Personal Transformation: The Vital Foundation for Effective Evangelism

Genuine transformation and personal conversion are the essential foundations for effective evangelismCH 33.1+1. Every person who has felt the converting power of God becomes a missionary in a sense, but they must first taste "the good word of God" for themselves before they can successfully proclaim the gospel of salvation to others Hebrews 6:5CH 33.1. Character building is the most important work entrusted to human beings, and unless the truth is brought into the individual experience and practiced in the daily life, a mere profession of faith is of no availCG 169.2+2. Those who seek to be overcomers must be drawn out of themselves through an intense interest in the salvation of others, yet this labor can only be fragrant and rich if the worker is first vitally connected with God and refined by the Holy SpiritFE 207.1+1. Ministers and laymen alike are warned that if they are not soundly converted, their efforts may result in placing "hay, wood, and stubble" upon the foundation, which will not stand the test of temptation or judgment3MR 106.4+2. It is the indwelling love of Christ and a transformed character that serve as the true testimony to the world of the power of grace6T 43.1+1. Therefore, the work of moral renovation must take place in the heart first, as only a cleansed fountain can produce pure, sweet water for the thirsting souls of othersRH August 19, 1862, Art. A, par. 5+1.

...ose in their homes and among their neighbors. The gospel of salvation must be proclaimed to others. Every man who has felt the converting power of God becomes in a sense a missionary. There are friends to whom he can speak of the love of God. He can tell in the church what the Lord is to him, even a personal Saviour; and the testimony given in simplicity may do more good than the most eloquent discourse. There is a great work to be done, too, in dealing justly with all and walking humbly with God. Those who are doing the work nearest them are gaining an experience that will fit them for a wider sphere of usefulness. There must be an experience in home missionary work as a preparation for foreign work— CH 33.1 (1923)

...hey can never resist the unhallowed effects of self-love and self-indulgence and temptation to sin. If they were soundly converted to God, they would experience the love that dwells in the heart of Jesus; and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, it would well up like an irrepressible stream, refre...— YI October 31, 1895, par. 6 (1852)

The necessity of experimental religion must be urged upon those who accept the theory of the truth. Ministers must keep their own souls in the love of God and then impress upon the people the necessity of an individual consecration, a personal conversion. All must obtain a living experience for themselves; they must have Christ enshrined in the heart, h...— 5T 619.1 (1889)

... Christ, that their lives may be cleansed from sin, and fashioned after the perfect life of Christ. In the home and in the church the converting power of God is needed. The Lord requires that every professing Christian shall be self-denying and self-sacrificing. It is...— SpTB17a 37.1 (1911)

Transformation of character is to be the testimony to the world of the indwelling love of Christ. The Lord expects His people to show that the redeeming power of grace can work upon the faulty char...— 6T 43.1 (1900)