J. David Newman

What is the mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church? Is its focus blurred or sharp, clearly defined or ambiguous? Our church has more than 4 million members, more than 100,000 employees, and billions of dollars in assets. Is it still…

The Adventist Church is rejoicing that since October 1,1982, it has had an average of one thousand persons per day becoming members. What is not so well known is that 278 per day officially left our church during the same period. And the…

Change comes slowly in the church. The seeds of a quiet revolution were planted in Ohio in the fall of 1980. The previous article by John Fowler describes how this change developed.

The key factor in the process was the redefining…

If there is a clash in interpretation between science and the Bible, which takes precedence? What is our authority? Israel's experience under Joshua's leadership holds a valuable lesson for the church today.

Most conservative Christians…

Perspective is vital to solving any conflict. Too much conflict in the church results from seeing only one side of an issue. Often people find it hard to understand that there is another side. A little-known story in Scripture illustrates…

In the middle of his sermon the preacher noticed a gentleman snoring away on the front row. He motioned to a small boy sitting in the same pew to awaken him.

"Do it yourself," retorted the urchin. "You put him to sleep—you awake him."…

In a previous editorial (May, 1986) I asked the question Does the church need a loyal opposition? and answered Yes. But how are we to know who is loyal and who is merely a malcontent or even a traitor? This is not easy. It cannot be left…

In Britain the minor ity party is known as her majesty's loyal opposition. To oppose does not necessarily mean to be disloyal. Democratic government needs more than one party as a check on the party in power. Is there a place in the church…

I see evidence of growing anti-intellectualism a prejudice against an educated ministry. . . . Men without any ministerial training are being called to serve as pastors of churches, some with only a high school diploma or a two-year Associate…

Jesus startled His disciples with the statement that "anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it" (Luke 18:17).* "How can a man be born when he is old?" (John 3:4) questioned Nicodemus when Jesus…

Each culture has its own ways of displaying status. In Jesus' day, where a person sat in the synagogue indicated his status (see Matt. 23:6; Mark 12:39; Luke 11:43; 20:46). When Jesus noticed how guests were selecting dinner seats, He counseled:…

My husband holds a high administrative position in the church. He works so hard that he does not have time to study the Bible. When he does get home from the office, he relaxes by watching television or reading the Reader's Digest.…

Pastor, I saw Joe helping himself to some money from the offering plate during the worship service. That's stealing, and you ought to do something about it."

"Well, Mary, thank you for telling me about it. Have you talked to Joe?"…

Is the primary goal of a church institution different from that of its secular counter part?

For example, is the primary mission of a Christian hospital to heal the sick? Or of a Christian nursing home to care for elderly people?…

Rumors abound concerning the crisis that is emptying the pockets of Adventist workers in North America. Working spouses are now the norm. Some pastors hold down a second job; others are supported by relatives. Some are leaving the ministry,…

A piece of doggerel says this concerning leaders: People's faults are many, but leaders have only two: everything they say and everything they do.

Being a leader has never been easy even in the best of times. I would like to argue…

The church members were aghast. Saying goodbye to the pas tor with flowers was one thing, but $20,000 worth of flowers?

This was Pastor Tom Phillips' last sermon in this church, and the farewell committee had planned to place several…

Should the Adventist Church vote an official stand on abortion? This question headed the agenda as the Christian View of Human Life Committee met in Washington, D.C., April 17-19, 1989. Some committee members felt the current guidelines were…

This special issue of Ministry describes how we got our standards and how some of them change as generations come and go. We seldom argue over some standards such as not killing or stealing. But others, such as what adornment and…

Is it time for the church to change its philosophy of remuneration? Are the counsels from the past still pertinent today?

The following comments and quotations are directed only and specifically toward the denomination's ministerial,…

Community wage scales and Adventist philosophy dominated the debate that consumed some nine hours of presentation and discussion concerning the pay of Adventist Health System (AHS) administrators in the United States.

Elder Neal C.…

"Help!" came the plea over the telephone. "Half my church board has resigned. I'm in trouble. Can you come help me?"

As assistant to the president of a local conference, I was responsible for dealing with conflict. So I dropped everything…

The students at the Christian college I attended organized a soccer match with the local village team. When the faculty heard about it, they forbade us to play any team outside the college ever again. That was competition, and competition…

Our cover logo says "International Journal for Clergy," yet many of our articles speak to the needs of only half our audience. Fifty percent of our subscribers live outside of North America, yet 95 percent of all the manuscripts we receive…

The word "celebration" has become a naughty (wicked! bad! evil!) word in Adventist circles. It constitutes, for many, the new buzzword for expressing displeasure with almost any change in church worship practice.…

Pastor Folkenberg, tell us about your background, where you were raised, your schooling, and where you have worked.

I was born to missionary parents in Puerto Rico on January 1, 1941, the…

The 1991 Annual Council meeting in Perth, Australia, was dominated by commissions two reporting and two new ones being established. In addition, those attending the council heard encouraging news concerning the success of Global Mission.

During…

Why does Ministry publish controversial articles?"

"Ministry should publish more controversial articles."

"I like to read Leadership more than Ministry."

"Ministry doesn't…

When we were first married, my wife and I used to discuss what the best age was to start our children in school. Ellen White, one of the founders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, counseled against sending children…

Are Adventist hospitals still important to the mission of the church? Some feel that the Adventist hospital system in the United States has departed so far from its origins that it should no longer be considered Adventist.…

I need to clarify one is sue in my editorial "Confused Over the Basis of Salvation" (July 1991). Marvin Moore (see his response on page 13) states that he agrees with most of my editorial, yet he differs on the key point that sparked the…

Are the celebration churches, as some would say, prairie fires that soon will spread and engulf all of Adventism in a conflagration of Pentecostalism? Is celebration a code word that stands for "no standards,…

Dreamers, heretics, gadflies, mavericks, and geniuses!" This headline from an IBM advertisement caught my eye. Organizations—business and church—have always had a difficult time making room for creative, independent…

The Seventh-day Adventist Church has managed to avoid, to a large degree, the experimentation with new forms of worship which took place in the 1950s and 1960s in other church bodies, both Protestant and Roman Catholic," wrote Dr. Raymond…

I have always felt that those who teach and lead in ministry should be involved on the practical as well as the theoretical level. So one year ago I began pastoring a small church (85 members) in the Washington metropolitan area.

My…

It is difficult to create an environment in which individuals are expected on the one hand to obey orders unquestioningly and on the other to speak their minds freely." So wrote William J. Crowe, recently retired chair man of the Joint Chiefs…

The 1992 Annual Council, held at the General Conference headquarters, saw a major departure from past practice. For the first time, instead of debating all the items on the floor the council created five discussion…

If you want to start a discussion in a church group just mention the word "standards,"and everyone will have an opinion. Mention the word "jewelry," and the discussion will become more intense.

Many people…

Assurance of salvation

"Is He my Saviour? Can I lay hold upon His merits this very hour? Can I commit the keeping of my soul to Jesus Christ today? Yes. How? What assurance have I? I point you to Christ of Calvary.…

Dear Brother Folkenberg:

You recently received a letter, with a copy to me, that began: "The officers of the _____ Conference have read and discussed David Newman's article 'Global Mission, My Mission' which…

Abortion is one of the most contentious is sues in the United States and in other countries around the world. The United States Supreme Court in a just released decision declined to overthrow the historic 1973 Wade…

A recent study of more than 12,000 Seventh-day Adventist young people found that 81 percent of them believe that they "must live by God's rules in order to be saved." This church-sponsored study, called Valuegenesis, also revealed that only…

The announcement reverberated like a thunderclap around the General Conference Ministerial Association. Floyd Bresee, association secretary for the past seven years, announced his retirement effective August 31, 1992.…

When you wrote "Church structure servant or master?" for Ministry (June 1989) you had no idea that within a year you would become president of the General Conference. Now you have been president for…

Some may have thought that the Seventh-day Adventist Church hesitated to affirm its historic stand against the use of alcohol at the 1991 Annual Council in Perth, Australia. The General Conference Health and Temperance…

I listened to a distinguished Christian ethicist speak about the standards of conduct and moral judgment. I became uneasy when he suggested that there are no such things as absolutes. His guiding principle seemed to be that of "doing the…

My comments on dancing in my editorial "'Celebration' Is a Naughty Word" (December 1990) stirred many readers' emotions.

One writer said, "I used to be very good at dancing, but I'm not sure which steps will accompany the celebration…

Back in 1978 I was given a book that profoundly influenced my life. The book, Servant Leadership, was written by Robert Greenleaf. Throughout his writings Greenleaf's burden is to demonstrate the clear superiority of servant leadership…

In the fourth meeting of the Christian View of Human Life Committee we have just done what we should have done at our first meeting—we have developed a set of biblical principles on which to base a Christian view of human life.

Concern…

When entering the atrium in the General Conference headquarters building in Silver Spring, Maryland, you immediately notice a huge globe of the world. It is a topographical map turning slowly on its axis, with only…

I have appreciated the gift subscription of Ministry so much that I ordered the other six issues," said Dr. Gordon Moyes, one of Australia's leading ministers, as I sat in his church office in Sydney, Australia.…

When Ken Wade, associate editor, accepted a call to Singapore to be the ministerial secretary of the Southeast Asia Union Mission of Seventh-day Adventists, the search was on for a replacement. Since half of Ministry's regular subscribers…

hen David Jarnes, our associate editor, ac cepted a call to be the associate editor of Signs of 'the Times, the search was on for a replacement. David spent eight years with Ministry and con tributed greatly to the scholarship of the journal.

We…

Ministry: What is NET '95?

McClure: NET '95 is an exciting new innovative concept in evangelism. It takes advantages of breakthroughs in modern technology to communicate the gospel. Through…

In reflecting on the puzzling contradictions of this country [Russia], the out standing Nikolai Berdyaev wrote: 'It is almost impossible to budge Russia, she has become so heavy, so inert, so lazy . . . and so humbly reconciled to…

In my home country of Great Britain 90 per cent of the population do not attend church. For them church is irrelevant; they do not see how it meets the needs of the nineties. Most of the First World faces the same problem. How do you reach…

Most people are about as happy as they choose to be. Be fore you contest this statement too vigorously, consider the alternative. If happiness is not something we choose, but rests on the activities of other people, we then have little control…

I have been shown that the greatest reason why the people of God are now found in this state of spiritual blindness is that they will not receive correction."¹ Who would have imagined when Ellen White wrote this in 1873 that we…

In October 1994 we will be commemorating the 150th anniversary of 1844. Today our church is no longer as simple, specific, and focused as it was back then. As it has grown in size it has also grown in diversity. With…

John Stott, rector emeritus of All Saints Church, London, England, has completely rewritten his basic primer on Christianity. Christian Basics tells us how to be come a Christian, how to be sure we are Christians, and how to grow…

This editorial will raise more questions than it answers. I want you to help me with the answers.

The fourth commandment says: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all…

The prohibition against an Adventist minister performing the wedding ceremony between an Adventist and a non-Adventist has long been church practice. This tradition has assumed the force of policy even though it has…

Integrity is the most precious re source a leader can possess. With out it, one's influence is greatly diminished, if not destroyed. A leader with a fistful of credibility can surmount almost any obstacle. Without…

My open letter to the General Conference president (October 1992) produced many reactions, mostly favorable, but some negative. First, I need to clarify how much I appreciate the outstanding leadership the General Conference president brings…

Two years ago the church elected the youngest president of the General Conference this century. At the 1992 Annual Council the church elected the eighth and youngest-ever secretary of the General Conference Ministerial Association. James…

Every year is important in the life of the pastor, but 1993 will be an even more important year if the church has its way. The Seventh-day Adventist Church, in an Annual Council action, has designated 1993 as the Year of the Pastor, with…

Ministry serves a diverse and international audience of pastors. It is important that we meet the ethnic, cultural, and gender needs of this diverse audience. Thus our editorial staff represents American, British, and Indian backgrounds.…

Results from the Hubble telescope in space are causing sci enlists to revise their thinking regarding the age of the universe. One result in particular has scientists scratching their heads. It seems that the universe is only about 8 to 10…

Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error--change this is the rhythm of living," said Bruce Barton. The delegates to the 1995 General Conference session in Utrecht, Holland, as part of the rhythm of living, voted that a new person…

What is the most important question in the world? Whom should I marry? What career should I pursue? What is the purpose of life? Is there a God? Why evil? Will Jesus come before A.D. 2000? How do I find happiness? How can I live the most…

pastor arrived in a new church and soon convinced the church board to change the church sign and add a cross. A few weeks later this pastor was approached by an individual at one of their Rotary Club meetings.

"I really like your…

The 1995 General Conference session at Utrecht, Holland, is going to make a very important decision regarding women's ordination to the gospel ministry. The session is going to decide whether world divisions of the church can make their own…

"From the endless variety of plants and flowers," says Ellen White, "we may learn an important lesson. All blossoms are not the same in form or color.... There are professing Christians who think it their duty to make every other Christian…

If you could boil down the essence of salvation to one word, which one would you choose? Can any thing as complex as how God saves sinners be reduced to one word? Is it presumption to take the grand design of God and simplify it to one word?…

In May last year I led out in a reaping series in Indonesia, resulting in 128 baptisms. Of this number, 127 came from five percent of the population (Christian), and one came from 95 percent of the population (Muslim). An evangelist I know…

Does your devotional life scintillate with energy? Where do prayer and Bible study fit in your life as a preacher? Are you so busy with the needs of the parish that the only time you open a Bible is to prepare your weekly sermon? How vibrant…