Messenger of the Lord

Dynamic Advocate of Public Evangelism

Training must precede practice. In the two years that Mrs. White was in Europe (1885-1887) she gave those who were breaking new ground in evangelism clear and proven suggestions as to how to be most effective. One of the first lessons learned in the United States was that unprepared, untrained workers, no matter how earnest, did not honor God with ineffective methods. At the fifth session of the European Council (1887), in Moss, Norway, she counseled: “Much greater work could have been done if our brethren had taken greater pains, even at large expense, to educate the licentiates before they were sent into the field for labor. They were allowed to go and try their gift. They did not go with experienced workmen who could help them and educate them, but went out alone.... They did not grow, and were not taxing their powers to become able men in the Scriptures.” ²⁵ MOL 212.3

Mrs. White would not substitute enthusiasm for proper ministerial preparation: “If young men would enter the field [public ministry], in nowise discourage them; but first let them learn the trade.” ²⁶ As James White stated, it was always “a disgrace to Seventh-day Adventists to do a second-class job in anything.” ²⁷ MOL 212.4

Importance of starting right. First impressions were important to Ellen White. Those representing the Adventist Church in public must be prepared spiritually as well as professionally—or else their work would not be permanent: “There is the greatest need of the work in new fields starting right, bearing the impress of the divine. Many in these new fields will be in danger of accepting the truth or assenting to it, who have not a genuine conversion of heart. When tested by storm and tempest, it will be found that their house is not built upon a rock but upon sliding sand. Practical godliness must be possessed by the minister and developed in his daily life and character. His discourses should not be exclusively theoretical.” ²⁸ MOL 212.5

“Starting right” also meant the impressions made by the choice of meeting places, ²⁹ by avoiding “theatrical performances” and “startling notices ... [that] create an alarm,” ³⁰ by appropriate articles in “the secular papers,” ³¹ by becoming “acquainted with the pastors of the several churches,” ³² by being “abreast of the times” in messages, ³³ by the ministers’ dressing “in a manner befitting the dignity of their position,” ³⁴ and by ministers avoiding anything that might be considered “uncouth” in any attitude or deportment that would “strike the beholder with disgust.” ³⁵ MOL 212.6

Public presentations should reflect the spirit and manner of Jesus. One of the marks of the Spirit of prophecy is that Jesus is exalted and reflected in all soul-winning ventures. Whatever the subject Ellen White discusses, the reader is impressed with the prevailing sentiment that Christ is not only our Saviour but also our Example—in all things. His soul winning, whether in leading individuals to salvation or in directing multitudes heavenward, provide clear, proven methods of evangelistic effectiveness. MOL 212.7

In the chapter “Our Example,” in The Ministry of Healing, Ellen White depicted how Jesus would “meet men where they were.” She wrote: “He sought access to the people by the pathway of their most familiar associations.” ³⁶ Often she emphasized that it is “essential that we understand and follow right methods of teaching and follow the example of Christ.” ³⁷ MOL 213.1

Christ’s example included avoiding “controversies,” ³⁸ identifying with each person’s “interest and happiness,” ³⁹ watching “the faces of His hearers ... which told that truth had reached the soul,” ⁴⁰ speaking with “simplicity” by not bringing “many things before them at once, lest He might confuse their minds [making] every point clear and distinct,” appealing to all intellectual and social levels by clothing His messages “with such beauty that they interested and charmed the greatest intellects,” ⁴¹ by measuring His instruction as His audience was ready to receive it, keeping back “many things in regard to which His wisdom kept Him silent.” ⁴² MOL 213.2

Bringing the gospel to the general public, including many who have been burned over with previous religious experiences, requires tact in selecting the sequence of subjects. Ellen White led the way by example and by persistent instruction. In emphasizing tact, she wrote: “When you meet those, who, like Nathaniel, are prejudiced against the truth, do not urge your peculiar views too strongly. Talk with them at first of subjects upon which you can agree.... Both you and they will be brought into a closer connection with heaven, prejudice will be weakened, and it will be easier to reach the heart.” ⁴³ MOL 213.3

She commended church members who mingled with the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, urging them to be noted for the “light of life” on “subjects where you can all agree.” ⁴⁴ MOL 213.4

Ellen White was invited to speak to the general public on scores of occasions throughout North America. Generally she chose the subjects of Christian temperance and practical godliness, developing the subjects in a way that deeply stirred her audiences. She knew that by starting with a neutral, contemporary subject she would gain a favorable hearing, thus setting the stage for more distinctive messages. She knew the principles of good public relations. ⁴⁵ MOL 213.5

Leading advocate of city evangelism. Some may wonder how and why a woman as busy as Ellen White would get involved in evangelistic techniques. Yet, many are the messages written to denominational leaders and leading evangelists, focusing on soul-winning methods for urban areas. ⁴⁶ Her counsel on public evangelism, for example, especially in the world’s large cities, prompted new moves toward city evangelism: “We stand rebuked by God because the large cities right within our sight are unworked and unwarned.... We have done none too much for foreign fields, but we have done comparatively nothing for the great cities right beside our own doors.” ⁴⁷ MOL 213.6

Stephen and Hetty Haskell were perhaps the leading proponents of Ellen White’s program for reaching the masses. Door-to-door selling of books, personal Bible studies, workers’ meetings to teach personal evangelism, utilization of health education to arouse public interest, printed Bible studies, evangelistic journals, contacting business and professional leaders, finding suitable sites for public meetings—all came together in the Haskells’ program for New York in the early 1900s. ⁴⁸ MOL 213.7

Denominational leadership, preoccupied with various crises at that time, neglected Ellen White’s repeated emphasis on city evangelism. But she would not be deterred. For her, not only were many millions going to their graves unwarned, the preaching of the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14 was seriously frustrated. ⁴⁹ MOL 213.8

In 1909 she met the issue head-on: the church’s top leaders, including A. G. Daniells, General Conference president, and W. W. Prescott, editor of the Review, should lead the way in public evangelism! She wrote sharply to both men in 1910 after she believed that her counsel in 1909 had produced only a token response: “I am charged with a message to you both that you need to humble your hearts before God. Neither Elder Prescott nor Elder Daniells is prepared to direct the work of the General Conference, for in some things they have dishonored the Lord God of Israel.... Some things were clearly opened before me during the last meeting I attended in Washington, D. C.... The work in the cities has not yet been carried forward as it should be.... Had the president of the General Conference been thoroughly aroused, he might have seen the situation. But he has not understood the message that God has given.... I can no longer hold my peace.” ⁵⁰ MOL 213.9

Prescott made plans for evangelistic work but a combination of family tragedies overwhelmed him. His health suffered seriously. As time went on, new responsibilities in editorial work eventually occupied his time. ⁵¹ MOL 214.1

Daniells had some difficulty in arranging his leadership responsibilities. During these months, Ellen White wrote him: “Redeem the lost time of the past nine years by going ahead now with the work in our cities, and the Lord will bless and sustain you.” ⁵² MOL 214.2

This constant urging on the president of the General Conference and others resulted in an explosion of Adventist city evangelism in the years that followed. ⁵³ MOL 214.3