THE spirit of revival, reformation, and sacrifice is taking hold of the Adventist Church. This spirit is reaching deep into the very heart of the South American Division. An entire continent is coming under the spiritual impact of latter-day preaching. This vast expansion of territory, divided into eight countries using two major languages, presents our six union organizations of thirty-one local fields with the greatest challenge of the church. And that is, to evangelize the nations of this division. By the blessing of God the South American Division has doubled its membership in the past seven years.
In the beginning of this quadrennium the soul winners here marked a motto for a crusade "United to Evangelize South America." The sole objective to carry the judgment hour message to 144 million inhabitants has ignited the fires of evangelism, involving every worker arm in arm with our entire church membership. There is no plan or project in the South American Division to hurry people into church fellow ship prematurely, but there is a united movement to garner a ripe harvest of souls and lead them into a rich experience of personal soul winning. We can only keep our faith by sharing the truth with others.
The Open Door
South America can be described as a wide-open door of opportunity to preach the gospel without limitations. It is a rare privilege to preach, to publish, and to build in total freedom. Never have so many enjoyed so much with so great a task unfinished. What a solemn responsibility to carry the truth urgently to every city, village, and hamlet. It means that all our forces must now be marshaled under the influence of the Holy Spirit and molded into a last-day evangelistic crusade for Christ.
Dedicated and coordinated talents in all lines of the work in cooperation with the Holy Spirit are responsible for our church growth. The sowing processes have continued for more than half a century, and now the sower and the reaper move hand in hand across the fields of harvest. The literature ministry, under the evangelistic leadership of Pedro Camacho and through the efforts of the 2,442 regular, part-time, and student colporteur evangelists, has covered the division with more than eight mil lion dollars worth of truth-filled literature in the past three years. Like the leaves of autumn this great land of opportunity is being blanketed with the Adventist message.
Francisco Siqueira, division youth leader, commands 100,000 youth to achieve the mark of the MV Target through the consecrated Voice of Youth. Herein lies the strength of the church; our youth immersed in soul winning! What a challenge; a continent for Christ! On the weekend of September 27, 1968, more than 6,000 young people were baptized in South America; a double Pentecost for our young people! This opportunity in South America is immeasurable, for 55 percent of the entire population is under twenty-five years of age. The move is onward to bring young men and women to Christ.
The division Ministerial Association secretary, Enoch Oliveira, and his associate, Arturo Schmidt, with union and local evangelists, are mighty soul winners and give strong evangelistic leadership to the field. The training program, through institutes, councils, and extension schools, has inspired our ministry to a new and more aggressive program in public evangelism.
Elder Oliveira not only leads hundreds of precious souls to Christ every year with 500 baptisms in 1968--but during the past decade as Ministerial Association secretary for the division he has united the ministerial force in the division to go forth "United to Evangelize South America." This spirit has reached every level of the work from top administration right down to the intern. In the wake of this influence our departmental leaders have participated in public evangelism, giving to the entire field an example of soul saving.
Evangelist Arturo Schmidt has revived the use of tents for modern audiences in this division, holding forth with fellow team mates in three successive efforts during 1968; two in Chile and one in Ecuador. The fruits of these meetings will result in more than 1,000 baptisms.
Five-Day Plan
The Five-Day Plan to Stop Smoking has awakened a deep interest in the work and teachings of the Adventist Church. The finest people of society and leading government officials have favored our church with influential support and solid financial backing. One government official gave |2,500 to carry the Five-Day Plan to public schools. Television opened its facilities to present the plan on television screens. Dr. Jantzko, of River Plate Hospital, in Argentina, joined the Santiago, Chile, tent team to offer the population of that city an opportunity to stop smoking. In three public efforts 1,500 prominent persons found victory over tobacco. One man who smoked nine packs every twenty-four hours gave it up and joined the Bible class. This fine approach in giving people practical help prepares thousands to receive the message.
Accessions to the membership of the South American Division in 1968 by baptism and profession of faith reached 30,604, representing an increase of 5,000 over 1967. This brings the net growth for the year to 11.79 per cent. The Inca Union led in soul winning with a thousand overflow in baptisms, and reached a grand total of 8,724. The North Brazil Union had the largest net growth with 16.66 per cent. Every union surpassed any previous record in baptisms.
Robert H. Pierson, our General Conference president, joined evangelists of the Rio Minas Conference in a city-wide baptismal ceremony with 180 candidates. The occasion was highlighted when the ten thousandth accession to the church, a young man, was baptized by our world leader. This ceremony was the most publicized in the history of our work when television, radio, and newsprint carried to the millions of South America the spiritual impact of a baptismal service after the plan of the Bible.
Soul-winning Laymen
The Bible Speaks missionary program, carrying the Word of God from door to door, has provided the missionary spirit with works. Literally thousands have joined the ranks of soul winners through this plan, and our members on every level of society are a part of this endeavor. Nearly half of the baptisms in the division are related to the Bible Speaks missionary movement. Hundreds of members won their first soul to Christ in 1968, and the fruits for the present are abundant.
Laymen, by God's blessing, are now greater soul winners, and their enthusiasm is sufficient to inspire the ministry. This united missionary endeavor that is moving South America has joined worker and lay man shoulder to shoulder in a fine spiritual fraternity to lead the lost to Christ. Last year in the South Peru Mission, Santiago Saleado, a layman living in the Altiplano, brought 110 souls to Christ through Bible Speaks evangelism. One of his converts is the mayor of the province who is now sharing his faith in like manner.
As we look over the Bible prophecies we find ourselves almost home. As we view the harvest field we recognize a tremendous task unfinished. How must we go forward? What can be accomplished? In Life Sketches, page 196, Ellen G. White says:
We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us, and His teaching in our past history.
Growth Explosion
This message came to the church in 1915, and one year later, in 1916, the South American Division was organized, recording the existence of 4,903 members. For a little more than three decades our evangelists and preachers made a determined advance, facing the intolerance that was inspired by religious fanaticism inherited from the Iberian countries of Spain and Portugal. The Adventist penetration was mainly done during this period in the rural areas far from the great cities. Our triumphs were modest. Fifty-five years after the pioneers began their labors, through hard work, struggle, and sacrifice, our baptized membership in 1949 numbered only 50,000. About this time, however, the Adventist movement began showing signs of new life, and by 1959 Adventist membership in South America reached 100,000 souls. Then came an onward surge with tremendous momentum which reached a total of 228,167 believers in 1968.
In 1949 there was one church member to every 1,725 inhabitants. Now, in spite of the population explosion that is presently reaching a high peak in South America, there is one Seventh-day Adventist to every 630 inhabitants.
Dr. E. J. Daniels, lamenting the melancholic weakening of evangelism in the Protestant churches of the United States, wrote:
In 1850 five Christians were needed to lead one soul to Christ. Fourteen Christians were necessary to do the same task in 1900. In 1919 twenty-one believers worked for one year to bring a soul to Christ. And in 1966 thirty-three converts needed a whole year to win a soul to Jesus. These statistics are based on the reports from several Christian denominations. ---Technique of Torch Bearing, pp. 8, 9.
The author uses this alarming and discouraging statistical information, adding the solemn words, "May God have mercy on us."
We find a brighter picture in the pages of the Annual Statistical Report of the South American Division. With the objectiveness of figures this report describes the triumphant advance of Adventism in this continent---10.7 believers were necessary in 1954 to win one soul for Christ. In 1958 the same number of brethren were needed to lead one person to Jesus. In 1962 we had an average of 8.8 Christians for each soul converted to Christ. The converts who joined the church in 1966 represented an average of one baptism per each 7.6 church members. In 1967 we had a more encouraging average, when considering that we needed 7.1 believers to win a soul for the Lord. And in 1968 there were only 6.7 Christians necessary to bring one sinner to Christ. The chart below illustrates this growth:
How are we able to explain this rapid growth? In the agenda of all administrators there is a word---evangelism. In the work program of all the ministers and evangelists there is a consuming passion the winning of souls. In the heart of almost all of our members exists an almost absorbing preoccupation---the saving of the world. As a result of this combination of interests and the working together of these folk under the Spirit of God there is manifested a growth explosion in our denomination in South America. Thus we move onward as the coordinated efforts in the harvest fields provide an avenue of usefulness.
There is rejoicing in the harvest field. It is the work of the Lord and we give Him all the praise.
