ONE HUNDRED MILLION die together" was the slogan of an entire nation during the second world war! In spite of their colossal losses these people fanatically believed in their system and their motto! They would not surrender until they were faced with the only alternative remaining--extermination.
What would happen to the Advent Movement if we became as determined as they in taking a stand against the devil and his forces? What would happen if we united in a single, giant evangelistic thrust in a march against the enemy of souls? Our slogan "Two million Adventists work together" would result in not death, but life for untold millions who will someday live forever.
If you haven't read the article beginning on page 9 of the December issue of THE MINISTRY, do so immediately. Note the mock-up of the front page of a newspaper with headlines declaring, "Adventists Launch First Nationwide Crusade!" It is a thrilling thought that this can and must become a reality. By the way, the various actions noted in this article have leaped over the ocean to the Australasian Division, which is putting into effect the same plan along with North America.
I have never seen any action grip the attention of our leaders as this plan has. It was like a breath of fresh air when during Fall Council an entire morning was spent talking about what the church should, could, and would do in a giant soul-winning endeavor. One delegate declared, "What a thrill to hear a discussion on this subject, for this is really the only reason we exist!" There was no negative attitude evident. It seemed as though the Spirit of God moved everyone's thinking into the same channel.
The living-in-the-last-days concept has gotten through to the leadership of this church. With law and order under siege, teachers, picketing their own schools, ministers and priests taking the lead in waving banners of every description, doctors penalizing patients by going on strike, police and firemen walking off their jobs, seminaries folding up, instability of commerce, a rise in crime and cost of living rates the list is interminable, but it all points to the need for the church to get started on a concerted action to let the world know that there is an answer! Even our Ingathering campaigns are being threatened. Anti-soliciting laws could spell the demise of the main concerted drive of this church. Some negatives may welcome this thought, but when it comes you will know that not only are our liberties being threatened but the only major effort to let the world know who we are and what we are doing will be gone.
No longer can we as Adventists go back to the pleasant, detached type of program we have operated in the past. We must become involved in meeting the surging needs of lost humanity, who are confused but hungry for direction, leadership, and hope! We can have our church picnics, our boat clubs, our weekend outings, our hat-making classes, but in the meantime a world is slip ping over the brink of oblivion.
This could well be Adventism's last chance to let the world know what we really believe. If the 1972 North American Evangelistic Crusade is conducted properly, the church may for the first time in its history have a chance to see the following promise fulfilled:
"If Christians were to act in concert, moving forward as one, under the direction of one Power, for the accomplishment of one purpose, they would move the world." Testimonies, vol. 9, p. 221.
There is joy immeasurable when one considers the powerful effect on both the world and the church when every minister and member, regardless of position or work, unites in a nationwide evangelistic crusade. Think of billboards from coast to coast using the same invitation to an Adventist evangelistic meeting. Imagine the same type of advertising being used in newspapers, handbills, window cards, bus cards, and posters. Consider hearing repeatedly the same announcement-invitation over the radio and TV. We aim to call the attention of every person in the United States and Canada to the fact that there is a people known as Seventh-day Adventists and that they have a message of hope and salvation. If we can gain the support of the entire church, and I believe we will, somebody is going to get the idea that Adventists,are around and have something to say. The next poll taken of our church should show a lower percentage of those who have never heard of Seventh-day Adventists.
Furthermore, consider the unifying effect this will have on all the departmental pro grams of the church. It is decidedly hoped that the 1972 thrust will be only a beginning for a continuing program, either on a yearly or semiyearly basis, when all Adventist churches will participate in a united evangelistic advance. This means that departmental programs will be geared to an objective of sowing seed for future harvest in these public meetings.
By the time you read these words, we will be well along the road of getting this program under way. Committees have been set up to prepare promotional material. A group is working on a new set of evangelistic sermons with fresh illustrations and ideas. These will be available to all of our ministers and lay evangelists. A preliminary step has been taken to secure the services of a leading advertising agency that will advise us as to the best methods of reaching the secular mind.
In the presentation of subjects we are emphasizing the fact that the Seventh-day Adventist Church has the answer to many basic problems confronting our perplexed society. We must capitalize on the deplorable situations existing today in the nation's homes and communities by pointing out how Christ offers help for the total man-- mentally, physically, and spiritually. Surely the Seventh-day Adventist Church has a special, urgent, and important message for the world. This is the hour when we can inform the human race that the end is near and our Lord is soon to return.
It is agreed that this division-wide crusade should be identified with the Seventh-day Adventist Church in all of its publicity, thus making a maximum impact for the church on those who will not attend the meetings as well as on those who do. It is being urged that this be a full-message campaign and that a minimum of twenty-one topics to be presented, with the opening night as March 4, 1972.
From ghettos to suburbs, from cities to country, let the Advent message be heard clear and loud. Let ministers and members join hands and begin believing that when His church like an army awakes, organizes, and starts marching together, something is going to happen.
"Those who stand back indifferently in the day of battle, as though they had no interest and felt no responsibility as to the issue of the contest, might better change their course or leave the ranks at once." Ibid., vol. 5, p. 394.
