37 Baptised AFter Granville Fijian Church Evangelistic Series

The Granville Fijian Seventh-day Adventist Church witnessed a baptism miracle following its three-week-long evangelistic campaign when 37 people were baptized and joined the congregation.

From 26 October to 16 November 2024, the church hosted an evangelistic program every Sunday through Friday evening. Samuela Koro, a young evangelist from Fiji, assisted the church in preaching in indigenous Fijian language. Even though he was only able to attend school through Year 3, Samuela is a powerful preacher who uses his gifts and talents to share the gospel with others.

The church’s personal ministries department encouraged members to invite family and friends to the programs. This links to the Total Member Involvement evangelism model, which asks every church member, regardless of their role or position, to actively participate in evangelism efforts.

The difference those personal invitations and connections made was tangible. “More than 20 visitors attended every night, with a total attendance between 100 and 100,” Pr Shiu said.

Evening programs included a short marriage and family session followed by an hour of singing and preaching. The Granville youth and Mountaineers singers also participated by singing the appeal song each night. There was also a lot of behind-the scenes work.

“It was humbling to see the powerful effort of constant prayer engagement of the mission team,” shared Pastor Shiu Kumar. “They engaged every day from 4 a.m. to 5 a.m., studying the Bible and interceding in prayer for the whole evangelistic program.”

On the final evening, the congregation saw the fruits of their efforts when more than 30 people made the decision to be baptized.

“That was a very special Sabbath,” said Pr Shiu. “The place of worship was packed, and there were even people standing outside viewing the big screen as brother Samuela Koro preached.”

During the worship, Pr Shiu thanked the church members for proactively reaching out to their personal networks and making the effort to consistently connect. That afternoon, at 3 p.m., 32 people were baptised. A second round of baptisms later increased the total number of new members to 37. Now, those new members are actively engaged in church activities and training as disciples. Ongoing Bible studies help them learn more about their new faith and how to share the good news.

As the Granville Fijian church grows, the congregation plans to keep personally introducing people to Christ using the Greek Old Testament philosophy of oikos, or communicating God’s love through an established network of social relationships. Oikos means “household,” and extends to immediate family members and extended family, friends, and even business associates—anyone who is in a person’s sphere of influence.

In a PowerPoint presentation on the topic, Pastor Shiu noted, “Following Christ’s resurrection and ascension, it was this same pattern of the gospel moving through the oikos that caused [membership in] the early [church] to explode.”

He added a quote from Michael Green, which states, “The early Christians knew that when the message of faith was heard and demonstrated by friends and family who were known and trusted… receptivity to the Gospel increased tremendously.”

With statistics showing that 75 percent of new church attendees started coming because of an invitation from a friend or relative, Pr Shiu challenges church members to do their own research and see if it holds true in their own lives and relationships.

OIKOS IS FOR EVERYONE!

You can reach others for Jesus as a Christian in a multifaith world, and Peter Roennfeldt’s book If You Can Eat… You Can Make Disciples can help. It shares how Jesus engaged with those around him, no matter their religious backgrounds, and gives tips for how we can do the same. Get your copy at adventistbookcentre.com.au/if-you-can-eat.html or your local Adventist Book Centre.