suitable question.

?Positively affirm what peoplesay.

?Share a part of your spiritualself.

When Talking With People

? Drop it.

? God will not give up onthem, but this is not the right mo-ment.

If They Are Not Interested

? Ask them about their spiri-tual standing.

? Wait for their reaction.

? If they answer with an en-thusiastic yes:

• Continue a friendly conversa-tion.

• Give them a gospel leaflet.• Arrange to meet again.

If You Feel Led By the Spirit


Key Laws of Witnessing“In order to lead souls to Jesus,

there must be a knowledge of humannature.”—Testimonies, vol. 4, p. 67

?The Law of Human CompassionThe work of Adventists is to “first

meet the temporal needs,” and “thenfind an open avenue to the heart”where they can “plant good seeds of vir-tue and religion.”—Testimonies, vol. 4,p. 227

Jesus showed sympathy andministerd to people’s needs.

• To the scribe he said “You are notfar from the kingdom of God.”

• To the Canaanite womanhe said, “Great is thy faith.”

• Of the Roman soldiershe said, “Forgive them.”

Some Key Statements“Any human being who needs our

sympathy and our kind offers is ourneighbor. The suffering and destituteof all classes are our neighbor; andwhen their wants are brought to ourknowledge, it is our duty to relievethem as far as possible.”—Testimonies,vol. 4 p. 266

“Christ’s followers have been re-deemed for service. Our Lord teachesthat the true objective of life is minis-try.”— Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 326

The Laws of theHuman Mind

Community ServiceCommunity Service is a great way

to put this principle into practice.

• Feed the hungry Matt. 14:16• Clothe the naked Luke 3:11• Welcome strangers Matt. 25:35• Visit the sick Matt. 25:36• Visit the prisoners Matt. 25:35• Visit the widows James 1:27• Visit the orphans James 1:27• Refresh the thirsty Matt. 25:35• Comfort those in trouble or bereaved 2 Cor. 1:4

?The Principle of ReceptivityAs the Holy Spirit works with

people, they become receptive at differ-ent times. These times can be identi-fied and used as a bridge to present thegospel.

• Family dilema• Emotional crisis• Financial crisis• Health problem• Political, economic or religious

trauma• Personal crisis

Emotional and Physical NeedsThe urgency of meeting various

needs, whether emotional, physical, so-cial, or spiritual.

Emotional—If the individual isexperiencing grief or divorce, there isgrief recovery and divorce recovery.

Physical—Some people are heavysmokers. They need to enroll inBreathe Free classes.


?The Law of Divine ProvidenceThe Lord will help us to meet people

who need the Savior. My Father is al-ways at His work to this very day, andI, too, am working (John 5:1).

God the Father, Jesus, and the HolySpirit are working with us, and becausethey are working, the Lord will cause

Discussion 1 - Laws of the mind.

Review with the group the three laws of the mind studiedin this section.

Discussion 2 - Using the laws.What would your local church have to do to organize itself

so it can develop ministries that utilize these laws of the mind?

Discussion 3 - Ministries in your church.What kinds of ministries would you need in your church to meet the needs of

people who are at various stages of the spiritual interest line?


us to meet people who need the Sav-iour so that we can share the gospelwith them.

Examples. The conversions ofPaul, Cornelius and the Ethiopian.

The bridge -People who care

No spiritualinterest

Truth seekerGod mayexist - but isimpersonal

Occasionalchurch goer

Regularlyattends as

religious duty

Spiritualopeness

Adventist churchattender - not

baptized

The Spiritual Interest Line


Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Biological/Pysiological Needs

Safety Needs

Love Needs

EsteemNeeds

Oxygen, food, water, shelter

Security, Protection, Stability

Belonging, Acceptance, Affection

Prestige, Recognition, Feeling Competent

Meeting the need for self-actualizatoin is contingent upon ourhaving met to a certain degree thoseneeds that have preceded.—BonnidellClouse, “Teaching for Moral Growth”1993 Victor Books/SP Publicatons, Inc.

Self-Actualization/Fulfillment


Ways and Means ofPresenting the Gospel

The FORT PrincipleA simple way of witnessing is to use

the FORT principle.

Family

Occupation

Religion

Testimony

How FORT WorksTalk about family first because

people are usually inter-ested in talking about theirfamily.

Then ask about their oc-cupation or work.

Then ask what churchthey presently attend.

Finally share a personaltestimony.

A Christian can be an ef-fective witness for Christ if he or shehas a forceful personal testimony toshare.The three basic elements of a tes-timony are:

• My life before accepting Christ• How I became a Christian• My life since I became a Chris-

tian.A consistent life as a Christian is a

tremendous witness.

The Example of Paul in Acts 26Some Christians find it difficult to

give their personal testimony. The ex-ample of the apostle Paul may be help-ful.

In Acts 26, we have the account ofPaul appearing before King Agrippa.

In verses 4–11, Paul gives us thepicture of his early training as a Phari-see and what he did to the early Chris-tian church.

In verses 12–15 he tells of his per-sonal encounter with Jesus.

Verses 16–23 reveal the directionsGod gave to Paul.

In verse 28, the response from KingAgrippa was “Almost thou persuadestme to be a Christian.” In answer toAgrippa’s response, Paul replied,“Short time or long—I pray God thatnot only you but all who are listeningto me today may become what I am,except for these chains” (NIV).

Paul extended an invitation to ev-ery person in the king’s party to acceptJesus as their Lord and Saviour.

Emphasize the PositiveBe sure you know personally that

by faith Jesus Christ is your Saviour.You can use biblical examples such asPaul’s and outline them as testimoniesusing the following pattern:

1. What I was before I became aChristian.

2. How I became a Christian.3. What Jesus Christ has meant in

my life.If you feel frightened or inad-

equate. Write out your testimony us-ing the three points suggested above.

Make your testimony brief. Threeto five minutes is sufficient.


Introduce the Simplicity of theGospel

Present God FirstGod is the beginning of every-

thing: Of creation (Genesis 1:1) andof salvation (Psalm 3:8; 68:20).

God loves you. This is a posi-tive, effective way to begin your pre-sentation. God has a special plan foryour life. This is a message peopleneed to hear.

Human BeingsThis brings us to the sin problem.• Sin brings separation and

death (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 6:23).• Since all have sinned (Ro-

mans 3:23), all are separated fromGod.

All men need Christ and his sal-

vation, because all are totally incapableof reaching God and the abundant lifethrough their own efforts.

Jesus Jesus is God’s answer to man’s

problem of sin and separation.Christ came to be the solution to the

sin problem.Christ came to us, lived with us,

died for us, ascended for us and inter-cedes for us (Hebrews 7:25).

Jesus says, “I am the way.”

Accepting God’s SolutionTo simply know about the problem

of separation because of sin, and thatChrist is God’s answer to man’s prob-lem is not enough. We must receiveChrist as our salvation. There has tobe an act of will on our part. We chooseto receive Christ.

Ellen White on the Simplicity of the Gospel

“Present the gospel in its simplicity. Follow Christ’s example, and you willhave the reward of seeing your students won to Him.”—Counsels to Teachers, p.255

“Thousands of hearts can be reached in the most simple way. The most in-tellectual, those who are looked upon and praised as the world’s great and giftedmen and women, are often refreshed by the most humble, simple words spokenby one who loves God, who can speak of that love as naturally as worldlings canspeak of those things which their minds contemplate and feed upon. Words,even if well prepared and studied, have little influence, but the true, honestwork of a son or a daughter of God in words, or in a service of little things, donein natural simplicity, will unbolt the door, which has long been locked, to manysouls.”—Evangelism, p. 443

“Even the great men are more easily drawn by the simplicity of the gospelthan by any effort made in human power.”—Evangelism, p. 443

“What you need is a living experience in the things of God and simplicity inpresenting the love of Christ to the lost.”—Sons and Daughters of God, p. 266


How To Find Interests

The Oikos PrincipleThe most productive source

of interests and ultimate con-versions to the church arethose that are generated bywhat is called the oikos method.

What’s an oikos? TheGreek word oikos means house,but in the Bible it is often usedin the broader sense of thehousehold, or extended family.

It is the principle recom-mended by Jesus and used throughoutthe New Testament. This networkingprinciple is the most effective soul-win-ning method.

According to some studies, 75-90%of people have joined the church be-cause of friends or relatives. This indi-cates that the oikos system is still validnow.

The Example of MatthewAs he walked along, he saw Levi son

of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’sbooth. ‘Follow me,’ Jesus told him, andLevi got up and followed him.

While Jesus was having dinner atLevi’s house, many tax collectors andsinners were eating with him and hisdisciples, for there were many who fol-lowed him (Mark 2:14,15).

With the principles previously ex-amined, the next step is to find inter-ests with whom to study.

Interests come from many sources:People who visit the church, friendsand families of church members, me-dia program students, etc.

The phrase “was having dinner atLevi’s house, many tax collectors and‘sinners’” represents Matthew’s oikos,his social network of friends and workaquaintances.

Fishing of People“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and

I will make you fishers of men.” At once

they left their nets and followed him.(Mark 4:19, 20)

If you fish with a hook, you catchone fish at a time. If you fish with anet, you get many fish at the sametime. The oikos principle is fishing witha net.

How to DevelopYour PersonalOikos

Step 1 - Identify your personaloikos. Use the diagram on the follow-ing page.

Step 2 - Develop a personalityprofile of the each member of youroikos.

Write a short paragraph describingeach member of your oikos. You prob-ably already know them well, but ithelps to write the description. Includeelements such as the following, and anyothers that are pertinent.

Ellen White on the Oikos Principle“This was the way the Christian church was

established. Christ first selected a few personsand bade them follow Him. They then went insearch of their relatives and acquaintances, andbrought them to Christ. This is the way we areto labor. A few souls brought out and fully es-tablished on the truth will, like the first dis-ciples, be laborers for others”—Welfare Minis-try, p. 60.


Building Your Personal Oikos

Placeyourname

Place the names of five people or categoriesof people you would like to win to the gospelin these five circles


More ways to find interests

There are many ways to find andfollow up on interests.

• People who visit the church orparticipate in some activity are recep-tive and should be visited or contactedregularly.

• Visitors who attend Sabbathschool.

• Individuals who have completeda Bible correspondence course.

• Parents of children who attendVacation Bible School.

• Friends from the Ingatheringprogram.

• Non-SDA students studying inAdventist schools and their parents.

• Regular customers of literatureevangelists.

• Those who attended evangelis-tic meetings and have not yet madetheir decision for Jesus.

The Power of a Prospect ListA prospect list is a key to finding

interests. Find someone in the churchwho has gifts of administration andenjoys working with lists and keepingup contacts.

• Record the names of people whohave any kind of contact with thechurch.

• Send out a printed newsletter,or an E-mail newsletter, or develop aweb site for the church.

• List all the activities of thechurch, its ministries, etc.

• Send the information to every-one on the prospect list on a regularbasis.

Notes


• How much he or she knowsabout the Bible

• Interests• Personal concerns• Level of receptivity• Level of openness to spiritual

matters

Step 3 - Develop a discipleshipplan designed to win the membersof your oikos.

The discipleship plan should in-clude how much time you will spendwith your oikos each week. Divide thetime into three parts

1/3 praying for the members

1/3 studying how to win souls

1/3 contact with oikos members

Step 4 -Learn to use under-standable language

Adventists use terms that otherpeople do not understand. Do not useterms like “the pen of inspiration,” etc.When people decide to take Bible stud-ies, or join baptismal classes there willbe opportunity to teach them this vo-cabulary.

Gospel PresentationLearn to give a gospel presentation.

See the information above or use thissimple gospel presentation.

• All have sinned and deservedeath.

• God loves us and sent His Sonto die for us.

• If we accept Jesus, we becomechildren of God and find salvation.

• We can know that we have sal-vation now.

Discussion 1 - Oikos member profile.Develop a personality profile for one of the people on your

oikos list and share it with the members of the group.

Discussion 2 - Gospel presentation.In the group practice giving a simple gospel presenta-

tion.


Discussion 3 - Adventist expressions.Make a list of typical Adventist expressions that should be avoided during

initial contacts with people and practice talking about the gospel withoutusing these expressions.


IntroductionGiving Bible studies to individuals or

to small groups has always been, and con-tinues to be, a key soul winning strategy.

Along with the concept ofsmall groups, the Biblestudy method is said to beof divine origin.

“The plan of holdingBible readings was a heaven-born idea. There are many,

both men and women, who can engage inthis branch of missionary labor.”—GospelWorkers, p. 192

“By this means the Word of God hasbeen given to thousands; and the workersare brought into personal contact withpeople of all nations and tongues. TheBible is brought into families, and its sa-cred truths come home to the conscience.Men are entreated to read, examine, andjudge for themselves, and they must abidethe responsibility of receiving or rejectingthe divine enlightenment. God will notpermit this precious work for Him to gounrewarded. He will crown with successevery humble effort made in His name.”—Gospel Workers, p. 192

Simple MethodsSimple methods of Bible study have

proven very successful around the world.• Anyone can quickly master the

methods.• Students learn better and faster.

• Students are rapidly trained andequipped with complete guides for Biblestudy.

“Our work has been marked out forus by our heavenly Father. We are to takeour Bibles and go forth to warn theworld.”—Testimonies, vol. 9, p.150

“Hundreds and thousands were seenvisiting families and opening before themthe word of God. Hearts were convicted bythe power of the Holy Spirit, and a spiritof genuine conversion was manifest. Onevery side doors were thrown open to theproclamation of the truth. The worldseemed to be lightened with the heavenlyinfluence.”—Testimonies, vol. 9, p. 126

Preparation NeededBefore every major event in His min-

istry, Jesus prayed for guidance and help(Mark 1:35; Luke 9:18, 28, 29).

• Pray for wisdom (James 1:5; He-brews 4:16).

• Pray for the guidance of the HolySpirit (John 16:13).

Heart PreparationMy son, give me your heart and let your

eyes keep to my ways (Proverbs 23:26).But you will receive power when the

Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will bemy witnesses in Jerusalem, and in allJudea and Samaria, and to the ends of theearth (Acts 1:8)

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Re-sist the devil, and he will flee from you.

7

How To Give Bible Studies


Come near to God and he will come nearto you (James 4:7, 8).

“The soul that is yielded to Christ be-comes His own fortress, which He holdsin a revolted world, and He intends thatno authority shall be known in it but Hisown. A soul thus kept in possession byheavenly agencies is impregnable to theassaults of Satan. But unless we do yieldourselves to the control of Christ, we shallbe dominated by the wicked one.”—TheDesire of Ages, p. 324

Preparation of MaterialsCertain basic tools are need to effec-

tively give Bible studies:

• A Bible, preferably including a con-cordance

• Bible Study guides• Visual aids of some type

Mental PreparationDo your best to present yourself to God

as one approved, a workman who does notneed to be ashamed and who correctlyhandles the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15)

Building Interests for BibleStudies

The New Testament method of creat-ing and building interest is through mak-ing friends with people.

Friendship EvangelismJesus loved people and never failed

to help them (Mark 1:41; 6: 34).Jesus was friendly to all kinds of

people (Matthew 9:10; Mark 2:15).He showed interest in every one he

met and tried to give them spiritual help(John 3:1, 2, John 4:7).

If you want to win people to Jesus, youmust be friendly to them (Proverbs 18:24).

Make Use of OpportunitiesThere are many opportunities to of-

fer help and friendship:• Sickness• Death in a family• New neighbors• People in prison• Widows• Elderly people• Home visitation“How can the great work of the third

angel’s message be accomplished? It mustlargely be accomplished by persevering, in-dividual effort, by visiting the people intheir homes.”—Welfare Ministry, p. 97

“There are families who will never bereached by the truth of God’s word unlessHis servants enter their home.”—Evange-lism, pp. 435, 436

“Our Savior went from house to house,healing the sick, comforting the mourn-ers, soothing the afflicted, speaking peaceto the disconsolate.”—Christian Service, p.114

The New Testament Church“The more closely the New Testament

plan is followed in missionary labor, themore successful will be the efforts putforth.”—Testimonies, vol. 3, p. 210

Day after day, in the temple courts andfrom house to house, they never stoppedteaching and proclaiming the good newsthat Jesus is the Christ (Acts 5:42).

• They grew (Acts 2:47)• The whole city was evangelized

(Acts 17:6)• More baptisms (Acts 2:41, 4:4)• Penetrating Unentered Areas (Acts

8:4)


• Paul “taught publicly and fromhouse to house”(Acts 20:20)

Prospects for Finding Bible StudiesProspects for Bible studies can be

found in many ways:• Distribute a single tracts or a se-

ries of tracts.• Place Bible study enrollment cards

in doors.• Mass mail enrollment cards to

postal areas.• Encourage church members to

carry enrollment cards with them.• Give or lend books.• Share a video or audiocassette.• Use a Religious Interest Survey.• Use a Community Service survey—

Community Service recipients and otherpeople helped by the church.

• Literature Evangelists’ paid-out ac-counts.

• Media and journal interests• Former church members• Neighborhood study groups

Notes


A typical Bible study should be about30-40 minutes long and should be basedon an outline that contains:

• Introduction• Body• Appeal or Conclusion

The IntroductionThe purpose of the intro-

duction is to awaken the inter-est of the hearers.

Let your introduction state-ment make a lasting impression. It coldbe?A short story?Important world events?An arresting text that introduces

the topic?An appetizer that will make people

crave the main dish

The Body of the StudyThe body of the Bible

study contains the following ele-ments:?It comprises the main part of the

study.?The body should satisfy the inter-

est created by the introduction.?It must be solid and in logical se-

quence from beginning to end.?Use verses that have a direct con-

nection to the next verse.?Be brief and to the point. 10 to 15

texts are sufficient.?End your study before the interest

fades.

The ConclusionThe conclusion and ap-

peal of the Bible study containthe following elements:?A summary of the study?An appeal.?Preview of the next topic

General Principles ofConducting a Bible Study

The following general principles willhelp make a Bible study successful:

?Begin the study with prayer.

?Be punctual. If you are consis-tently late, the students will also arrivelate, and soon the study group will dis-solve.

?The ideal number of persons for aBible Study is six to ten. This number al-lows everyone to participate.

?Take time to establish a friendlyspirit before Bible study begins. Make sureeveryone is introduced and is comfortable.

? It is best to sit in a circle. Thisgives everyone opportunity to feel comfort-able and participate.

?Be understanding and tolerant ofthe people attending the study.

?Be careful and use good judgmentin expressing yourself.

Teaching MethodsFor a successful study, use the follow-

ing teaching methods:

? The best teachingmethod is questions and

answers. The best ques-tions include words such

The Contents andProcess of a BibleStudy


as how, when, where, what, who and why.

?Speak slowly and clearly, but don’tpreach. A Bible study is not a sermon, it isa teaching event. Encourage discussion.

? Review the high points of thetopic. Read Bible texts clearly. If studentsdo not read them clearly, repeat the text,emphasizing the most important words.

? Do not hurry through a Biblestudy; make each point clear before youmove to another topic.

? Encourage students to participatein the study by having them read Bibletexts and ask questions.

? Always compliment good answers,even if they are not quite accurate. Givethe student credit for trying.

? After students give their answers,you might say, “Does anyone have a dif-ferent answer?” This opens the door forclarifying questions people may have.

? Always listen and ask furtherquestions rather than just giving directanswers. This is the inductive method andhelps people toward understanding.

? Try to make sure everyone under-stands the topic under consideration.People learn at different rates of speed andin different ways, so be patient.

? Make brief and relevant com-ments as you go along.

? Never introduce ideas for whichthe Bible student does not have sufficientbackground.

Use of IllustrationsUse illustrations as part of the study.

Illustrations are like windows that bringin fresh air.

Illustrations emphasize the point be-ing studied. They create deeper and morelasting impressions in the heart and mind

Illustrations should be short and tothe point.

Humorous illustrations are acceptableif they truly illustrate a point, but avoidcomical illustrations and jokes that don’tteach anything.

What Not To DoDon’t preach. Don’t preach, lecture,

shout at the students, or get angry. If somestudents do any of these things, find a wayto calm them down and continue with thestudy. If you find yourself in a really diffi-cult situation, it is better to say somethinglike, “We don’t seem very inclined to studyright now, so why don’t we just haveprayer, let the Spirit speak to us, and wewill continue next week.”

Stick to the subject. Don’t get side-tracked into studying something otherthan the topic at hand. Questions almostalways arise that deal with future topics.When this happens, simply say, “We willstudy that topic in the future, so why don’twe wait until then and we can find a fullanswer to the question.”

“I don’t know.” Don’t be embar-rassed about questions you cannot answer.Tell the students you will study the issueand bring back an answer.

Too much. Don’t give too much in-formation in a single Bible study. The hu-man mind can only absorb one or two prin-ciple points at a time, and these need tobe presented three or four times until theyare well understood.

Never argue. If a controversial point


comes up, say, “That is a good point to con-sider, even though we may not agree onan answer right now. Maybe after westudy some more we will find some pointsof agreement.”

Positive approach. Don’t criticize orspeak disrespectfully about other peopleand other religions. The purpose of a Biblestudy is to teach what the Bible says andlet people draw their own conclusions.

Quit! After Bible study, stay just longenough to greet people and wish them well.There is a time for social visitation, but itis better to leave right after a study is con-cluded. Staying too long upsets the rou-tine of the household and makes peoplefeel obliged to serve food. This can causeproblems and should be avoided. If thestudy is in a public place, stop on time sopeople can go home. If the study is too longand people get home late, they will stopattending.

Theological discussions. Don’t getinto theological discussions after thestudy. Unless you adhere to systematicpresentation of the topics, people will be-gin to share personal opinions instead ofsearching for Bible truth. This can lead tomisunderstandings, bits and pieces of in-formation with no conclusions, and otherdifficulties.

Sequence of TopicsMost Bible study orders of topics use

a logical arrangement, usually startingwith a study about the Bible itself and pro-gressing through the plan of salvation andthe doctrines of the church. Psychological Arrangement

Dr. K.S. Wiggins, an Adventist psy-chologist and evangelist, offers the follow-ing advise regarding the order of topics,for Bible studies and for public evangelism

presentations:“It has long been the practice of Sev-

enth-day Adventist evangelists to arrangetheir topics in logical order. The only thingwrong with this is that the human minddoes not work logically. Much better re-sults are obtained if the topics are ar-ranged in a psychological order.”—SoulWinning Made Easy, p. 37

The psychological order helps in twoimportant ways:

1. It keeps interest high throughoutthe series.

2. It makes decisions easier.The idea is to include some especially

interesting studies at certain points in theseries to keep interest high. The sugges-tion is that the subjects be arranged inthree major blocks:

1. Salvation through Christ alone2. What Christ wants us to believe and

do3. Decisions to enter Christ’s last-day

church.

The Role of the Plan of SalvationWhether you follow a logical or psy-

chological order of topics, always presentthe plan of salvation as the basis of Chris-tianity. In areas where people must movefrom another religion to Christianity, youmay have to begin with studies dealingwith the role of religion in life, or someother introduction to Christianity itself.In areas where people worship many gods,you may have to include some studies onmonotheism and the reasons for worship-ing only one God.

Present doctrinal topics after the stu-dent has made a commitment to Jesus asLord and Savior.

Present the distinctive teachings ofSeventh-day Adventists after people have


accepted Jesus and made a commitmentto follow him.

The following sequences of topics aresuggestions and should be adapted to usewith the various target audiences to whomthe studies are given. Choose a sequenceof topics that meets the needs of the stu-dents.

A Typical SequenceThe following sequence is a typical or-

der that can be used in many venues. No-tice that in this order the plan of salva-tion comes far down on the list. That isdone intetionally as part of the decisionmaking process.

Sequence ofTopics

1. The Word of God2. Daniel 23. The second coming of Jesus4. Signs of the second coming of Jesus5. The millennium6. The destiny of the wicked7. The home of the redeemed8. The prophecies of Daniel9. Christ our high priest10. The investigative judgment11. The law and the gospel12. The Sabbath13. The Sabbath in the New Testament14. Origins of Sunday observance15. The origin of evil angels16. The work of good angels17. The state of the dead18. Spiritism19. The great controversy betweenChrist

and Satan20. The seal of God and the mark of the

beast21. Jesus saves those who are lost22. Faith

23. Precious promises24. The ordinances of the church25. Christian standards and duties26. The human body as a temple27. Prayer28. The work of the Holy Spirit

Another Sequence of TopicsThis sequence begins with the origins

of sin and the plan of salvation and thenpresents biblical doctrines, with decisionstudies mixed in.

1. The Holy Trinity2. The Creator and the creation3. The origin of evil4. The mystery of redemption revealed5. The Holy Scriptures6. Jesus saves sinners7. Faith8. The human body as the temple of God9. Prayer10. The work of the Holy Spirit11. The coming kingdom of Christ12. Signs of the Christ’s coming13. The millennium14. The destiny of the wicked15. The home of the saved16. Christ our high priest17. The investigative judgment18. The law and the gospel19. The Sabbath20. The Sabbath in the New Testament21. The origins of Sunday observance22. The work of God’s angels23. The nature of human beings and the state

of the dead24. Spiritism25. Christian standards and duties26. Precious promises27. Church ordinances and the rite of bap-tism


Discover Bible LessonsThe Discover Bible Lessons, interna-

tional edition, is a primary resource. It isproduced by the Voice of Prophecy Dis-cover Bible School and has been adoptedby the International Bible CorrespondenceSchool Association and the SabbathSchool/Personal Ministries department ofthe General Conference.

The series is available in printed form,on CD and on the Internet at VOP.com.The series can be used in printed form forgiving personal Bible studies, as studymaterial in small group ministries, orstudied directly on the Internet. The se-quence of lessons is as follows:

1. We can believe in God.2. We can believe the Bible.3. Does my life really matter to God?4. A plan for your life (Plan of salva-

tion).5. Bridge to a satisfying life (The cross).6. A second chance at life (How to be

saved).7. About your future (Daniel 2).8. When Jesus comes for you9. Your home in heaven (How soon will

Jesus return?)10. How Soon Will Jesus Return?11 Mysterious power in my life (The

Holy Spirit).12. An ever-present Saviour.13. From guilty sinner to forgiven saint

(The 70 week prophecy)14. The secret of answered prayer.15. The secret of happiness (The com-

mandments)16. The secret of heavenly rest (The

Sabbath)17. The secret of growth through

sharinging (Tithe)18. The secret of a healthy lifestyle.19 Entering the Christian life (Baptism)20. The secret of growth through fellow-

ship (Church membership)21 Can the majority be wrong? (Change

of the Sabbath)22. Is God fair? (The millennium)23. What and where is hell?24. When a person dies . . . what then?25. Can I find God’s church today?26. Does God have a special message for

today? (Three angels’ messages).

Sequence Built Around theThree Angels’ Messages

The sequence of presentations thatfollows is built around leading people toconfidence in God and an understandingof the plan of salvation within the contextof the three angels’ messages, all leadingto church membership.

It represents fourteen progressivesteps, each employing whatever numberof studies may be necessary to lead to adecision regarding the particular empha-sis of the step.

This is a logical arrangement of top-ics based on a progressive presentation ofboth the plan of salvation and the doc-trines of the Seventh-day Adventistchurch. It was originally designed specifi-cally for working with Roman Catholics,but is useful in other venues as well.

1. Why you can trust the Bible.2. The origin of evil3. How to obtain Christ’s free gift of

salvation4. What will heaven be like?5. How to have a happy, holy marriage6. The biblical relationship of law and

grace7. God’s test of loyalty8. The glorious second coming of

Christ9. The meaning and method of bap-

tism


The Faith of Jesus SequenceOne of the most used series of Bible

studies in the world is one employed inthe Spanish speaking divisions called TheFaith of Jesus. It is not currently avail-able in English, but the order of topics isworth considering.

1. What the Bible teaches about God2. The Holy Bible3. What the Bible teaches about prayer

and faith4. What the Bible teaches about the sec-

ond coming of Jesus5. What the Bible teaches about the

signs of the second coming of Jesus6. What the Bible teaches about the ori

gin of sin7. What the Bible teaches about salva

tion from sin8. What the Bible teaches about the for

giveness of sins9. What the Bible teaches about the

judgment10. What the Bible teaches about the law

of God11. What the Bible teaches about the day

of rest12. What the Bible teaches about how to

keep the Sabbath13. What the Bible teaches about death14. What the Bible teaches about the

church15. What the Bible teaches about the

gift of prophecy

10. A step-by-step study on themystery of death

11. The biblical description of hell12. What happens during the mil-

lennium?13. Bible facts about diet and

heatlh14. How God’s law bridges freedom.

16. What the Bible teaches aboutChristian standards

17. What the Bible teaches aboutbaptism

18. What the Bible teaches about God’splan of church finance

19. What the Bible teaches about theChristian life

20. God’s call to each of us

The Faith of Jesus series includes ad-vanced lessons that cover the followingtopics:

1. The future revealed (Daniel 2)2. The most extraordinary prophecy

(2300 years)3. The millennium4. The new earth5. The Holy Spirit6. The Christian home7. Christian life problems and difficul-

ties8. Privileges and duties of church

membership9. Ambassadors of Christ10. Ten secrets of victory

The Search for Certainty Sequence

This sequence is from the It is Writ-ten Search for Certainty lessons.

1. How to understand the Bible2. Our day in the light of Bible proph-

ecy3. A world in turmoil4. The manner of Christ’s coming5. How to find personal peace6. The secret of a new life7. Good God! Bad world! Why?8. Revelation’s most thrilling message9. The Bible’s longest and most amaz-

ing prophecy


Discussion 1 - Review the three parts of a Bible study.

Discussion 2 - Using the following topic, organize a Biblestudy using the three part system: “The Sabbath fromcreation to eternity.”

Discussion 3 - Using role playing or some other way of participation, practicesome of the general principles of giving a Bible study, both things you should doand things you should not do.

Discussion 4 - Review and practice the teaching methods studied.


10. A date with destiny: the judgment11. What’s behind rising crime, vio-

lence, and immorality?12. Christ’s special sign13. Tampering with Heaven’s consti-

tution14. Modern cults identified five ways15. Our greatest need—New lifestyle16. The real truth about death17. God’s love in the fires of hell17 How to successfully bury the past19. A financial secret20. Growing as a Chrsitian21. God’s church identified

22. Prophets and prophecy/visionsand dreams

23. The mystery of spiritual Babylonrevealed

24. Holy Spirit and unpardonable sin25. From disappointment to triumph26. The mark of the beast and the

myster of number 66627. The Untied States in prophecy28. Armageddon and the seven last

plagues29. Revelation predicts 1,000-year

world blackout30. Revlation’s glorious climax


The purpose of giving Bible studies,preaching sermons and teaching baptismclasses is to lead people to make decisionsfor Christ and church membership.

In the Bible, salvation is in thepresent tense. It is a free gift from God,but it is also something a person decideshe or she wants. That means each of usmakes a choice and a decision.

Today if ye will hear His voice hardennot your hearts (Hebrews 3:15).

Behold now is the accepted time; be-hold, now is the day of salvation (2 Corin-thians 6:2).

You do not have, because you do notask God (James 4:2).

Paul: I have become all things to allmen so that by all possible means I mightsave some. I do all this for the sake of thegospel, that I may share in its blessings.. . . For I am not seeking my own good butthe good of many, so that they may be saved(1 Corinthians 9: 23, 33).

Jesus to Paul: I have appeared to youto appoint you as a servant and as a wit-ness of what you have seen of me and whatI will show you. I will rescue you from yourown people and from the Gentiles. I am

8

How To Get Decisions

Introduction

What The Bible Says AboutDecisions

sending you to them to open their eyes andturn them from darkness to light, and fromthe power of Satan to God, so that they mayreceive forgiveness of sins and a placeamong those who are sanctified by faith inme (Acts 26: 16-18).

Jesus to His disciples: You did notchoose me, but I chose you and appointedyou to go and bear fruit—fruit that willlast. Then the Father will give you what-ever you ask in my name (John 15:16).

What Ellen White Says AboutDecisions

“Many are convicted of sin, and feeltheir need of a sin-pardoning Saviour. . . .If words are not spoken at the right mo-ment, calling for decision from the weightof evidence presented, the convicted onepasses on without identifying themselveswith Christ, golden opportunity passes,and they have not yielded, and they go far-ther away from the truth.”—Evangelism,page 283

”Bring them to the point to decide.Show them the importance of the truth; itis life or death. With becoming zeal pullsouls out of the fire.”—Testimonies, vol. 1,p. 151

“Many will be lost while hoping anddesiring to be Christians. They do not cometo the point of yielding to the will of God.They do not now choose to be Christians.”—Steps to Christ, p. 48

“The study of the workers now shouldbe to learn the trade of gathering souls into


the gospel net.”—Review and Herald, Dec.8, 1885

“Your success will not depend so muchupon your knowledge and accomplish-ments, as upon your ability to find yourway to the heart.”—Gospel Workers, p. 193

“When persons who are under convic-tion are not brought to make a decision atthe earliest period possible, there is dan-ger that the conviction will gradually wearaway.“—Evangelism, p. 229

“What you need to understand is thetrue force of the will. This is the govern-ing power in the nature of man, the powerof decision, or of choice. Everything de-pends on the right action of the will”—Steps to Christ, p. 47

Erroneos Ideas About DecisionsSome people have mistaken ideas

about the need for decisions. These ideasare erroneous and do not produce convertsor lead people toward decisions:

? “My business is to present thetruth, and then let the hearers take it orleave it.”

? “My business is to sound thewarning, and then shake the dust off myfeet as a testimony against them!”

? “The matter of decisions is largelya matter of chance, and there is little wecan do about it.”

? “The number who will be won isfixed by how many are honest and recep-tive when they first come to hear the truth.They will make decisions anyway, so whytry to persuade them?”

The Three “Ps”of Soul WinningThere are three “P’s” that should gov-

ern all soul winning efforts. All three areimportant and should be included for soulwinning to be truly effective.

Presence

Proclamation

Persuasion

• Community service• Original contacts• Indirect witnessing activities

• Decision process• Discipelship process• Church membershiporientation

• Public evangelism• Bible studies• Direct witnessing activities


Decisions Can Be Expected“When we give ourselves wholly to

God, and in our work follow His directions,He makes Himself responsible for its ac-complishment”—Christ’s Object Lessons,p. 363.

“He (Jesus) reached the hearts of thepeople by going among them as one whodesired their good. He sought them in thepublic streets, in private homes, on theboats, in the synagogue, by the shores ofthe lake, and at the marriage feast. He metthem at their daily vocations, and mani-fested, interest in the secular affairs . . . .His strong personal sympathy helped towin hearts”—The Desire of Ages, p. 151

Not Easy!Helping people decide to accept the

truths they have been studying and dosomething about them is often the mostdifficult part of soul winning. Leadingpeople to decide something that may beunpopular, out of step with society, orthreatening to their financial well-beingis not easy. It is a science, and a vital partof soul winning.

Prerequisites For SuccessfulDecisions

There are certain prerequisites for ob-taining decisions that have to do with thespiritual quality of the person calling forthe decision. They must

• know Christ in order to introducehim to others (Acts 3:6; Psalm 51:10-13)

• live a Christlike life• read the Bible to gain strength

(John 5:39)• commune with God in prayer (1

Thess. 5:17) — Pray without ceasing• obey His will (1 John 3:21, 22).

David said, I made haste . . . to keep thycommandments (Psalm 119:60).

General principles forgaining decisions

The Bible often uses the agriculturalsequence as a model for soul winning:

1. Prepare the soil.2. Add fertilizer and seed.3. Cultivate the soil4. God will then send the sunshine

and the rain of the Holy Spirit.5. Then the harvest will follow when

the ripe fruit can be picked.

Principles of DecisionThe following principles apply to all

effprts to bring people to decision.

? Be agreeable

? Be alert

? Be direct

? Be kind and courteous

? Never argue

? Meet objections with Scripture“Objections can each be met with a “Thussaith the Lord.”—Ellen White, Letter95,1896

? Bible stories are a wonderful ba-sis for an appeal to the heart.

Expect a Favorable DecisionA positive attitude is always helpful.

It is better to assume thatpeople will make the rightdecision than to assume theywill not.

? Determine thespecific obstacles to decision.

? Clear away theobstacles.


? Ask the right questions at theright time. This takes practice and per-ception, but the Holy Spirit will let youknow when the time is right to make agospel presentation or to call for a deci-sion.

? Ask for a decision directly.

Time Sequence For DecisionsDecisions to follow the Lord and ac-

cept the teachings of Scripture are notmade all at one time. The best way is tocall for small decisions in a regular se-quence. It will then be easier for the per-son to make the larger decisions.

? Ask for a decision on the mate-rial presented at the end of every study.

? Encourage the student to put intopractice each new duty as it unfolds.

? Do not ask for a major decisionuntil the student has sufficient informa-tion to enable him or her to make an in-telligent decision.

Recognize Signs of ConvictionSensitivity to signs of conviction is

necessary to know when to ask for a deci-sion. Learn to recognize decision signalssuch as the following:

Would I have to stop doing . . . ?

What if my husband wouldn’t letme tithe?

What if I can’t get Sabbaths off?

What will my neighbors or fam-ily say?

“When persons who are underconviction are not brought to make adecision at the earliest period possible,

there is danger that the conviction willgradually wear away.”—Evangelism, p.298

“If words are not spoken at the rightmoment, calling for decision from theweight of evidence already presented, theconvicted ones pass on without identify-ing themselves with Christ, the golden op-portunity passes, and they have notyielded, and they go farther and fartheraway from the truth, farther away fromJesus and never take their stand on theLord’s side.”—Evangelism, p. 283

Positive AlternativesAsk for a decision on the basis of a

choice between two alternatives, both ofwhich are positive and possible, for ex-ample: “We are planning a baptism on the15th and one on the 29th. Which would bebetter for you?”

Present JesusPresent Jesus as the One who is call-

ing for their decision.“Talk to souls in peril and get them to

behold Jesus upon the cross dying to makeit possible for Him to pardon us.”—Testi-monies, vol., p.67

The acceptance of Jesus as a personalsaviour is essential to all other major de-cisions. Avoid presenting the church oryourself as calling for decision.Use Scripture To Make Appeals

Scripture appeals carry tremendousforce. Employ Scripture as a basis for ap-peals:

“One sentence of Scripture is of more


value than ten thousand of man’s ideas orarguments.”—Testimonies, vol. 7, p.71

“Be very careful how you handle theWord, because that Word is to make thedecision with the people. Let the Word cutand not your words.—Evangelism, p. 300

Use Bible IllustrationsThe Bible contains many illustrations,

incidents and narratives which can bemade the basis for powerful direct appealsto interested people whose cases or situa-tions are parallel to the experiences setforth in the Bible.

• Israelites crossing the Jordan(Joshua 3). Use in relation to the personwho is willing to begin to keep the Sab-bath if God will open the way in their homeor work.

• The two builders (Luke 6:46-49).Use in relation to those who admit keep-ing the Sabbath is right but make no moveto keep it.

• The prodigal (Luke 15). Use in re-lation to the backslider who feel they havegone too far for the Lord to receive themback.

Use Prayer As a Means of Calling ForDecision

Prayer is a powerful help in obtain-ing decisions. It may be employed in threeways:

• Pray for the person to have the cour-age to make a decision.

• Pray with the person.• If it is appropriate, ask the person

to pray.

Understand the Role of the Will inMaking Decisions

The will is the master key of deci-sion. Because God has given human be-ings free will, it must be awakened and

used in order for them to make a decision.“What you need to understand is the

true force of the will. This is the govern-ing power in the nature of man, the powerof decision, or of choice. Everything de-pends upon the right action of the will.”—Steps to Christ, p. 47

“Through the right exercise of the will,an entire change may be made in the life.By yielding up the will to Christ, we allyourselves with divine power. A pure andnoble life, a life of victory over appetiteand lust, is possible to everyone who willunite his weak, wavering human will tothe omnipotent, unwavering will ofGod.”—Ministry of Healing, p. 176

? Show that this is a life and deathmatter.

? Picture the love of God.

? Show the danger of delay.

? Emphasize the individual’s deci-sion to assure salvation.

? Stress their influence on lovedones and friends.

? Point out that there will be onlytwo classes of people at the end.

? Emphasize that Christ is our ex-ample.

? Assure them of God’s care and interest.

? Emphasize the need for Christ’sapproval.

? Relate your own experiences.

? Vividly portray the triumph oftruth.

? Stress that it takes courage to be


a Christian

? Inquire, “Where are you planningto spend eternity?

How The Mind Makes DecisionsEvery gospel worker needs to under-

stand clearly how the human mind worksin making a favorable decision. Decisionsarise out of the interplay in a person’smind of knowledge (information), convic-tion and desire. Both science and Scrip-ture show this to be true. When a person’sknowledge, conviction and desire about asubject reach a certain level of intensity,the mind moves toward decision and ac-tion.

Since knowledge, conviction and de-sire lead to decision, sermons, Bible stud-ies and personal talks should be an artfulinter-weaving of these factors. Thisis necessary to bring about the vitalinterplay of knowledge, convictionand desire that leads to acceptance,decision and action.

KnowledgeKnowledge deals with the accumula-

tion of facts relating to the decision to bemade. Adequate information is necessaryas a basis upon which a person can makea decision.

? Do not present three or four newtruths back to back at the same time.Present testing truths gradually.

? Spend the necessary time withpeople immediately after the presentationof testing truths to clear up any majorquestions.

?? Make regular systematic ap-peals for small decisions as the studiesprogress.

Use Scripture TextsPaul prepared the way for making

personal appeals by effective use of theWord. His appeal was based on the teach-ing of the Scriptures.

But I have had God’s help to this veryday, and so I stand here and testify to smalland great alike. I am saying nothing be-yond what the prophets and Moses saidwould happen (Acts 26:22).

Use those texts that are best designedfor securing the desired results. SomeBible texts are especially useful for com-municating knowledge, some bring convic-tion, and others produce desire. Sometimesthe same text contains all three elements.

Make It ClearFocus on the texts that will implant

conviction and arouse desire for acceptingand following God’s great principles. Makesure the information is clear and well un-derstood. This can be done by asking ques-tions such as:

• Do you understand this topic?• Is the meaning of this text clear in

your mind?• Do you have any further questions?

Decisions arise out of the interplay in aperson’s mind of knowledge, convictionand desire.


Make Direct Appeals“The secret of our success and power

as a people advocating advanced truth willbe found in making direct, personal ap-peals to those who are interested, havingunwavering reliance upon the MostHigh.”—Review and Herald, Aug. 10, 1892

For example, before King Agrippa,Paul used his personal testimony abouthow he found Christ and what Jesusmeant to him. What was the reaction toPaul’s testimony?

“The whole company had listened spell-bound to Paul’s account of his wonderfulexperiences. The apostle was dwellingupon his favorite theme. None who heardhim could doubt his sincerity.”—The Actsof the Apostles, p. 437

• Paul directed his appeal toAgrippa’s convictions in the form of a ques-tion: King Agrippa, do you believe theprophets? (Acts 26:27, first part).

• He designed to bring home toAgrippa a realization of his personalresponsibility—an appeal at an opportunemoment.

• The appeal assumes that Agrippawill respond positively; “I know you do”(Acts 26:27, last part).

• Was Agrippa moved? “A little more,and your arguments would make a Chris-tian of me” (Jerusalem Bible).

• “Deeply affected, Agrippa for themoment lost sight of his surroundings andthe dignity of his position. Conscious onlyof the truths which he had heard, seeingonly the humble prisoner standing beforehim as God’s ambassador, he answered in-voluntarily, ‘Almost thou persuaded me tobe a Christian.’”—The Acts of the Apostles,p. 438

General Principles of AppealsThe following general principles ap-

ply to making appeals:

?Help the student to make a deci-sion in every lesson. Conviction may com-pletely disappear if one is not brought todecision at the earliest moment possible.

? Show the benefits of the right ac-tion.

?Always stress that the require-ments of God are accompanied by theblessings of God, and that the blessings ofGod also involve meeting His require-ments.

? Show the consequences of wrongaction.

? Show the expectations of the Godwho loves us.

?Lead students to a relationshipwith God.

?Truth is most clear when it is freshin the memory because Satan is workingto lead the thoughts away.

DifficultiesDifficulties may arise in obtaining de-

cisions:

? A decision may be turned in an-other direction or toward another church.

? Relatives or members of otherchurches may confuse the issues or thetruth in the student’s mind.

? Circumstances may place the stu-dent beyond your reach in a very shorttime.


Then focus what you present from theBible, with the help of the Holy Spirit, toimplant the conviction that the seventhday should be kept holy, and at the sametime, arouse desire for doing so.

Use these texts. Ex. 20:8-11; James2:10; Luke 6:46; Mal. 15:9; John 15:14;Rev. 22:14; Isa. 48:18; 58:13,1 4; Isa.56:1-6;Eze. 20:12; Ps. 40:8.

Ask questions such as:

• “When you think of how Jesus gaveHimself for you on the cross, you can’t helploving Him, and I know that you loveJesus.”

• “In John 14:15, Jesus says to you,If you love Me, keep My commandments.Now that you see that one of his command-ments is to keep the seventh day of theweek, or Saturday, you are going to startkeeping it because you love Him, aren’tyou?”

• “Do you know which two qualitiesthe Lord is looking for in you and me? No-tice what He says in Isaiah1:19, If ye bewilling and obedient, ye shall eat the goodof the land. You want to be willing andobedient, don’t you?

• “Since the Lord has made it plainto you that the seventh day is the only dayHe ever sanctified for you to keep, you arewilling to begin to keep it, aren’t you?”

• The student may say, “You folkshave certainly got the Bible on your sidefor keeping the seventh day.” This is youropportunity to reply, “I am glad you seethe truth about the right day to keep. It iswonderful to know the real truth. Do youknow what is the next thing the Lordwants you to do?”

Turn to Luke 11:28. But he said, Yesrather, blessed are they that hear the Word

There are four major decisions a per-son needs to make. These are the crisispoints in the study series:

? Jesus. The decision to acceptChrist as a personal Savior.

? The sabbath. The decision to keepall of God’s commandments.

? Lifestyle reforms. The decision infavor of health principles, Christian stan-dards, etc.

? Church membership. The deci-sion to unite with the remnant church.

The Decision to Accept JesusUse a statement like the following and

the accompanying texts in obtaining thisdecision.

“Notice what Jesus says in Revelation3:20 - Here I am! I stand at the door andknock. If anyone hears my voice and opensthe door, I will come in and eat with him,and he with me.

“Jesus wants to come into your heartand make your life what it ought to be.You want Him to do this, don’t you? Youare ready now to open the door and let Himin, aren’t you?”

Use these texts. Isa 1:18; Matt 11:28;Heb. 7:25; Ps. 34:8; Rom. 5:1: John 1:12; 2Cor. 5:21, Acts 16:30, 31; John 3:16; Isa.53:6; Matt. 16:26; John 8:24; Acts 4:12.

The Decision to Keep the SabbathThe following is an example of how to

obtain the decision to keep the seventh daySabbath.

Ask the question: “Is it your decisionto keep the Sabbath?

Four Major Decisions


of God, and keep it.Then say, “Notice that Jesus pro-

nounces His blessing on those who hearHis word and obey it. Now that you seethat the seventh day is Christ’s day, thenext thing is to keep it for Jesus.”

Decision for LifestyleReform

Lifestyle reforms represent a very dif-ficult step for many people, because theyhave to overcome lifelong habits of smok-ing, drinking, wrong diets, and manyother things.

The key text for all thee reforms is 1Corinthians 3:16, 17. Don’t you know thatyou yourselves are God’s temple and thatGod’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroysGod’s temple, God will destroy him; forGod’s temple is sacred, and you are thattemple.

Help students to enroll in Breath Freeclasses to stop smoking, etc.

Decision for Church MembershipA fourth major decision is to unite

with the remnant church Ask: “The Bible foretells that in the

last days the Lord will gather out a spe-cial people to keep His commandments.In Isaiah 27:12, God says He will gatherthem one by one. Don’t you want to be oneof those whom the Lord is gathering forHis Kingdom?”

Texts to use. Revelation 18:4; John10:26, 27; 2 Corinthians 8:12; Luke 14:33.

The following points and texts willhelp people decide for church membership:

• In 1 Corinthians 1:2,10. Paul writesto church congregations and always ap-peals for unity. This shows that the churchas a group is very important.

• 1 Corinthians 11:18 speaks aboutcoming together as a church.

• Acts 12:1-5. The ministry of thechurch represents strength in being to-gether as a united group, even in the faceof persecution. This is a real advantagefor Christians.

• Ephesians 1:22, 23; Colosians 1:18.Christ is the head of the Church, there-fore it is an advantage for us to be mem-bers.

• 1 Corinthians 12:12. The church isone body made up of many parts. The partsonly function when they come together.

• 1 Corinthians 12:18. God has ar-ranged the parts in the body, every one ofthem, just as He wanted them to be.

• Mark 16:16. Church membership isessential. He said to them, Whoever be-lieves and is baptized will be saved, butwhoever does not believe will be con-demned.

• Matthew 18:17,18. The church isreponsible for doing God’s work on earth,and it is essential to be part of the body ofChrist. I tell you the truth, whatever youbind on earth will be bound in heaven, andwhatever you loose on earth will be loosedin heaven.

• Revelation 22:16. Jesus speaks tothe churches, not just to individuals, show-ing that it is important to be a member ofa congregation.

• God has a specific purpose in orga-nizing the church on earth and asking usto be part of it.

• Hebrews 12:22, 23. It is the generalassembly of God, the church of the firstborn. You have come to thousands uponthousands of angels in joyful assembly, tothe church of the firstborn, whose namesare written in heaven.

• 1 Timothy 3:15. . . . God’s household,which is the church of the living God, thepillar and foundation of the truth.


IndifferentQ What if a person is indifferent and

seems to have no convictions?• Make Scriptural calls for a decision.• If you are unable to get a response,

leave it in the Lord’s hands.

Self-righteousQ What if the person feels self-righ-

teous and says they treat their neighborswell, therefore they must already be agood Christian?

• Romans 3:10; 5:19. Show the per-son that just doing good is not enough. Wemust be born again and follow all of theLord’s teachings. Use mainly Scripturalappeals, waiting for their response beforeyou proceed.

• Romans 14:7. Stress the influenceof a decision on loved ones and friends.

• Matthew 7:13,14. Impress thethought that there will be only two classesat the end of the world, the saved and theunsaved.

Delaying a decisionQ What if a person just will not make

a decision and puts it off?• Matthew 25:10; 2 Corinthians 6:2.

Show the danger of delay and losing theopportunity to be saved.

Answers to Objections

Objections must be answered, but aperson must not be left offended or unap-proachable. We must remember that weare only instruments,the Holy Spirit leadspeople to make decisions, and every effortshould be made to answer objections withbiblical information.

• Matthew 6:33. Seek ye first theKingdom of God.

• Mark 8:36. What good is it for a manto gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?

• Psalm 37:3. Trust in the Lord anddo good; dwell in the land and enjoy safepasture.

I Might Lose My Job!Q What if I can’t get the Sabbath free

and am in danger of losing my job? Howwill I take care of my family?

• Psalm 37:25. The righteous will notbe begging for bread.

• Philippians 4:19. God shall supplyall your needs.

• Deuteronomy 28:1-6. God will blessyour livelihood.

• Deuteronomy 8:18. God gives youpower to gain wealth.

• Isaiah 58:13, 14. The Lord shall feedthem.

My Family Doesn’t AgreeQ What if my family is against my

joining the church?• Luke 6:22. Blessed are you when

men hate you, when they exclude you andinsult you and reject your name as evil, be-cause of the Son of Man.

• Matthew 10:34-38. Sometimes theenemy is in a person’s own house.

• Psalm 27:10 Though my father andmother forsake me, the Lord will receiveme.

My Family Won’t Join the ChurchQ What if my family won’t join me in

following the Lord?• Ezekiel 14:20. Salvation is an indi-

vidual decision. Parents cannot save theirchildren.

• Philippians 2:12. Work out yourown salvation.


• Matthew 10:37. Anyone who loveshis father or mother more than me is notworthy of me; anyone who loves his son ordaughter more than me is not worthy ofme.

I Don’t Want To Leave My ChurchQ What if the person doesn’t want to

leave their church and join a different one?• Hebrews 11:26. Moses regarded

disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greatervalue than the treasures of Egypt, becausehe was looking ahead to his reward.

• John 15:19. I have chosen you outof the world. That is why the world hatesyou.

• Matthew 24:1, 2. Jesus left his Jew-ish temple.

• Matthew 16:18. Jesus built a newChurch.

• Revelation 18:4. Come out of her mypeople,

• John 10:16, 26, 27 Jesus calls hissheep out from other folds.

• Acts 2:47. God added to the Churchall who should be saved.

• Micah 2:10. Get up, go away! Forthis is not your resting place.

I Might Not Be FaithfulQ I have so many things in my life

that I might fall back and not really befaithful.

• John 1:12. Jesus will give youpower.

• 1 Peter 5:10. And the God of allgrace, who called you to his eternal gloryin Christ, after you have suffered a littlewhile, will himself restore you and makeyou strong, firm and steadfast.

• Philippians 1:6. He who began agood work in you will carry it on to comple-tion until the day of Christ Jesus.

• Matthews 15:5. Without me you can

do nothing.• Philippians 4:13. I can do all things

through Christ.

I Like the Pleasures of the WorldQ What if I can’t give up my old hab-

its?• Matthew 7:13, 14. Narrow is the

way to eternal life.• 1 Corinthians 3:16-17. Your body is

a temple of God.• James 5:5. You have lived on earth

in luxury and self-indulgence. You havefattened yourselves in the day of slaugh-ter.

• 1 John 2:15, 16. Love not the world.• 2 Corinthians 6:17. Therefore come

out from them and be separate, says theLord. Touch no unclean thing, and I willreceive you.

I Will Have to Give Up a LotQ If I join the church, won’t I have to

give up a lot of things?• Luke 14:33. In the same way, any

of you who does not give up everything hehas cannot be my disciple.

• 1 Corinthians 6:12, 13. Food for thestomach and the stomach for food—butGod will destroy them both.

• 1 Corinthians 10: 31. Do all to theglory of God.

• Philippians 3:13, 14, 17. But onething I do: Forgetting what is behind andstraining toward what is ahead, I press ontoward the goal.

• Matthew 6:24. No man can servetwo masters

• Ecclesiastes 2:1. Pleasure is vanity• Ecclesiastes 11:9. Rejoice in your

youth but remember God will bring you tojudgment.

Psalm 16:11. There is pleasure in God.


There Are Many Hypocrites in theChurch

Q The church is filled with hypocrites.Why should I join them?

• Matthew 13:24-30 (Parable of thewheat and tares). God’s true Church isnot composed of perfect people.

• Matthew 25:1-13 (The ten virgins).The church is composed of truly connectedand not truly connected Christians.

• Isaiah 45:22. Look to Jesus for sal-vation

• Hebrews 12:2 Looking unto Jesusthe finisher of our faith

• Matthew 7:1-5. Why do you look atthe speck of sawdust in your brother’s eyeand pay no attention to the plank in yourown eye?

I Am Too Great a SinnerQ I am such a great sinner that I can-

not be forgiven. Why should I try?• Romans 3:23. All have sinned.• Isaiah 44:22. I have swept away

your offenses like a cloud, your sins likethe morning mist.

• Proverbs 28:13. He who conceals hissins does not prosper, but whoever confessesand renounces them finds mercy.

• Isaiah 1:16, 18, 20. Come let us rea-son together.

• 1 John 1:9. Jesus will forgive all con-fessed sins.

• Hebrews 7:25. Jesus is able to saveus.

John 8:3, 10, 11. Jesus forgave MaryMagdalene, Go and sin no more.

What’s a Few Little Sins?Q If God is love I’m sure He will over-

look a few little sins now and then. Whymake such a big deal of them?

• Proverbs 14:12. There is a way

which seems right but the end is death.• Matthew 7:21,22. Not all who call

upon Jesus will be saved.• Matthew 15:8, 9. In vain they do

worship me.• Revelation 1:7-11. Worship Him

that made heaven and earth.• Acts 5:29. We ought to obey God

rather than man.• James 4:17. It is sin to continue do-

ing wrong after knowing the truth.• 2 Peter 2:20, 21. It had been better

for them not to know the truth than to knowand turn away. The latter end is worse thanthe first.

Why Should I Be Baptized?Q Is baptism really so important?• Acts 2:38. Repent and be baptized

everyone of you.• Acts 22:16. And now what are you

waiting for? Get up, be baptized and washyour sins away, calling on his name.

• Acts 8:38. Philips baptized the Eu-nuch along the way to Gaza.

• John 15:16. You have not chosen me,but I have chosen you.

• Deuteronomy 30:19. I set before youlife and death therefore choose life.

• Joshua 24:15. As for me and myhouse we will serve the Lord.

• Mark 16:15, 16. He that believesand is baptized shall be saved.

This Church Is Too SmallQ This church is small. Why should I

join a small (and often minority) church?• Luke 12:32. Fear not little flock.• Matthew 22:14. Many are called but

few are chosen.• Matthew 7:13,14. Only a few will

enter through the gate of eternal life.• Isaiah 41:10. Fear thou not for I am

with you.


• Isaiah 58:13, 14. There is a prom-ised blessing in Sabbath keeping.

• Hebrew 5:9. Christ is the author ofour salvation to them that obey Him.

• Isaiah 56:5, 6. God will give an ev-erlasting name to those who keep the Sab-bath.

• Revelation 14:12. The saints arelaw keepers.

• 2 Peter 2:20, 21. It would have beenbetter for them not to know the truth.

• James 4 :17. Not to do right is sin.• Ezekiel 46:3. The people shall wor-

ship on the Sabbath day.

• Matthew 28:19, 20. I am with youalways even unto the end of the world.

• Matthew 10:32, 33. Whosoever shallconfess God publicity will also be confessedbefore God in heaven.

• 1 Corinthians 1:27. God has chosenthe weak to confound the wise.

The CommandmentsQ Why should I keep the command-

ments of God? I thought they were doneaway with at the cross.

• Genesis 26:5. Abraham obeyedGod’s commandments.

• Genesis 5:24. Enoch walked withGod.

• Genesis 5:29. Noah was found righ-teous in his generation.

• 2 John 6. To walk with God is towalk in his commandments.

• Daniel 6:4, 5, 10, 11. They found nofault in Daniel.

• Matthew 19:17. If you want to en-ter life, obey the commandments.

• 1 John 3:4. Sin is the transgressionof the law.

• Revelation 21:8. Transgressors ofthe law will be cast into the lake of fire.

• Psalm 119:60. I will hasten to keepyour commandments.

• 1 John 5:3. His commandments arenot grievious.

• John 14:15. If you love me keep mycommandments.

• James 2:10. To break one law is tobreak all.

SabbathkeepingQ Why should I keep the seventh day

Sabbath?• Isaiah 56:2. Blessed are those that

keep the Sabbath.

Where we want them to be

Where people begin

“This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saintswho obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus.”Rev. 14:12

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions andsins, in which you used to live when you followed the waysof this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, thespirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.Eph. 1: 1, 2.

Method of Jesus: Attention, interest, desire, conviction, intensifieddesire and conviction, decision, action

Effectual prayer

Work of the Holy Spirit

Secure agreement step by step

Psychological moment of decision

Answer objections with Bible texts

Win the confidence of the people

Personal work with individuals

Appeals to human needs

“There are great lawsthat govern the worldof nature, and spiritualthings are controlled byprinciples equallycertain. The means foran end must beemployed, if the desiredresults are to beattained.” Testimonies,Vol. 9, p. 221

Application of the Principles of Decision


Discussion 1 - What the Bible saysabout decisions

1. Share in the group some of the things the Bible saysabout the necessity of calling for decisions.

2. What are some of the mistaken ideas people may have about the need forgetting decisions? How can you show from the Bible that these ideas are mis-taken?

3. What are the three “Ps” of soul winning and what is involved in each level?Why is soul winning incomplete if any one of the three is left out?

Discussion 2 - General principles of decision.

1. Review with the group the general principles of decision and the ways togain a favorable decision. Review principles such as how to clear obstacles, howto recognize signs of conviction, the time sequence for decisions, and the use ofbiblical illustrations.

2. Review with the group the principles of how the mind works in makingdecisions.

3. What are the four major decisions people have to make and how can theybest be achieved?

1. In the group work out a system of role playing and practice answeringsome of the objections that may arise in obtaining decisions.

Discussion 3 - Answers to objections



GeneralConsiderations

“We recommend that our responsible commit-tees endeavour to follow the counsel of theSpirit of Prophecy, which clearly declares that‘capable people who can present the thirdangels’s message in a manner so forceful thatit will strike home to the heart be urged todevote their lives to the ministry of the Wordin public evangelism.”—General ConferenceAction, Review and Herald, June 10, 1954

Attitudes toward public evangelism varyaround the world. In some areas it is possibleto attract large crowds rather easily on verylimited budgets. In other places public evan-gelism is difficult in spite of significant ad-vertising done in newspapers and on radio andtelevision. In highly secularized areas of theworld, public evangelism is often not very pro-ductive.In spite of these problems, it is important tolearn various ways and means of evangeliza-tion that will continue to win people to thegospel and the three angels’ messages, andlarge group meetings remain a potent soulwinning strategy.

Four Issues

This section will study four issues:

? How to organize a revival.

? How to prepare the membership foroutreach activity.

? How to prepare for an evangelisticcampaign.

? How to disciple and consolidate newmembers.

The Value of RevivalAll churches need periodic revival. In the OldTestament, the word we translate as revival

means, “to bring to life again.” All congrega-tions and individual members need periodicactivities that will recharge their spiritual bat-teries and refocus their attention on the deepissues of spirituality and the meaning of truediscipleship.

9How To Organize and Run a Public

Evangelism Campaign

What Ellen White Says About Revival

“. . . Strength to resist evil is best gained by aggres-sive service . . .”—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 105“Time is short, and our forces must be organized todo a larger work.”—Testimonies, vol. 9, p. 27“The work of God in this earth can never be fin-ished until the men and women comprising ourchurch membership rally to the work, and unitetheir efforts with those of ministers and church of-


Unless the church experiences a revival, mem-bers will not involve themselves in outreachactivities. As a result, the members’ lack ofparticipation in evangelism will have a strongpsychological effect on other members. It isimportant to revive church members spiritu-ally because lukewarm members are a nega-tive influence to the acceptance of the gospel.On the other hand, divine counsel tells us,“The strongest argument in favor of the gospelis a loving and lovable Christian.”—Counselson Sabbath School Work, p.100

Organizing RevivalsThere are many ways to organize revivals:A mini-evangelistic meeting. In this case,it may also be called a “reaping meeting,”inthe sense that those who attend attend areusually the friends, relatives, work associates,etc. of church members. Such revivals are usu-ally a week or two long and the messages fo-cus on both church doctrines and getting de-cisions. This type of revival is of ben-efit to the church membersthem- selves as well as to the

general public.All night prayermeetings . Revivalssometimes take theform of, or include, all

night prayer meetings, usually 12 hours long.These meetings are an opportunity for manypeople to participate and have a powerful im-pact on a church congregation.Weekend spiritual emphasis. In this case,meetings are usually held Friday night, all daySabbath, and Sunday night and may includean all night prayer service. One week revival. Meetings begin on Sab-bath and end the following Sabbath. The re-vival itself consists of a series of deeply devo-tional messages and related prayer and testi-mony activities. It may also include an allnight prayer meeting.Small group meetings in homes. Ratherthan meet in one place, the revival may con-sist of a series of small group meetings in

homes with one or two combined services inthe church.

What To Preach?Revival messages should focus mostly ondeeply devotional messages, often taken fromthe life of Jesus, or specific biblical stories thatfocus on the power of God, his divine provi-dence, miracles, people’s reactions to the callof the Spirit, and the work of the Holy Spirit.If the purpose of the revival is primarily toprepare and recruit people for a large evange-listic campaign, messages such as the follow-ing might be used:• Total surrender to Christ is the onlyremedy to the problem of sin.• Appeals to recognize personal sins andto repent and fully submit to the Lord.• How to know, understand and claimGod’s promises.• The mighty power of God in winningconverts to the gospel.• The promise of the baptism of the HolySpirit and how it works.

Possible Sermon SeriesThe following topics could be used for a re-vival series:• Evangelism is God’s plan for thechurch• The role of members in evangelism• The power of the Holy Spirit• The power of prayer• The worth of a soul• Christ our righteousness• Last day events• The second coming of Jesus• Facing sin honestly• Repentance

Revival Through VisitationHome visitation is a vital part of revival. Re-vival itself may be effectively implemented byvisiting church members in their homes.

? It is not the purpose of this type ofhome visitation to “point out sin,” and “setthings right” through stern “counseling.” This


may be necessary at some time, but the pri-mary purpose of a revival visit is to pray withthe family, read some verses of Scripture,explain the real meaning of discipleship, thegeneral need we all have of revival in our livesand our duty to spread the word to others.

Visitation StrategiesThe pastor should not do all of the visitation.Organize and train visitation teams and or-ganize the church member list for effectivevisitation.• Visits should be short, usually about15 minutes, depending on the social contextand visitation protocols in a particular part ofthe world.• Make the calls very spiritual; don’t letthem be just social visits.• Go directly to the purpose—helping themembers come closer to God.• Ask questions to discover particularneeds. If serious issues arise during the visit,take as much time as necessary to help thefamily.• Use the Bible to find answers to issuesthat may arise.• Try to determine the level of disciple-ship and missionary fervor.• Try to discover whether they have anycontacts or are working with their neighbors ,friends, or former members who no longer at-tend church, or have names they would liketo add to the list of persons who could be in-vited to meetings.

Visitation TeamsOrganize the church into neighborhood prayercells. Families who live close to each other canmeet together at specific times. This way theentire membership is involved in intercessoryprayer. When the meetings begin, organize aprayer chain that will be praying continuallyfor those making decisions.

Revival Through PrayerEncourage members to make prayer lists

• For private devotions• For their own spiritual condition• For souls who may be reached with thegospel• For the baptism of the Holy Spirit• For specific people by name• For the pastors and the evangelisticteam

Revival Through MembershipEducationMembers need to be instructed and motivatedto engage in Christian witnessing. The mosteffective way is through teaching and preach-ing the gospel of Jesus.As members experience revival and are sur-rounded by the presence of the Holy Spirit,they will desire to evangelize. Then they willbe willing to be involved in the process of evan-gelization.


Planning for publicevangelistic meetingsPublic evangelistic meetings need to be wellorganized to be successful. Planning typicallybegins six months ahead of time. If you areholding a smaller campaign in a village ortown, or in the church building itself, the cam-paign must be well organized early enough tohave everything in place.The chart below shows the overall organiza-tion timeline and the details are given on thefollowing pages.

Timeline Activities

Six months beforecampaign

Organize evangelism committee, recruit action teams,assign territory, choose materials and launch preparationphase.

Five months beforecampaign

Set up record keeping system. It is a good idea at thisstage to use Bible Correspodence School lessons andset up a Bible Correspodence School in the local churchor district.

Four months beforecampaign

Begin Bible studies and organize the committees that willserve during the campaign: Program committee, music,etc.

Three months beforecampaign

Plan graduation for Bible Corresondence Schoolgraduates.

Two months beforecampaign

Begin small group meetings that result from Bible studiesand Bible Correspondence courses.

One month beforecampaign

Make sure everything is in place, the meeting place isready, the advertising is organized and in place, etc.Organize handbill distribution if this advertising is used.Organize baptismal class teachers and materials.

How To Organize a SmallEvangelistic Campaign Using the basics of the timeline a small layevangelistic campaign can be organized witha less complicated arrangement. Use the fol-lowing steps:

Organization Steps1. Find and secure the place where themeetings will be held. A local church can finda number of such places; school auditoriums,tents, converted houses, hotel conferencerooms, even in the open air.2. Choose the lay preachers.3. Decide on the days of week when meet-ings will be held. Sabbath and Sunday are


usually good times. Wednesdays and Fridaysalso seem to work well. This will change ac-cording to the area of the world.4. Put together the evangelistic team.You need people to do advertising, to serve asgreeters, and to work as Bible instructors, giv-ing Bible studies and doing visitation.5. Once the School is in place you will needpeople to distribute and pick up lessons, les-son graders, and some general helpers.6. Advertising. If a budget is availableyou can use handbills as well as newspaper,radio, and television advertising. Withsmaller budgets some advertising posterscould be placed in store windows, on buses,etc.7. The most effective advertising, whichcosts nothing, is the oikos system discussedpreviously where church members invite theirfriends, neighbors, work associates, etc. to themeetings.

A Simple Program OutlineUse just two people on the platform, thespeaker and one other who will serve as mas-ter or mistress of ceremonies.That person will give the announcements, helpwith the music, the prayer program, etc.Make sure this person has some training inhow to make announcements, how to speakwell in public and how to act on the platform.It doesn’t help to make announcements if theyare so badly done that no one knows what ishappening.Sometimes it is necessary to practice before-hand until this skill is well developed.Order of ServiceA simple program might be as follows:WelcomeOpening songPrayerSpecial number — musical group, instrumen-tal number, poem, etc., according to the cul-tural environment where the meetings arebeing held.Sermon

OfferingFinal announcementsClosing songClosing prayer

What and How to PreachThe sermons used during an evangelistic se-ries usually follow the same general sequenceof topics as outlined in the chapter on Biblestudies.

The following materials are being made avail-able for Divions/Unions:

New Beginnings Evangelistic SeriesA culturally sensitive series adapted to var-ied world language groups, consisting of ser-mons in DVD or PC format.

A New Beginnings Sermon BinderNew Beginnings evangelistic advertising ma-terialNew Beginnings decision cardsNew Beginnings health talks

The New Beginnings series is avalabile in thefollowing languages and formats:

NAD English - NTSCInternational English - NTSCSpanish - SpanishRomanian - PALAsian English - PALInternational African English - NTSCBlaack African English - PALTraditional Mandarin - NTSC

The DVD series will soon be available in:Back African French - PALRussian - PALPortuguese - NTSCSimplified Mandarin - PALKorean - PALKiswahili - PALIndonesian - PAL


Evangelistic Series“ Grace and Truth”Based on the the theme, “God So Loved theWorld”with Dr. Peter Prime, AssociateMinisterial Secretary of the General Confer-ence.A new series of Christo-Centric doctrinal ser-mons centered around the “Grace and Truth”theme is being prepared by Dr. Prime. A “Howto Evangelize” manual will accompany this setof sermons.

Evangelistic Series“Living Life to the Fullest”A series of four-color lessons focusing on thephysical, mental, and spiritual dimensions oflife, with accompanying lifestyle videos andbooklets is being developed which will presentthe quality of the Adventist lifestyle to a moresecular audience. The series of 13 lessons in-troduces the general concept of the quality ofAdventist life and holistic lifestyle with a Bib-lical basis, doctrinal topics such as integrityof Scripture, salvation through Christ, prayer,and Christian living, as well as the secondcoming and the Sabbath, represented in theoverall quality of life context.

The Importance of the SermonSomething worth thinking about. It is saidthat a farmer once attended a church conven-tion. “I see,” he said to one of the pastors, “thatyou discuss the subject of how to get people toattend church. I have never heard a singleaddress at farmers’ conventions about how toget cattle to come to the barn. We spend ourtime in discussing the best kind of feed to givethem, and they come to the barn on their own.”Transition points. One difference betweena campaign and a Bible study is that a seriesof sermons in an evangelistic campaign mayuse some introductory topics about social is-sues such as the home and family and thenmake a transition to doctrinal topics. The tran-sition point is important because if it is not

made carefully, many people who have beenattending may stop coming if the transition istoo abrupt.

Making a TransitionFor instance, one series presents three ser-mons on family-oriented themes:?? The secrets of a happy home?? How to resolve life’s problems. Thissermon presents three spiritual solutions:God, faith and prayer.This is the first transition point in a spiritu-ally oriented approach to following sermons.1. God is love. This sermon presents thecharacter of God and shows that our attitudetoward God makes a difference in our lives.

Transition to How God CommunicatesThe next three sermons deal with how Godcommunicates with humanity and what effectunderstanding that communication can havein our personal lives.1. A sure guide for living (the Bible)2. The marvelous power of faith3. The marvelous power of prayer

Transition to Spiritual SolutionsWith these three sermons a transition hasbeen made from analyzing human problemsto recognizing the power of spiritual solutions.

Transition to Doctrinal ThemesFrom this point on, the sermons begin to dealwith prophecies as they apply to the historyof the world (Daniel 2) and the second com-ing.

How To Present DoctrinesLet the Bible speak for itself. The closer anevangelist adheres to an exposition of whatthe Bible says, the easier it is to convince theaudience.Do not attack other religions directly. If theaudience comes primarily from one religiousbackground, it is usually possible to presentBible teachings in a way that allows them tounderstand the contrast without openly atthey


The best program must be presented on theopening night. Here are some suggestions:

? The preacher and the message are theheart of the program.

? Do away with many speeches.

? Rehearse the program and make itshort, yet colorful and impressive.

? Start on time and end on time.

? Don’t allow dead gaps.

? A well-prepared, powerful messagemust be presented for no more than 40 min-utes.

? The nightly meeting should notbe longer than two hours

? Don’t go beyond 9:00 P.M. if themeetings are held in the evening.

Free Gift OffersAfter the sermon on the opening night,offer two things:• Gift books for the first threepeople who invite more people.• A book that will be given to ev-eryone who has perfect attendance forone week.

Small Tests or Quizzes

Opening Night

The second week, give daily quizzes. Use true/false questions based on the previous night’stopic.Offer a missionary magazines to those whohave a perfect score on the quiz.The audience will be more attentive to thesermon in pursuit of that perfect score.The quiz also provides a way of reviewing theprevious topic; the message will stay in the

minds of people and will keep the audiencealert.

Names and AddressesDevise a way of getting the names and ad-dress of the people attending the meeting.

Gift Bibles and Bible MarkingMany evangelists have successfully used theBible marking plan. If you have funds to pro-vide Bibles, this plan is excellent.• Each person receives a Bible.• The Bible is identified so the persongets the same Bible at each meeting. They arealso provided with a marking pen or pencil.• The sermons are built in a way thatallows listeners to mark individual texts in

their Bibles, either by highlighting or under-lining.If the person attends a certain number ofmeetings they may keep the Bible. Each evan-gelistic team can decide the attendance fig-ure.

Using Gift Bibles

If you use the Bible marking plan, take into ac-count the finances. Many Bibles may be markedonly once or twice and the people no longer attend.These Bibles may be used again by others if youhave a standard way of marking them, but manycannot be used again.


After the CampaignActivities should be planned for follow-up andinvolvement.

? It is often assumed that a new con-vert will automatically fit into the church andbecome involved in church life. This isnot true. The church must have a delib-erate plan for caring for new membersor they will very likely stop attending.It would be a good idea to establish aNew Members Committee responsiblefor the integration of new members.

Important Follow-up ActivitiesFollow-up meetings. Make provisionfor follow-up meetings or Bible classes.Interests who are not yet baptized willbe harvested by other denominations orreturn to their previous lifestyles if noone follows through with them.What kind of classes? New converts needtwo kinds of training:

? Doctrinal understanding

? How to practice an Adventistlifestyle.Doctrinal understanding. They needto understand the teachings of the church. Oneidea is to go through the book Seventh-dayAdventists Believe . . . and have them markthe book as the lessons are studied.Other classes should study the books of Danieland Revelation, and the distinctive doctrinesof the Seventh-day Adventist church.The two most complicated doctrines for peopleto understand are conditional immortality (the“state of the dead”) and the sanctuary. All newbelievers need to fully understand these doc-trines and how they apply to everyday life.Some other vital subjects for study. Theseventh-day Sabbath, tithing, the Spirit ofProphecy, the latter rain and final events, thechange from Sabbath to Sunday.• How to practice an Adventist lifestyle

• How to keep the Sabbath• How to develop a personal relationship withJesus• The meaning of true devotion and dedica-tion to the Lord• The meaning and practice of spiritual disci-plines such as regular Bible study and prayer

• The value of Christian education.• The identification and use of spiri-tual gifts.

Nurture• Assign spiritual guardians to newlybaptized members.• Make sure newly baptized membershave a Bible, a Sabbath School Bible StudyGuide and a song book.• Train them to have regular personaldevotions and evening family worship.• Introduce new members to Adventistliterature and encourage them to buy and readearnestly the Spirit of Prophecy books.

New members need to make at least six newfriends within six months of joining the church orthey will probably drop out.New members need to be involved in at least onechurch activity, preferably a small group, withinthree months of joining or they will probably dropout.If a member is absent for three Sabbaths in a row,something is wrong. If they are not contacted im-mediately, they will probably drop out.All members should have the assurance that some-one in the church is praying systematically forthem at least once a month. They also need to bepraying for someone.

Why People Drop Out


NotesNew Member Involvement

Integrate the new members into SabbathSchool Action Units or SabbathSchool classes and other smallroup ministries.Pair new members with someonewho is experienced in outreachactivitiesInvolve the new members in allactivities of the church.Teach them how to participate in church ser-vices and in outreach.Show them how to identify their personal oikosand help them develop a plan to win thosepeople.


A Lay Evangelistic Campaign Planning Sheet

1. What is the name of the laypreacher?

2. What is his or her address?

3. What is the name of the churchthat has approved the campaign?

4. Who will be on the evangelistic team?

6. Where will the evangelisticcampaign be held?

7. What kind of a facility will be used?

?Open air ?House ?Church building ?Auditorium ?Tent

?Other facility?

8. How many people will the facilityhold?

9. How many people are expectedto attend?

10. What kind of advertising will be used?

This is a sample of a form that might be adapted for use with appropriate modifica-tions according to local needs and environment

Names Addresses


?Handbills or mailings ?Personal invitations ?Newspaper advertising

?Posters ?Radio announcements

?Television announcements ?Other

How many sermons will be presented? On a separate sheet, list the sequence of sermon topics.

What is the date of the first meeting?

How much money will be needed for this campaign? List the expenses.

How much is the total budget for the campaign?

Who will pay the expenses?

The evangelist

The church

Expected offerings.

What is today’s date?

Signature


Discussion 1 - Church revivals

1. Describe how you could set up a system of revivals inyour church. Outline a revival plan including:2. The type of revival


Discussion 2 - How to organize the campaign.

1. Describe how you might go about organizing a lay-led evangelisticcampaign.

2. Review the organizational steps.3. Decide on the general approach you will take regarding the sequence of

sermon topics.4. Carefully plan and share with the group how you will make the

transitions between the various sections of the sequence of sermons, dependingon how you have planned the sequence.

Discussion 3 - Evangelistic methodology

Describe some of the methods you might use for supporting attendance, getting namesand addresses for visitation, etc.

Discussion 4 - After the campaign

This is one of the most neglected aspects of public evangelism. Describe how you mightorganize and run a follow-up system in your church.

3. A list of possible topics.4. How you might use the various revival ideas outlined in this chapter

1. What new concerts need to know about doctrines2. What new converts need to know about the Adventist lifestyle3. What new converts need to know about how to witness.


What It Isand

How It Works

Go One Million is an initative of theSeventh-day Adventist Church to re-

cruit, mobilize, train, place into action, andtrack the results of one million lay membersfor active front line soul winning activities.

Church entities around the world willorganize Go One Million according to

their local environments and ways of work-ing.

Go One Million is a mutual initiativeof church entities, cooperative ministries

such as ASI, Bibleinfo.com, The Quiet Hour,and others, and Adventist media entities suchas Adventist World Radio, International As-sociation of Bible Correspondence Schools, theVoice of Prophecy, Adventist World Television,It Is Written, and many others.

Go One Million is an initiative de-signed to provide the necessary training

and materials so that those involved can ac-complish real, measureable achievements inwinning new members and consolidating theminto active, motivated Seventh-day Adventistchurch entities

Go One MillionCommunication System

The primary Go One Million commu-nication system is through the Division

Go One Million coordinators who are the keypersons responsible for organizing the initia-tive, the flow of information, finances, mate-rials and training.

Go One Million Kits

Go One Million Kits are the key toparticipation in the initiative.

World divisions are responsible for design-ing kits that are most appropriate for theirdivision.

What Goes Into a Kit?

A set of Bible studies that are context-ualized to the population with whom you maybe working.

A report form. The Go One Million initia-tive requires careful evaluation and concreteresults.

Audiovisual materials. Some Kits will con-tain various types of audiovisual materialssuch as picture rolls, DVDs, CDs, videos,PowerPoint presentations, audio cassettes andother types of materials.

Instructions for establishing and runningnew groups, companies, and churches.

Go One Million Kit Ideas

ASI-NAD has developed a DVD kit that is be-ing translated into 40 languages. It has beau-tifully illustrated lessons that can be used invarious envrionments.


The Voice of Prophecy, in conjunction withthe International Association of Bible Corre-spondence Schools, has develeped an interna-tional set of Discover Bible Lessons that havebeen used successfully in some parts of theworld. The kit includes a Bible paged to theDVD lessons, interactive answer sheets, train-ing video, and a CD that allows people to takecourses on the Internet.

The Quiet Hour is developing a set of pic-ture rolls to be used in many environments,accompanied by sermon outlines.

Go One MillionReporting System

A special quarterly report will be introducedbased on two points:? Number of members newly trainedduring the quarter? Number of members actively involvedin evangelism.

The report will be sent quarterly from localConferences/Missions to the Union. The Unionwill post it to the Go One Million web site soit will be available to everyone.

If divisions wish further reports, they canmake arrangements within their territory.

How is Go One MillionFinanced?

Guidelines governing financing of Go OneMillion initiative:

General Conference FundingFunding from the General Conference for GoOne Million will be limted to development ofkits specifically targeted to soul winningprojects that fall within the guidelines of theGo One Million initiative.

General Conference Go One Million fundingwill be based on proposals submitted byDivsions to the Go One Million coordinatingcommittee.

There will be a cap on the amount availablefor those divisions receiving General Confer-ence Go One Million funding.

Division FundingDivisions will be responsible for developingkits for use within the Division territory.

Each world Division will develop its own sys-tem of financial participation by the Divsion,Unions, Conferences/Missions, churches andchurch members. The Division formula willbe included in proposals requesting GeneralConference funding.

Divisons will develop their individual kit ap-proval system and include an explanaiton ofthe approval process for proposals submittedto the General Conference.

How is Go One Million Organized?

General ConferenceThe General Conference has named a Go OneMillion coordinating committee to have gen-eral oversite of the initiative.

Operational CoordinatonThe General conference has asked the Sab-bath School and Personal Ministries Depart-ment to serve as general coordinator of theGo One Million initiative.

World DivisionsIn most world divisions the Go One Millioncoordinator is the Division Sabbath School andPersonal Ministries director. It is strongly sug-gested that wherever possible administratorsat all levels be actively involved in Go OneMillion projects, participating in training


events and communcating a Go One Millionvision throughout their jurisdicton.

Each division is required to set a goal for it-self according to its perceived capacity tomobilize a significant number of lay personsfor the Go One Million initiative.

Unions and Local Conferences/MissionsIn most of these entities the Sabbath Schooland Personal Ministries director will be thecoordinator of the Go One Million initative.

The Local ChurchThe local church is the key factor in the GoOne Million initiative. The overall objectiveof Go One Million is particiation by every lo-cal Seventh-day Adventist church in the world.Church members with Go One Million kits inhand are Mr. and Mrs./Miss Go One Million.Whether called a Global Mission Pioneer, an“active lay member,” a “lay evangelist,” etc.,these are the persons who will be trained,equipped, launched, and helped to do the job.

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