Have You Trained Them to Work?

As evangelists and pastors we have not completed our work of bringing peo­ple into the church until we have trained them to work for others in some way.

By R. H. WENTLAND, Home Missionary Secretary, Southern Union Conference

As evangelists and pastors we have not completed our work of bringing peo­ple into the church until we have trained them to work for others in some way. Much is lost when an evangelist moves to another place immediately after the last baptism without hav­ing thoroughly trained each convert how to labor for souls. This is an important part which is often omitted. It is to be remembered that no one is ready to stand alone until he has been trained to work for the salvation of other souls.

"As churches are established, it should be set before them that it is even from among them that men must be taken to carry the truth to others, and raise new churches ; therefore they must all work, and cultivate to the utmost the talents that God has given them, and be training their minds to engage in the service of their Master."—Testimonies, vol. 3, p, 205.

It might be a wise procedure to train men and women to work for God first, and then se­cure their pledge in the baptismal vow. We no­tice that this is in harmony with the advice given us from God:

"By their baptismal vows they are pledged to make earnest, self-denying efforts to promote, in the hardest parts of the field, the work of soulsaving. God has placed on every believer the responsibility of striving to rescue the helpless and the oppressed."—Evange­lism, PP. 354, 355.

When men and women first learn of this truth, they are often most zealous to bring the message to others. Why permit them to become careless for long periods of time before we or­ganize them and train them for genuine soul-saving work? In Ministry of Healing we have these words:

"Many would be willing to work if they were taught how to begin. They need to be instructed and encour­aged. Every church should be a training-school for Christian workers. Its members should be taught how to give Bible readings, how to conduct and teach Sab­bath-school classes, how best to help the poor and to care for the sick, how to work for the unconverted." —Page 149.

Often we find that certain people who have been baptized make little or no progress. Some even fall away before a year goes by; others who remain are weak for a long time before they gradually become strengthened. Our at­tention should be called to the statement found on page 355 of the book Evangelism:

"Humble, simplehearted, trusting souls may do a work which will cause rejoicing in heaven among the angels of God. Their work at home, in their neighborhood, and in the church will be in its results as far-reaching as eternity. It is because this work is not done that the experience of young converts never reaches beyond the ABC in divine things. They are always babes, always needing to be fed upon milk, and never able to partake of true gospel meat. . . .

"When souls are converted, set them to work at once. And as they labor according to their ability, they will grow stronger. It is by meeting opposing influ­ences that we become confirmed in the faith."

Again, on page 354 of the same book we are urged to stress personal responsibility:

"Personal responsibility, personal activity in seek­ing the salvation of others, must be the education given to all newly come to the faith. . . . Personal faith is to be acted and practiced, personal holiness is to be cultivated, and the meekness and lowliness of Christ is to become a part of our practical life. The work is to be thorough and deep in the heart of every human agent."

It seems that the best way to teach the peo­ple is to give them something to do. Notice the following words:

"Teach them by giving them something to do, in-some line of spiritual work, that their first love will not die but increase in fervor. Let them feel that they are not to be carried and to lean for support on the church ; but they are to have root in themselves. . . .

"Let him seek to keep the church alive by teaching its members how to labor with him for the conversion of sinners. This is good generalship; and the result will be found far better than if he should seek to per­form the work alone."—/bid., pp. 356, 357.

"As soon as a church is organized, let the minister set the members at work. They will need to be taught how to labor successfully."—Testimonies, vol. 7, p. 20.

This is all very simple instruction and some­thing most of us have known for years, and yet so often have passed over it lightly. May we in this day of stress, in this day when everything shall be tested, carefully follow out God's in­struction as we bring people into the truth and prepare them to stand alone in the day of trial, not only by teaching them, but by leading them in the work for God.

By R. H. WENTLAND, Home Missionary Secretary, Southern Union Conference

April 1948

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