The Seventh-day Adventist Church has viewed evangelism as the work of leading people to Jesus Christ and the church through baptism. Under this definition, evangelism generally means public meetings, Bible studies, and radio and television programs like Voice of Prophecy and It Is Written. Most Adventists maintain that evangelism is successful when many are brought into the church. And usually, God's blessings upon each effort are considered proportional to the number baptized: the greater the number, the greater God's blessing.
However, one crucial question regarding Adventist evangelistic efforts needs to be addressed. When many of those baptized in an evangelistic crusade are, within a short time, no longer actively involved in the church—can we really call that success?
Let's be honest. As a church, we have quite rightly placed a lot of energy and resources into bringing people to Christ and baptizing them. Yet, zealous to fulfill the evangelistic mission, the church has neglected the experience of nurturing those who have joined. For this reason, though membership continues to increase, an alarming number of newly baptized converts walk away from the church—often within a year after their baptismal experience.
What can we do to solve this problem?
Root of the matter
To begin, our concept of "evangelism" needs to be expanded. It must include the issue of assimilating new members. Evangelism should not be seen as ending with baptism. Evangelism—the sharing of the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ— should seek for the transformation of an unbeliever into an active church member, a mature disciple of Jesus Christ. Evangelism must be seen as an ongoing process that leads a person to become an active disciple of Jesus Christ, rather than an event that produces a commitment to Christ and merely stops there.
Interviews with successfully assimilated members reveal two crucial elements that need to be included in any growing church: a continuing study of the Bible and the development of friendships with other members.
These factors are crucial because of two false assumptions: first, that once baptized, new members will naturally—through the existing church programs (such as Sabbath School lessons, midweek prayer meeting and, in many churches, small Bible study/ fellowship groups)—continue to grow spiritually and in their knowledge of the Bible; second, that once baptized, new members will just naturally fit in.
The truth is, however, that many new members do not take full advantage of the existing programs, either because they are not aware of the impact these programs can have on their spiritual growth or because they're reticent about getting involved in unfamiliar activities. Whatever the reason, the new member, usually in the midst of reordering his or her life, does not automatically gravitate to church programs.
Also, establishing new friendships within the church is not always easy. For a new member who is outgoing and gregarious, it may be easier; many others, however, find it difficult to take the initiative. In such cases, the church itself must reach out and take the initiative instead.
A new culture
When a person joins the church, he or she is joining a new culture at odds with the surrounding society. Seventh-day Adventist Christianity calls an individual to a new commitment to God, a new system of values, and a new way of life. Helping converts through this transition requires that the church function as a support system. To do this, the church must include in its models of evangelism definite plans for assimilating and nurturing converts. And these models should be based on the image of the church as "the family of God."
Where we have a milieu of many cultures, where family is such an integral part of one's life experience, the church needs to function like a family to the new believer, especially one who finds himself or herself estranged or isolated from his or her natural family and circles of friendship because of new beliefs and commitments. Given the possibility of this deep sense of loss, the church must be prepared to fill that void.
An example from Hawaii is helpful. For Adventists there, the most critical loss would occur in the area of family, or ohana. For Hawaiian natives, the experience of ohana is foundational for one's life. When a commitment to Christ causes a person to lose his or her place in the ohana, the church must recognize that what this new member needs cannot be provided simply through weekly worship services or other church meetings but rather through activities and experiences that offer social and emotional support to help replace what has been lost.
To create such support requires a broader vision of "the church of Jesus Christ." Spiritual nurture must always be a primary consideration.
One of the goals of this nurturing has been to help the new member understand better the beliefs and practices of the Seventh-day Adventist Church within the context of a personal relationship with God. When a Christian experiences this kind of growth, then he or she is better able to understand how the teachings and practices of the church are meant to enhance one's Christian life.
What form of ministry?
What form would such a nurturing ministry take? The answer would be as unique as each congregation. A church with 100 members could not offer the same programs as one with 1,000. However, both could still offer opportunities for members to meet the social and emotional needs of new converts. Each church would need to evaluate prayerfully its resources and develop programs and activities accordingly.
The greatest resource in every church is, of course, people. Simply reaching out to another, especially to the new member, in a caring and compassionate manner, will help that person immensely in his or her spiritual growth. The sense of identity, caring, fellowship, guidance, and mentoring that are so much a part of the ohana experience must also be the experience that one finds within our churches.
This program of growing and nurturing new members does not require a great deal of finance or materials. What it does require is the commitment of members to care for the needs of new converts. Whatever program or process is used, the church must take seriously its responsibility to help newly baptized members grow and mature into active disciples of Jesus Christ.
Until it does, we're going to lose large proportions of those who join after an evangelistic series. And as long as this loss continues, our evangelistic efforts cannot be called "successful," no matter how many numbers are added to the books.
