Reach Out for Life!

Present plans indicate that the "Reach Out for Life" sermons will be in the hands of our North American Division ministers before September 30. This article will guide you in the use of them.

Your "Reach Out for Life" sermon package includes:

1. 8 revival sermons

2. 25 sermon outlines

3. 25 complete sermons

4. 25 sermon summaries (summaries may be ordered in quantity and given out at the close of the evening meetings or delivered to the home)

The material included in these sermons has been gathered from numerous sources. No credit is given for anything copied except statements enclosed in quotation marks. We believe the facts used may be quoted with some assurance, since an attempt has been made to verify them. Some of the illustrations are new; some old. These may be adapted or changed for those with which you may be comfortable. Sermon subjects cover the major and distinctive truths of our message.

SERMON TITLES

An attempt has been made to give a contemporary touch to the titles with appeal and relevance to today's society. You may not like some of them. Change those that do not appeal to you, use those that do, or adapt them to your own sermon materials.

Handbills can be ordered without the time and place of meeting and without the title list. This handbill will advertise only the opening subject, "Reach Out for Life." Those who order these will be responsible for having the above items imprinted.

Those who wish to go by the suggested list of subjects can order handbills with the titles imprinted. This handbill will also include the dates of the meetings, which will run nightly excluding Mondays, be ginning March 4 and ending April 1, 1972.

SUBJECT SEQUENCE

A general logical sequence is suggested. Noncontroversial subjects such as the second coming of Christ, home, health, and conversion introduce the series. Then come the Sabbath, baptism, three angels' messages, the sanctuary, judgment, and the state of the dead. An attempt has been made to prepare sermons that are Christ-centered and logical in their approach.

GUIDELINES ONLY

No two fingerprints are the same, so we are told! The average brain contains about 13 billion cells. The chances of the existence of two identical minds is not merely remote but virtually impossible. So when you begin going through these sermons, remember you are the preacher! Use your own mind, your own system of logic, and your own ways of presentation. When you enter the pulpit and preach under the guidance of the Holy Spirit through your own personality, the subject you present must be your own! This means that at best the MISSION 72 sermons are merely sermon source material. Frankly, we deplore the idea of any preacher's taking these sermons and preaching them word for word! They are guidelines for your adaptation. Use them as best suits your personality. As you study them, you may feel as David did when he put on Saul's armor, "I cannot go with these" (1 Sam. 17:39). But then, some may feel much in need for just this assistance in their busy pastoral program. For these to be told, "Make up your own MISSION 72 sermons from scratch," would be equivalent to saying, "Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it" (Ex. 5:11).

KEEP IT SIMPLE

We have tried to avoid stylistic writing. We have purposely kept the material simple and direct. Most evangelists would agree that the more direct and simple your preaching, the more decisions you will gain for Christ. Christ's preaching was not sophisticated. Deep thinkers "marveled at the spiritual truth expressed in the simplest language" (The Desire of Ages, p. 254).

Teachers of persuasive speech generally agree that the way you say a thing is often more important than what you say. The combination of food for thought packaged in an appealing manner is unbeatable.

PREPARE! PREPARE! PREPARE! Our appeal to you is that you carefully prepare your materials. Regardless of how small your audience may be PREPARE! PREPARE! PREPARE! Know your subject thoroughly. No man can speak with authority unless he knows what he is going to say and is convicted that what he is saying is truth and is of utmost importance for a man's soul salvation.

For most of us, hours of personal practice are a must! Get in a room alone and speak out loud. Better still, stand in your empty church or hall and practice your sermons.

VISUAL AIDS

We live in a world where the senses of men are constantly being appealed to. Make every possible effort to use simple but effective visual aids. Slides are avail able for the revival sermons. Many of these can be incorporated in the evangelistic series. A blackboard is the cheapest and most effective visual aid possible. Use it nightly, and use a big one! The very smallest one should be at least four feet high and eight feet long. If you cannot afford to buy a professional-type black board, simply take a piece of masonite, frame it, and attach legs to it. Then give at two or three coats of good green black board paint. Use yellow chalk and draw lines and diagrams, print the important words, and watch how it polarizes your audience. Full-color pictures of the beasts of Daniel and Revelation and the sanctuary can be ordered directly from the General Conference MV Department. What people can see, as well as hear, makes a deeper impression upon their hearts and minds.

LENGTH OF SERMON

Keep it short! Thirty-five to forty minutes is about all people can endure in this age of haste. This means that time is not available for proving every point. Too many details and too much proof not only cause a loss of interest on the part of the listeners but make the truth indistinct. "With many [people], assertions will go farther than long arguments." Counsels to Writers and Editors, p. 83.

BATHE YOUR SERMONS IN PRAYER

Begin as soon as you get the sermons to prepare your own. Study diligently both the Scriptures and the Spirit of Prophecy writings for concepts and language that will grip hearts. Use personal illustrations to get your points across, but make sure they have a point! Let the love of God permeate every word. Lift up Christ constantly! Give the people hope! Let your sermons be bathed in prayer! Combine logic and love! Preach for decision! Re member, eternal life is at stake. Dwell on God's power, God's love, God's salvation, and God's mercy. Some of these elements have been incorporated in the sermons, but not enough! Why? The answer is simple. We want you to find these qualities from your own study and prayer. Let your own heart be softened by the grace of Christ and then in your own way let these elements, as something fresh and new, be preached as your own personal experience with Christ. Let your preaching be joyous and confident. Sweep the people along with yourself to the very gates of heaven. Become enthusiastic and excited about God. Don't let a small audience dampen your spirits. If you do, for certain your audience will get smaller still! We have the greatest message in the world, but people won't know it unless you preach it that way! Pray for the Holy Spirit to empower your life so that your witness will be irresistible.

STUDY CHRIST'S METHODS

Read carefully the characteristics of Christ's preaching as found on pages 252- 261 of The Desire of Ages. We can do no better than to follow in the footsteps of our Master Preacher and Pattern. Study care fully the following:

Ten Characteristics of Christ's Preaching

"In Christ is the tenderness of the shepherd, the affection of the parent, and the matchless grace of the compassionate Saviour. His blessings He presents in the most alluring terms. He is not content merely to announce those blessings; He presents them in the most attractive way, to excite a desire to possess them. So His servants are to present the riches of the glory of the unspeakable Gift. The wonderful love of Christ will melt and subdue hearts, when the mere reiteration of doctrines would accomplish nothing. 'Com fort ye, comfort ye, my people, saith your God.' 'O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! . . . He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom.' Tell the people of Him who is 'the Chiefest among ten thousand,' and the One 'altogether lovely.' Words alone cannot tell it. Let it be reflected in the character and manifested in the life. Christ is sitting for His portrait in every disciple. Every one God has predestinated to be 'conformed to the image of his son.' In every one Christ's long-suffering love, His holiness, meekness, mercy, and truth are to be manifested to the world." The Desire of Ages, pp. 826, 827.

The success of MISSION '72 depends upon the witness of those who are filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Pray for this power!