Reflections by the Way by James White

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 7, 1875

Reflections by the Way.

By James White

ONE hour since, we breakfasted luxuriously upon graham bread, pears, grapes, and nuts, from our lunch-basket. We slept well last night, and are rested and refreshed. On account of our habit of eating plain yet delicious food, we are becoming recruited for the labors of the California Camp-meeting, while many of our fellow passengers, who go out to the eating rooms along the road three times a day and take fashionable meals, are growing stupid, complain of being tired, and some of them are down sick. Blessings on the health reform!

We regret that two days of the meeting will be past before we can reach our California brethren in camp. But duty held us in Battle Creek, to see the good work through there, which detained us until after the Sabbath of Sept. 18th, when we took a night train for Chicago, then the Pacific Express at Chicago Sunday morning, which if on time will reach Oakland, Cal. two hours before the Sabbath. We hope to reach the camp Sabbath morning in season to speak to the people, Lord willing, at 10:30 A. M.

It is with feelings of most devout gratitude to God that we look back upon the labors and blessings of the camp-meeting season now nearly past. The Lord has given strength and freedom to labor far beyond our expectations. And it is with glad hearts, filled with gratitude to God, and tenderest sympathy and love for his dear people in the several Conferences, that we return to our Pacific home and labors, until the 1876 round of camp-meetings. Our labors with Eld. U. Smith this season have been most happy. The stand taken by him, Prof. Brownsberger, and Dr. J. H. Kellogg, give much hope for the cause, and the success of our institutions at Battle Creek. Already has the blessing of Heaven fallen on that people, as the result, we believe, of a most solemn covenant of love with each other and their God, to do all in their power to secure a healthy, moral and religious influence at head quarters. A great work has been done the past season in those investigations which have exposed the tongue of slander, dried up a flood of gossip, and have restored confidence among those who should be of one heart. After asking pardon of the reader for this rambling introduction, we will at once return to our reflections by the way, relative to the

WANTS OF THE CAUSE.

There is no want of religious teachers in our day, such as they are. The apostle states that the apostate church of the last days would heap to themselves teachers. These, however, would not turn the people to the truth; but they would turn them from the truth of God to fables. Ministers who teach plain Bible truth are few, while teachers of fables are many. They are very many. Their abundance in the last days is represented by “heaps”—as if lying around in heaps. Laborers, real laborers in the truth, are few—very few.

There are those among S. D. Adventists even, who do not labor to advantage. And as we have been reflecting upon the great work before our people, we see two branches of labor to be done. These are, first, to preach the word in new fields and raise up new churches, and secondly to build up weak churches, set things in order, and keep them in order, in all our churches. Men who do not succeed in either of these two branches of labor are of no real benefit to the cause. True, they may help swell the small number of our preachers, and help to dispose of our Systematic Benevolence funds, and some of them not standing in the counsel of God are sure to fall under the deceptions of Satan, and even cast grievous burdens upon the church; and it is of no use to disguise the fact that unless they will successfully labor in one or both of these two branches of the work, the cause has no further use for them.

Systematic Benevolence calls for systematic labor and systematic support. It is the duty of each Conference committee to know where and how the ministers of the several Conferences labor. While each minister should look to Christ and not to the committee for duty, nevertheless the committee should not in the least countenance men’s laboring with the church who will not put things in order and establish s. b. according to the plan adopted. And if such men will persist in dallying away their time to no especial purpose the committee should see to it that this time be counted out by the auditing committee, at the close of the year.

Obligations between the church and the ministry are mutual. Ministers who receive credentials from their Conference, and are thus protected by the Conference, and labor under the counsel of the Conference, may justly expect support from the Conference. But the moment a minister takes the matter into his own hands, to labor where and as he pleases, contrary to the judgment of his Conference, the point is reached when the Conference is no longer under obligation to give him support.

We have but few real pastors, to build up, to see that the right persons are put in office, and bring s. b. up to the plan adopted. This branch of the work is very much neglected. It is to be feared that we are losing more for want of pastoral labor than we are gaining by our extensive missionary efforts. Our young laborers must first enter new fields. And if they preach practical godliness from hearts filled with the love of Christ and love for lost sinners, as well as the theory of the present truth, and labor from house to house energetically, and pray for and with the people as they should, with an ear open to all the instructions given in our prints and otherwise relative to the practical duties of a minister of Christ, they will very soon become good pastors.

We might now have five good pastors where we have one, had men taken hold of the work with true holy energy. Our young men are in danger of falling into profligacy as to their time, and of forming habits of indolence which will inevitably result in physical debility, moral feebleness, and mental shortness. God pity the world that it has so many putty-faced, dilly-dally, second and third-rate preachers. They may excel indeed in those “good long” afternoon visits, and be eloquent with the knife and fork at the tea-table, but in the speaker’s stand, as the Californians say, they “pan out” small.

Common visiting with no object in view but to have a good social chat, and an extra meal, is a sin in one of Christ’s ambassadors. When he enters a house to visit the family he should at once come to the point, and keep to the point. It is expected of him to lead the conversation. He then is at liberty to give the interview just the turn he pleases. He can open his Bible and call for objections to the truths he has been presenting, and answer them kindly. It is not best to give answers in a style, to give the impression that he thinks he knows more than all others. He can inquire as to the spiritual condition of the family, and, after words of instruction and advice, he can bow in prayer with them. Visits and prayers should be brief, and so numerous as to give the visitor a chance to walk five miles, more or less, each day, and give him not less than three hours for close study. And if his discourses are not more than fifty, or at the most sixty, minutes in length, he can give as many of them in a year as there are days in that year.

Men who simply repeat the arguments for the truth will never grow into good pastors. They must learn to come before the people with hearts all aglow with love for the truths they preach. If they are imbued with love to God, his word, and love for poor sinners, they will reach the hearts of the people. It is their privilege to have power with both God and the people. Young ministers who will pursue such a course as this will become able preachers of the word, will be successful in raising new churches, and will soon prove themselves capable of filling important positions in the cause.

In times past, men have labored among our churches rashly, and in a single week have torn down more than they could build up in ten. This was not for want of ability, but because they had not cherished that tender love for souls which the gospel requires of the minister of Christ. They had not trained themselves to do the more unpleasant work patiently, which called for the exercise of all the graces which the tender and yet faithful under-shepherd should possess. They chose the more pleasant part of the work, and when the more unpleasant labor pressed upon them they disposed of it hurriedly and rashly. The cause needs laborers who will cultivate a patient love for doing that part of the work which is more disagreeable. We have had too many half-developed men. Laborers are wanted who can do any part of the work of the Christian ministry wisely and well.

Others have luxuriated over their books, and have indulged in pleasant, intellectual visits with those who would pet them. And behind the flimsy plea of want of financial ability they have been more than willing to hide themselves from the business responsibilities of the cause. And what has made the course of these look still worse is the fact that they were disposed to keep an open ear to the murmurers against those who were carrying triple burdens in the business department of the work, and often gave at least their silent influence on the side of the murmurers. Not only has the cause sustained a loss by the course of such, but they themselves have been great losers. For now when brought to occupy positions that call into active service all the faculties of the human mind, they deeply feel the want of that experience which they might have obtained had they followed duty, instead of that course which was more pleasing to them.

And still others have followed duty. Where work was to be done, however thankless and hard, they have had no other thought than to seize hold of it. Hence they could not excel in any one department of the work. They have held themselves ready to preach, labor for weak churches, gather up what rash men have broken down and scattered, write books, edit papers, and stand under an almost unlimited variety and amount of business. Such a life will develop many of the faculties of the man, and wear him fast, and wear him fearfully and in every part, so that when he prematurely comes down, as he surely will unless God holds him up in a miraculous manner, he will crumble to dust like “The Deacon’s one-horse chaise,” and will soon be forgotten on earth from the fact that he carried so many branches of the work that he was eminent in none. But we shall see in the brief by-and-by how his case will stand in Heaven when the Lord shall say, “Well done.”

We have long since been disgusted with the plea of lack of financial ability on the part of any man who has mind sufficient to justify the idea that he can labor in word and doctrine, and meet the world and popular churches as they are. Any man who can learn to do this, can learn to do that. If he can nerve himself to meet the ever-changing circumstances of a true minister of the last message, in the perilous times of the last days, he can bring himself up to the point of economy, industry, and every other trait peculiar to the strength of good financial ability.

Men are wanted to preach the word of God with ability and power, and to fill important positions in the various and ever-multiplying departments of this great work. And we plead that the very best talent to be found in our ranks be secured. The cause demands a large increase of laborers in word and in doctrine, missionaries at home and abroad, tract distributors, canvassers, editors, leading printers, writers, and ablest hygienic physicians in the world. More of this from week to week, if the Lord will.

We have just passed Sacramento, Cal., sixth day, the 24th of September. All well, and of good cheer. In less than six hours we shall be happy to meet W. C. W., who will conduct us to the camp-ground on the morning of the 25th.

J. W.