Jesus our Lord said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). In our Lord's special book for His people in the last days He reveals His messenger as "having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth." For "it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe" (I Cor. 1:21).
It is therefore apparent that our great need is for more and better preachers of the three angels' messages. To this end I have concentrated on a program of training young men in direct evangelism. In other words, our purpose is soul winning both in the present and in the future.
How do we reach that objective? By going into both large and small conferences and union mission fields, where we conduct an evangelistic campaign. For three hours each forenoon we hold a school of evangelism, where we not only discuss the various problems and techniques of evangelism but also explain where we are endeavoring to lead the audience night by night. As the workers see the theory transferred into practice they quickly catch on. This program has also proved a great success in the mission fields with native workers, because fundamentally people are the same, regardless of color or creed. Our task is to go to "every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people" and preach the everlasting gospel. Therefore, our primary purpose is the inspiring and instructing of consecrated preachers to preach God's message for the last days. This work has resulted in winning many souls to God.
The type of campaign followed has been short but intensive evangelistic meetings. These are conducted seven nights a week, plus Sabbath and Sunday afternoons. Thus we have nine public meetings a week, continuing for either three or four weeks.
What are the results? Not only have many accepted the message as a result of the campaigns but also many young men have caught the vision of souls being won by direct evangelism through the preaching of the Word.
A recent letter from the president of the West Fiji Mission, where last year we conducted an effort, reveals the results. This is typical of home and mission fields:
"The result was that we adopted from it a program that today is bearing fruit, for we have eleven missions running concurrently, three in Suva alone. When each man has filled his responsibilities we will have thirteen efforts operating. I would say that there are well over one thousand people hearing this message nightly. Each campaign is based on the twenty-one-night schedule, and it is working extremely well. They have now been operating since Sunday, August 7, our opening date.
"I have been really thrilled as I have journeyed around the field to witness at firsthand what these young men are doing. What impresses me perhaps more than anything is the fact that not one of them had had any experience whatever, but their willingness and enthusiasm to launch out is contagious.
"You will be interested to know that practically all the material that is being used is what we took down on tape from your lectures. I had it all translated into Fijian, and each man has made it his own. While I cannot understand much of what they are saying, yet many of their gestures are reminiscent of you. It is too early yet to give any estimate of what we may get in the way of souls, but I would say that even if it is only a few, the flame that you kindled just twelve months ago has now reached fire proportion and is burning all over this West Fiji Mission. Time only will give the true estimate of the results."
During the discussion period with the young workers we consider such subjects as the following:
How to Get an Audience, Best Methods of Advertising—Free Advertising, Good Titles for Sermons, City, Small Town, and Country Evangelism, Aids in Holding an Audience, Length of Campaign, Advantages and Disadvantages of the Short and Long Campaigns, The Opening Meeting, The Order of Subjects, Personal Work, How to Obtain Entrance Into Homes for Bible Studies, Filing Sermon Material, Preaching Essentials, Getting Names in an Evangelistic Campaign, Evangelistic Equipment, Appeals and Altar Calls, Aftermeetings, How to Teach the Truth, as Illustrated by the Construction of the Bible, Presenting Daniel 8, Presenting the Sabbath, Evangelism as Heaven Sees It.
We also consider how to deal with the arguments of:
Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormonism, Pente-costalism, Roman Catholicism, Christadel-phianism, Arguments Used by Our Opponents, Difficult Texts, Epistle to the Galatians, Epistle to the Romans, 2 Corinthians 3, Once Saved Always Saved, et cetera.
These latter subjects have been greatly appreciated by our workers.
Thus our program is geared for a greater vision and better methods in the one important work for today, namely, preaching the three angels' messages and the saving of men and women.
