Heavens Appeal – Self-Supporting Workers

 

1 Symbolic Code No. 7, pgs. 1, 2:

 

"The time has come when the following appeal can no longer go unheeded with impunity:

 

“Many fields ripe for the harvest have not yet been entered, because of our lack of self-sacrificing helpers. These fields must be entered, and many laborers should go to them with the expectation of bearing their own expenses. But some of our ministers are little disposed to take upon them the burden of this work, little disposed to labor with the whole-hearted benevolence that characterized the life of our Lord.

 

“God is grieved as He sees the lack of self-denial and perseverance in His servants. Angels are amazed at the spectacle. Let workers for Christ study His life of self-sacrifice. He is our example.” -- “Testimonies for the Church,” Vol. 7, p. 254.

 

"Where in the denominational organization are the “many” self-supporting workers? And why are there almost none instead of “many”?

 

"What could make it possible for the class which has no means, to go forth and “throw their whole energies into this all-important work,” and at the same time bear “their own expenses”? Why the present lack of self-sacrificing workers, and who is responsible for the condition?

 

"The Master’s commission to His laborers is: “Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses. Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat. And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.” (Matt. 10:9-11.)

 

"The plan of Christ forbids that any should enter the gospel ministry by salary, but rather by faith that his needs will be taken care of by those who open their doors to the Lord’s laborers. Therefore, as there are hardly any self-supporting workers in the field, it is evident that there are but few missionaries whom Christ recognizes as His. Consequently, both those who hire gospel workers by stipulated salary, and the ones who accept such a position are violating the Master’s command.

 

"The present rule of the conferences is not only contrary to the Master’s instructions but also responsible for not having “many self-sacrificing workers,” for from all who enter into the work by faith, bearing their own expenses (receiving no pay from the conference but simply the hospitality of those who are convicted to receive instructions from God’s messengers), the conference demands all the tithe and offerings from the interest they develop.

 

"Thus any one who ventures to enter this sacred service is compelled to make his own way as long as he continues in the work, which does not only render the Lord’s work impossible but also unfruitful, for to keep up one’s own expenses continually and feed a family besides will take most of one’s time.

 

"It is neither Biblical nor just that one labor earnestly to raise up a company of believers, and then have the conference reap the tithe of his labor to feed a hired minister who had no part in the effort instead of the one who has sacrificed and done the work. Such an act might as well be called robbery.

 

"This man-made rule has barred from the field “the many self-sacrificing workers,” thus robbing those who are in the darkness of the light of present truth, with the result that there are thousands of S.D.A.’s without employment at this very time who, instead of entering into the gospel work as Christ has asked, are walking up and down the streets expecting to receive some charitable help, the while they are all too often getting themselves into mischief.

 

"But this sorry condition would not now exist had the denomination followed the instruction of the “Great Teacher.” Moreover, there would today have been “many” thousands of Spirit-filled gospel workers in the field instead of a bare handful, and where there is now one convert made at a great expense to the conference there would have been thousands brought in with no expense at all!

 

"Each one that enters the work of Christ under the condition prescribed by Him should be allowed all the tithe that is realized from his labors until he has sufficient to pay his expenses, then the remainder should be kept by the conference. Thus the message would go by leaps and bounds -- more laborers, more converts, more means.

 

"Hence, the present denominational system for the advancement of the gospel is foolish from the standpoint of the Bible as well as from the standpoint of the business world. Consequently, one cannot help but see that Satan has exercised his wisdom to put into the work of God those who labor for the loaves and fishes, and to keep out the self-sacrificing ones, thus seceding to leave the world in darkness. Hence, let God’s true people sleep no longer, but awake, and reply to the following appeal by entering into the work now.

 

“God will have men who will venture anything and everything to save souls. Those who will not move until they can see every step of the way clearly before them, will not be of advantage at this time to forward the truth of God. There must be workers now who will push ahead in the dark as well as in the light, and who will hold up bravely under discouragements and disappointed hopes, and yet work on with faith, with tears and patient hope, sowing beside all waters, trusting the Lord to bring the increase. God calls for men of nerve, of hope, faith, and endurance to work to the point.” “Life Sketches,” 213-14.

 

2 Symbolic Code, Nos. 3, 4, pgs. 7. 8:

 

"You who are ready to enter into the Lord’s vineyard with the “mattock” to dig up the “thorns and briers” will find much to do. Therefore, enter into his service without gold, silver, or brass; that is, spend all you have, then call on Him and He will take care of you by the tithe which is His own, and if we fail in our duty He will take our stewardship from us and give it to others who would not waste or misuse His money; and if the tithe should fail, he may send a raven with some food or perhaps take you to some widow’s house, and if these means also fail to provide, He has plenty of mamma in heaven with which to feed you for the rest of your life. Yes, He can even send an angel with “a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water,” and bid you, “Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee,” and if He sees fit, He can make it possible for you to go “in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God” where you can obtain some more. (1 Kings 19:7, 8.)

 

"At any rate, if you are true to Him He will not let you starve though the world may. Sell all and “give to the poor”; that is, to those who are destitute of the message and who are about to perish for lack of knowledge.” Will you, too, my brethren, who have “great possessions” go “away sorrowful”? (Matt. 19:22)

 

“I saw that some of the people of God are stupid and dormant, and but half awake; they do not realize the time we are now living in, and that the man with the ‘dirt brush’ has entered, and that some are in danger of being swept away. I begged of Jesus to save them, to spare them a little longer, and let them see their awful danger, that they might get ready before it should be forever too late. The angel said, Destruction is coming like a mighty whirlwind. I begged of the angel to pity and to save those who loved this world, who, were attached to their possessions, and were not willing to cut loose from them, and sacrifice to speed the messengers on their way to feed the hungry sheep who were perishing for want of spiritual food.

 

“As I viewed poor souls dying for want of the present truth, and some who professed to believe the truth were letting them die by withholding the necessary means to carry forward the work of God, the sight was too painful, and I begged of the angel to remove it from me. I saw that when the cause of God called for some of their property, like the young man who came to Jesus (Matt. 19:16-22), they went away sorrowful; and that soon the overflowing scourge would pass over and sweep their possessions all away, and then it would be too late to sacrifice earthly goods, and lay up a treasure in heaven.” -- “Early Writings,” pp. 48, 49.

 

"This invitation is yours: “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matt. 11:28-30.)

 

"Ten tithe paying converts will yield as much tithe as the whole income of one of them and if they can live on that much you can, too, and if It should take twice as much for your living as it does for theirs, all you would need to do is to go and win ten more tithe paying souls. Then as long as you are in Christ’s service and in nothing else, and as long as your twenty converts remain faithful and true tithe payers you will have a steady income. I know not of an easier way for making a living than this. Do you? Neither is there any doubt at all for having this much success in winning souls to Christ if your hearts are right with God and if you are working for souls and for the advancement of His Kingdom instead of for “loaves and fishes” and for self-exaltation. Thus entering into Christ’s service will be your credentials -- an evidence that God has approved of your conception of the truth, accepted your service, and that you have made “your calling and election sure.”

 

Occupational Transition

 

Fundamental Beliefs, pgs. 27-30:

 

"As this ministry, of which “there hath not been ever the like, neither shall he any more after it” (Joel 2:2), is to be free from all earthly encumbrances, let not anyone longer delay in effecting the transition which will ultimately see him engaged heart and soul in the Lord’s “closing work for the church,” in the ingathering of the “firstfruits” who are to be sealed from among the living in Laodicea. And while giving himself to this work, he will at the same time be preparing himself to give the message in the time of the Loud Cry, which the purification of the church -- the deliverance of the sealed and the destruction of the unsealed -- is to usher in, and which the purified are to proclaim.

 

"Let each one wisely make this imperative transition by gradually curtailing pursuit of his own interests, and increasing pursuit of the Lord’s. In this way, each one will steadily climb from an empty and unsung past of self-enterprise, to a full and glorious future of divine enterprise which will inspire “from the uttermost part of the earth...songs, even glory to the righteous” Isa. 24:16.

 

"Now is the time when the Heavenly Householder is inquiring, “Why stand ye here all the day idle?” and is urging, “Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.” Matt. 20:6, 7.

 

"My brethren, if you want a part in this never-so-glorious work, the crowning act in the redemption of the world, you must now hasten quickly to make ready. Let not the cares of this life rob you of the crown of eternal life. Do not hold back, letting Satan put in your mouth the excuse: “I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused:” or, “I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused:” or “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.” Luke 14:18-20. “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.” I John 2:16, 17.

 

"While yet engaged in your present occupation, go into the vineyard of the Lord, and as your interest there grows, your own work will diminish until you find yourselves completely divorced from it and wedded to the Lord’s.

 

 “Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?” But

 

Seek Ye First  The Kingdom of God” -- Not Wages.

 

"If our uppermost thoughts are for the advancement of the Kingdom then we will be giving no thought as to who will give us our pay, but will rest joyously in the assurance that our needs will be cared for.

 

"According to the parable, the laborers whom the Master hires, go out in faith not knowing what they are to receive at day’s end. If the message of The Shepherd’s Rod is God’s, then His laborers had better learn that it is to be carried out altogether in His, not in man’s, way, and that those who are working for pay as reward for their labors, are not working for Christ, but rather for themselves; also that should the office give financial support to any who labor just part time, there would follow the obligation to pay all who did anything, be it little or much -- a precedent which could only damage rather than upbuild both the worker and those for whom he might labor.

 

"Consequently, the only righteous procedure is that all who engage in the work of this sealing message, report their activities to this office, so that it may credit to them the results of their labors. And should there accrue from these efforts sufficient means to enable them to give full time to the teaching of the message, they may be granted full time status, entitling them to a necessary living expense from the financial results of their labors.

 

“Time,” says the Spirit of Prophecy, “is short, and our forces must be organized to do a larger work. Laborers are needed who comprehend the  greatness of the work, and who will engage in it, not for the wages they receive, but from a realization of the nearness of the end. The time demands greater efficiency and deeper consecration” (Testimonies, Vol. 9, p. 27).

 

2 Shepherd’s Rod, pg. 229:

 

"The eleventh hour call is the last on record, and only an hour before sunset -- millennium.  The time for its deliverance to the world is shorter than any universal message ever given.  Though the time is the shortest its area over the earth’s surface is more extensive than any.  Its speedy delivery is of the highest importance, for by it shall the world be judged.

 

"God’s servants shall have no time or desire for the cares of this world, for there is a city prepared for them whose builder and maker is God.  As we have just enough time to get ready for translation, we must not let the enemy steal our precious moments.  Because the work is so broad, its expansion so vast, and its importance so great, God has inspired modern science to invent, and build speedy equipment to quickly finish His work.  “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.  Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” (Dan. 12:4, 10.)

 

White House Recruiter, pg. 36:

 

"Because time and the gospel are at their climatic hour, and the work is consequently of transcendent scope, expansion, and importance, yet of exceeding short duration, God has inspired man to invent and build time  and labor-saving, wonder-working, earth-mastering, tools and machinery of all kinds -- marvels which would have staggered the imagination and beggared the credulity of former generations, notwithstanding that centuries aforehand “the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eternity” (Isa. 57:15), declared: “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” Dan. 12:4.

 

Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 35, pgs. 7-10:

 

Matt. 6:24-26 -- “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them.  Are ye not much better than they?”

 

"These three verses plainly say that to live to make a living, and to worry how you are to fare tomorrow, is nothing less than serving mammon (self); that you cannot serve self and God at the save time; that if you serve God you should be as free from worry of the future as are the birds.  Yes, you should be even more confident of His care, for you are worth more than are the birds.  You are whole-heartedly to know that so long as you serve Him, He will never leave you nor forsake you.

 

Isa. 41:17 -- “When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.”

 

Isa. 49:15 -- “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb?  yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.”

 

Matt. 6:27-34 -- “Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?  And why take ye thought for raiment?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall He not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?  Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat?  or, What shall we drink?  or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?  (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

 

"Take no thought for the morrow, for it will take care of itself -- why cross bridges before you come to them?  Why worry how you are to fill up your stomachs and with what you are to cover your bodies tomorrow if they are cared for this day?  Why worry about your own needs, why not worry how to advance the Kingdom of God?  Putting in overtime to make tents or cobble shoes for a living is all right if you do not say, “I will do this and the other and get money to buy and build this or that.” You should instead say, “If God permits, I will do this or that, so that I may get here or get there, do this and the other for the advancement of His cause.”  Whatever the aim behind your act it must be for the advancement of His Kingdom.

 

"Why not make your chief interest His business?  Why not the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, so that “all these things be added unto you”?  Why work to feed yourself?  Why not work for God and let Him feed and clothe you?  He is far more capable of providing for you than you will ever be.  Why not let Him take charge of your work, of your home, of your body?

 

"While you do His bidding, He will never fail you.  Why not do this and be an altogether Christian?  Why be a Christian in name, but a Gentile in heart and faith?  Work no longer for self, work for God and be free of worry, free of having to make your own living in your own way.  The fishermen of Galilee while fishing in their own way failed, but when they cast the net where Jesus said they should cast it, it was instantly filled with fish.

 

"Know first that God is not interested in your selfish business, but in you and His saving business.  There is therefore no need of you serving mammon (self), and at the same time expecting His blessing on mammon’s interests.  No man even in the world can work for his own interest and still expect his firm to promote him, or keep him at any post of duty.  No employer hires persons because he wants his employee to make a living, but only because he wants his own business cared for.  Know that God’s business is of greater importance and of further-reaching consequences than any man’s business, and that God is more particular than any man ever was or ever will be.

 

Matt. 11:28-30 -- “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.”

 

"Always remember that God has not called you to your post of duty in order to feed you or to make you rich, but to save you and to save others through you.  Therefore, whatever you do, do it for the glory of God.  Then and then only will He provide “all these things,” the things God sees fit to give.  He will see that you earn your needs one way or another.  Nothing less than the faith of Noah, of Job, and of Daniel will pay the bill, Brother, Sister, because anything short of this is an insult to God.  It is the same as to call Him a deceiver.  Doubt in the promises of God completely robs the doubter of all God’s blessings and promises.  Only when you learn to trust Him will He be to you “as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.” Isa. 32:2.

 

“Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”  This promise held good in David’s time, and it will hold good now.

 

Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 35, pgs. 26-28:

 

"For whom are you working, Brother, Sister?  for yourselves or for God? -- You say, “For God,” and I hope you are right, but remember, as I said before, that no business firm will promote a workman that is not interested at least as much in the prosperity of his firm as he is in the size of his wages.  Moreover, no firm is interested in the workman’s private business.  It is interested in its own business.  God’s business, though, is far more important, and of far greater consequence than the business of any man.  He, too, is not at all interested in your selfish business, He is interested in His business of saving souls.  You cannot, therefore, make your own interests of first importance and His of second, and at the same time expect to reap His promises, and expect Him to answer your prayers.  If such be the case, then you are even falsely calling yourself a Christian.  According to Matthew 6:32, you are still a deluded Gentile.

 

"To be a Christian in God’s sight you must never praise yourself, but praise God and His goodness.  Never boast of your own interests and achievements, but boast of God’s.  Never try to promote your business, but always try to promote God’s.  Never pray for light to know what to do, and where to go in order that your business, your interests prosper, but rather pray for light that God help you do the thing or go to the place where you would best serve His cause, that He lead you and teach you how to advance His kingdom.  Then, and then only, will you find that you never go wrong!  Any motive other than this will take you where God does not want you, and where you will have to carry your own burden independent of Him.

 

"I have seen a number of individuals swear by heaven and earth that God has led them here or there, into this or into the other.  But when things did no please them, then they packed away swearing just as hard that God had not led them into the thing!  And again swear just as hard as before that God is taking them out of it, and into something better!  They again felt just as positive that God was leading in their move, though it was the opposite of what they thought He had led them in before!

 

"Others have felt that God had opened the way for them to do this or the other by the fact that they had been able to get the money for the trip, or to get a buyer for one thing or another, to have this and to have that.  Still others told me that they opened the Bible at random, and that their eyes dropped on a verse which indicated God’s approval of their move.  One brother told me that he had flipped a coin and another had found an Indian arrow pointing in the direction he should go!  All these I have seen come to naught although these indications were held as positive evidences of God’s will in the matters under question.

 

"Let me now tell you that these indications in themselves are but presumption of the highest form, hallucination and gambling, not God’s signs at all.  Moreover, anyone’s plans which are based on purely selfish interests, based purely on where and how one may better his private profit-making projects while he professes to be a Christian, -- I tell you that all these are schemes, not God’s plans at all, regardless how the way opens, or what happens.  The fact is that God is never given the opportunity to direct in these things, for to give Him the opportunity, He says, “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

 

Timely Greetings, Vol. 2, No. 25, pgs. 10, 11:

 

"The question naturally arises, should we work for men or should we work for God to make a living?  If God has a work for you to do, then you cannot go to work for men and yet expect to receive God’s approval.  But if God has not something for you in His workshop, so to speak, it is obvious that He would have something for you in someone else’s unobjectionable shop.

 

"The students in the school of God study from principle and with but a single aim to advance the Kingdom of God, while the students in the school of man study from an monetary viewpoint, to help no one in particular but themselves, which we as Christians cannot afford to do if we expect to become all God would have us to be.  Any clear thinker, who is looking at things from God’s viewpoint, would not be anything other than a product from the school of God.

 

The Shepherd’s Rod, Vol 1, pgs. 242, 243:

 

"Coming back to Micah 6:1, “Hear ye now what the Lord saith.” Note the verb “hear” is in present tense, therefore present truth.  But what are we to hear?  “Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.”  “The mountains” means the same as in Micah 4:1, first part.  The only difference between the two is that the latter is singular, but the former is plural.  The “mountain” in chapter 4, means God’s church (denomination) as explained on page 173, but the “mountains and hills” as in chapter 4:1 (last part) and 6:1, being in plural would mean churches and organizations.  In this sense it could not refer to God’s church, for He recognizes only one church as His.  Also “the hills” being plural would mean sects, or minor movements, etc.

 

“Let them hear thy voice.”  The thought that can be derived is this: Our leading men are either taking too long a time, or perhaps never intend to do anything with the new light presented to them in “The Shepherd’s Rod,” therefore, wait no longer, “Arise now, contend before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice” (make it public).  This being so, we were compelled to publish the book and give it out without delay.

 

"But what are the mountains to hear?  What will He contend about?  The answer is given in the second verse.  “Hear ye, O mountains, the Lord’s controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: For the Lord hath a controversy with his people, and he will plead with Israel.”  Note they are to hear that the Lord has a controversy with His people, and He will plead with Israel (the 144,000, Israel the true).  But how are they to hear?  What are the means to carry that voice to the mountains and hills?  The answer to this is found in the ninth verse.

 

“The Lord’s voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.” Micah 6:9.  Note it is the Lord’s voice.  The voice is crying in the “city.” (City, or Jerusalem are symbols of God’s church the same as “mountain,” the difference between the symbols being that “mountain” means the entire denomination, but “city” means the leading part of that body.)  By what means is the Lord’s voice crying in the city (church)?  The last part of the verse answers the question: “Hear ye the rod.”  To hear a rod, it must be the kind that can speak.

 

Timely Greetings, Vol. 1, No. 27, pgs. 3, 4:

 

Micah 6:1, 2 -- “Hear ye now what the Lord saith; Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.  Hear ye, O mountains, the Lord’s controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the Lord hath a controversy with His people, and He will plead with Israel.”

 

"First to be noted is the fact that the messenger of God is instructed to contend before the mountains, and that the hills are to hear his voice.  Obviously, then, in this scripture as elsewhere in the Bible, mountains and hills must be figurative of kingdoms and governments.

 

"He is to contend before the mountains not against them; that is, he is to proclaim that the Lord has a controversy with His people, that He is asking for a thorough reformation among them, and that they are not willing and co-operating.

 

"It was seen in previous studies that the prophecies of Micah 4 and 5 are to be fulfilled in the latter days, our time, in a time that Inspiration by the revelation of these prophecies calls for a reformation among God’s people.  The prophecies now being unsealed for the first time since they were written, and the reformation already on foot, the fact that instead of gladly accepting the freshly revealed message, they are creating a controversy throughout the Adventist churches, very obviously indicates that now is the time to contend before the mountains, now is the time for them (the “mountains”) to hear the Lord’s controversy with His people.

 

"The words, Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice, imply that heretofore his voice has been heard only locally but that now he must meet the situation even though the mountains, hills, and the strong foundations of the earth hear that the Lord is having a controversy with His people.

 

"Until now, we have been merely trifling with the Lord’s adversaries but now we must get down to business regardless who hears it.  His people must now forever turn from man’s sayings, whatever they be, and confine their faith and hope in “Thus saith the Lord,” regardless through whom He says it, or else they lose out.  As followers of the Lord, we should hearken to His heart-rending plea for revival and reformation."