Evangelistic Vision

I cannot begin this little talk without reading my favorite text, Habakkuk 2:3: "For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it." This text has many applications, but tonight it im­plies that evangelistically the vision of a world warned of its impending doom, and of honesthearted men and women drawn to Christ, will surely come to pass.

Before coming over here, I thought I read a statement from the messenger of the Lord that "a thousand will be converted in a day." I found a little better news than that. I read "more than one thousand will soon be converted in one day." That en­courages me.

My story tonight is in four parts. It will cover the four major evangelistic cam­paigns, minus the results, that we have con­ducted since coming to the Ministerial As­sociation.

I Saw God Shake a City

The first little story is, "I saw God shake a city." After being called to the Ministerial Association I learned that my work was largely not in preaching the message, but teaching preachers to preach the message. It was in Montgomery, Alabama, that I saw God shake a town and make it aware of the coming judgment. Every major de­nomination in the city sent its representa­tives at one time or another to interrogate us. One particular church group was es­pecially active. They imported a man who spoke seven languages. He moved in with his family and trailer to interfere with the progress of the work of God. I believe, how­ever, that there are no circumstances in any of these cities that can frustrate the grace of God.

I am aware of the many inroads that television, et cetera, are making on the in­terest in public campaigns, but Montgom­ery, Alabama, which had all of these hindrances to public preaching, convinced me of my belief that the Spirit of God is more powerful than television, the movie houses, and some of the other obstacles we use to excuse our lack of power. I came away convinced that the power of God is ade­quate in any crisis hour.

When our Montgomery evangelism reached its harvesttime, we had to hire eight giant Trailway buses to carry the crowd to the baptismal pool. We went to the city authorities and asked them to send an escort to get God's caravan to town. God• Himself had a parade that Sabbath morn­ing. Through the heart of the city they stopped traffic for God. It was the only time I have ever gone through a traffic light that was red without receiving a ticket! Yes, God is still in the business of public evangelism; it is neither sick, dying, nor dead. Men who really believe that will continue hopefully to preach the message and will have fruit for their labor.

I Saw God Shake a Palace

My second story moves to Uganda, East Africa. The brethren sent me out there on a teaching mission. I arrived with the mis­sion president, who sent twenty wonderful African ministers to work with me. And so we began a meeting in the heart of the city of Kampala. "I saw God shake a palace" is the title of my second experience.

During this evangelistic campaign it was my privilege to visit in the palace of the Queen of Buganda. She lives in a real palace covering half an American city block. It is modern in every respect, and the Queen of Buganda is a London-educated woman, distinguished, cultured, and very religious.

My question to her was, "Would Her Majesty grace our humble meetings with her presence?" Coming from America, I knew little about kings and queens, nor was I familiar with essential protocol. At the opening of the service, while I was making the announcements, an automobile drove up, guards jumped out, and the queen entered. We had placed a throne for her in front of the pulpit. She came again and again. At the end of two weeks she invited me to her palace to study the Bible with her. Those studies covered ten weeks. At the end of that time it was my happy privi­lege to baptize the crown prince and five formerly Catholic palace attendants. I heard from the queen that within her heart she believes all that Seventh-day Adventists teach. She manifests a continuing interest in Adventism.

I Saw Victories in Chicago

And now I begin my third story. Chicago is a city that men told me was just obdurate as far as public evangelism is concerned. But I had a conviction, after my experi­ence in Alabama, that the God of the South was also the God of the North.

We pitched our tent on State Street and began preaching the gospel. Some forecast that the meeting would fold up in three weeks; some were more gracious and said six, but that it certainly could not last eight weeks. When it went to eight—well, you can imagine their surprise. To make a long story short, God did Himself another favor in the city of Chicago. It proved to me that "though it [the vision] tarry, wait for it: because it will surely come." In Mont­gomery it came; in Kampala it came; in Chicago it came

I baptized the wife of an important busi­nessman. He telephoned me and said, "Did you baptize my wife today?" I calmly replied, "Yes, I baptized her." He then said, "You have meetings on Sunday, Wed­nesday, and Friday evenings. On Wednes­day of this week there will be a couple of killings at your church, I promise you that." And then he hung up. I could better sym­pathize with Jonah taking a boat in the opposite direction. We prayed that God would either convert this man or render him inactive as far as His cause was con­cerned. I am sorry this man was not con­verted, and that today he is a hopelessly sick man. All because he tried to put an obstacle in the way of a soul headed for God's kingdom. Such a tragedy! Our busi­ness is not the business of the "sons of thunder," but it is comforting to know that we have a Protector while we preach the gospel of the Lord.

I was shaking hands with the people at the close of one of my meetings and a man told me, "If you baptize me tomorrow, I want you to know I will lose two things. My wife has told me that she will leave me, and I will also lose my job. What is your counsel to me?" I shook that man's hand and said to him, "'Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.'" The next day I baptized that man. When he went home, his wife met him at the door with tears running down her cheeks. She humbly said, "If the religion they teach out there means more to you than a wife and job, then that is the religion I want." Three weeks later I baptized his wife.

Adventism is real. It produces in the hearts of individuals thorough and com­plete conversion. The truth of God is still powerful. It is still adequate. My prayer is that God will make me adequate to preach man's obligation to truth, and to direct the halting ones to step out in faith.

I Saw Miracles in Washington

In conclusion, one incident will interest you. I did not want to run the Washington, D.C., effort. But that is the human side. God directed me there.

In connection with that campaign an interesting thing happened. The manager of the arena where we held the meetings confessed with anxiety when the meetings were over that at the beginning he had expected we would not be in the arena more than three weeks. He said, "I took your money, but I knew that nothing of a religious nature had lasted in this hall longer than that." Two weeks later we preached on drinking. That man stopped drinking that very night. He said to him­self, "If it is wrong to drink, it is wrong to smoke," and so he stopped smoking too. Baptism time came. In the arena they pro­mote wrestling and boxing. He could not be a good Adventist and be connected with these sports. He said, "I want to be bap­tized but give me a week to work it out."

The next Wednesday evening, a man agreed to take over the arena. The manager said, "I want you to stop by and listen to the reverend before you take over in the morning." That was his mistake, for I bap­tized the man who came to take the mana­ger's place, and the manager is still look­ing for someone to take over the arena.

An evangelist's work requires a convic­tion that God is calling him to do a large work. He must be dauntless when duty calls, ever stepping out on the platform of faith. In evangelism there are times when the path ahead is not revealed and principle must be the guide. Then there are experi­ences when the command given to Habak­kuk, "The vision is yet for an appointed time,. . . it shall speak, and not lie; though it tarry, wait for it" must be believed. The dedicated evangelist is in a place where he may observe God shaking towns, cities, pal­aces, and sports arenas. The Lord is going before us, but we must never overlook the fact that He is constantly urging us to face apparent impossibilities. The man who does will develop in his life the vision of the Almighty's everlasting help and sufficiency. May God make us mighty men of prayer, vision, and courage!

I saw a man chasing the horizon.

"You'll never catch it," shouted I as he passed by.

He paused and answered me, "You lie,"

Then hastened on