Aw nad 2013 1007

The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists

Ju ly 2013

Life

MAPS

20

Stronger

Than Death

28

Plans for a

Larger Work

42

Christian

Unity

North American Division | n a d

July 2 013 The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists

Ju ly 2 013

28 Plans for a Larger Work T H E

Life

MAPS

20

Stronger

Than Death

28

C O V E R

24

Plans for a

42

Larger Work

S T O R Y

Life Maps Gerald A. Klingbeil

Reading your own life story from a Christian perspective.

Christian

Unity

V I S T A

Ted N. C. Wilson

The challenge of becoming more like Jesus

David Trim

Spreading the gospel in one of the most secular parts of the world.

30 Outreach to the Whole Person

N A D

F E AT U R E

Katia Reinert

38

A D V E N T I S T

20 Stronger Than Death D E V O T I O N A L

S E R V I C E

Same Message, Different Methods

Taking the gospel to different cultures requires tact and creativity.

Sylvia Renz

The pain is real, but so is the solution.

22

Adventists InStep for Life and Let’s Move takes health to the streets.

F U N D A M E N T A L

S T O R Y

8 Authentic Spirituality W O R L D

A D V E N T I S T

B E L I E F S

Who Are We in God’s Sight?

Frank W. Hardy and Lisa Beardsley-Hardy

What the “image of God” means in our daily lives

40

The Messenger of Truth D I S C O V E R I N G O F P R O P H E C Y

T H E

S P I R I T

Theodore Levterov

Ellen White’s unique role in guiding the Adventist Church

D E PA RT M E N T S 3 W O 3 6 11 14 17 18 46

R L D

R E P O R T

News Briefs News Feature NAD News NAD Update NAD Perspective NAD Letters One-Day Church

19 W O R L D H E A Urbanization

L T H

42 B I B L E Q U E S T Christian Unity

43 B I B L E S T U D Y God’s Principles for Economic Security

I O N S

44

I D E A

E X C H A N G E

www.adventistworld.org Available in 13 languages online The Adventist World ® (ISSN 1557-5519), one of the Adventist Review ® family of publications, is printed monthly by the Review and Herald® Publishing Association. Copyright © 2013. Send address changes to Adventist World, 55 West Oak Ridge Drive, Hagerstown, MD 21740. For information about advertising, contact Glen Gohlke, 301-393-3054 (ggohlke@rhpa.org). PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. Vol. 9, No. 7, July 2013.

2

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

C o v e r

I M A G E

B y

G a ly n a

A n d r u s h k o

WORLD REPORT

Swiss Adventists

K l e n k / A d v e n t - V e r l ag

Unite for Meeting

G u n t h e r

“What is the will of God for my life?”

It is the question behind every other question a believer asks. While others interrogate the wind to understand the meaning of life or the reasons human beings suffer, those who have the faith of Jesus return to this simple query more frequently than any other. Because we have made belonging to Jesus the central commitment of our lives, we want to know: What am I called to do for my life’s work?

Whom should I marry?

Should I pursue more education?

Where does God want me to use the gifts He has given me?

And then there are the many times— perhaps weekly, even daily—when the imperative of being aligned with God’s will requires answers deeper than the surface-level thinking that too often dominates our days.

What is the best way to spend this Sabbath?

How much should I give to advance the mission of my church?

With whom should I share my testimony today?

The Lord we serve has promised to make Himself known to us, both for the foundational decisions that undergird our lives as believers, and for the smaller choices that order our days. His Word assures us, “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left” (Isa. 30:21, NKJV).

Like Elijah, who ultimately heard the voice of God, not in the wind or the earthquake or the fire, but “in the sound of quiet stillness” (as some of the best translations of 1 Kings 19:12 put it), the quieting of our lives prepares us for both hearing and accepting what the Spirit wants to tell us.

As you read this month’s moving cover story by associate editor Gerald Klingbeil of how he heard the call of Jesus in his own life, pray that your own life will be readied for the answers you are seeking.

Above: HOPE UNITES: Part of the crowd of 2,000 at the Biel/Bienne Ice Stadium for a congress of French- and German-speaking Seventh-day Adventists on May 4, 2013. Inset: QUESTION TIME: Pastor Ted N.C. Wilson, General Conference president, answers a question, as a translator, right, listens.

■■ More than 2,000 Seventh-day Adventists from the French- and German-speaking areas of Switzerland united May 4, 2013, in the city of Biel/Bienne for a congress celebrating 147 years of Adventism in the Alpine nation.

The “Hope Unites” event was held at the Biel Ice House, which normally hosts games of the local hockey team and other entertainment functions. The city, where both German and French are official languages, is the largest bilingual city in Switzerland.

A special guest was Ted N. C. Wilson, president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, which itself is marking 150 years of organization this year.

Wilson did not speak in English, as many of those present had expected, but rather preached in French. Using the example of the prophet Elijah, who stood for spiritual renewal against the prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel, Wilson called on Adventists to similarly stand for renewal of their faith.

“Switzerland has historically been a center of reformation, and it will get its role back,” Wilson told the congregation, “Today is the time to be faithful to God and to His message. It is time for revival and reformation again.

God will remain faithful to His promises, and Jesus is coming back soon!”

Continued on next page

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

3

C a l d e r o n / I A D M a r q u e z / I A D A b e l

Among questions discussed in an afternoon session with members, one was on an increase in secularization.

Wilson said this is to be met with a return to the Word of God. Wilson said that the church’s position as having been given a special task is a signal, not for arrogance, but rather for humility. “Adventists should be best friends with all people,” he said, “but should not mix with ecumenical movements that would prevent them from fulfilling their mission.”

The first Seventh-day Adventist congregation was established in 1867 in Tramelan. In 1901 the Swiss church was organized according to language groups: the “Swiss German Conference,” with its headquarters in Zurich, and the “Fédération de la Suisse Romande et du Tessin,” based in Renens, Vaud. Both administrative regions form the nationwide Swiss Union. As of December 2012, there were 4,394 adult baptized Seventh-day Adventists in Switzerland, worshipping weekly in 49 congregations.

—reported by Inter-European Division, with Adventist World staff

A l e j a n d r o

WORLD REPORT

In Colombia, Adventists Celebrate “Vision One Million” ■■ The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Inter-America celebrated the fruits of its discipleship training program with a special live satellite broadcast from Bogota, Colombia, on May 4, 2013. The event was part of a multilayered territory-wide initiative called “Vision One Million,” which began in 2010. This initiative integrates church departments and ministries leaders to train and empower 1 million church members to become true followers and witnesses of Jesus.

4

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

Above: THOUSANDS IN ATTENDANCE: More than 12,000 gathered at the G12 Convention Center in Bogota, Colombia as Inter-America celebrated its territory-wide Vision One Million discipleship program via satellite on May 4, 2013. Inset: BAPTISM IN BOGOTA: Carlos Eduardo Rodriguez prays before being submerged into the baptistry during the Vision One Million program in Bogota, Colombia.

More than 12,000 church members and visitors packed the G12 Convention Center in Bogota to witness and participate in the three-hour program, which highlighted the end of intense evangelism campaigns held throughout the large metropolis.

“Thank you, church in Bogota and the rest of the South Colombian Union, for your enthusiasm and commitment and efforts to impact this large city,” said Eliseo Bustamente, president of the South Colombian Union, as he addressed the 143,000-member-strong South Colombia region during his opening remarks.

Multiple activities to reach the city included a series of community activities in the city, such as a marathon, street prayer sessions, seminars to restore marriages and families, health expos, health screenings, support of a cancer foundation, and prison ministries, among others.

Edgar Espindola, vice president of the Colombian senate, thanked Seventh-day Adventists for their contribution in improving society by restoring families and standing by the Word of God, which teaches the unity of a family between a man and a woman.

Some 70 longstanding Seventh-day

Adventists in South Colombia were honored during the event for their commitment to fulfilling the mission of the church. Among them was Leonil de Díaz, age 91, celebrating more than 80 years of being a baptized member, who was recognized by Israel Leito, president of the Inter-American Division (IAD) and Balvin Braham, associate ministerial secretary and event organizer.

Raúl Taborda and his wife, Gina, were among the visitors who came to the satellite event to be baptized. The couple found themselves attending the evangelistic campaign held at the Kennedy Adventist Church in Bogota after facing a failed business and troubled marriage. Touched by the Holy Spirit, Taborda, a former Seventh-day Adventist, and his wife decided to be baptized and get married.

“God has called us to return to His ways,” said Taborda. “I learned that there is no life without Jesus, and I want to return to His ways form now on.”

Carlos Eduardo Rodríguez was also among those baptized during the event. After attending the evangelistic campaign at the Fontibón Adventist Church, Rodríguez, 36, decided to renew his commitment to God. Rodrí-

guez had battled with alcoholism during the 11 years that he had been away from the church.

“I’m so happy to return home,” said Rodríguez, “but more so because I feel peace after leaving my [old] life behind and being clean in Christ Jesus.”

According to Braham, some 3,580 new members joined the church as a result of the evangelistic efforts among the 130 churches in Bogota and the 130 evangelists from South Colombia and evangelists from the IAD territory who doubled efforts for the citywide impact.

—reported by Libna Stevens, IAD, in Bogota, Colombia, with William Estupiñán and Marcela Piñeros

Romanian Adventists Mobilize for Religious Freedom ■■ As Romanian legislators consider changes to the national constitution, the Seventh-day Adventist Church is sponsoring a mass promotion of religious liberty with a marathon p h o t o

c o u r t e s y

of town hall meetings, university lectures, and interfaith consultations.

In the Eastern European nation, where more than 85 percent of the population identifies with the Eastern Orthodox faith, Adventists are aiming to promote to key audiences the importance of religious liberty. The self-titled “Freedom Caravan 2013” of church and legal experts held events in more than 20 cities.

“Even though Romania has taken important steps in promoting religious liberty, we must stay alert to make sure that the principles of religious liberty stay untainted,” said Nelu Burcea, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty director for the Adventist Church’s Romanian Union Conference.

Prominent changes to the constitution could include revising the president’s role and the prime minister’s method for nominating the president.

But a few activists are also calling for the Orthodox Church to become the national religion. Though experts say this proposal isn’t likely to become law, Romania’s constitution up until

RU C

FREEDOM CARAVAN: Religious freedom proponents from six faith groups, along with government officials, met in Lugoj, Romania, as part of the Freedom Caravan 2013, an initiative to promote greater understanding of the need for freedom of conscience. The group met with delegations and addressed university classes in more than 20 cities.

1923 did mention the Orthodox Church as the country’s official church.

Various attempts over the years to reinstate the church as the state religion were rejected by parliament.

Media reports indicate that a national referendum on constitutional changes won’t take place until autumn.

“We are now analyzing each proposal, and we are monitoring the situation so that we can have a prompt reaction and appropriate action if necessary,” Burcea said.

—reported by Adventist News Network

ADRA Project Gives Renewable Energy to Chinese City ■■ The humanitarian arm of the Seventh-day Adventist Church is moving forward with plans to construct biomass power plants in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province in southwest China.

A source of renewable energy, biomass power plants convert organic waste into biogas and electricity.

Representatives from the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in Switzerland and China say a recent feasibility tour with local officials and Arthur Wellinger, president of the European Biogas Association, was productive. The study group was able to assess the local waste chain and take samples for further analysis, said project manager Marcel Wagner.

“The project is still at the very beginning, but the doors are open,” Wagner said, adding that the next steps involve drawing up a detailed business plan, project proposal, and contract for potential investors and partners.

Reports indicate that some 5,000 Continued on next page

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

5

DOONSIDE PROGRAM: Seventh-day Adventist Pastor Johnny Murison, presenting in the Sydney suburb of Doonside program at Mountain View Adventist College.

WORLD REPORT tons of waste is collected every day in Chengdu. To reduce the contamination of soil and water, and avoid using valuable agricultural land for landfills, officials are increasingly turning to new recycling methods.

Already, China operates biomass power plants in several provinces. So far, the plants operate by burning only dry organic waste, such as wood chips, branches, and leaves. Wet organic waste—from kitchens, slaughterhouses, and restaurants—makes up an estimated 60 percent of all organic waste and often remains untreated.

ADRA China representatives say this yet-unused waste has potential to generate biogas and organic fertilizer.

—reported by Adventist News Network

S o u t h

Di v i s i o n

In Australia,

Adventists’ Citywide

Evangelism Largest in

30 Years

By Jarrod Stackelroth, Record.net, reporting from Epping,

A DR A

S w i t z e r l a n d

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

POWER FOR CHENGDU: Adventist humanitarians in China are studying the feasibility of building biomass power plants in Chengdu, where a growing waste problem has local officials scrambling for answers. From right: Marcel Wagner, project manager; Linda Zhu, ADRA China country director; Arthur Wellinger, president of the European Biogas Association; with representatives from Beijing University and China’s Ministry of Science and Technology.

6

Paci f ic

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

F

our motorway billboards, 1.25 million brochures, and more than 100 television advertisements have provided publicity in what is reported to be the largest evangelistic series for the Adventist Church in Sydney in more than 30 years.

On the first weekend in May 2013, “The Last Empire” opened in 29 venues throughout the Greater Sydney Conference (GSC). Some 45 churches throughout the conference worked together to prepare for the program. The opening night saw more than 1,500 community members attend. While numbers fell during subsequent programs, there were still almost 1,000 non-Adventists attending by the third program.

“We are excited by the number of contacts that have been coming along to the meetings,” said Michael Worker, GSC president and series coordinator.

“We continue to uphold the presenters and contacts before the Lord as the series continues to develop and unfold.”

The English programs, hosted by Sydney-based presenters, used the same slides and scripting. Some of the venues, reflecting the cosmopolitan nature of Sydney, offered the program

in other languages, such as Portuguese, Tongan, Samoan, Fijian, Mandarin, or Arabic. The use of the Daniel 2 image, the key image used in the marketing, saw a lot of interest from Syrians and others from the Middle East.

“The pastors who have been trained and equipped to present this Last Empire program now have a greater confidence in their ministry and feel more equipped to go out and engage with their community,” said Worker. “Pastors have told me how much they appreciate the opportunity to be involved in this program, as they are growing and developing their own pastoral skills in the process. This will be our first campaign, not our last.”

Worker developed the concept of running numerous local programs, simultaneously across the city, in partnership with the South Pacific Division’s Institute of Public Evangelism director Gary Webster.

“This program is about proclaiming the good news of Jesus in a prophetic context, relating to people’s lives and what is happening in society, using updated, contemporary materials,” said Webster.

P h o t o s

c o u r t e s y

o f

S o u t h

Paci f ic

Di v i s i o n

Above: FULL HOUSE: Audience for one of the 29 “Last Empire” presentations in and around Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, during May 2013.

Top, right: NORTHERN EXPOSURE: Charissa Fong, Discovery Centre evangelist and layperson, presenting at the Brookvale, New South Wales programs, about 10 miles (16 km) north of Sydney. Bottom, right: EXTENDING A WELCOME: Marleta Fong and Sanja Kitevski, two of the volunteers helping to register participants at the Brookvale event. program

Webster had tested a similar approach on a smaller scale in Adelaide in 2011 and developed the scripts for the Last Empire with pastors Lyle Southwell, Garth Bainbridge, and Graeme Christian.

“It was an opt-in arrangement with pastors and churches,” said Worker. The invitation was extended, and any pastor or church that desired to be involved were encouraged. “We wanted those who were enthusiastic and keen, and we gave them permission to try ‘something different’, alongside the traditional approach.”

Worker explains that the conference began with the “desire to present something that our members can be excited about and proud of and that would also reach a secular, consumerdriven society such as Sydney.”

Kel Naughton of M24Media created “The Last Empire” brand/theme.

The program was projected to run throughout the month of May, with each venue developing a program that represented their congregation and the audience they were targeting.

Churches will follow up with programs such as Beyond, Prophetic

Code, Secrets of Prophecy, and a range of other initiatives.

In the 18 months leading up to the program, church members were encouraged to prepare themselves and their congregations for a program of this nature.

“We have been encouraging members to pray for five people for the year leading up to the program. They were also encouraged to invite family, friends, and colleagues to the event,” said Worker. One Sabbath was designated as a conference-wide day of prayer and fasting to seek the leading and involvement of the Holy Spirit in this program.

Unlike evangelistic series of the past, the Last Empire had a large online presence and impact. Close to 80 percent of people registered through the Web site, which had about 14,000 unique visitors over the two weeks leading up to the program. In the same period, almost 5,000 people directly viewed the Last Empire Facebook page.

One church had a unique way to draw attention to their program. Talk radio and social media were abuzz with news of a 98-foot (30-meter) high image, standing in the Hoxton

Park churchyard. The air-filled image was of the image spoken of in Daniel 2 as seen in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream—the same image depicted in all of The Last Empire advertising.

According to Lyle Southwell, evangelist and director of the South Pacific Division’s Discovery Centre, the image is the world’s largest freestanding, airfilled image.

Pastor Worker has already seen changes in the church in Sydney and says the most important outcome of this program will be changed lives. “As a conference, we would love to see the people who have been touched by this program become part of our churches.”

“We hope to see this stronger partnership continue between local Adventist churches as we work together to spread the gospel. We had a much bigger ‘buy in’ from churches than we expected. It has highlighted the latent desire in our members to be equipped and resourced to share the gospel with those who need it most,” added Worker.

“This program has increased the mission focus in our conference and the level of enthusiasm our members have to share their faith.” n

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

7

W O R L D

V I S T A

By Ted N. C. Wilson

Authentic Spirituality This article is adapted from a sermon given by Ted N. C. Wilson at Andrews University, Berrien Springs, Michigan, on April 19, 2013. Elements of the oral style have been retained. The complete sermon text is available online at www.adventist world.org and www.adventistreview.org.

M

artin Frobisher was an explorer and pirate, commissioned by England’s Queen Elizabeth I. In 1576 he turned prospector, assuring Elizabeth he had struck gold on Baffin Island, in the northern part of Canada. The queen sent him back, with instructions to return with gold. Arriving at Baffin Island, Frobisher packed his ships with 200 tons of what he believed to be gold ore. When he returned to England, Martin Frobisher learned he had brought back 200 tons (181 metric tons) of pyrite—“fool’s gold.”

The Encyclopedia Britannica makes this pointed observation about Martin Frobisher: his “single-minded pursuit

8

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

of mineral treasure limited the exploratory value of his voyages, and, when the ores he brought back . . . proved to contain neither silver nor gold, his financing collapsed. . . . Frobisher was undoubtedly one of the ablest seamen of his time, but as an explorer he lacked the capacity for patient factual investigation.”*1 Looking for Authenticity

Isn’t authenticity what we are looking for today? In a world that is often more virtual than real, isn’t it refreshing to discover someone or something that is genuinely authentic?

No doubt the most important area for genuine authenticity is in the spiritual realm—our relationship with God and His Word, and how it affects our character.

No one who has ever lived on earth was more spiritually authentic than Jesus Christ. He was, and is, the One He claims to be—the Son of God. As we consider His earthly life, we see consistency—His words and actions always match.

The Authentic, Authoritative Word

He is the authentic Word of God—“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God.” (John 1:1).

“I am the way, the truth, and the life,” Jesus told a doubting Thomas who was looking for direction (John 14:6).

Praying to His Father later that night, Jesus pleaded: “I have given them Your word. . . . Sanctify them by Your truth.

Your word is truth” (John 17:14-17).

When confronted by angry religious leaders, Jesus went to God’s Word for authority: “The Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me . . . . But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. . . . Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you— Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” (John 5:37-47).

Here, Jesus is authenticating the Pentateuch—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy— and the book of Job. These writings of Moses, Jesus says, testify of Him. Jesus affirms that the Old and New Testament authenticate each other—if we don’t believe the “Old,” we won’t believe the “New”!

“The Bible is the most comprehensive and the most instructive history which men possess,” wrote Ellen White in Christian Education. “It [the

Bible] came fresh from the fountain of eternal truth, and a divine hand has preserved its purity through all the ages. Its bright rays shine into the far distant past, where human research seeks vainly to penetrate. In God’s Word alone we find an account of Creation. Here we behold the power that laid the foundation of the earth, and that stretched out the heavens.

Here, only, can we find a history of our race, unsullied by human prejudice or human pride” (pp. 37, 38).

Above Culture, Prejudice and Pride

The Bible, like Jesus, rises above culture, prejudice, and pride. It reveals to us the truth about ourselves, our world, and beyond. It is the authentic sourcebook in guiding us into authentic spirituality.

Let’s allow the Bible to interpret itself, verse upon verse and precept upon precept, using the historicalbiblical approach to understanding Scripture. In contrast, the historicalcritical method places the individual above the Bible in choosing what is truth. This method does not lead to a true understanding of Scripture, as the method is humanistically based, rather than biblically based.

“A great work can be done by presenting to the people the Bible just as it reads,” wrote Ellen White in Christian Service. “Admonish them to take the Bible as it is, to implore divine enlightenment, and then, when the light shines, to gladly accept each precious ray, and fearlessly abide the consequences” (p. 144).

Gold Standard

If you want to know if the Bible is really God’s authentic, relevant word for us today, use the gold standard of prophecy! Study the prophecies in Daniel and Revelation and see how

they accurately trace human history.

Read the prophecies of the Messiah in the Old Testament and be convinced that Jesus is the one. Many atheists have come to accept the Bible as reliable and authoritative based on the study of prophecy!

“And so we have the prophetic word confirmed,” wrote the apostle Peter, “which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:19-21). This text does not mean God dictated every word to these men—but that He worked through the Holy Spirit to guide them.

Spend quality time with God’s authentic Word each day—you will be amazed at how relevant and timely His messages are. Participate with the world membership in “Revived

by His Word” (www.revivedbyhis word.org), reading one chapter in the Bible each day.

A Spiritually Authentic Church

A spiritually authentic church is one whose teachings and people follow the “Faithful and True Witness” (Rev. 3:14, NKJV), that is, Jesus Christ.

Have you ever wondered why the Seventh-day Adventist Church exists?

After all, 150 years ago there were many other denominations in existence—what would be the purpose of one more?

The purpose is to fulfill Bible prophecy and to stand up, speak out, and share with the world the message that God has for every person on this planet. We have a threefold mandate from heaven to preach the everlasting gospel and Christ’s righteousness; to

boldly proclaim the fall of Babylon’s apostate religion; and to warn the world not to receive the mark of the beast, but instead be sealed with the seal of God’s everlasting mark of authority—the seventh-day Sabbath.

This is the message of Revelation 14. The giving of the three angels’ messages is the reason God raised up the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Everything is centered in Christ and His righteousness.

Is this authentic? Is this real? It is as authentic and real as the Bible itself.

It comes from the revelation of Jesus Christ Himself, who “cannot lie” (Titus 1:2).

My friends, we have the great privilege of belonging to something much larger than just another denomination or community of faith; we belong to the heaven-born Advent movement— the Seventh-day Adventist Church, God’s remnant church. A church that has been called by God at the end of time for a unique purpose. A church that does not rely on traditions or human reasoning but relies completely on the written Word of God as its sole foundation and the Living Word, Jesus Christ. This is a church that does not derive its power from itself but accepts fully the admonition of the Lord in Zechariah 4:6: “ ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts.”

Are We Authentic?

Are we, the Seventh-day Adventist Church, spiritually authentic? Are we who we say we are? Do we really believe that Jesus is coming soon? Or do we secretly hope that He will delay His coming so that we can carry out our own plans first?

Let’s ask the question: Are we truly the “remnant church”? Does God even have a “remnant church”? Revelation 12:17 tells us that Satan, “the dragon,” July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

9

W O R L D

V I S T A

“was wroth with the woman [the church], and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (KJV).

And the “testimony of Jesus,” we are told in Revelation 19:10, “is the spirit of prophecy.”

What about this remnant idea?

Doesn’t God love everyone? Of course

The Bible, like Jesus, rises above culture, prejudice, and pride.

He does. And He wants us to love everyone too, including people of other faiths, and those of no faith.

Are we “better” than everyone else?

No! The remnant is not some exclusive club that is only open to a select few. It is open to everyone who loves Jesus, accepts Him as Lord of his or her life, and takes the Bible, including all 10 commandments, as their guide for life.

And because we love people as Jesus does, we want to minister to their needs—physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually—and invite them to become a part of God’s remnant church.

Authentic Versus Counterfeit

It’s important to remember that for every good gift from God, Satan has a counterfeit. Often it appears to

10

shine like gold, but no matter how beautiful the offer may appear, in the end Satan’s authentic counterfeit “bites like a serpent, and stings like a viper” (Proverbs 23:32).

We must take the time to develop the patience needed for factual investigation. God’s Word gives us the criteria for determining if something, or someone, is spiritually authentic or not. In Isaiah 8:20 we are warned: “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”

An Invitation

I invite you to follow Jesus Christ in living a life of spiritual authenticity; to truly be controlled by the Holy Spirit and being willing to be used by God in faithful service to Him, with the Word of God as your sure foundation.

In the wonderful book Christ’s Object Lessons we read: “The subject of Christ’s teaching and preaching was the Word of God. He met questioners with a plain, ‘It is written.’ ‘What saith the Scriptures?’. . . At every opportunity, when an interest was awakened by either friend or foe, He sowed the seed of the Word. He who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, Himself the living Word, points to the Scriptures, saying, ‘They are they which testify of Me’ (John 5:39). . . .

“Christ’s servants are to do the same work. In our day, as of old, the vital truths of God’s Word are set aside for human theories and speculations. Many professed ministers of the gospel do not accept the whole Bible as the inspired Word. One wise man rejects one portion; another questions another part. They set up their judgment as superior to the Word; and the Scripture which they do teach rests upon their own authority. Its divine authenticity is destroyed. Thus

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

the seeds of infidelity are sown broadcast; for the people become confused and know not what to believe. There are many beliefs that the mind has no right to entertain. In the days of Christ the rabbis put a forced, mystical construction upon many portions of Scripture. Because the plain teaching of God’s Word condemned their practices, they tried to destroy its force.

The same thing is done today. The Word of God is made to appear mysterious and obscure in order to excuse transgression of His law. Christ rebuked these practices in His day. He taught that the Word of God was to be understood by all. He pointed to the Scriptures as of unquestionable authority, and we should do the same.

The Bible is to be presented as the word of the infinite God, as the end of all controversy and the foundation of all faith” (pp. 39, 40).

As we come closer to Christ’s soon coming, the choice is yours. Always base your life of spiritual authenticity on the sure Word of God’s gold. Christ tells us in Revelation 3:18: “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich.” Let’s listen to God’s counsel for us as His remnant church in a Laodicean condition that we may be revived and reformed through the power of the Holy Spirit. As a result, you will never be deceived by fool’s gold, because God’s gold is tried in the fire and is absolutely authentic! n 1 “Sir Martin Frobisher.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 17 Apr. 2013. www. Britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/220573/SirMartin-Frobisher.

Ted N. C. Wilson is

president of the Seventhday Adventist Church.

NAD NEWS F r a n c e s

O t e r o

P h o t o g r a p h y

LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE: specialists in ministry to young adults highlighted the public presentations at You Lost Me. Live.

FOCUS ON PRAYER: Meeting and praying together in small groups (inset) was an important ingredient of the conference.

That Which Was

ost L May Be Found Y

ou lost me.”

A difficult phrase to hear from anyone, but when the demographic research of the Barna Group shows that upward of 60 percent of young adults say this about their church experience, it is a sobering sentiment indeed. The Adventist Church not spared, these statistics are finding a whole generation of young people feeling lost and disconnected from the faith community of their childhood.

Challenged by the realities facing the local church, more than 600 ministry leaders from across North America registered for the You Lost Me. Live! Dallas learning experience this

spring, hosted at the Arlington Seventh-day Adventist Church in Texas.

Barna Group president David Kinnaman, author of the book You Lost Me, facilitated a day’s worth of presentations, conversations, and interviews meant to inform and challenge attendees regarding the church experience of young adults ages 18-29, also known as millennials.

Those who attended You Lost Me. Live!—25 percent of whom were Adventist leaders, pastors, parents, and young adults—came away with a renewed vision for reaching out and retaining the next generation.

“We all need to tune in to the fre-

quency where young adults are broadcasting their needs, hopes, and challenges,” said Richard Castillo, a communications consultant with the Oklahoma Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. “You Lost Me. Live! helped tune me in clearly, placing me in better touch with ways we can make a difference with young adults, an important segment of God’s kingdom.”

In addition to union and local conference leadership, many pastoral leaders attended the gathering.

Pastor Shiphrah Fepulea’i from Garden Grove, California, added, “After one day in Dallas—literally, one day—I am back in southern California with more courage to be proximal with young adults. . . . That’s the courage to be close enough to millennial culture to influence it.”

Pastor Dan Serns from north Dallas shared that You Lost Me. Live! “offered clean, clear, crisp challenging presentations of the needs to reach the young adult generation.”

“The You Lost Me. Live! presentations spawned creative ideas that could be utilized at our local churches,” observed Sharon Leukert, a pastor’s wife who traveled from east Texas with husContinued on next page

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

11

NAD NEWS band Karl. “I wish this had come along 20 years before. There is hope for the future—as well as the here and now!”

Perhaps the most poignant feedback was shared by the young adults who attended. “You Lost Me. Live! was great,” said James Castillo, Jr., from Houston, Texas. “I’m a millennial myself, and growing up no one really took the time to teach me how to love Christ. I am now a youth leader at my church, trying my best to show young people how to love like Christ did. You Lost Me. Live! will help my youth spiritually and help them make a stand for Christ with love.”

Produced by the Barna Group, You Lost Me. Live! Dallas was a free event for all the registrants. Thanks to sponsorship by the North American Division, Southwestern Union Conference, and Texas Conference, Adventist attendees were not only enriched by the presentations, but were also afforded a post-event reception supper to talk with others about their insights. Each attendee was given the You Lost Me DVD media curriculum to spark fruitful conversations with their church and young adults about helping the lost come home.

“Despite the grim reality suggested by the statistics,” said Pastor Lenworth Sealey of Lufkin, Texas, “I left with a very real sense of hope and resources to help facilitate change in my church’s approach for the better.”

Similar You Lost Me. Live! events have been held in Phoenix, Arizona, and Orlando, Florida, with tour stops still planned for Indianapolis, Indiana, and Colorado Springs, Colorado. To register, or for more information on the remaining You Lost Me. Live! experiences, go to www.youlostmelive.com. ­­—by Costin Jordache, Texas Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

12

EXPERIENCED: The Beltsville Broncos (left) from the Potomac Conference, Atascosa Angels (center) from the Texas Conference, and Westlake Witnesses (right) from the Ohio Conference pose with NAD Pathfinder leaders James Black, Sr., and Manny Cruz following their competition in the Pathfinder Bible Experience.

Pathfinder Bible Experience North American Division Finals ■■ The College View Seventh-day Adventist Church in Lincoln, Nebraska was crowded with highly trained Bible scholars on Friday night, April 19, and Sabbath, April 20, 2013, when the 38 Pathfinder Bible Experience (PBE) North American Division (NAD) teams arrived to participate in the 2013 PBE division finals. Pathfinders from the United States, Canada, and England, ages 10 to 16, showed their knowledge of the Bible books of Acts and 1 and 2 Thessalonians by answering 90 questions of varying difficulty and point value.

“Their level of knowledge was phenomenal,” said one event judge. “They definitely know their Bible.” In most cases the young people had memorized vast passages of Scripture, often six to eight chapters, while knowing a lot of the content for additional chapters.

Event coordinator Gene Clapp reports that the 38 participating teams were from eight of the nine unions of the NAD plus one team from London, England. Each team is made up of six members plus one alternate.

The conferences represented were Allegheny East, Arizona, Carolina, Central California, Chesapeake, Florida,

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

Indiana, Iowa-Missouri, KansasNebraska, Michigan, Minnesota, Northern California, Ohio, Ontario, Potomac, South England, Southern New England, Texas, and Wisconsin.

Many more teams and conferences from across the division participated in the first three levels from area to conference to union testing. The teams at Lincoln represented only the first-place teams from each union conference.

“With team members, staff, and families, we had approximately 650 persons in attendance for the weekend,” said Clapp.

On Friday night and Sabbath morning each team was invited to participate in the programming by sharing a musical “special,” and everyone became involved in the programs consisting of mixers centering around the Bible study books.

On Saturday evening following all the testing and tallying of points, screams of delight from parents, staff, and team members were heard as each team was called to the front and awarded their placement certificate.

Twenty-six teams made first place.

This means their team score was at least 90 percent of the highest score.

An additional 11 teams made second place, and one team, depleted by sickness but still choosing to compete, placed third.

C h u d l e ig h

The Irrevocable Call, by Felicia Tonga and Erin Hotchkis, La Sierra University The Creative Eye, by James Constantine, Dobbins, California Best Documentary Run for Reece, by Crystal Case, Ooltewah, Tennessee Best Dramatic Short In the Grey, by Dillan Forsey, Southern Adventist University The Jonathan Dulan High School Award How Deep, by Austin Mock, Mesa Grande Academy The Audience Choice Award Dario, by Peter Han, Pacific Union College Best in Fest In the Grey, by Dillan Forsey, Southern Adventist University

G e r r y

Clapp added that the PBE program has a major impact on participants.

“Several students stated that their school grades have gone up because they are applying how they study for PBE to how they study for school.” A team member from England told his director that he was supposed to take a school assessment exam while he was traveling to the United States for this event. When the proctor heard why the student was not available to take the exam, he said the young man didn’t have to sit for the exam because his grades had improved so much since he began studying for PBE. The 2014 Pathfinder Bible Experience will cover the book of 2 Samuel.

—By Gene Clapp, NAD Pathfinder Bible Experience coordinator; Brenda Dickerson, Mid-America Union Outlook; and Mark O’Ffill, Web master for www.Pathfindersonline.org

$10,000 as seed money to work with the North American Division’s Office of Communication to produce the film as an outreach project of the church. Rajeev Sigamoney, film professor at Pacific Union College, took the prize for his idea “Decalogue 2.0.”

The festival concluded with an awards banquet honoring the best in various categories: drama, documentary, high school, community services, ministerial/pastoral, and audience choice.

These filmmakers took awards in the following categories: Best Ministry Award for Community Services Then Came Sandy, by Sam Napod, Nina Vallado and Jon Greaves, Newbury Park Academy Best Ministry Award for Ministerial/ Pastoral

SONscreen Announces Winners from 2013 Festival ■■ On April 4-6, 2013, film producers convened at the Adventist Media Center for the SONscreen Film Festival.

Themed “Chronicles: Stories that speak truth and change lives,” the festival featured actor/producer David A. R. White and special screenings of The Record Keeper and Hell and Mr. Fudge.

Festival organizers also hosted a pitchfest, allowing filmmakers the opportunity to pitch a film idea to a panel of judges and ultimately receive

BEST PITCH: Rajeev Sigamoney, third from left, instructor and program coordinator of Film and Television at Pacific Union College, accepts the $10,000 pitchfest Award for his idea to create 10 films exploring the Ten Commandments. Pitchfest judges included, from left, George Johnson, Nathan Nazario, David A. R. White, Paul Kim, and Dave Gemmell.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

13

N A D U P D AT E

Beyond

Bullying

The next step in addressing the problem in Adventist Schools.

B

ullying is typically described as an intentional, repeated, aggressive behavior that involves an imbalance of power. A recent study in schools in the United States shows that 17 percent of all students—both male and female-report being bullied. This amounts to nearly one in five students.

The North American Division’s Office of Education sees this as in important issue, and has partnered with La Sierra University’s Center for Conflict Resolution to offer the Versafund Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) in its more than 1,000 elementary and secondary schools across the United States, Canada, Bermuda, and the Micronesian islands.

A Problem as Old as History

In the 1980s Dan Olweus conducted the first systematic intervention study against bullying in the world. According to its Web site, the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program has more than 35 years of research and successful implementation all over the world. It is a whole-school program that has been proven effective in preventing or reducing bullying throughout a school setting.

Data from Olweus has shown that most adults aren’t aware of the various types of bullying to which students are

14

subjected. However, bullying takes place much more frequently and is often missed by adults. “We think that because of the excellent student-toteacher ratio we have in our small [Seventh-day Adventist schools] that there must be better supervision and management with issues of bullying,” said Richard Pershing, director of the Center for Conflict Resolution at La Sierra University in Riverside, California.

In working with OBPP, the Center for Conflict Resolution has designed a two-part survey that educators will offer students asking whether they have been bullied, or if they have been doing the bullying. The survey will also analyze where the activity could have occurred. Questions cover areas such as: n Verbal bullying including derogatory comments and bad names n Bullying through social exclusion or isolation n Physical bullying such as hitting, kicking, shoving, and spitting n Bullying through lies and false rumors n Having money or other things taken or damaged n Being threatened or being forced to do things n Racial bullying n Sexual bullying n Cyber bullying (via cell phone or Internet)

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

Misuse of Power

“Everyone wants to figure out the source of bullying,” said Pershing. “It’s human nature. It’s about power and some of us are wired to enjoy the exercising of power.” Pershing believes that the entire community that supports the school--the constituents, school board, and parents--has to be involved in leveling the playing field of abusive power by students. “Once the power has been leveled, then you can move into conflict resolution and teach the kids day to day conflict resolution,” he said.

According to Pershing, The Versafund Initiative for the North American Division (NAD) makes the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program available to Seventh-day Adventist schools and to date pilot programs for the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program are being implemented in Tennessee, Georgia, Maryland, Ohio, Texas, California, and Arizona. Three schools have fully implemented the Olweus Bullying Questionnaire and have proceeded to the full implementation of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. Nine schools are in the process of implementing the Olweus Bullying Questionnaire with the stated intention of implementing the full program. It takes at least six months to organize the implementation of the full OBPP, and once implemented it becomes an ongoing method of school operations indefinitely.

Research by Dan Olweus shows that schools cannot address bullying behavior issues alone. Often Seventhday Adventist schools receive the blame for bullying behavior that occurs off campus, at Pathfinder or weekend church outings. All the adults in the children’s lives, not just the faculty of the school, but the staff, parents, and greater community must

understand bullying as peer abuse, know how to recognize it, and know how to intervene in a manner that creates opportunities for restoration of community for all of the students: the person engaging in bullying behavior, the student against which the bullying behavior was directed, and all the bystanders. Olweus’ research shows that bystanders are greatly affected by bullying behavior, and that any effort concerning bullying must also take into account the perceptions of bystanders.

The Beginning of a Journey

Seventh-day Adventist schools participating thus far in the OBPP have found that while bullying does occur in Seventh-day Adventist schools,

Adventist students show high motivation to find ways to put an end to bullying behavior and desire a school climate free of such behavior.

Carla Baker, NAD director of Women’s Ministries describes how the Olweus program fits into the broader North American Division plan to fight abuse: “There’s no doubt that incidences of bullying have increased dramatically in recent years, impairing and destroying lives in the process.

“Unfortunately, bullying is no longer just a problem on the playground. Bullies find targets everywhere, including the Internet, and their bullying continues long after they leave school—in the home, the neighborhood, the workplace, even in the church.

“Intervention has to occur as soon as the bullying happens, whatever the age of the bully or his/her victim. In fact, the sooner the bully receives help, the better the chances of preventing future bullying. And the sooner victims are identified and helped, the better their chances of recovering.

“As part of enditnow: Break the Silence About Abuse, the North American Division’s initiative against all forms of abuse, the Olweus Bullying program is an outstanding tool.”

—Compiled by the Communication Department of the North American Division from articles written by George Johnson, Communication director of the North American Division and Richard Pershing, director of the Center for Conflict Resolution.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

15

NAD PERSPECTIVE

Parenting Teens in a

Digital World

By Pamela Consuegra

T

oday’s parents deal with issues that their own parents never had to face. Social media is a cultural change that did not enter our world until the end of the last century.

A newly released study, The Online Generation Gap: Contrasting Attitudes and Behaviors of Parents and Teens, conducted by Hart Research Associates for the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI) found a “generation gap” between what parents think they know about their kid’s online behavior and what the teens say they actually know.1 In fact, 71 percent of teens say they hide their online activity from their parents.2 A key role of parenting is to teach our children to be responsible adults.

This is not a matter of control; this is a matter of living up to our God-given responsibility as parents. And in so doing, we will help to assure their safety amid a social media frenzy.

Here are some things to consider: Install parental control software.

Teens should never have accounts that do not give you complete access.

Nothing should be a secret to you about their online activity. Software is available to install on all your household computers that allows you to get a report of your child’s online activity, and block gaming and pornography.

Set boundaries and monitor tech-

nology use. Limit time on the computer and be sure it is located in the main part of the house. Allowing children to have computers in their rooms limits your ability to monitor their activity and screen habits. Be warned: this may not be a popular move, they may not like it, but that’s OK. Many teenagers can’t seem to put their cell phones down. At times they seem more attached to talking or texting on their phones than talking to family or friends in person. Texting has gotten out of control at every age, and it seems as if families can no longer enjoy a family meal and eat in peace without texting or talking on the phone throughout dinner. Establish ground rules for your family, adults included, so time to talk, share, and listen are a normal part of your family’s interactions.

Review all social media accounts. If as a parent you choose to allow your teenager to have a Facebook, Twitter, or other social media account, you have to monitor their activity. On a regular basis, at unannounced times, sit down with your teens and go over entries on their Facebook and Twitter accounts.

You will learn a lot when you see photos, read stories, and ask questions.

Model responsible behavior. Perhaps the most important thing that you can do to get a handle on parenting in this

digital world is to be a positive role model in the way you use technology.

Many teens simply act in ways that have been modeled for them by their parents.

Technology is both a blessing and a curse to today’s family. It has the potential to be a wonderful contribution to our children’s lives if parents allow it to be a tool instead of a substitute for real relationships. Parents have to make sure they are setting boundaries, creating balance, and teaching responsibility. By being intentional in our ever-changing digital world, parents greatly reduce the likelihood of having regrets. After all, every parent wants to know they have done all they can do to raise healthy, well-adjusted children, not just for life here, but more importantly, for eternity.

We have a God-given responsibility to introduce our children to Jesus.

No work is more important. Everything they are exposed to should bring them closer to their Savior. Perhaps we should let Scripture be our filter as we navigate through our digital world.

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things” (Phil. 4:8, NKJV). n 1 The report may be downloaded at: www.forbes.com/sites/ larrymagid/2012/11/14/for-kids-and-parents-theres-a-digitalgenertion-gap-but-maybe-thats-ok/.

2 E. Sass, “Teens Running Circles Around Parents on Social Media,” The Social Graf: Connecting Through the Chaos, 2012.

Pamela Consuegra is associate director of Family Ministries for the North American Division.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

17

The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists

Apr i l 2013

C RE ATI O N on

Display

Packages of Wonder

nad Letters Adult Singles Ministries

While Claudio Consuegra makes great observations assessing the ministry to and by single people in his article “Adult Single Ministries” (April 2013), he makes a common mistake when referring to the writings of Paul. Unmarried is not synonymous with single. Virgin is synonymous with single in the epistles.

Unmarried refers to a marriage that has been un-done either through death or divorce (think of the image of “tying the knot” then untying it).

In order to undo anything, it must have first been done.

Paul puts himself in the category of unmarried, not virgin. Either he was divorced or a widower (as a member of the Sanhedrin he had to have been married). So to paraphrase Consuegra, Paul was sharing his opinion as to whether a person should stay unmarried or re-marry; or to remain not married and a virgin (single).

Tony Parrish Glendale, California 22

Facing the

Roaring Lion

38

of

The Smiles

Swaziland

43

Getting Through Life’s

ToughestTimes

literature evangelism!

I canvassed in the Washington Conference in 1969-70, and just recently (after 43 years) started up again in the Upper Columbia Conference. I now work independently, as there has not been an active Home Health Education Service for quite

I am very pleased to know that the canvassing work is being renewed.

—Carl Sullivan, College Place, Washington

some time in this area. I am very pleased to know that the canvassing work is being renewed.

I especially appreciated the reference to a Web site that provides training/learning materials. I am watching the videos and the lessons provided on that site.

Carl Sullivan College Place, Washington Fund the Mission to Finish the Work

Hope to Every Home

I thank William Smith and Carl McRoy, authors of “Hope to Every Home” (March 2013). What a pleasure to have such an article about

18

ship program to help them survive.

The work they do results in many baptisms; in fact, more than any local pastors or, for that matter, all of our conference. They also have started children’s programs and an adult school for the Haitians who cannot read and write. They are ready to

The title “Fund the Mission to Finish the Work” of the NAD Update for March 2013 is dear to my heart. I agree with author John Mathews: let’s “finish the work.”

I have some concerns. My husband and I spent two years in the Dominican Republic. We worked and financially supported Country Life Mission School and Health Center.

Seeing the great difficulties of the Bible workers, we started a sponsor-

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

start the school with volunteer teachers, but are waiting for some financial support.

We are now retired. With our income cut in half and sponsors no longer helping, we are struggling to find ways to keep two missionary families funded. We have done fundraising, presentations in churches, but a few $100 bills are not enough.

Francoise Dunn Nampa, Idaho Irony

I found it ironic that the answer to the questions asked in a pull quote on page 18 of the February 2013 Adventist World—“Are we ashamed to be called Seventh-day Adventist?”

—is on the previous page, where G. Alexander Bryant calls for female pastors in the article “Wanted: Female Pastors.”

Joseph R. Cooper Little Elm, Texas

W O R L D

H E A L T H

Urbanization

By Allan R. Handysides and Peter N. Landless

What are the implications for health from the ongoing urbanization of the world’s populations? Do you know of any consequences to good health?

of data recovered from two large California studies,* it was shown that mothers-to-be living in areas of the highest traffic pollution (the top 25 percent), with elevated carbon monoxide or nitrogen oxide concentrations, had almost double the risk of delivering a child with a neurological birth defect such as spina bifida. While such data will require confirmation, it gives much food for thought.

The increase in computer technology and ready access to the Internet mean that many can work from home.

While there are benefits from office socialization, this does not have to be continuous, and the advantages of a country setting are enormous. Our early church pioneers recognized these benefits, and while there is a huge need for us to address the work for the big cities, it would be conducive to health if we would seek to live in the more rural periphery from which we could extend our care. n

U

rbanization, or the movement of populations to urban settings, started as a population drift that has fast become a stampede. The causes are many, and the consequences are not all yet realized. Motivating some of the movement is the mechanization of agriculture; the reduction of job availability in rural areas; and industrialization around urban centers, which creates jobs.

Unfortunately, the necessary infrastructure essential to balanced growth is often missing, resulting in the sprouting of shantytown conditions in the cities of many developing countries, and the overpopulation and resultant stress on aging infrastructure in developed cities.

The health consequences vary geographically but are very distinct. The current epidemic of obesity, predominantly in—although not limited to— developed countries, typically involves the less affluent. The inner cities often have very few stores selling fresh produce, while fast-food outlets, which encourage obesity, proliferate and predominate. Social interaction may typically be reduced among city dwellers with an increase in loneliness and isolation—paradoxically within their huge population. Mental health is less robust, with an increase in anxiety, depression, and suicide among the youth. North

America’s societies are experiencing a marked increase in mental disability.

In less-developed communities a rise in infectious disease may be expected, as the public health measures of appropriate sanitation and hygiene fail to be maintained or are never developed. Inadequate sanitation, a lack of clean water, and crowded living conditions are causative factors in outbreaks, such as the recent one in Haiti in which thousands suffered from cholera.

Densely populated large-city “ghettos” breed a climate favorable to drug dealing, prostitution, and sexually transmitted disease. Crime and social unrest then scar these neighborhoods.

Urbanization with its associated pollution is also cause for concern.

China, the most populated nation on earth, has seen massive industrial development, huge population shifts, and associated environmental pollution.

It has been known for a long time that city dwellers have more respiratory disease, including lung cancer.

Recent findings in France have confirmed declining sperm counts in the mainly urban male population.

Direct cause and effect of specific potential pollutants are difficult to determine, but something is definitely going wrong.

Birth defects have recently been tied to traffic pollution. In an analysis

* American Journal of Epidemiology, Nov. 1, 2012.

Allan R. Handysides, a board-certified gynecolo-

gist, is director of the General Conference Health Ministries Department.

Peter N. Landless, a board-certified nuclear car-

diologist, is an associate director of the General Conference Health Ministries Department.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

19

D E V O T I O N A L

By Sylvia Renz

Stronger ThanDeath

Trusting the God who took our place

T

hudddd!

The door slammed shut with cruel finality. I could still see the light-colored pine coffin through the rear window of the hearse, but then the funeral director started the engine, and the vehicle rolled away. Gone! My child was gone!

My glasses misted up from the hot tears. It hurt so much—as if I had been chopped in half. Even though I had known for months that this moment would come; even though I had nodded when the funeral director had asked, “May I close the coffin now?”; even though my mind had long ago agreed when Sonja prayed, “Lord, let me die, I cannot fight anymore”; even though I was relieved that she no longer needed to suffer pain and never again had to fear another test result—my heart cried, “No! It’s so unfair! She is still so young! I wish I could have died in her place!”

Unbearable Pain

Probably every mother and every father would wish this. When David

20

learned that his rebellious and murderous son was dead, David cried for hours. “The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: ‘O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!’ ” (2 Sam. 18:33, NIV).

But our substitutionary death cannot solve the problem. Only the Son of God, the Creator, had the power to defeat death by His own death. This is a mystery that we probably cannot comprehend until eternity. We cannot even begin to imagine how God the Father felt when Jesus wept, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me” (Matt. 26:39, NIV). As He hung there naked, nailed between heaven and earth, ridiculed by those whom He wanted to save, misunderstood by His disciples, betrayed by His friends, He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

(Matt. 27:46, NIV). What did God’s loving heart feel at that moment?

Jesus wanted to die this cruel

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

death, though He feared being totally separated from His Father, even if only for a short time. He took the pain of separation on Himself to save us from it. The Godhead has suffered and is suffering for thousands of years because their love has been rejected and trampled upon. This is really the second death: the complete absence of God’s love and, in consequence, total annihilation—the end, fin, das Ende.

No more chances, no more mercy— because the person, loved by God, rejected this love and ultimately didn’t want it any other way.

Death and the Other Death

What we call death is really the younger sister of this final horror.

She is as ugly and as scary as her older sister, though, because she takes our loved ones hostage to a “land” from which there is no return, at least not during our time on earth. And yet our experience of death on this planet is mixed with a portion of grace. Anyone who has looked at the face of a loved one twisted in pain, PHOTO

b y

M e aga n T h o m p s o n

Although I know that Sonja is not here anymore, love proves me wrong. God saved all of her in the immense data storage place Scripture calls the ‘Lamb’s book of life’. heard the agonizing groans, and seen the fear-widened eyes of the dying will know that death can be a mercy in disguise. Peace spreads over the pain-racked features, chapped lips become silent, and eyes turn quiet and still. Those who receive the gift of sharing these final moments, who can consciously say farewell and call out to their loved one, “You can let go, you will not fall—you are in His arms! Your life is well guarded in God’s hands”—to those a hope is given that carries them through the tunnel of grief to a place of hope and confidence.

Goodbye

As we washed our Sonja and dressed her in her favorite blouse and jeans, as we combed her hair and cared for her needs one last time, we felt a sense of reassurance; we felt peace, in spite of pain and grief.

She lay there like Snow White, as if she had just lain down for a little nap, and we understood that this death couldn’t stop our love. Love is affected by other, more subtle “killers”: indifference, disrespect, hurt, unfaithfulness, lack of time, or even forgetting a daily “Yes, I want to love you. You are special to me. You are one of God’s

great thoughts, and I would like to discover you anew again and again; you are precious to me; how wonderful that you are here!”

Although I know that Sonja is not here anymore, love proves me wrong. God saved all of her in the immense data storage place Scripture calls the “Lamb’s book of life” (Rev. 13:8, NIV): her infectious laughter, her sparkling eyes that even shortly before her death could still shine, her delicate hands that danced over the piano keys, or her sometimes slapstick humor (“How many are already buried in the family grave? Ten people? Cool! Sounds like real fellowship—there’s going to be some pushing and shoving at the resurrection!”).

No, we have not “lost” our daughter. She is safe in her present destination, her record preserved in the safest place in this cosmos: the heart of God. And His love is stronger than death.

One day our dead will come to life again, transformed and reunited, fit for a new world without pain, without fear, without goodbyes.

That comforts me—even on the saddest of days. n

Sylvia Renz works for the German Voice of Prophecy in AlsbachHähnlein, Germany.

She is an accomplished author and has published numerous books for children and adults. Sylvia, her husband Werner, and their two surviving children, Jane and Manuel, said goodbye to their daughter and sister Sonja on August 16, 2010.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

21

F U N D A M E N T A L

B E L I E F S

Number 7

re Waecrucial in ARevisiting

I

n the beginning “God created man in His own image” (Gen. 1:27). What does this mean? What it doesn’t mean is that only Adam was created in the image of God, because both Adam and Eve are included within the scope of the Hebrew term ’adam. “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man [’adam] in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them [plural] have dominion over the fish of the sea [and] the birds of the air’ ” (verse 26). Man and woman coequally bear the divine image. Saying this much, however, does not bring the discussion to a close. There is only one God, but He made two people. How can two people bear the image of the same God and yet be different from each other? Or are they different from each other?

Differences

Our first parents were equal before God, and yet they were not in every way the same. Clearly there were physical differences. What about emotional ones? Is it true, for example, that men and women routinely see things the same way? It has become proverbial that they don’t. This is a difference, but not the most interesting one.

The deeper question is whether—on a social and spiritual level—men and women bear their likeness to the Creator in identical ways. We think not. Men and women reflect the image of God in ways that are distinguishable.

Thus, the fullness of that image can be seen only when we consider the entire range of human characteristics given by God to our first parents in the beginning. If humanity is incomplete without both man and woman, the image of God in humanity is incomplete without both man and woman.

Coming together as “one flesh” (Gen. 2:24) is not just a matter of flesh. Anyone who thinks it is will have a shallow and unsatisfying marriage. There is a wholeness in the union of man and woman in loving marriage that transcends physical union, going beyond this to include things on a spiritual and emotional level as well.

22

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

Who

What Does This Tell Us About the Son?

In the New Testament Jesus is described as “the image of God” (2 Cor. 4:4), or “the image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15). And yet Jesus came into the world, not as two people, but as one—a “male Child” (Rev. 12:5, 13). This fact raises an interesting question. Can the image of God in Christ be a full and complete expression of the image of God in humanity if He is only one individual? There is no question that Christ was perfect, but was His representation of the image of God in humanity complete?

We would answer yes, but for reasons that require further comment. Christ came to our world as a divine lover, a bridegroom, seeking and wooing us back to Himself. If the sin problem is that “all we like sheep have gone astray” (Isa. 53:6), the solution is to return to the Shepherd. We had not become irreligious; we had become lost. And so He came.

Once here, Christ’s willingness to undergo the most ignominious and painful of deaths to save us reveals the depth of His longing for us. If a human bridegroom feels a need for his bride, surely Christ also feels a need for us, and feels it more intensely than we can imagine.

What Does This Tell Us About the Father?

“ ‘The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else’” (Acts 17:24, 25, NIV).* God does not need to get things from us. Instead, He lavishly gives us everything we have. But this is not the same as saying that God has no needs of any kind. In some sense that we will perhaps never fully understand, He needs us.

This need follows, not from the desire of a moment, but from something that lies deep within His nature; nor is it something He can suppress. If His nature is to love, He must have creatures capable of receiving that love and intelligently reciprocating it back to its Source. God’s

By Frank W. Hardy and Lisa Beardsley-Hardy

’ od s ight?

G S biblical concept desire for mutuality with us was important enough that He created a world in order to achieve it. We would need to have a place to stand, so God made dry land. We would need to breathe, so He made air. But the idea in all of this was to enjoy intelligent fellowship with our first parents, and later with us.

Here lies a point that must not be missed. Scripture says, “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done” (Gen. 2:2). The wording is “on the seventh day,” not “just before the seventh day.” Completing “the heavens and the earth” was one thing (verse 1), but enjoying fellowship with our first parents was another. For that He needed to set His work aside. It was in setting His work aside that He accomplished His fullest purpose, because on the seventh day He could finally enjoy a relationship of mutuality—of love intelligently and freely shared—with the man and with the woman. Here is the meaning of the Sabbath and one reason God will not do away with it.

It is part of the image of God for us to love and need someone complementary to ourselves, not identical, but with the differences God ordained. This is something we

could never do if we were self-contained or self-sufficient.

In Christ’s case, His very oneness brings us to the heart and core of what He came to reveal about the Father. He came with needs that only another could satisfy.

Our maleness and femaleness does not reflect the image of God because God is male or female, but because the limitations this imposes make mutuality and sharing with some other an absolute necessity. This one fact is simultaneously the summing up of what it means to be human and what it means to reflect the image of God. n * Texts credited to NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Frank W. Hardy has recently retired. Lisa Beardsley-Hardy is

director of the Department of Education for the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. They live in Maryland, USA.

Nature of Man Man and woman were made in the image of God with individuality, the power and freedom to think and to do. Though created free beings, each is an indivisible unity of body, mind, and spirit, dependent upon God for life and breath and all else.

When our first parents disobeyed God, they denied their dependence upon Him

and fell from their high position under God. The image of God in them was marred, and they became subject to death. Their descendants share this fallen nature and its consequences. They are born with weaknesses and tendencies to evil.

But God in Christ reconciled the world to Himself and by His Spirit restores in

penitent mortals the image of their Maker.

Created for the glory of God, they are called to love Him and one another, and to care for their environment (Gen. 1:26-28; 2:7; Ps. 8:4-8; Acts 17:24-28; Gen. 3; Ps. 51:5; Rom. 5:12-17; 2 Cor. 5:19, 20; Ps. 51:10; 1 John 4:7, 8, 11, 20; Gen. 2:15).

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

23

C OV E R S T O RY

n w

G .

M a r t i n

want to become a professional musician,” my drummer friend Georg told me matter-of-factly as we contemplated the future in our last year in gymnasium (the German equivalent of high school). There was no hesitation—Georg definitely had a plan. Alejandro, another close friend, wanted to study philosophy and literature at the University of Freiburg. Others had already mapped out their career paths in business or information technology. I wasn’t sure.

Two and half years earlier I had been baptized and joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church. I had grown up inside the church community and had never run away— but this decision on a Sabbath afternoon in January of 1981 had been special. I consciously wanted to give my life to God. This was not just my parent’s faith—it had become my faith too.

As the only Adventist in my class (in fact, there were only two committed Christians in our entire grade), I had to often maneuver moments challenging my faith. While fully integrated in my school and extracurricular activities—I knew I was different.

K l i n gb e i l

I

“

s

MAPS

e

Life

By Gerald A. Klingbeil

Remembering the reality of God’s call

I M A G E

B y

G a ly n a

A n d r u s h k o

ONE STEP AT A TIME: Mountain climbing requires careful balance and small steps–helpful lessons as we discover our life maps.

Big Questions

Following my baptism, I had spent three weeks during the summer vacation participating in a mission youth camp. For three weeks we had studied the Bible in new and engaging ways. We had written music and lyrics and had practiced for a series of concerts for the final week. Every day we had visited with people on the crowded pedestrian zone of Lindau, a town on the shores of Lake Constance.

Music, pantomimes, and pamphlets—we had found many avenues to people. We had prayed together and had marveled at God’s often-immediate answers. There was a feeling of Acts in those three weeks. This experience had changed my walk with Jesus. Following that summer, my brother and I had invited others to begin a music ministry that lasted for nearly 10 years and touched thousands of nonchurched people.

Three years later I was finishing my Abitur. What would I do with the rest of my life? Should I serve my Savior fulltime? I felt torn. I loved music and thought of music therapy. I was interested in service and contemplated medicine.

Both my grandfathers as well as my father had been Adventist ministers. I knew the life of a PK (pastor’s kid) but was not sure if I wanted to take over the family “business” of pastoring. My mother, a staunch supporter of my involvement in ministry, counseled against pastoral ministry: “Life in ministry is tough,” she told me. “It will eat you up.”

Since our summer mission camp, the youth department director of our conference, Werner Renz, had become a close friend and mentor and a strong influence in my life.

As I shared my big question about God’s plan for my life G e r a l d

EMBRACING THE WORLD: The author and his friend, Mathias take a self-portrait on another nature adventure.

K l i n gb e i l

and the intersection of ministry, he made an important suggestion: “Gerald, I know that God is interested in your future. He knows about these questions. Why don’t we pray together every day that God will show you the right way?

His arm is not too short.” That prayer covenant began over two years of waiting—and praying.

In the Real World

In 1984 Germany still required an obligatory military service of all able-bodied young men, involving 15 months of basic training and service. Most Christians, including Adventists, opted to be recognized as conscientious objectors. This meant an 18-month stint serving in a civil capacity in different contexts. However, those studying theology were exempted from this requirement. Since I wasn’t sure about God’s call for my life and did not want to study for the ministry just to avoid civil service, I began my stint in the real world two months after my high school graduation. I had opted to work as a nurse’s aid in a hospital close to home.

After years of classroom learning I suddenly found myself in the real world with shifts, tiring (and at times, draining) work, all kinds of colleagues, and the daily brush with death.

I was still very engaged in our local church and in our music ministry—yet I was waiting. Every time I saw Werner he looked at me questioningly. I always shrugged my shoulders: no answer yet. It seemed that God took His time, helping me to develop spiritual endurance. This was not a 100-meter dash—this was a marathon. We kept on praying—and waited.

Into the Mountains

Fourteen months down the road I was still waiting. I had spent hours thinking and praying about my future— alone, with family, and with friends. God seemed to be silent on this issue, and I wondered why. I had nearly finished my civil service and had two weeks of vacation coming my way. It was early October—autumn in Europe— and my best friend Mathias and I had decided to climb and hike in the Swiss Alps. We had little cash, but equipped with two full backpacks, an old tent with iron poles, and plenty of enthusiasm we hitchhiked our way to St. Moritz in Graubünden, Switzerland. The first week was pure bliss: blue skies, sunny days, cold nights, icy water, and high mountains to scale. We spent the week climbing and hiking at the 3,000-meter (c. 10,000-foot) elevation.

Friday afternoon, as we huffed and puffed up a steep path to the location where we wanted to spend the Sabbath, the weather suddenly changed. Clouds rushed over the mountains; a cold wind reminded us that this was autumn.

We reached our mountaintop location, close to a small and shallow lake full of glacier water. Soon our old tent, iron July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

25

C OV E R S T O RY ANOTHER MOUNTAINTOP: Enjoying the beauty of the Swiss Alps.

poles pointing to heaven, had been set up and our sleeping bags unrolled. A refreshing and icy dip in the lake, together with some warm soup, and we were ready to welcome the Sabbath. After five intensive days of hiking and climbing we were ready for a restful Sabbath and soon fell asleep.

When God Speaks

26

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

i l K l i n gb e

We spent a wonderful Sabbath on that mountain. A soft misty fog surrounded our tent, and we spent hours talking and praying together. The next morning we continued our hike. The weather had changed. Winter was arriving, and

G .

The Two-Phase Miracle

M a r t i n

I woke up in the middle of the night and in the middle of a horrific storm. Our exposed location was precarious.

Rain pounded the small tent. Lightning and thunder chased each other through the sky. Counting the time lapse between lightning flash and thunder, I noticed that the thunderstorm was right above us. I was terrified. I could not move in my sleeping bag. For the first time in my admittedly young life I was afraid of dying. I knew that we were close to the mountaintop in a tent with iron poles pointing into the sky—a perfect magnet for a lightning strike. I could imagine what the area would look like after a lightning strike. It was dark. It was pouring—there was nowhere I could hide.

I don’t know how long I lay there motionless. Somehow I could not pray; fear had locked me down. It seemed as though hours passed—most likely it wasn’t more than 15 minutes. Then something inside me clicked—and floodgates opened. I poured out my heart to the Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth and thunderstorms and rain and life and beauty. I considered my life and weighed my thoughts and actions. I confessed all that separated me from the Sustainer of all life. And then it happened: Without much reflection I cried out to God: “Lord, if it is Your will for me to serve You full-time, please make this storm stop when I say amen.”

Where had this come from? I hadn’t thought about the big question for weeks; I had been enjoying my vacation and the exhilarating feeling of climbing a mountain. But there I was—and I closed my prayer with the A word. Amen.

A deep silence engulfed our little tent. Lightning, thunder, and rain stopped as if somebody had turned a light switch. I guess Somebody did! As I lay there in the Swiss Alps at nearly 10,000 feet I began to realize what had happened. I shook my friend to tell him what God had just done for me. The Creator of the universe had heard the desperate cry of one of His children. He was interested in my future; He had given me my marching orders.

Every time as I struggled and

that I was at the right place

extending His kingdom

snowflakes touched the mighty mountain peaks around us.

Nights were colder now. We made it back to civilization and found kind drivers who didn’t mind taking home two smelly backpackers.

I was nervous. I highly valued the counsel of my mother. Her perspective mattered—and I knew her opinion about studying for the ministry. How would she react to my mountain experience? What would she say? As I made my way to our third-story apartment and rang the bell I prayed a silent prayer. The door opened, and my mother embraced me excitedly. (Only a mother could have hugged this smelly mountaineer.) “Mama, I need to tell you something. God did something really incredible for me,” I blurted out. My mom hesitated for a brief moment, and then plowed on. “Gerald,” she said, “I have been praying so much about your future. You have less than two months before you will finish your civil service.” She looked straight at me now: “I don’t know why, but it seems as though God has been telling me that you should study for the ministry. You know what I have been telling you, but God seems to have a different plan.”

There it was! My mouth dropped open. I hugged my mom and told her my experience on the mountaintop. We laughed and cried together. The Master of the universe had

come through. Realizing the magnitude of the moment, we both knelt down and prayed; a prayer of gratefulness and a prayer of dedication and commitment.

Here’s the Reason

God’s marching orders did not resolve all issues before I started studying theology at Seminar Schloss Bogenhofen in Austria 10 months later. Yet in spite of many challenges, I knew where I was going. I knew where I was going when I went to South Africa to finish my degree. I not only got a degree but also met a wonderful life partner there on the campus of Helderberg College. Studies, finances, ministry opportunities—God took care of them all.

wondered I received a reminder —His place, doing His business, one little step at a time.

When my wife and I began our teaching ministries at Universidad Peruana Unión in 1995, there were times I needed to remember God’s call to me. In the nearly two decades since, serving in different cultures and contexts, I had many occasions to revisit my mountaintop mentally.

Every time as I struggled and wondered I received a reminder that I was at the right place—His place, doing His business, extending His kingdom one little step at a time.

Still Calling

God is still calling today. He needs those who are willing to listen to the soft, small voice and are not afraid when He speaks out of the thunder. As I see my teenage daughters grow and struggle with finding their place in God’s plan, I remember some of the lessons I learned from that long process.

First, as you pray and wait upon God’s guidance, remember that you are not alone. Find a spiritual mentor whose prayers will amplify your prayers. Involve your larger family, if at all possible. Search for an experienced prayer partner who is willing to hold up your arms.

Second, take your time and discover your gifts. My 18 months of working in a hospital changed me and helped me discover some of the gifts God has endowed me with.

They also showed me some of my limitations. As you wait,

be productive for God and relax. I hope that one day my girls will take advantage of the opportunity to serve as student missionaries somewhere—hopefully a place that is far outside their comfort zone. They will not only return changed, but will also have learned invaluable lessons about the power of answered prayer.

Third, once you hear the call, go for it. Don’t get distracted or despondent if not everything works out on the first go. Be patient but persistent. Remember God’s voice and let it guide you as you find direction in His Word.

Finally, as you face difficulties and dry patches in your walk and service (and you will!), know that you are in the right place. In the midst of turmoil and wondering how in the world you got where you are, be assured of God’s presence. He is not only in the business of calling—He will maintain your balance and bolster your courage when times get tough.

You Are Mine

Long ago the prophet Isaiah reminded his people of God’s special call: “But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior’” (Isa. 43:1-3).

I wonder how Samuel felt as he witnessed the repeated mess-ups of King Saul or Israel’s ostensibly constant lapses into idolatry. Did he remember the moment when he had heard God calling, “Samuel! Samuel!” (1 Sam. 3:10)? What did Matthew, former tax collector and disciple, feel when he remembered that moment on the shores of the lake when Jesus had stood by his booth and invited him: “Follow Me” (Matt. 9:9)?

I cannot speak for Samuel or Matthew, but I know that God’s call in my life has been truly life changing. It’s the reason I am still here. It keeps me focused on the task and helps me look beyond our human shortcomings as we rub shoulders in church. It reminds me of the many fields that still need harvesters. So as you climb your mountain, as you cross your river, as you brave your fire, listen to God’s call—and go! n

Gerald A. Klingbeil still enjoys climbing mountains and loves listening to God’s voice. He currently serves as an associate editor of Adventist World and lives with his wife, Chantal, and their three daughters in Silver Spring, Maryland, U.S.A. July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

27

The

Adventist Story Trans-European

D I V I S I ON

J

ohn G. Matteson, first Adventist missionary to the territory of what is now the Trans-European Division (TED), arrived in his native Denmark in May 1877.

William Ings John Matteson

Origins

John Matteson was born in Denmark in 1835; in 1854 he emigrated to the United States, where he became an Adventist in 1863. Before the end of that year he wrote to the official church journal, The Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, urging that the Adventist message “be carried to the ends of the earth.”1 He was ordained and started working for his fellow migrants, translating Adventist tracts into Danish and Norwegian, and beginning a new journal, Advent Tidende (“Advent Herald”). By the mid-1870s many of the 800 Danish-Norwegian Seventh-day Adventists were regularly sending the Adventist publications in their own languages back to family members in their homelands, raising awareness of the Seventh-day Adventist Church within Scandinavia. Matteson himself increasingly yearned to work in his homeland, not just among those who had emigrated from there.

In May 1877 his dream came true; for the next 11 years Matteson poured himself, body and soul, into the work. He maintained an unrelenting schedule of travel and preaching; started a journal, Tidernes Tegn (“Signs of the Times”); began a publishing house; and even wrote some of the hymns for an Adventist hymnbook in Norwegian, which he published. Sadly, by 1888, Matteson’s health was broken and he returned to the United States, where he died in 1896. But by the time he departed, conferences had been organized in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway; and in 1901, the Scandinavian Union, including the Finland and Iceland missions, was organized.

As Matteson worked in Scandanavia, another emigrant to the U.S.A.-turned missionary to his homeland, William Ings, arrived in England in May of 1878. Ings had been sent to work under J. N. Andrews in Switzerland, but during a two-week holiday with relations in England he won two people to the Sabbath. His success prompted the General Conference to assign a missionary to Britain: they sent J. N. Loughborough who arrived on December 30, 1878.

Loughborough was one of the most experienced and prominent Adventist leaders and a very successful evangelist in North America. But he found the British, masters of an empire “on which the sun never set,” prejudiced against what they perceived as an imported American sect. Not until 1883, just before he returned to the USA, was the first Seventh-day

28

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

William H. Meredith John Loughborough

By David Trim Else Luukkanen

Plans for a

Larger

Work

Adventism in the Trans-European Division

Adventist Church in Britain organized, with 19 members. The next year a journal, Present Truth, began publication.

Ellen White worked in Europe from 1885 to 1887, and spoke at the first Adventist camp meeting outside North America, held at Moss, Norway, in June 1887. Ellen White made three separate visits to Great Britain and was eager for Adventism to take root in England, for she saw the potential of a strong base in the heart of the British Empire. Sharing her vision, American Adventists sent their best and brightest to lead the work in Britain, among them S. N. Haskell, E. J. Waggoner, and W. W. Prescott.

Organizational Developments

In 1929 the European Division, which had its beginnings in 1909, was divided into three new divisions: the Northern, Central, and Southern European divisions. The Northern European Division (NED) included Poland and vast stretches of the British Empire in West and East Africa. In 1951 the division was reorganized: French colonies in West Africa were short-term, and the Netherlands permanent, additions. In 1971 the other two European divisions were merged as the Euro-Africa Division, but the NED remained distinct, albeit adopting a new title: the Northern EuropeWest Africa Division (NEWAD), reflecting the fact that only the West African territory remained of the African mission fields. NEWAD reverted to the title NED after its two West African unions were reassigned in 1980. The division had its final change of name when it became the Trans-European Division on January 1, 1986. Its territory has spanned from Greenland in the west to Pakistan in the east, and from north of the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia, to south of the equator in Tanzania. The sheer geographical extent and cultural variety has been unmatched elsewhere in the world church.

A Passion for Mission

Adventists in the TED’s European territory have always been characterized by a strong desire to take the gospel “into all the world.” One result was openness to trying new methods.

For example, when the British Conference was formed in 1898, it elected a woman, Edith Adams, as secretarytreasurer; and in Finland, right from the start, women “played an active role in evangelism and in other areas of church work.” In the 1940s and 1950s Else Luukkanen conducted evangelistic campaigns across Finland in which “hundreds of people were converted and a number of churches established.”2 With the election of Audrey Andersson in 2010, the TED became the first division to have a woman as executive secretary.

Furthermore, European Adventists had, and still have, a tremendous passion for foreign mission. Barely had the British Union been formed in 1902 before it accepted responsibility for mission in the extensive British colonies in East and West Africa. In 1906, when the Scandinavian Union was only 5 years old, its leaders volunteered to evangelize Ethiopia.

But progress in Africa was slow. At its very first meeting the NED committee resolved “to make every effort to carry the Advent Message to the many millions . . . in the fields where our work is represented. The unwarned millions make their pathetic appeal and . . . we must certainly lay plans for a larger work.”3 At this point 3,202 of the division’s 24,228 baptized members (13.2 percent) were located in Africa. In 1980, 87,389 of NEWAD’s 128,644 baptized members (67.9 percent) were in the two African unions—God has honored the missionary passion of that NED committee!

While Christianity’s decline in Europe is to be regretted, the transformation of our church in Africa is to be celebrated, for its growth and self-sufficiency are things the early missionaries wanted and for which they would praise God. Yet in celebrating expansion and progress, it is vital to remember how much is owed to those early missionaries from Europe, whose willingness to face privation, isolation, and tropical diseases for which no cures were then known, was heroic.

Conclusion

In spite of prejudice, war, secularism, indifference, financial difficulties, theological controversies, and other challenges, the third angel’s message has taken root in European soil. When the Swedish Union was organized—the first union formed in the TED’s territory—there were 4,079 Seventh-day Adventists in Europe: around one in every 62,600 Europeans.

At the end of 2012, there were 82,769 church members in the TED—approximately one per 2,500 people in the total population. The Seventh-day Adventist Church is in Europe to stay. With its continuing passion for mission it may confront new challenges with faith in the God of its history. n Review and Herald, Nov. 10, 1863, p. 191.

Hugh Dunton, Ronald Strasdowsky et al., eds., Heirs of the Reformation: The Story of Seventh-day Adventists in Europe (Grantham, Eng.: Stanborough Press, 1997), pp. 32, 96.

3 NED Winter Council, 1928, minutes, pp. 3, 6, 7.

1

2

David Trim is director of the Office of

Archives, Statistics, and Research for the General Conference.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

29

Outreach

Whole

to the

Person

By Katia Reinert

Adventists InStep for Life and Let’s Move! days are getting Adventists on their feet.

O

n March 8, 2013 United States First Lady Michelle Obama and the Health and Human Services Office of Faith-based and Community Partnerships convened a meeting at the White House for community and faith-based leaders.

The goal was threefold: to celebrate the leaders’ efforts and success stories in engaging communities to live healthier, to recognize their support of the Let’s Move! initiative, and to highlight the opportunities and challenges still ahead.

Seventh-day Adventists shared with other faith leaders how Adventists InStep for Life and our own Let’s

30

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

Move Day are making a difference in families and communities through churches, schools, and hospitals that are passionate about sharing Christ’s message of whole person health. Many opportunities were created for partnerships.

Together these leaders shared their experiences and received the appreciation of Mrs. Obama, who noted, “We are starting to see some change. . . .

What you knew could happen is happening. That if you gave them the tools, the information, support, guidance and encouragement; that if you didn’t deliver the message with judgment but with love, making it relevant

N A D F E AT U R E

NATIONAL INITIATIVE: U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama addresses community and faith-based leaders involved in the national “Let’s Move” health initiative.

to their lives . . . their hearts just open. . . . There is nothing more important than what you are doing. What you are doing on the ground through churches in communities will make the difference.”

The event marked two years of a campaign to prevent and reduce childhood obesity in the United States.

As Obama shared words of appreciation about the work being done, it was clear that the passion for spreading a message of health is not unique to the Adventist church. This passion is shared by other faith groups doing wonderful things to motivate their members to choose healthier habits.

Many faith leaders stated that God asks us to take care of His temple (our bodies), and that making healthy choices is our responsibility.

Some pastors and leaders presenting at the event seemed to be more interested in engaging their churches with the health message than some Adventists. As these faith leaders heard about Adventists InStep for Life and our Let’s Move! Day, they were enthusiastic and wanted to know more.

Some expressed interest in partnering with us.

For instance, Karen Quinn of the Daniel Plan, a health initiative of the Saddleback Church, expressed a deep appreciation for the Adventists InStep for Life Web site and other resources.

Rick Warren, pastor of the Saddleback church, decided to make health a major aspect of his ministry when he realized that many in his church, including himself, were obese. The result is a major health outreach effort that took international proportions.

Warren’s vision for wholistic ministry does not stop at physical health.

Unfortunately, His son recently took his own life after suffering from major depression. As a result Warren announced the launch of a major mental health ministry outreach to meet the mental health needs of many.

Our Health Legacy

Are Adventist pastors, administrators, and members as aware as Rick Warren and other faith leaders are about the whole person health needs in their churches and communities, and the opportunities for outreach they offer? If so, how committed are we in sharing the health message we have been given?

While Adventists InStep for Life has given support to the nation’s Let’s Move! initiative, it is much broader than that. All health programs and initiatives can fit under this general health emphasis. We have seen the many segments of the Adventist church in North America come together as partners in delivering hope for a full, abundant life.

Administrators in the North American Division (NAD) have provided their support. Children’s ministries leaders have engaged in health expos for kids and trained many to organize such events. Community Services leaders have started community vegetable gardens and sponsored farmers markets, bringing access to healthy produce in regions where they are hard to find. Hospitals have partnered with churches and schools to help sponsor Let’s Move Day events, community gardens, or health classes.

Schools have engaged their students and teachers to be active and record their miles. But it does not stop there.

They have also initiated healthy cooking or gardening classes as part of their curriculum.

Furthermore, God has motivated large and small churches and schools to participate. These congregations have been reaching out in their communities to build partnerships and relationships. Each year more churches and schools are becoming involved. In 2011 nearly 2 million miles of physical activity were reported with the help of military officers and Adventist chaplains, with nearly 1,000 individuals registered and recording miles. More than 8,000 church members participated on Let’s Move Day 2011, with nearly 2,000 people from the community.

In 2012 more than 2.2 million miles were recorded, and nearly 8,000

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

31

N A D F E AT U R E

MAKING FRIENDS: A group in Queens, New York, warms up prior to a Let’s Move event in September 2012.

church members participated on Let’s Move Day with about 1,300 visitors joining. Many invite neighbors and friends to walk or exercise with them, as well as others who are using Let’s Move Day as a way to engage their own children, youth, and families in making new friends and building relationships with people or organizations in their communities. To see which schools, churches, and institutions recorded the most activity, visit www. adventistsinstepforlife.org/article/129/ adventists-instep-for-life-awards/ adventists-instep-for-life-awards-presented-at-health-summit.

Why Get Involved?

Adventists InStep for Life and Let’s Move! day go way beyond health benefits. Everyone knows that being physically active increases longevity and reduces the risk for chronic diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and heart disease. But that’s not all.

Mission is at the core of InStep for Life and Let’s Move! day. Sure, we have fun and recognize achievement, but it’s all about winning friends in our community and reaching out to them by example and friendship. It is all about what Dan Jackson, president of the North American Division, calls transformational evangelism.

In Transformational Evangelism (nadadventist.org/site/1/docs/NAD_ AnnualReport-2-%20Final.pdf) everyone is invited to use their spiritual gifts to participate in ongoing

outreach to the community by following Christ’s method of meeting people’s needs. Transformational evangelism is at the heart of true health ministries because it includes meeting the social, physical, mental, and spiritual health needs of those around us, and not only holding evangelistic series.

That was Christ’s method according to Ellen White. “He mingled with [men and women] as one who desired their good. He showed His sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, “Follow Me” (The Ministry of Healing, p. 143). Adventists InStep for Life seeks to help people in all the whole person areas Jesus ministered to, by helping people meet their whole person health needs.

Despite the positive response and engagement of many in North America in the reversal of obesity, it still

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

33

N A D F E AT U R E

MAKING DISCIPLES: Amarildo Costa is baptized. His first contact with Seventh-day Adventists came during a 5K fun run co-sponsored by the Brazilian and Patterson Avenue churches in Richmond, Virginia.

remains a major public health problem. Community leaders in urban areas throughout North America are trying to find solutions to reverse this problem. Obesity impacts people not only physically, but mentally and emotionally as well.

Sometimes there are deeper issues related to the unhealthy choices people make, such as a history of violence or abuse. Only someone who cares deeply can offer help. In small group support and through caring relationships issues may be identified that may help someone overcome their brokenness and resulting unhealthful behaviors.

How About Baptisms?

Do InStep for Life or Let’s Move! day bring baptisms? Well, Christ promises that if we follow His method we will have success. When we build relationships and meet peoples’ needs many will be interested in knowing more and accepting the invitation “Follow me.”

Baptisms are the work of the Holy Spirit, the result of building meaningful, caring relationships and meeting needs.

It is not the primary purpose of health outreach to make disciples for Christ. It

was not in Jesus’ ministry. Looking at the number or baptisms or believers at the time of Jesus’ death some might have thought His work to be unsuccessful. But the results came in due time.

An example of how Let’s Move Day or any other health outreach may bring baptism is the story of Amarildo Costa. On Sunday September 23, 2012--Let’s Move! day--Costa, a Brazilian who had recently immigrated to the U.S., set out to do his running routine in Richmond, Virginia.

As he ran his normal course, he noticed a crowd preparing for what seemed to be a 5K fun run. He approached the group to learn that the Patterson Avenue Seventh-day Adventist church had partnered with the Brazilian Church and the local Adventist school to sponsor a Let’s Move Day fun run.

Costa registered and participated in the Let’s Move! day race. Afterward Dr. Livia Silva, Patterson Avenue Church Health Ministries director and event organizer, invited all participants for a healthy brunch and fellowship at the church. Costa happily joined the group. While there he met Brazilian Church pastor Therezinha

Barbalho and many friendly youth. An invitation to attend Sabbath services at the Brazilian church was promptly accepted, and Costa has attended church services ever since.

Pastor Barbalho noted, “Amarildo was unemployed and struggling to pay his rent. The church got together to help. One member offered him a place to stay for a couple months, another member offered him a job. After a couple months he was better able to maintain himself. He is now financially stable,” she says.

Costa was amazed that people would care so deeply for him, without wanting anything in return. A church member gave him a DVD with Bible studies in Portuguese and he began studying the Bible on his own. On January 19, 2013, after attending an evangelistic series held at the Brazilian church by South American Division evangelist Luis Goncalvez, Amarildo Costa gave his life to Christ, only four months after his first encounter with friendly Adventists at the Let’s Move Day. Today he is an active member of the Richmond Brazilian Church.

Moving Forward

The North American Division, along with other divisions of the world church, has embraced the need to reach large, urban cities in our territory with the gospel of Christ. The big question is, how?

Simple: meeting people’s needs by showing Christ’s love and compassion.

This is what happened with Amarildo Costa. He came for a health related event that met his need for sociability and his love for running. There he found people who demonstrated God’s love and compassion. Later he found truth and decided to follow Christ.

If you have been following the plans to reach the cities--New York City in 2013, Indianapolis in 2014, San Francisco, Minneapolis, or San Antonio in

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

35

N A D F E AT U R E

How committed are we in sharing the health message we have been given?

2015--the plan is a solid one: to follow this blue print in Christ’s method. Last year nearly 1,000 people participated in the Let’s Move! event in Queens, New York as a way of making friends. Indianapolis is planning a city wide Let’s Move! event along with a health expo.

Adventists in other large cities are realizing that health is a primary need everywhere and that by using the right arm we will be successful in reaching communities. Let’s Move! day is set for September 22, 2013. Get acquainted with Adventists InStep for

Life and plan to make the most out of this opportunity to make friends for Christ. For more information about how to become involved, visit adventistsinstepforlife.org.

By registering yourself, your church, school, or hospital, we hope you will also embrace the NAD vision to REACH North America with Hope and Wholeness, and the Health Ministries department’s vision of ensuring “every church becomes a center for health, healing, and wholeness in the community.”

As leaders and members become involved, every church, school, and hospital can be known as a positive center for health and wholeness in the community and engage in transformational evangelism. Every member can become a medical missionary. People will feel welcome and find not only helpful health information, but also healing and meaningful relationships.

Most importantly, they will experience Christ’s love in action, just as Amarildo Costa did; and hear Christ’s still small voice say, “Follow Me.” n

Katia Reinert is director

of the Health Ministries Department for the North American Division.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

37

A D V E N T I S T

S E R V I C E

Same

By Earley Simon

Message, Different

Methods

In a culture that sometimes seems to ignore Christianity, different approaches are a necessity.

I

n cities throughout Europe, sharing Jesus is a growing challenge. One of these countries in which it is challenging to share the claims of the gospel is the Czech Republic. Studies indicate that the Czech Republic is one of the most secular countries in the world. But Adventist groups here, and in other parts of Europe, are finding ways to connect with people in their communities.

The Path of Discipleship

INRI Road is a program that has enjoyed great success on college campuses since 2006. In the Czech Republic most people leave the church during their university years. INRI Road is a youth-driven program that allows youth to refuel their faith and gather for worship.

38

The letters INRI represent the Latin acronym that in English stands for “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” Roman soldiers nailed this inscription to the top of Jesus’ cross when He was crucified. INRI Road was developed as a path for young people to build a relationship with Jesus.

In the city of Brno a church specifically designed for INRI Road has weekly meetings. This group is mostly made up of area university students. They look forward to the fellowship and creative ways of worshipping God. Blanca is a volunteer who helps prepare the weekly programs. “INRI Road is like my family. We know each other, we help each other, we support each other. Everyone has their own

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

THE PATH OF DISCIPLESHIP: In the Czech Republic participants in INRI Road learn what it means to follow Christ in an increasingly secular society. way, own life, own personalities; but we only have one God.” Those who are a part of INRI Road are passionate about the programs, and feel strongly that this is an important part of their communities.

Pastor Marek Harastej, co-founder of the program, states the overall objective of INRI road: “We would like to help them to grow personally and spiritually, and become a strong part of our church in the future.”

INRI Road is one of several ministries throughout the Czech Republic that is passionate about bringing people to Jesus. It’s meant to reach three groups of people: members of the church are invited to get more involved in ministry, students from surrounding universities, and students’ families and friends.

Jakub, a university student, says, “I have the opportunity to serve others; to help others to find Jesus through INRI Road. I have the opportunity to establish new friendships.”

Another student, Vojta, explains, “We can invite our friends and tell them that we are believers, and it is normal for us.”

Left: WORSHIP IN SONG: Music is an important component in the services of Portugal’s Vila Cha congregation. Below: SIGNIFICANT GROWTH: In Bulgaria, Adventists sharing their faith find increasingly receptive audiences among the country’s Roma population.

INRI Road fills the need of so many who seek a spiritual component to an increasingly hectic and secular pace of modern life. “I want to do something for God,” says Jana, “so I’m in INRI Road.”

Passionate About Sharing

Located in Portugal, the Vila Cha congregation is made up of mostly Africans who immigrated to that country.

This lively church loves coming together to worship each Sabbath.

Their sounds of praise fill the neighborhood, and their pews are just as full. The members celebrate the great things God does in their lives each week. Music is a big part of their celebration.

Eli and his mother are active members of this church. Eli takes part in both Sabbath school and the worship service. Every week after church, members divide into groups and distribute literature, so others can learn about Jesus and perhaps visit their church. Both children and adults are excited to share with their neighbors what they know about Jesus.

They regard each paper they pass out as a chance for someone to develop a relationship with their heavenly Father. Eli and his friends have fun doing this. They enjoy talking with people and seeing their reactions to God’s message. They use this as an P h o t o s

c o u r t e s y

o f

A d v e n t i s t

opportunity to talk with others about Jesus, some who have never known Him before.

The members also collect food to give to the families who live in the poor neighborhoods they visit. This simple act of kindness helps open doors and hearts and can lead to lasting friendships.

Members return to church at the end of the afternoon, where they report about their contacts, sing, and praise the Lord until evening. This congregation shows tremendous faith. They are not afraid to share their friend Jesus with others in their community.

Focused Evangelism

Throughout Bulgaria the church has been making steady efforts to reach the Gypsy, or Roma, people.

Bulgaria has many Roma communities. Almost 500,000 Roma live here, and the numbers continue to climb.

Milen Georgiev, secretary of the Bulgarian Union, shares the goal of the church in Bulgaria: To grow and to spread the gospel among many of this ethnic group. “We are seeing that Roma people are experiencing revival, the churches are working more intensively, and many people attend them.”

These Roma communities are open to God’s leading. They are hungry to learn the message and dedicate themselves to God. In the past

M i s s i o n

few years the Adventist Roma churches have seen significant growth and expect to see more.

Please pray for the work being done in the Czech Republic, in Portugal, and in Bulgaria. Pray that God can use our dedicated members in each of these countries to share His message. Thank you for supporting the mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. n

To learn more about these or other outreach initiatives, visit AdventistMission.org.

Earley Simon is a video producer for Adventist Mission.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

39

D I S C O V E R I N G

T H E

S P I R I T

O F

P R O P H E C Y

The First Anti-Sabbatarian Periodical and

By Theodore N. Levterov

A

few years ago I came across the name of a periodical called the Messenger of Truth. It was published by the “Messenger Party,” the first offshoot that emerged from the Sabbatarian group, largely over controversies about the gift of prophecy during the 1850s. The periodical is significant because it is the first known official publication against the Sabbatarians (later Seventh-day Adventists) and Ellen G. White’s prophetic claims.1 Despite its critical nature, the periodical helped Sabbatarians examine their attitude toward Ellen White and develop a more biblically based foundation for their belief in the modern manifestation of the prophetic gift.

While searching for these rare historical periodicals, I discovered three existing copies of the Messenger of Truth at the state library of Pennsylvania.2 Origins of the Rebellion

The Messenger Party originated in Jackson, Michigan.

Led by two Adventist ministers, H. S. Case and C. P. Russell, the rebellion resulted from a controversy over the validity of the prophetic gift of Ellen White.

While visiting the church in Jackson, Ellen White received two visions concerning a disputed situation. While the accused confessed her wrongdoing and asked forgiveness, Case and Russell turned against Ellen White and condemned her visions as false and unreliable. Consequently, in June 1853 the two ministers formed the so-called Messenger Party and started to publicize their ideas in the Messenger of Truth.

40

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

The Objections of the Messenger Party

The three extant issues reveal several charges that the Messengers brought against Ellen White’s visions and her prophetic claims. First, they claimed that the Sabbatarians had another rule of faith and practice in addition to the Bible.

A second charge was related to the manifestation of the prophetic gift in the “last days.” The Sabbatarians argued, based on the prophecies of Joel 2 and Acts 2, for the modern manifestation of the gift of prophecy just before the second coming of Christ. While the Messenger Party agreed that they were living in the last days, they asserted that the gift of prophecy ended with “the end of the apostles’ day.”3 A third objection related to the “remnant” question and Ellen White’s prophetic gift. The Sabbatarians claimed, based on Revelation 12:17, to be the true remnant people of God because they “kept the commandments of God” and had the “testimony of Jesus” (referring to the prophetic gift of Ellen White).4 For the Messengers, however, the spirit of prophecy was the spirit of Christ that the true remnant had to represent and had nothing to do with the gift of prophecy.5 A fourth objection given by the Messengers was that the Sabbatarians made Ellen White’s prophetic gift a “test of fellowship” and a “rule of action.” 6 The Sabbatarians disagreed with these and other charges and began developing a more systematic defense of their belief in the prophetic gift.

Outcomes of the Publication

One outcome was that the Sabbatarians became more conscientious regarding the relationship between the Bible and Ellen White’s prophetic gift. In 1854 James White republished an important article that he had penned in 1851. It noted that “the gifts of the Spirit should all have their proper places. The Bible is an everlasting rock. It is our rule I M A G E

C o u r t e s y

o f t h e

S tat e

Lib r a r y

o f

P e n n s y l v a n ia

Its Aftermath of faith and practice. . . . Every Christian is therefore in duty bound to take the Bible as a perfect rule of faith and duty.

He should pray fervently to be aided by the Holy Spirit in searching the Scriptures for the whole truth, and for his whole duty. He is not at liberty to turn from them to learn his duty through any of the gifts. We say that the very moment he does, he places the gifts in a wrong place, and takes an extremely dangerous position. The Word should be in front, and the eye of the church should be placed upon it, as the rule to walk by, and the fountain of wisdom from which to learn duty in ‘all good works.’ But if a portion of the church errs from the truths of the Bible, and becomes weak, and sickly, and the flock becomes scattered, so that it seems necessary for God to employ the gifts of the Spirit to correct, revive and heal the erring, we should let Him work.”7 Sabbatarians never claimed equality between the Bible and the gifts of the Spirit; they had different functions. In 1854, because of the Messenger critics, James White republished the article.

Another outcome was the development of biblically grounded arguments defending belief in the prophetic gift.

In addition to Joel 2 and Acts 2, Sabbatarians began using a wider variety of biblical texts such as Acts 9 and 10, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4, and Matthew 28:18-20, arguing for the perpetuity of spiritual gifts (including the gift of prophecy) and their “last days” manifestations.8 They also saw the prophetic gift as a necessary characteristic of the end-time people of God based on Revelation 12:17 and 19:10.9 A third outcome was the Sabbatarians’ examination of the relationship between the gift of prophecy and the “test of fellowship.” Contrary to the claims of the Messengers, the majority of Adventists, including Ellen White, believed that the acceptance of her prophetic gifts was not a test of fellowship. Their position was related to the principle that the Bible

was their only rule of faith and action.

A fourth outcome was the beginning of a more intentional publishing work of Ellen White’s writings. In August 1851 James White wrote, “Now the door is open almost everywhere to present the truth, and many are prepared to read the publications who have formerly had no interest to investigate. Now we may all do something for the Lord who has done so much for us.”10 For that reason he wanted to make the Review and Herald a tool for evangelism. In order to preserve the fundamental Sabbatarian belief that “the Bible only” was their rule of faith, and at the same time to escape any form of prejudices against the visions, White and the Sabbatarians decided not to publish the visions in the main issues of the Review. As an alternative, the visions were published in what they called the Review and Herald Extra.

While the policy of not promoting the visions through the Review continued for several years, we do not find any other issue of the Review and Herald Extra. The reason seems to be an offer by certain Sabbatarians to pay for the publication of a small pamphlet containing the visions of Ellen White.11 In 1851 Ellen White’s first booklet, A Sketch of the Christian Experience and Views of Ellen G. White, was published. Ellen White’s Supplement to the Christian Experience and Views of Ellen White appeared in 1854. A year later Ellen White’s “testimonies” began to be published individually in a small booklet format.

The work of making these writings widely available has continued to be part of Seventh-day Adventism since that time.

Despite its critical nature, the Messenger of Truth has helped Adventists to develop a much more systematic defense of the gift of prophecy doctrine. Interestingly, most of the arguments for or against Ellen White’s prophetic gift today are mere repetition of those used in the 1850s.

Adventists can learn from the Sabbatarian approaches to objections as we deal with similar critical issues concerning Ellen White’s role for the church today. n 1 The gift of prophecy as manifested by Ellen G. White became one of the five major doctrines of the Sabbatarian movement. The others were: the Second Coming, the Sabbath, the sanctuary, and the state of the dead.

2 The issues are dated October 2, November 2, and November 30, 1854.

3 R. R. Chapin, “Who Are the Remnant?” Messenger of Truth, Oct. 19, 1854.

4 See, for example, James White, “The Testimony of Jesus,” Review and Herald, Dec. 18, 1855, pp. 92, 93; R. F. Cottrell, “Spiritual Gifts,” Review and Herald, Feb. 25, 1858, p. 126. The Sabbatarians made a connection between Revelation 14:12 and 19:10 and claimed that the “testimony of Jesus” meant “the Spirit of prophecy.”

5 Chapin.

6 J. B. Bezzo, “Test of Fellowship,” Messenger of Truth, Oct. 19, 1854, pp. 2, 3.

7 James White, “The Gifts of the Gospel Church,” Review and Herald, Apr. 21, 1851, p. 70. (Italics supplied.)

8 See, for example, David Arnold, “The Oneness of the Church and the Means of God’s Appointment for Its Purification and Unity,” Review and Herald, June 26, 1855, pp. 249-251 ; [James White], “Perpetuity of Spiritual Gifts,” Review and Herald, Feb. 18, 1862, pp. 92, 93.

9 Some examples are: James White, “The Testimony of Jesus,” Review and Herald, Dec. 18, 1855, p.

92; M. E. Cornell, Miraculous Powers: The Scripture Testimony on the Perpetuity of Spiritual Gifts (Battle Creek, Mich.: Seventh-day Adventist Pub. Assn., 1875); R. F. Cottrell, “Spiritual Gifts,” Review and Herald, Feb. 25, 1858, p. 126.

10 James White, “Our Present Work,” Review and Herald, Aug. 19, 1851, p. 13.

11 Ibid.

Theodore N. Levterov is director of the Ellen G. White Branch Office at Loma Linda University in Loma Linda, California.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

41

B I B L E

Q U E S T I O N S

Could you address the question of unity in the church? I am saddened by the many tensions I see in the church.

A N S W E R E D

Christian

I understand your concern. But keep in mind that both wheat and weeds are present in the church, and it’s important to seek unity in spite of the tensions. The unity of the church is rooted deeply in the unity of God Himself, whose creation is functionally and structurally one. As Creator, He was the center around which everything found its reason for being. Therefore, all of creation reflected to some extent God’s oneness.

Sin damaged creation by decentralizing it. Left without a center, humans found one in their own selves with devastating results.

Let’s look at this phenomenon, and at Christ’s work of restoring wholeness to the human race and to the cosmos.

1. Human Solidarity in Sin: Humanity’s rejection of God constituted them into a massive expression of oneness in sin, one in rebellion against God (Rom. 1:18-3:18), in sin (Rom. 5:12), and in death (verses 17, 21). They share common experiences, attitudes, and a common destination. Obviously this is not true unity. In fact, alienated from each other, they exist in a frantic search for self-realization and self-preservation. Each person has become his or her own center, in tension and conflict with everyone else (Gal. 5:19-21). They come together for particular purposes expecting some personal gain; but open conflict develops when that expectation fails. This fragmentation is the natural condition of the human heart. The ego is not strong enough to hold us together. We look at ourselves and find tensions, unresolved issues, and a frustrating desire to do what is good (Gal. 5:16, 17; Rom. 8:6-8).

The ego exists in conflict with itself, leaving us unable to unify our own existence.

2. Oneness in Christ: The oneness of God was manifested in the person of His Son: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30, NIV). Through the incarnation Jesus reunited humans to God, creating a center around which repentant sinners become one in Him, in the Father (John 17:21), in the Spirit (Eph. 4:4), and with each other

42

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

Unity

(1 Peter 3:8, 9). Christ provided a unifying center in His own person and work. It is His plan to restore wholeness to the universe by reconciling everything to Himself (Col. 1:20). He is already uniting repentant sinners to Himself in the church, which is His body, one undivided organism (Eph. 2:12-16). They join, through baptism, a new humanity that is not fragmented but exists in oneness with Him, their true center. The church is the visible expression of the effectiveness of Christ’s work of reconciliation on earth. Its unity reveals that the Son reconciles us to the Father (John 17:21, 23). Without the unity of the church the reconciling work of Christ would lack credibility in the world. It is only in Him and through Him that we can be, and remain, one.

3. Visibility of the Oneness in Christ: The church’s oneness is, at the same time, a present reality and a task to be accomplished in the power of the Spirit. Our union in Christ expresses itself and is nurtured within the church through our common message, common mission, common lifestyle, and our organized global community of believers. We have “one faith” that embodies the message of salvation in Christ at the close of the cosmic conflict, and it has to be protected (Eph. 4:5; Rev. 14:6-8; 2 Tim. 1:13, 14). This message is framed within the work of Christ in the cosmic conflict, providing us with a sound, biblical worldview (Rev. 12). We have a common mission that will prepare the world for the coming of our Lord (Rev. 10:11; 14:6-12). Our unity in Christ manifests itself in the way we live the Christian life (Eph. 4:1-3). Since Christ is the center of our lives we align ourselves with the heavenly lifestyle. Our unity is visible in the organized structure of the church, which facilitates the mission of the global church (1 Cor. 12:12-25).

These things not only make visible our unity in Christ, but directly contribute to holding us together as one people; the people of God. n

After a career as a pastor, professor, and theologian, Angel Manuel Rodríguez lives in retirement in Texas.

B I B L E

S T U D Y

By Mark A. Finley

God’s Principles

Economic

for

Security

T

his world’s economy hangs on a slender thread.

Many of the developed, industrial nations of the world face massive debt. The United States and Europe are increasingly concerned about their economies.

Since our global economy is so interrelated, what happens in one part of the world seriously affects all of us. How can we survive in economic downtimes? What principles has God given us in His word to prepare for what is coming?

In this month’s Bible study we shall discover heaven’s vital, economic survival principles for the challenging days ahead.

1

What predictions does the Bible make about the world economy just before the return of our Lord? Read James 5:1-7 and Revelation 18:9-18, and summarize these passages in your own words.

Bible prophecy predicts a sudden economic crash just before the second coming of Jesus. God’s Word shines light on the road ahead. We who know the truth should prepare for what will break upon this world as an overwhelming surprise. Learning to trust God today will prepare us for what is coming tomorrow.

2

Where can we find security in tough economic times? Write out the central thought of Matthew 6:25-34.

When the economy is uncertain, one thing is certain: God cares for His children, and He will never let them down.

Corporations may crumble, the dollar (euro, yen, or ruble) may rapidly fall, and unemployment may rise, but our God is unchanging and unchangeable.

3 Read Deuteronomy 8:18. Where do we find the source of all our financial needs?

4

Read Psalm 24:1; Haggai 2:8; and Philippians 4:19.

Who is the real owner of this world and everything in it, and what has He promised each one of us?

It is reassuring to know that this world, with everything in it, belongs to Jesus. He created us; He redeemed us. When

Adam and Eve lost their dominion, Christ, through His death on the cross, grasped it from Satan’s hand. This world, everything in it, is His, and He has promised to care for His children.

5 How do we acknowledge that everything in this world belongs to the Lord? Read Malachi 3:8-11.

When we are faithful in returning the Lord’s tithe—10 percent of our increase—we acknowledge that He is the rightful owner of this world. We also acknowledge that He is the One who meets all our needs and has provided us with all of life’s good things.

6 What biblical examples from the Old and New Testaments demonstrate the importance of faithfulness in returning God’s tithe? See Genesis 14:20 and Matthew 23:23.

7 Read Proverbs 3:5, 6; 11:24, 25. What promises does God make to those who honor Him by their giving, and acknowledge His lordship in their lives through being faithful in returning tithes and offerings? List the key thoughts in these passages.

Faithfully returning to God His tithe and our offerings is much more than a matter of money; it is a matter of the heart. Our unselfish giving reveals where our affections are.

It demonstrates who has our heart.

It’s also a matter of trust. When we give, we are saying to God, “I trust you to supply my needs. Lord, I believe you will care for me.”

Would you like to make a new commitment to God to be faithful in your tithes and offerings? Or perhaps you have neglected this important aspect of Christian living; why not make a renewed commitment to trust God with your finances today. He’ll never let you down. n July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

43

IDEA EXCHANGE s dventist th-day A or Seven l Paper f rnationa The Inte

It was inspiring to read of Kirui’s determination to serve God and country.

Apr il 2013

C R E AonT IO N

y Disespofla Wonder Packag

—William Songock, Shreveport, Louisiana, United States

14

Facing the

22

Roaring Lion

of

The Smiles

Swaziland

h Life’s 27 Getting Throug

ToughestTimes

Letters Resolving to Get Through

I have been blessed by Mark A. Finley’s Bible study “Getting Through Life’s Toughest Times” (April 2013).

My resolve this month is to commit to memory all the verses quoted.

May the Lord richly bless Adventist World, especially for the timely Web site updates. I was already through with April’s edition on April 1!

David Mutuku via e-mail I am thankful and grateful for Claude Richli’s cover article “So He Runs” (March 2013). I am from Kenya, living now in the United States, and I can deeply relate to Abel Kirui’s story, since I came to the United States on a track and cross-country scholarship.

It was inspiring to read of Kirui’s determination to serve God and country.

William Songock Shreveport, Louisiana, United States The International Paper for Seventh-day Adventists

Marc h 2 013

The Frog Syndrome

I was impressed by the article “The Frog Syndrome,” RUNS

by Ted N. C. Wilson (March 2013).

I thank God I came across it when I did. I was preparing a message to preach at my church, on the same subject, and was privileged to add Wilson’s material to my preaching.

Adventist World is a blessing to God’s people.

Walnice da Conceição Silva Bissau, Guinea-Bissau Abel Kirui, worldclass distance runner

14 Why a Modern Prophet?

24

William

Ward Simpson

27 Where Is God When We Hurt?

Refugees Welcomed Here

of people beyond our borders.

Just a quick clarification: Aitken noted that “those refugees who had not repatriated to the United States were forced back into their home countries.” Actually, many nations opened their doors to resettle refugees. The Canadian city where I live welcomed 4,000 Vietnamese in one project, significantly increasing our population.

Articles such as this are one of the reasons we look forward to the monthly arrival of Adventist World.

Roger Matthews Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Thank you for printing the interesting and inspiring account of Judy Aitken’s work in “Against All Odds” (March 2013). Aitken encourages us to think

Faith Everlasting

I joined the Adventist Church in 2006.

Not long after, I went to the Adventist university to major in theology. I’ve been attending when I can, living on faith. I do not have any money but am hoping I can quickly finish my education and assist in the work of God. Lusio, Indonesia

Kindly pray that I receive some financial blessings to pay my debts and obligations. Pray that God will touch the hearts of the people who can help me to recover from this burden.

Carmelia, United States

I was touched by Jorge Iuorno’s devotional “Faith Everlasting” (February 2013). Thank you for printing

Prayer

PRAISE Please pray for me. I have a challenge with Sabbath lectures at the university I attend.

Mthoko, Zimbabwe My brother is terminally ill in the hospital. Please pray for him.

Kabungo, Zimbabwe

44

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

this article on how to survive stressful times.

Negah Mebrat Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Access to Adventist World

I recently came across the March 2012 Adventist World and have read it again and again.

Do you have a site where I can subscribe?

Minky Yisaka South Africa I grew up in the Adventist Church, and I am pleased to have come across Adventist World’s Web site. I enjoy this magazine. I especially like the following sections/features: World Vista, Devotional, the Spirit of Prophecy, Bible Questions Answered, and the Bible study.

I would like to receive this publication every month.

Mizinga Ephraim Lusaka, Zambia Adventist World is produced by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and distributed to members free of charge. We are also on the Internet at www.adventistworld.org. We are gratified that the magazine is filling this need.

—Editors Letters Policy: Please send to: letters@adventistworld.org.

Letters must be clearly written, 100-word maximum. Include the name of the article and the date of publication with your letter.

Also include your name, the town/city, state, and country from which you are writing. Letters will be edited for space and clarity. Not all letters submitted will be published.

Please pray for my family. We lost our beloved dad and are going through a difficult time without him.

Becky, Kenya Please pray for my friend’s brother, who is suffering with mental illness.

Oketa, South Sudan

5O 5O

WORDS OR LESS

Hymn

My Favorite... n Many hymns are

on my list of favorites. Perhaps number one is “When We All Get to Heaven.” My mother frequently sang it when going about her work, and I do the same. It has been used as our “hymn of hope” at numerous family funerals.

—Janet Schlunt, El Gabel El Asfar, Egypt

n “Come unto Me” is Jesus’ invitation to us. The hymn “Jesus, I Come” is my glad response: “Out of my sickness into Thy health, Out of my want and into Thy wealth, Out of my sin and into Thyself, Jesus, I come to Thee.”

—Cliff Drieburg, British Columbia, Canada

Last Sabbath we sang “In Christ There Is No East nor West,” and I couldn’t help thinking how important it is to be reminded of that when so much of society—even our church—is so deeply divided. I appreciate the reminder: “All Christly souls are one in Him throughout the whole wide earth.” n

—Alonzo Tejada, California, United States

Revived by His Word A Journey of Discovery Together through the Bible God speaks to us through His Word. Join with other believers in more than 180 countries who are reading a chapter of the Bible each day. To download the daily Bible Reading Guide, visit RevivedbyHisWord.org, or sign up to receive the daily Bible chapter by e-mail.

To join this initiative, start here: AUGUST 1, 2013 • Job 36

Please pray for me. I am trying to decide on what program I will enter in Fall 2013: nursing/pre-med or masters/teaching, or some combination of both.

Rachel, United States

Please pray for my ministry. Pray also for my health.

Sry, India The Place of Prayer: Send prayer requests and praise (thanks for answered prayer) to prayer@adventistworld.org. Keep entries short and concise, 50-words or less. Items will be edited for space and clarity. Not all submissions will be printed. Please include your name and your country’s name. You may also fax requests to: 1-301-680-6638; or mail them to Adventist World, 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904-6600 U.S.A.

July 2013 | Adventist World - nad

45

A

One-DayChurch Small No More

Top: NEW BEGINNINGS: The first Sabbath at Lakeview Adventist School is a day of celebration and hope for the future. Bottom: FULFILLING A DREAM: Local and guest workers for Maranatha Volunteers International take a break to pose for a photo in front of one of the new buildings.

Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe, then the world’s largest human-made reservoir, was completed in 1960. The first Seventh-day Adventists arrived in Kariba around 1962, when four BaTonga tribesmen moved from Malamulo Mission Station in Malawi to work in the lake’s growing tourism and fishing industries.

Of course, they started a church beneath a large mango tree, meeting Wednesday evenings and Sabbaths. The church grew. They rented worship space wherever they could find it, and even chopped out hillsides in hopes of constructing a real church building. Unfortunately, 53 years later the church members were still renting, chopping, and hoping.

The Lake Kariba Seventh-day Adventists become known as “the small people with no buildings.”

“We are OK with being small groups of Christians,” said Kariba pastor Benevolence Shonhiwa, “but we continue to work and pray for solid, permanent buildings.”

When Zimbabwe’s church leaders visited the lake in 2011, they asked a crucial question. “If you could only have one, would you prefer a church or a school?”

“If we have a church building, we will fill it,” members answered. “But if we have a school, we will need many church buildings to hold our new members.”

The leaders listened, helped the members secure a six-acre plot of land, and asked Maranatha Volunteers International to build a One-Day School campus at Lake Kariba.

Volunteers arrived on April 12, and a week later had completed nearly all of the 12 buildings overlooking Lake Kariba. Every concrete slab, every truss, and every wall was raised with prayer. The new campus includes space for more than 400 students—and a double-size multipurpose building to serve as a church!

“These buildings are a giant evangelism center,” says Enock Chifamba, executive secretary of the Zimbabwe Union. “No one will ever again call these members ‘the small people with no buildings’!”

Lakeview Adventist School began classes on May 7, 2013.

The One-Day Church program is a collaborative effort between the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Adventistlaymen’s Services and Industries (ASI), and Maranatha Volunteers International. These stories come to you each month from Maranatha storyteller Dick Duerksen.

46

Adventist World - nad | July 2013

“Behold, I come quickly…”

Our mission is to uplift Jesus Christ, uniting Seventh-day Adventists everywhere in beliefs, mission, life, and hope.

Publisher The Adventist World, an international periodical of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The General Conference, Northern Asia-Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists®, is the publisher.

Executive Publisher and Editor in Chief Bill Knott Associate Publisher Claude Richli International Publishing Manager Chun, Pyung Duk Publishing Board Ted N. C. Wilson, chair; Benjamin D. Schoun, vice chair; Bill Knott, secretary; Lisa Beardsley-Hardy; Daniel R. Jackson; Robert Lemon; Geoffrey Mbwana; G. T. Ng; Daisy Orion; Juan Prestol; Michael Ryan; Ella Simmons; Mark Thomas; Karnik Doukmetzian, legal advisor Adventist World Coordinating Committee Lee, Jairyong, chair; Akeri Suzuki; Kenneth Osborn; Guimo Sung; Chun, Pyung Duk; Han, Suk Hee Editors based in Silver Spring, Maryland Lael Caesar, Gerald A. Klingbeil (associate editors), Sandra Blackmer, Stephen Chavez, Wilona Karimabadi, Mark A. Kellner, Kimberly Luste Maran Editors based in Seoul, Korea Chun, Pyung Duk; Chun, Jung Kwon; Park, Jae Man Online Editor Carlos Medley Operations Manager Merle Poirier Quality Assurance/Social Media Coordinator Jean Boonstra Editor-at-large Mark A. Finley Senior Advisor E. Edward Zinke Financial Manager Rachel J. Child Editorial Assistant Marvene Thorpe-Baptiste Assistant to the Editor Gina Wahlen Management Board Jairyong Lee, chair; Bill Knott, secretary; P. D. Chun, Karnik Doukmetzian, Suk Hee Han, Kenneth Osborn, Juan Prestol, Claude Richli, Akeri Suzuki, Ex-officio: Robert Lemon, G. T. Ng, Ted N. C. Wilson Art Direction and Design Jeff Dever, Brett Meliti Consultants Ted N. C. Wilson, Robert E. Lemon, G. T. Ng, Guillermo E. Biaggi, Lowell C. Cooper, Daniel R. Jackson, Geoffrey Mbwana, Armando Miranda, Pardon K. Mwansa, Michael L. Ryan, Blasious M. Ruguri, Benjamin D. Schoun, Ella S. Simmons, Alberto C. Gulfan, Jr., Erton Köhler, Jairyong Lee, Israel Leito, John Rathinaraj, Paul S. Ratsara, Barry Oliver, Bruno Vertallier, Gilbert Wari, Bertil A. Wiklander To Writers: We welcome unsolicited manuscripts. Address all editorial correspondence to 12501 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904-6600, U.S.A. Editorial office fax number: (301) 680-6638 E-mail: worldeditor@gc.adventist.org Web site: www.adventistworld.org Unless otherwise indicated, all Bible references are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Texts credited to NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011

by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission.

Adventist World is published monthly and printed simultaneously in Korea, Brazil, Indonesia, Australia, Germany, Austria, and the United States.

Vol. 9, No. 7

It’s what breaks down barriers.

w w w. a d ve n t i s t re v i e w. o rg Like us on Facebook

REVIEW AND HERALD速

Nonprofit Organization

PUbLISHING ASSOCIATION

U.S. Postage

55 WEST OAK RIDGE DRIVE HAGERSTOWN, MD 21740

PAID Hagerstown, MD Permit No. 261