Missionary Labor by James White

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, Cal. · Nov 11, 1875

Missionary Labor.

By James White

The present state of the cause demands missionary work. We do not say that too much money has been expended in the circulation of papers and tracts; but we do say there has been too little real missionary work done. With the same amount of means as has been expended, with a corresponding amount of well-directed labor, ten times as much good could have been accomplished. But our people generally have not their heart in the work. Would God they would come very near to him, and taste his love, and feel his power, and cultivate a love for true missionary labor. Would they be strong? They should labor for the weak. Would they be filled with light? Then they should love to impart light to others. Missionary work will amount to but little among our people, until they come where they will take great delight in it, and feel the blessing of God attending them in their efforts to bless others.

And now seems to be a very favorable time to labor. A few years since, our country was involved in a terrible civil war which diverted the attention of the people from our message, and absorbed our resources so that for four anxious years the cause stood still. Now peace is restored, American slavery abolished, and candid people of our great nation, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from the extreme North to the extreme South, are waiting to read and to hear the message God has for them at this time. And he now calls upon all to act a part in the effort to send it forth upon the wings of the wind, not only in our own country, but to all others.

All cannot be preachers, writers, editors and printers. And there are many who have much to learn before they can be good tract distributors, and good colporteurs for our books and periodicals. But all can do something. Nearly all can give of their means, more or less. And those who cannot cast into the treasury as much as “two mites” can pray for God to bless and prosper the work. And it is important that all should find their proper places. A young mother of eighteen years writes that she feels that God calls her to preach the message. No doubt this sister could do good in her family, and to her neighbors, if she sees and feels the importance of a faithful, discreet mother’s work. Her sphere of action at present, at least, is her family, and her immediate neighborhood. There she can shed a little precious light.

Others are so situated that they can shed more light, and extend it to a wider circle. And there are those whose light, like that of the greater heavenly bodies, is to extend to the ends of the earth. The wise man in his wisdom affirms, “Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun.” Eccl. 11:7. The material universe welcomes the light of the sun, and feels its dependence on his life-imparting power. And the moon, not ashamed of her dependence on a superior, cheerfully sheds her softer rays, though not original with her humble, modest self. Go out in the clear night in the absence of both sun and moon, and observe all the little stars striving to excel each other in sending down light to our dark world. The light which each contributes is indeed small, but they all seem in happy rivalry to outshine each other.

Now, what if our silver moon, through pride, or from jealousy because of her dependence, should refuse to bless any more the world with her mild light? And what if the stars, one by one, simply because their light is so small, should think it not worth their while to shine any longer? Or, what if the little rills should, one by one, begin to feel that what they do to make up the large rivers is of little or no consequence, and finally all these rivulets should cease to come down the mountains, and pass along through the valleys? God has put all the stars in the heavens to give light, and all of them in their several positions to do his will. And it takes all the water of a thousand innocent, ceaseless streams to make up majestic rivers as they sweep forward to the seas.

All should seek earnestly to find their places and work in the great cause, and with feelings of dependence on Christ, and, to a certain extent, on each other, should labor confidently. The great apostle has illustrated the harmonious actions of all the members of the church of Christ by the human body.

“For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many.”

“If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling?”

“But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body. And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee; nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary.”

“That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.”

The cause needs more able men to preach the word, and others to edit papers and write books. More sanctified talent is needed in the several departments of the publishing work.

And a thousand sound and devoted men and women are wanted to give their time, more or less, as their circumstances will allow, to missionary work. There are hundreds of men among us who would enter the ministry if they could at once be full grown ministers, and receive a support. But because they cannot do this they feel that they cannot spend their time in missionary work which brings no pay. But right here is a sacrifice which the cause of God calls on them to make. The Lord is testing them on this point.

There are hundreds of men of property and ability in our ranks who are losing their spiritual life in consequence of drawing back from this work. Many of them could visit the smaller churches and benefit them more than our young preachers can. With their riper judgment, their labors in our smaller churches, and with little unorganized bodies of Sabbath-keepers, in bringing them up to the plan of Systematic Benevolence, and setting things in order generally, would tell more on the general growth of the cause than the labors of our young men who bring out these small companies, and leave them to languish for the want of this very help. These men of years and experience, who have made life a success, and have a liberal competency, are taking a fearful responsibility on them to remain at their homes with their farms, or with other worldly interests, while the cause lingers and suffers for want of their labor.

J. W.