Ever since our first parents fell in Eden, the call to evangelize has been the most important human occupation. Its importance has increased with the passing years, and this is true in a very special way since the Flood, when men began to congregate in man-made cities. There, esconced in Babel-like skyscrapers, surrounded by all the vices and luxuries so characteristic of man's defiant imitation of the city of God, and fortified by a tortuous philosophy of life, man must be hunted down, and taken the long road back if he is to be saved.
Evangelism is a God-given inescapable duty of every child of God. It was the prophet Ezekiel who, by inspiration, said:
"If when I say to the wicKed, Wicked one, thou should die miserably: and thou warnest not the wicked to abandon his evil life, the wicked shall die for his iniquity, but I shall require thee to give account of his blood. But if thou admonish the wicked to be converted, and he abandon not his wicked life, the wicked will die because of his sin ; but thy soul will not be responsible for his death." Eze. 33 :8, 9. (Spanish version of Torres Amat.)
As sentinels on the walls of Zion, we are invested with a terrible responsibility. A sentry in a military sense is one who is stationed at a camp or fort to guard his fellow soldiers against attack or surprise. To be found wanting in a crucial moment often means the death penalty for a guilty sentry. On a certain occasion when a sentinel slept on guard, twenty-four of his companions were slain. After a peremptory court-martial, the young man was condemned to be shot, after being obliged to kneel before each of the twenty-four cadavers and ask forgiveness. He then occupied the twenty-fifth grave. So also we, responsible for the lives of thousands around us, will not escape if through our negligence they descend to Christless graves.
The call to evangelize the world is in reality a command of our great General, Jesus, given His disciples just before going back to heaven: "And this good news of the kingdom shall be proclaimed throughout the whole world to set the evidence before all the Gentiles; and then shall the end come." Matt. 24:14 (Weymouth.)
The use of the emphatic form gives no place for any doubt. The command embraces the "whole" world, and whole is defined as "containing all the parts." Or, as the angel of the Revelation puts it, "to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." That means that this message, in a single generation must reach the people of China, Japan, India, the East Indies, the West Indies—Europeans, Africans, Asiatics, Americans, alike. It must reach the inhabitants of the overcrowded cities, the denizens of the forests, those who dwell in the hills and the valleys, the rich, the poor, the educated, the ignorant. Without the shadow of a doubt, it is the greatest task ever committed to human agents, and is to be accomplished in the shortest time.
But commensurate with the extent and importance of the work is the power promised to accompany its proclamation. Jesus sped His messengers forward with these encouraging words: "All power in heaven and over the earth has been given to Me. Go, therefore, . . . and, remember, I am with you always, day by day, until the close of the age." Matt. 28:18-20 (Weymouth).
Through the messenger of the Lord we read this encouraging promise : "God will do the work if we will furnish Him the instruments." —Testimonies, vol. 9, p. 107. What a challenge that is ! Now listen to this even more encouraging assurance from our Captain: "The course of God's people should be upward and onward to victory. . . . He [Christ] will lead us on to certain victory. . . . The work He gives His people to do, He is able to accomplish by them." —Ibid., vol. 2, p. 122. Then comes this solemn admonition : "We must sleep no longer on Satan's enchanted ground, but call into requisition all our resources, and avail -ourselves of every facility with which Providence has furnished us."—Ibid., vol. 5, p. 454. We are assured:
"The closer we keep to Christ, the more meek and lowly and self-distrustful we are, the firmer will be our hold on Christ, and the greater will be our power, through Christ, to convert sinners; for it is not the human agent that moves the soul. Heavenly intelligences co-operate with the human agent... The power we have to overcome Satan is the result of Christ working in us."—Ibid., vol. 6, p. 399.
And then comes this pronouncement of terrible responsibility : "All that the apostles did, every church-member to-day is to do. And we are to work with as much more fervor . . . as the increase of wickedness demands a more decided call to repentence."—Ibid., vol. 7, p. 33. In this connection it is not strange that our great cities should occupy the attention of the Lord. He sends us this word:
"Messages will be given out of the usual order.
We must . . . have, in our cities, consecrated evangelists through whom a message is to be borne so decidedly as to startle the hearers."—Gospel Workers, p. 354.
"In the cities of today, where there is so much to attract and please, the people can be interested by no ordinary efforts. Ministers of God's appointment will find it necessary to put forth extraordinary efforts in order to arrest the attention of the multitudes. . . The . . . message . . . is to be borne so plainly and decidedly as to startle the hearers, and lead them to desire to study the Scriptures."---/bid., pp. 345, 346.
In the Testimonies and in the Scriptures, the proper methods of carrying on evangelism in the cities are plainly set forth. But all human skill in the presentation of the Word yields to the divine aid promised : "God's work is to be carried forward with power. We need the baptism of the Holy Spirit." The part played by this divine Person at Pentecost and immediately afterward is clearly set forth in the book of Acts. As a result of the outpouring of the divine Spirit on the day of Pentecost, three thousand souls were converted, and on another occasion shortly after, five thousand. Jesus, God's Son and our Saviour, was dependent on the Holy Spirit for His power and effectiveness, as evidenced by the words of Luke in Acts 10:38. The best methods in the world, unaccompanied by the sweet influence of God's Spirit, will be entirely unavailing.
The message is to be borne in plain, unvarnished language, of such a decided nature as to startle the hearers. The messenger of the Lord says, "As they labor with simplicity, humility, and graceful dignity, avoiding everything of a theatrical nature, their work will make a lasting impression for good."—Ibid., p. 346. A mighty right arm has been provided us for our use. Here, indeed, is an untapped source of influence and help which only too few avail themselves of. We are told:
"Keep the work of health reform to the front"— Ibid., p. 348.
We are clearly taught in the Bible and the Testimonies that we should work for the wealthy and influential at the very beginning of our work:
"The servants of Christ should labor faithfully for the rich men in our cities, as well as for the poor and lowly. . . . The Lord desires that moneyed men shall be converted, and act as His helping hand in reaching others. . . . Altogether too little effort has been put forth for men in responsible places in the world. Many of them possess superior qualifications."—/bid., pp. 348-350.
Another prerequisite of great importance is the meeting hall. The Lord through His servant says:
"I am convinced that we might have had a good hearing if our brethren had secured a suitable hall to accommodate the people. But they did not expect much, and therefore did not receive much. We cannot expect people to come out to hear unpopular truth when the meetings are advertised to be held in a basement. . . The character and importance of our work are judged by the efforts made to bring it before the public."—Historical Sketches, p. 200.
"The work in England might now be much farther advanced than it is if our brethren, at the beginning of our work there . . . had hired good halls, and carried forward the work as though we had great truths. . . . God would have the work started in such a way that the first impressions given shall be, as far as they go, the very best that can be made."—Gospel Workers, p. 462.
Shall we not arise and finish the work of God, which He has entrusted to us? Let us remember that "the prospects are as bright as the promises of God," and take for our motto : "Attempt Great Things for God; Expect Great Things From God." And if we do, we shall not be disappointed. Remember when Nehemiah and God's people arose with determination, they did what their forefathers had failed to do during many years ; and they did it in just one hundred days ! And let us not forget the surprising results, so surprising that the mouthpiece himself was surprised, that attended Jonah's preaching to wicked Nineveh. The stakes now are even greater, and the power promised is also greater than in the days of Nehemiah and Jonah. Let us arise and evangelize the great cities before God arises to shake terribly the earth, for then it will be too late!