An Appeal for Appeals
Which approach should we adopt to influence members to become faithful stewards? There are many possible answers. While there is likely a consensus on our responsibility to educate all churchgoers, our task remains incomplete without appealing for personal commitments. This article elaborates on the idea that while it is important to inform the intellect, it is equally essential to appeal to the heart of members, encouraging them to embrace stewardship principles.
Human Instrumentalities
Have you ever found yourselves or heard others engaging in reflections such as these: “Aren’t people mature enough to know what to do?” Or, “Isn’t that the role of the Holy Spirit?” The truth is, people need guidance. If people were able to make their own decisions without any external prompting, then Christ’s descent to earth would have been an unnecessary intrusion. Additionally, sending the apostles to “compel them to come in” (Luke 14:23) would have been an insult to human intelligence.
While the Holy Spirit makes impressions on the heart, God uses human instrumentalities. Following the prompting of John the Baptist, John and Andrew became the first disciples of Jesus, setting the foundation of the Christian church. Andrew found his brother Peter and called him to the Savior. Philip was then called, and he, in turn, went in search of Nathaniel. Later, on the Day of Pentecost, Peter, after an exposition of Scripture, crystallized the appropriate response to the promptings of the Holy Spirit by appealing for repentance. Apostle Paul, through spoken and written admonitions, appealed to King Agrippa, the jailors, the Greeks, and the Jews to yield their lives to Christ. These examples underscore the importance of the human agent’s role in appealing to others in spiritual matters.
Ellen G. White helps us to understand the complementary role of humans in leading others to faithfulness:
In the judgment, when all secrets are laid bare, it will be known that the voice of God spoke through the human agent, and aroused the torpid conscience, and stirred the lifeless faculties, and moved sinners to repentance and contrition, and forsaking of sins. It will then be clearly seen that through the human agent faith in Jesus Christ was imparted to the soul, and spiritual life from heaven was breathed upon one who was dead in trespasses and sins, and he was quickened with spiritual life.”[1]
Humans are not a substitute to God’s interventions; they are the vessels through which God reaches out to humanity.
Correcting Misconceptions
Misconceptions have led stewardship leaders or educators to shy away from explicitly inviting their audience to decide or take a stand. Here are some common misconceptions:
1. People are smart enough to come to their own conclusion without being urged.
2. It is the Holy Spirit’s work alone, not ours.
3. It is not my calling! My calling is to preach and teach.
4. What if I make an appeal and no one responds. I will stand there looking silly.
These ideas about appeals do not stand the test of Scripture. There are multiple references of God’s spokespersons—Moses, Joshua, Isaiah, John the Baptist, Paul, and Peter—who were regularly appealing to God’s people to provide a clear response to the truths they received. The expression “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19), used by Jesus to describe the assignment given to His disciples, highlights the idea of appealing for a decision. Our ultimate responsibility is not to serve as fish feeders but as fishermen. The latter are not content when the fish have full stomachs, but when the fish have transitioned from the water to the boat. Fishermen use both the bait and the hook!
Another misconception is that people in certain cultural settings do not like appeals or may even be offended by them. My personal experience as an international evangelist does not support this assertion. Once, I was holding a series of meetings in Germany, and on the first night I told my translator that I was going to make an appeal. “Don’t do that,” he said. “German people are private people and will not respond openly.”
“I must make an appeal,” I insisted.
“This is not America,” he retorted.
“I know where I am,” I kindly responded. “Just do what I say, and follow my lead. If it doesn’t work, you can blame me.”
“Alright,” he warningly responded.
At the end of my message, I made an altar call. It was wonderful to see German people getting out of their seats and approaching the altar with teary eyes. My translator also began to cry. After the audience left, he said, “This is not Germany!”
“It is Germany!” I exclaimed. “German people have hearts, and when the Spirit of the Lord touches their hearts, they respond to appeals.”
As we struggle with self-raised and cultural barriers to making appeals, it is pertinent to pay attention to this statement from Ellen G. White: “The secret of our success and power as a people advocating advanced truth will be found in making direct, personal appeals to those who are interested, having unwavering reliance upon the Most High” (Review and Herald, August 30, 1892).[2] These inspired words, though borrowed from the context of evangelism, can be applied to other aspects of Christian living, including stewardship. The absence of appeals for decisions because of sincere convictions or misguided understanding stand as obstacles for more significant results.
When it comes to spiritual matters, people are like sheep, as the Bible says. (See Isaiah 53:6; Luke 15:4–7.) Expressed differently, Ellen G. White writes:
There are souls in every congregation who are hesitating, almost persuaded to be wholly for God. The decision is being made for time and for eternity; but it is too often the case that the minister has not the spirit and power of the message of truth in his own heart, hence no direct appeals are made to those souls that are trembling in the balance. The result is that impressions are not deepened upon the hearts of the convicted ones; and they leave the meeting feeling less inclined to accept the service of Christ than when they came. They decide to wait for a more favorable opportunity; but it never comes.[3]
Therefore, our people must be led, influenced, compelled, or encouraged in spiritual matters, without coercion or manipulation. Our responsibility includes bidding them to follow.
Mrs. White shares how she integrated appeals in her ministry: “My husband would give a doctrinal discourse, then I would follow with an exhortation of considerable length, melting my way into the feelings of the congregation. Thus my husband sowed and I watered the seed of truth, and God did give the increase.”4 The appeal brings home the message to the hearer’s heart. She understood that while biblical truths need to be taught, appealing to the heart is essential.
Application
Stewardship leaders and educators can adopt two approaches to integrate appeals into their ministry. First, each time a stewardship message is preached or a training is provided, it should clearly contain action points that require specific decisions. The audience is then invited to take a stand for what they have learned or been reminded of. Another approach could be a special ceremony focused on inviting church members to make decisions or commitments related to stewardship practices. An example could be the commitment ceremony during the annual stewardship Sabbath. During this occasion, among other commitments, members are invited to renew their pledges to return tithe and give proportional percentage-based offerings for the following year. As we educate and train the church in stewardship, we should also seek to secure decisions.
References
[1] Ellen G. White, EGW SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 4 (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1955), 1165.
[2] Ellen G. White, “Address to Ministers,” Review and Herald 69, no. 35 (1892): 545.
[3] Ellen G. White, Gospel Workers (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1915), 138.
4 Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1 (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1885), 75.
