THIS is the first Autumn Council since the past General Conference session, and this meeting should set the tone for the next five years.
We find ourselves drawing ever nearer the coming of the Lord, nearer the close of probation, and nearer the end of time on this earth. So that which we plan and do during the course of these ten days is URGENT! In view of this urgency, I believe we need some goals, some objectives, and then we need to keep our eyes on those goals and objectives and earnestly attempt to achieve them.
With this in mind, let me place before you twelve goals which, in my opinion, should be uppermost in our minds as we move forward in faith during the days ahead.
1. Lift Up Jesus Before the World and Before Our Church Members
There is nothing of greater importance than that in our preaching and our living we hold Jesus high before those to whom we minister. The Saviour said, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me" (John 12:32). It was on the magnet of the cross that Jesus pinned His hopes. His death upon the cross took Him into the hearts of men from every age, and from every land, forever.
2. Keep in Sharp Focus the Unique Mission of the Church and Its Institutions
Too many Seventh-day Adventists have forgotten, if they ever fully understood, just why they are here. We are not here as just another church, but we are here with God's message, in God's hour, to prepare a people for the coming of God's Son in the very near future. Let's remind our people why we are here: that we operate medical institutions to point men and women to the Great Physician; that we operate educational institutions to turn boys and girls and young men and women to the Master Teacher. Unless we keep our vision clear in this respect, we have failed to grasp the genious of the Advent Movement.
3. Re-emphasize and Follow Through on the Call to Repentance, Revival, and Reformation
This must be our program until the Lord comes! May the Spirit of God do for us inside the church what needs to be done. The servant of the Lord extends to us in the following statement the assurance that revival and reformation are coming: "Before the final visitation of God's judgments upon the earth there will be among the people of the Lord such a revival of primitive godliness as has not been witnessed since apostolic times."—The Great Controversy, p. 464. And reports from around the world indicate that the Spirit of God is even now at work. But revival and reformation will never come until you and I have seen the Lord on the cross of Calvary. Then with the realization that our sin placed Him there, our hearts will break in repentance.
4. Give Pragmatic and Persevering Attention to Discovering Solutions to Outstanding Problems Before the Church at This Time
Here in North America we have problems—financial, organizational, spiritual. The cost of operation is rapidly escalating in our conferences and institutions. As we give attention to discovering solutions to these problems we must clearly outline our approaches and decide upon priorities. We must place the most important problems first, set target dates, and perseveringly stay by until we find God's answer to our needs. It is going to require much praying and a lot of perspiration. Miracles are not plucked out of thin air. Miracles are made of brains and brawn and courage.
5. Maintain an Unswerving Commitment to Sound Fiscal Policies and Efficient Operation of Church Business
It is a temptation to overextend when money flows freely. We must keep in mind the need for conscientious operating and not embark on projects that are not care fully funded. If we keep in mind the source from which these hard-earned dollars come, we will be more thoughtful in spending them.
6. Give Unprecedented Emphasis to Soul Winning in Every Phase of Church Activity With the Aim of Adding One Million Fully Converted New Members
There is no program in the General Conference to rush people into baptism. It will count nothing if we get people into the church but don't get them into the kingdom. The only reason for our existence is to share our faith and help others find the Lord Jesus Christ and prepare for His coming. With God's help it should be possible for us to reach one million fully converted new members during the next quinquennium. But it is going to take every worker, every member, every department, every institution, every conference, every person, in soul-winning endeavor. We are told: "If His people are watching the indications of His providence, and stand ready to cooperate with Him, they will see a great work accomplished."—Testimonies, vol. 6, p. 24.
7. Encourage the Spirit of Sacrifice in Every Aspect of Individual and Institutional Life
The love of Christ and the knowledge of the times in which we live ought to challenge us as leaders to sacrificially participate in giving and encourage us to set an example. In our personal living, in our homes, in our traveling, in our cars, and in all that we do, let us practice sacrifice.
8. Establish Some SDA Presence in Every Country, Province, and Major City Yet Unentered by the Third Angel's Message
"Go ... to everyone, everywhere" (Mark 16:15, L.N.T.).* It is all inclusive, and yet we have many unentered areas of earth. I would like to challenge every division, every union, and every conference to a well-defined plan to get into these unentered areas during the next quinquennium. In a time when we should be pushing back our frontiers and spreading out, there are about 30 percent of the Seventh-day Adventists in North America living in California, especially in the southern part. There are other concentrations in Michigan and in the Baltimore-Washington area.
At this same time, 44 percent of the General Conference budget is spent on capital investment, and about 90 percent of the $300 million investment in school buildings is here in North America, 10 percent over seas. Perhaps we need an agonizing reappraisal of some of our financial policies.
Recently I read in Christianity Today these words: "Many missionary societies are no longer sure of who they are or what their task is. Some of their leaders say one thing and some another." We need to roll back the frontiers and reach out and establish some presence in every country, every province, every major city, that is yet unentered by the third angel's message.
9. Devise New Methods to Give Unprecedented Circulation to Denominational Literature, Particularly Our Church Paper and Our Missionary Journals
"My word . . . shall not return unto me void" (Isa. 55:11). Many conversions are traced to reading a book or a magazine. Our army of literature evangelists should be doubled or tripled with qualified, competent, and dedicated men and women. Some evangelical preachers are blanketing the the world with their literature. Perhaps we need a new approach in some of our publishing concepts.
10. Give In-Depth Study to Organizational Structures of Our Church, With the View to Operating More Economically and More Efficiently
There is no question but that God, through His chosen messenger, played an important role in the organization of this church more than a century ago. It has been 70 years since the last major organizational change was made. Since that time there have been great advances in the fields of technology, transportation, and communication. Distances are no longer a major barrier. We need to study carefully where there may be duplication of effort in administration, departments, institutions. In all our planning it is imperative that we maintain a closely knit unity in our organizational relationships. Only through close cooperation and counsel between all levels of our organization, from the local church to the General Conference, will we be able to present a united front to the world and accomplish the task entrusted to us.
11. Establish a Clear Denominational Identity With the Public
We challenge our public relations people, who are already doing a good job, to achieve even greater accomplishments so that newspapers, radio, television, and institutional and church signs will speak clearly of our wonderful message. Do not be ashamed in any way to use the name Seventh-day Adventist. It is a God-given name with a message. We are to keep it before the public. Our image in the community is ever to be that of a church with a mission—but most of all the image of born-again Christian members of the community, seeking to make our area a happier, healthier, better place to live.
12. Make the Absolute Commitment to God That Is Represented by Paul's Statement, "This One Thing I Do"
God is calling members and workers alike to a renewed commitment. Shall we not pray that the Lord will enable us to recapture the spirit of the pioneers and give our selves as members and workers whole-heartedly to this great cause—no sidelines, no diversions—"This one thing I do"?
God grant us the spirit of the men and women who laid the foundation of this movement, the spirit of zeal that possessed our Saviour when He declared, " 'My devotion for your house, O God, burns in me like a fire'" (John 2:17, T.E.V.).† With such a spirit, and with the help of our God, we can and must move forward to a finished work in our generation.
* From The Living New Testament, Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois. Used by permission.
† From the Today's English Version of the New Testament. Copyright © American Bible Society 1966.
[EDITORIAL NOTE: This article is a condensation of the opening sermon given by Elder Robert H. Pierson at the Autumn Council which convened October 7, 1970, in Washington, D.C.]