Total Member Involvement [What is Its Role in Reaching the World With God's Message?]

In the wake of annual counsel, we are given the chance to reflect on how we are to evolve as a church by looking back to move forward. This week, ANN InDepth hosts Jennifer Stymiest and Sam Neves talk to the three Officers of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists - Ted N.C. Wilson, president, Erton Kohler, secretary, and Paul Douglas, treasurer. 

When reflecting on the history of Adventism, we are reminded of the richness of the movement. Though a fairly “modern” belief, its development was founded in returning to the scriptures. In the annual counsel, such reflections were necessary to reorient ourselves as a church. Wilson states, “I think we have to recognize that according to the bible prophecy, we are very close to Jesus’ soon return. The Lord expects us to reflect on what the prophetic understanding of scripture tells us about, not only the setting in which we are, but the role we have to play.” Now more than ever we must be firm, firm in what we know to be right, allowing the Holy Spirit to cut bone from marrow and discern the central truths of the Gospel. Wilson reflects that the Gospel and the prophetic guidance found in the three angels message is crucial in understanding that “these messages are not just gloom and doom, they're full of hope, they're full of Christ's righteousness, full of turning back to the true worship of God, and not including some kind of syncretistic humanism and philosophy into some socially accepted message, but go back to the bible.” 

So how do we share the message we are tasked to share? The gospel message will always be relevant, but the method may not be. Kohler elaborates on our mission by saying, “The prophetic role that we have is the same but the mentality of the people is changing day by day, and if we don't change our tools, the resources that we are using to reach people, we will preach, but we preach alone.” Such adaptation is necessary to reach a world that does not understand Christ. “The message that we have is constant.” Says Douglas, “God is constant, that is not going to change, but we have to find new methods with which to share that with His people in this dying world.” As always, Jesus provides the standard through which we learn to adapt the method according to the person. Douglas provides examples through Christ's ministry, where He knew when to morph His form of engagement, to make the message connect. Douglas observes that we are to follow Christ’s example and, like He did, “adapt the methods to understand in terms of the environment where you are and the context in where you are.” It is important to note that such adaptation is not the sacrifice of the central truth, but applying the dialect with whoever we encounter.

This adaptation can come in the form of digital evangelism, virtual services, or one on one connections, however all require total member involvement. “In order for the church to really move we have to have church members involved” Wilson states, “literally that's what total member involvement is all about, everybody doing something for Jesus, everybody pulling towards the same goal of sharing these precious messages of the advent truth.” Total member involvement reminds us that the church is more than just passive recipients of a weekly message or the responsibility of church administrators, seminary graduates, missionaries or General Conference workers, but we as individuals, make up the church. As said 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, each of us are part of the body with vital functions, no matter how small. When each member is active in their involvement, we recognize the fullness of ministries available, be it driving someone to a doctor's appointment, running a food drive, organizing a church event, helping write copy, running the AV, or cleaning someone’s house. Each is an involvement that utilizes the specialized gifts of each member that speaks to the holistic nature of ministry. 

It is the human element of evangelism that unlocks a deep connection which allows for the message to be shared on a human to human basis. The embrace of human diversity has allowed innovation to flourish. Because, as Wilson describes, “Scripture is not dependent on societal trends or on cultural influences, the bible is for all time,” changing the method is inconsequential with strong biblical grounding. The pandemic has changed the church. “I believe the pandemic came at a point in time to wake up that luke warmness that is in us,” explains Douglas, “to recognize that we have a work to be doing and has to be done in different

ways.” This point raises a reoccurring truth repeated over and over: the pandemic has provided the necessity for us as a church to return to the basics. Total member involvement reminds us that the power of the church is made up of individuals committed to Christ.