AN INCREASING number of pastors are discovering that the pastor's Bible class can be the most fruitful agency in the entire church program for the winning of souls. Although least expensive, it can be the most effective.
For the class to measure up to its full potential certain factors must be kept in mind. Here are a few suggestions:
1. Start with what you have. Some churches are rather small and the number of non-Adventist visitors very few. Start the class with what you can get together. Although usually limited to new members and nonmembers, at the start it may be well to have a few members "planted," just for looks. Pastor W. A. Clarke of Omaha, Nebraska, started his first class this year with but four to six members attending. They met in his office. In a few Sabbaths the office was too small. For lack of an other location, they had twenty to twenty-five chairs set up in one side of the narthex, where now a large group meets each Sabbath. Already seven of these have made their decision for baptism.
2. Promote. This is very important. When Pastor John Rhodes took over his duties with the Long Beach, California, church, he emphasized at his first meeting with the church board that his whole soul-winning program would revolve around the pastor's class, and solicited their support and cooperation.
Sometimes it takes a year or two for a new program to generate enthusiasm in a church, and this is sometimes true with this class. But there are ways of "selling" the program that will hasten its acceptance.
First, sell it to the Sabbath school council and the church board. This is very important, for it must have the support of every department of the church. Second, begin its public promotion several weeks before the first class begins. This will be by verbal announcement by the superintendent during the Sabbath school, and by the pastor during the worship hour. It will also be given a prominent position in the church newsletter and in the weekly church bulletin. A special letter announcing the class should also go to all whose names are in the interest file. In addition to this, the visitation should be stepped up, with the principal objective being to give an invitation to the pastor's class.
Pastor S. A. Renzi, of the Simi, California, church goes a step further and advertises in the local newspaper and in the "Penny-saver" as he would for evangelistic meetings, offering a free Bible and self-help study guide to each one who attends.
3. Educate members to invite and, bring interests. A good promotional program will naturally increase the interest among the members themselves, but they must be encouraged again and again to tell their non-Adventist loved ones, relatives, friends, and people they meet in their daily routine about the class and offer to bring them. Former members are also good prospects. Having a printed brochure, or card, announcing the class will increase the number of contacts made by the members and the effectiveness of their invitations. Those invited personally will, of course, include those who are pursuing the Go Tell, or Gift Bible plan, or who by other means are receiving Bible studies by laymen. During the summer the parents of children attending the Vacation Bible School could be invited to bring their children to Sabbath school and stay for the pastor's Bible class.
The class will normally begin with the beginning of a quarter. Thereafter, quarterly announcements about the class should be sent to all interests, and made again through the church newsletter, the bulletin, et cetera. If this is done over a period of two or three weeks before each new quarter, there will be new additions. Pastor Rhodes reports from five to fifteen new members on the first Sabbath of each new quarter.
Another effective feeder to the class can be Visitors' Day. These special days, when properly planned, promoted, and con ducted, can bring many persons to the church for the first time. These would naturally be invited to the pastor's class. The class should then be so interesting and helpful that they will want to continue their attendance. Among those baptized one year while I pastored in Memphis, Tennessee, were nineteen who were introduced in this way. They came to Sabbath school on Visitors' Day, came to the class, and finally were baptized.
4. Conducting the class. With all the promotion and build-up that have gone into the launching of the program, the class must be exceptionally well conducted. It is always best if the class can meet in a separate room, provided with blackboard, visual aids, et cetera. Pastor Rhodes uses a room seating from fifty to fifty-five and it is usually full. He keeps up interest with the use of slides and black-light charts. In fact, his is a miniature evangelistic program. Those attending are given a copy of the doctrinal message similar to a personalized evangelistic sermon.
A warm welcome is, of course, essential. This should begin with the hostess, or greeter, at the front door of the church as the people arrive for Sabbath school. A friendly word to visitors about the visitors' class should then be given. Be sure strangers are informed as to where the class will meet, and if necessary, have them es corted there at the proper time. In the class they will be warmly welcomed again, and introduced to others. It is well for the class to have a hostess who will also serve as the secretary. Where there is a Bible instructor she would normally serve in this capacity. Special note should be made of those who are absent and they should be contacted through the week.
5. Lessons to use. This will vary. Many use the regular pastor's Bible class quarterlies. One objection to these is that they cover only two quarters, and usually members will stay in the class at least a year. At the present time these quarterlies are being revised and a series of four instead of two is likely to come out of it. In the meantime, various study outlines are being used successfully. Pastor R. G. Wertz, of the Pomona, California, church, is presently using the Twentieth Century Bible Course, for the reasons noted above. After their completion he either takes up the regular quarterly for a quarter or so or goes into Daniel or Revelation. Before the pastor's Bible class quarterlies were available I used the verse-by-verse study of Daniel and Revelation with good results. Some use the Bible Speaks Study Guides. Others have prepared their own study outlines. It al ways adds interest to have outlines, guides, charts, et cetera to give to the members.
The truths we love can be presented in a wide variety of ways. One important factor is that everyone in the class have a Bible and that it be used. Extra copies of the Gift Bibles can be on hand for loan purposes. Also, Bibles can be given away as attendance awards. In my program, which usually included Sunday night meetings, I would sometimes count attendance at the Bible Class the same as attendance at the Sunday night meeting—both counting to ward the award of a Bible or a select book.
Results
The pastor's Bible class is not an experiment. It has proved its worth over and over again as a major method of reaching prospects and assuring baptisms. Pastor Wertz reports that of the fifty-two he baptized last year, forty were graduates of his class. By September, Pastor Rhodes already had forty baptisms for 1968. In my pastoral program the class plus the Sunday night meetings were the major factors in the results we enjoyed.
Not only will the class assure more baptisms, but the solid preparation for baptism that the class can give will help to hold the new members to the church.
The church needn't be large to enjoy a successful pastor's class. And although all conditions may not be ideal for the class setting, it can be successful. In some in stances, where the pastor has more than one church and cannot be present each week, a qualified layman can be trained to take the class in his absence.
There are still new methods to be explored, and there are other ways in which the class can be conducted. Do not be afraid to move ahead into unexplored areas. Do everything possible to make the class appealing, interesting, practical, and above all, soul winning. It will not take the church long to recognize its worth and be committed to its support.
