Putting All the Members to Work

Individual Responsibility

Jesus Himself was sent to earth as an agent of the gospel, for He is "the Apostle . . . of our profession" (Heb. 3:1). As an organization of co-workers with Him, "the church is God's appointed agency for the salvation of men."—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 9. It follows, then, that the individual member is not in the church merely for his own com­fort and satisfaction, but as a responsible unit in a team that is operating constantly to carry out this purpose of bringing re­demption to men.

The work of the church is not that of the minister and a few lay leaders, for "every true disciple is born into the king­dom of God as a missionary."—The Desire of Ages, p. 195.

Church Like a Battleship

The church is like a battleship rather than a troop transport, and hence should be organized for action. Just as every man has his battle position on such a ship, so with Christians. "To each is assigned a post of duty, not for his own narrow, selfish interests, but that the influence of each may be a strength to all."—Testimonies, vol. 7, p. 296.

If a Christian is inactive, the blame is not wholly his, for it is the minister's work to see that the member is given a post of duty, and that he knows how to function in that position. Too many of our congrega­tions are like a battleship whose com­mander is regularly urging his men to fight vigorously and courageously but with no specifically appointed tasks. What confu­sion and inefficiency would reign on such a ship! Only by a miracle could a battle be won under these circumstances. Besides the work of keeping the organization running smoothly, it is the pastor's mission to seek new methods of attacking the "enemy," to devise new strategies of warfare, to press every conflict to the finish, and to gather and conserve the "spoils."

The success of the minister's evangelistic calling depends to a great degree upon his ability to distribute responsibility among his fellow church members. For him and for the church it should be considered an advantage rather than a fault to have "so many chiefs and so few Indians." Directly or indirectly, it is the pastor's business to see that each member has a certain work to do and that he actually does that work.

Upward Expansion of Office

One measure of church progress is the expansion of church office, which should always be in an upward direction, increas­ing the duty, dignity, and efficiency of each position. To illustrate this negatively: It might be an expansion of office for the elder to unlock church doors; for the dea­con to empty the wastebaskets; for the clerk to send the pastor a copy of the minutes of a church business meeting; or for the treas­urer to write a duplicate tithe receipt; but such an increase may only mean an out­ward, or even a downward enlargement, rather than the desired upward growth.

It would be well, I believe, for the duties of each office to incline toward growth, development, enlargement of experience.

For every job in the church should tend increasingly in the direction of the highest business of the ministry of the church-- that of saving souls for the kingdom of God.

The elders are capable of executing many of the spiritual duties now left to the minister; the deacons might well give a very satisfactory performance doing the vis­iting and missionary work now done by the elders; and willing workers of lesser age or training might do many of the simpler tasks now performed by the deacons.

Such an upgrading of responsibility, which is actually only a move from the ordinary reality in the direction of the New Testament ideal, would, to an appreciable measure, free the pastor to expand his principal office—that of ministering to the spiritual needs of nonmembers. In addi­tion, this plan would provide more posts of duty at which the newer, younger, or lesser-trained members could accomplish the sim­pler but no less vital tasks in the church.

Benefits to Be Expected

Though the actual benefits of this pro­gram would be incalculable, we might bring to attention some of the most note­worthy:

1. Opportunities for soul-saving work would be multiplied, especially to the pas­tor and leading lay members, and ulti­mately to all the members.
2. The services of the church would run more smoothly and efficiently.
3. There would be an increase of en­thusiasm among all the church members for all church activities.
4. Church problems, such as quarrels, faultfinding, jealousies, and commandment violations, would be displaced by words and deeds of love.
5. An increased feeling of dignity and importance would come to every member.
6. The general standing of the church in the community would be enhanced.
7. It would help to keep the "back door" of the church closed against apostasy.