1   An  Urgent  Prophetic  Calling   Video  recording—GC  Communication  Studio   Ted  N.  C.  Wilson,  president  of  the  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  world  church     My  brothers  and  sisters  in  Christ,  as  president  of  the  General  Conference  of   Seventh-­‐day  Adventists,  it  gives  me  great  confidence  to  know  that  this  church  is  in   God’s  hands.  He  is  its  Founder,  Leader,  Captain,  General,  and  its  true  Head.  He  has   continually  guided  this  movement  in  the  past,  is  daily  sustaining  it  in  the  present,   and  will  powerfully  lead  it  into  the  future.  Our  Creator,  Redeemer,  and  coming  King   is  the  church’s  only  hope  for  today,  tomorrow,  and  forever.  He  has  providentially   raised  this  church  up  for  a  unique  mission,  and  it  will  not  fail  in  rising  to  the  destiny   for  which  Christ  created  it.     Seventh-­‐day  Adventists  are  a  prophetic  movement  with  an  urgent  prophetic   calling.  We’re  not  just  merely  another  denomination  on  the  landscape  of  religious   movements.  We  are  a  divine  end-­‐time  movement  with  an  end-­‐time  purpose,  an  end-­‐ time  message,  and  an  end-­‐time  mission  for  the  entire  world.  The  church  is  God’s   church.       This  does  not  mean  that  the  church  does  not  have  its  challenges.  It  does.  And   I  will  frankly  discuss  some  of  these  with  you  today,  but  in  the  midst  of  these   challenges  the  Holy  Spirit  is  working  powerfully,  and  the  ultimate  triumph  of  the   church  is  certain.   The  Church  is  the  Body  of  Christ 2     In  Matthew  16:18,  Jesus  said,  “I  will  build  My  church,  and  the  gates  of  hell   shall  not  prevail  against  it.”  This  church  is  not  some  human,  man-­‐made,  bureaucratic   organization  as  some  would  have  us  believe.  According  to  the  Savior’s  own  words,   He  has  built  His  church  and  the  gates  of  hell  will  not  prevail  against  it.     In  I  Corinthians  12,  the  church  is  the  body  of  Christ.  In  Ephesians  5,  the   church  is  the  bride  of  Christ.  In  I  Peter  2,  the  church  is  the  household  of  Christ.  In  I   Peter  2:9,  the  apostle  proclaims  that  the  people  of  God  are  “a  chosen  generation,  a   royal  priesthood,  a  holy  nation,  His  own  special  people.”     God’s  prophetic  messenger  to  the  remnant,  Ellen  White,  put  it  this  way:  “The   church  is  God’s  fortress,  His  city  of  refuge,  which  He  holds  in  a  revolted  world.  Any   betrayal  of  the  church  is  treachery  to  Him  who  has  bought  mankind  through  the   blood  of  His  only-­‐begotten  Son….He  has  sent  forth  His  angels  to  minister  to  His   church,  and  the  gates  of  hell  have  not  been  able  to  prevail  against  His  people”  (Acts   of  the  Apostles,  p.  11).       Christ  holds  His  church  in  His  hands.  It  is  His  fortress,  His  city  of  refuge  on  a   planet  in  rebellion.  It  is  a  light  in  the  darkness,  a  beacon  in  the  night,  and  a  shining   light  on  the  dimly  lit  pathway  ahead.  Ellen  White  continues  in  Acts  of  the  Apostles,   with  these  reassuring  words:  “Through  centuries  of  persecution,  conflict,  and   darkness,  God  has  sustained  His  church.  Not  one  cloud  has  fallen  upon  it  that  He  has   not  prepared  for;  not  one  opposing  force  has  risen  to  counterwork  His  work,  that  He   has  not  foreseen.  All  has  taken  place  as  He  predicted.  He  has  not  left  His  church   forsaken,  but  has  traced  in  prophetic  declarations  what  would  occur,  and  that  which   His  Spirit  inspired  the  prophets  to  foretell  has  been  brought  about.  All  His  purposes 3   will  be  fulfilled.  His  law  is  linked  with  His  throne,  and  no  power  of  evil  can  destroy  it.   Truth  is  inspired  and  guarded  by  God;  and  it  will  triumph  over  all  opposition”  (p.   11).   Triumphing  Over  the  Powers  of  Hell     Christ  and  His  church  will  triumph  at  last.  Jesus  has  never  lost  a  battle  with   Satan  yet.  On  the  cross  He  triumphed  over  the  principalities  and  powers  of  hell.  You   and  I  are  on  the  winning  side,  as  that  old  hymn,  “Onward  Christian  Soldiers,”  written   in  1864  by  Sabine  Baring-­‐Gould,  so  powerfully  puts  it:     “Crowns  and  thrones  have  perished,     Kingdoms  rise  and  wane,     But  the  church  of  Jesus     Constant  will  remain.     Gates  of  hell  can  never     ‘Gainst  that  church  prevail;     We  have  Christ’s  own  promise,     That  can  never  fail.”       All  the  demons  of  hell  cannot,  will  not,  defeat  God’s  purposes  for  His  church.   Christ’s  church  will  triumph  at  last.  His  truth  will  shine  brighter  and  grow  stronger   until  Revelation’s  prediction  in  the  18th  chapter  that  “the  earth  will  be  filled  with   the  glory  of  God”  will  be  gloriously  fulfilled.   The  Moment  to  Decide     The  American  poet,  James  Russell  Lowell,  stated  an  eternal  truth  when  he   penned  these  words  in  1844,  the  exact  date  for  the  birth  of  the  Advent  movement. 4   They  are  as  true  today  as  when  he  penned  them  decades  ago,  entitled,  “The  Present   Crisis.”  It  goes  as  follows:       “Once  to  every  man  and  nation    comes  the  moment  to  decide   In  the  strife  of  Truth  with  Falsehood   For  the  good  or  evil  side….   Truth  forever  on  the  scaffold,   Wrong  forever  on  the  throne.—   Yet  that  scaffold  sways  the  future,   And,  behind  the  dim  unknown,   Standeth  God  within  the  shadow,   Keeping  watch  above  His  own.”     Amazing  Growth     In  these  climactic  hours  of  earth’s  history,  we  see  evidence  around  the  world   that  God’s  truth  is  triumphing  over  the  powers  of  evil.  We  see  clear  indications  that   Christ  is  leading  His  church  on  from  victory  to  victory.  Let  me  share  with  you  some   amazing  facts.  In  1863,  the  year  the  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  Church  was  organized,   there  was  one  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  for  every  356,000  people  in  the  world.  Today   there  is  one  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  for  just  under  every  400  people  in  the  world.  It   took  this  church  107  years  to  reach  its  first  million  members.  Today  we  baptize  one   million  people  every  year.  We  have  nearly  25  million  people  attending  our  70,000-­‐ 5   plus  churches  all  over  the  world,  in  over  200  countries.  God  is  at  work!  The  Holy   Spirit  is  moving  in  some  remarkable  ways.     You  see,  revival  is  our  greatest  and  most  urgent  need.  The  last  few  years   we’ve  been  emphasizing  revival,  reformation,  and  mission.  By  revival  we  mean  a   daily  spiritual  awakening  in  the  hearts  and  minds  of  each  one  of  us.  By  reformation   we  mean  a  deepening  spiritual  commitment  to  do  God’s  will,  and  the  daily  alignment   of  our  lives  in  everything  we  do,  to  please  Jesus.  Reformation  occurs  when  we   surrender  our  will  to  His  will  each  and  every  day.  He  then  gives  us  an  understanding   of  what  His  mission  is  for  us  as  individuals  and  as  a  church.  Then,  we  commit   ourselves  to  pleasing  Him  in  every  aspect  of  our  lives  in  fulfilling  that  mission.   Our  Greatest  Need     Does  the  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  Church  need  a  revival  and  reformation?  Is  all   this  emphasis  on  revival  and  reformation  simply  another  denominational  program?   God’s  messenger  to  the  remnant,  Ellen  White,  leaves  no  doubt  in  our  minds  when   she  declares,  “A  revival  of  true  godliness  among  us  is  the  greatest  and  most  urgent   of  all  our  needs.  To  seek  this  should  be  our  first  work.  There  must  be  earnest  effort   to  obtain  the  blessing  of  the  Lord,  not  because  God  is  not  willing  to  bestow  His   blessing  upon  us,  but  because  we  are  unprepared  to  receive  it.  Our  heavenly  Father   is  more  willing  to  give  His  Holy  Spirit  to  them  that  ask  Him,  than  are  earthly  parents   to  give  good  gifts  to  their  children.  But  it  is  our  work,  by  confession,  humiliation,   repentance,  and  earnest  prayer,  to  fulfill  the  conditions  upon  which  God  has   promised  to  grant  us  His  blessing.  A  revival  need  be  expected  only  in  answer  to   prayer”  (Selected  Messages,  book  I,  p.  121).  What  a  magnificent  quotation!  Revival  is 6   not  only  needed  in  the  church  today;  It  is  our  greatest  and  most  urgent  need  in   every  aspect,  and  we  are  told  to  seek  this  first.   A  Heart  Longing     May  I  open  my  heart  to  you  today?  Without  divine,  supernatural  power,   God’s  work  will  not  be  finished  in  our  lives,  and  it  certainly  will  not  be  finished  in   this  world.  We  are  simply  no  match  for  the  forces  of  evil.  As  the  president  of  the   General  Conference,  I  long  for  the  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  my  own  life.  And  I   long  more  than  anything  else  for  the  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  all  of  His   fullness  for  the  finishing  of  God’s  work  on  this  earth,  so  that  Jesus  can  come—the   great  hope.  The  greatest  need  of  the  church  today  is  not  more  programs;  it’s  not   more  finances,  not  more  institutions,  not  more  media  ministries  or  publishing   houses,  as  important  as  all  these  things  are.  Our  greatest  need,  our  most  urgent   need,  our  most  pressing  need,  is  the  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Zechariah  the   prophet  states,  “’Not  by  might,  nor  by  power,  but  by  My  Spirit,’  says  the  Lord  of   hosts.”     Will  you  join  me,  and  other  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  leaders  and  members   from  around  the  world  in  humbling  our  hearts  before  God  in  earnest  prayer,  seeking   for  the  mighty  outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit?  Will  you  join  us  in  crying  out  to  God  for   heaven’s  fullness?  Will  you  seek  God  with  us  in  your  division,  union,  conference,   mission,  local  field  offices,  and  in  your  churches  around  the  world?  Will  you  petition   God  in  prayer  bands,  with  your  families,  in  your  homes,  and  with  other  church   members  in  your  local  church,  so  that  every  church  can  become  a  house  of  prayer?   God  is  calling  us  to  a  deeper  commitment  in  these  critical  hours  of  earth’s  history. 7   This  is  no  time  to  just  be  playing  at  church.  This  is  a  time  for  an  all-­‐out,  total,   complete  dedication  to  Christ  and  His  message.     Uniting  in  Prayer     Revival  takes  place  when  we  spend  time  with  God  in  prayer  and  in  Bible   study.  This  is  precisely  the  reason  the  church  has  launched  the  7-­‐7-­‐7  Prayer   Initiative,  encouraging  Seventh-­‐day  Adventists  worldwide  to  unite  in  prayer  seven   days  a  week  at  7  in  the  morning  and  7  in  the  evening.  Hundreds  of  thousands  of   Seventh-­‐day  Adventists  are  participating  in  this  prayer  experience  and  are  being   renewed.       One  of  our  General  Conference  leaders  was  recently  traveling  in  the  country   of  Indonesia.  He  was  being  brought  to  an  appointment  by  one  of  the  local  conference   denominational  drivers.  It  was  7  p.m.  in  the  evening,  and  the  alarm  on  the  driver’s   watch  went  off.  The  driver  calmly  said,  “We’ll  have  to  pull  off  the  road  now.  It’s  7   p.m.,  and  we  must  join  Adventists  all  over  the  world  who  are  now  praying  for  the   outpouring  of  the  Holy  Spirit.”       Lay  people  around  the  world  are  uniting  with  church  leaders  to  seek  God  in   prayer  and  study  His  word.  Hundreds  of  thousands  more  are  participating  in   Revived  by  His  Word,  a  daily  Bible  study  program  to  lead  the  church  through  the   entire  Bible  by  the  General  Conference  Session  in  San  Antonio  in  2015.  Church   leaders  in  Brazil  reported  that  so  many  people  were  tweeting  on  the  Internet  about   their  Bible  study  experience  through  Revived  by  His  Word,  chapter  by  chapter,  daily   devotionals,  that  the  number  of  tweets  ranked  third  in  the  entire  nation  of  Brazil!   This  included  tweets  for  any  subject  including  the  most  popular  television 8   programs,  movies,  sports  events,  and  secular  musical  performances.  God  is  at  work   in  the  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  Church!       Revival  is  taking  place  in  many  places.  The  Holy  Spirit  is  being  poured  out  on   groups  of  young  people  who  are  seeking  God  in  prayer,  studying  His  Word,  and   witnessing  to  the  glory  of  His  name.  I  am  so  encouraged  when  I  see  young  people   totally  committed  to  the  cause  of  Christ.     Results  of  Revival  and  Reformation     Revival  and  reformation  leads  us  to  witnessing,  and  reformation  always   leads  to  witnessing  and  evangelism.  There  can  be  no  genuine  revival  without  a   renewed  passion  for  soul  winning.  When  God  does  something  in  us,  He  will  do   something  through  us.  When  God  does  something  for  us,  it  is  because  God  wants  to   do  something  with  us.  You  see,  like  Peter,  we  too  declare,  “For  we  cannot  but  speak   the  things  which  we  have  seen  and  heard,”  as  is  related  in  Acts  4:20.  With  the   apostle  Paul  we  proclaim  in  Romans  1:16,  “For  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  gospel  of   Christ:  for  it  is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation.”  And  with  the  apostle  John  we  cry   out,  “That  which  we  have  seen  and  heard  we  declare  to  you”  (I  John  1:3).     You  know,  all  great  revival  and  reformation  movements  in  history  have  been   accompanied  by  great  periods  of  evangelism  and  outreach.  This  was  true  not  only  in   the  New  Testament  time,  but  also  in  the  sixteenth  century  Reformation  with  Martin   Luther  and  the  other  reformers,  such  as  John  Wesley  and  George  Whitefield  who  led   revivals  in  England.  This  was  true  also  with  the  great  Advent  Awakening  in  North   America  and  subsequently  in  the  early  history  of  the  Seventh-­‐day  Adventist  Church.     Powerless  Witnessing 9     Without  revival  and  reformation,  our  witnessing  activities  will  be  powerless.   Evangelism  without  revival  produces  meager  results.  Hearts  are  touched  and  lives   are  changed  by  the  Holy  Spirit’s  power  alone—not  our  power.  Conversion  is  the   work  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  messenger  to  the  remnant  makes  it  plain:  “The  Lord  has   said  that  His  work  is  to  be  done,  ‘not  by  might  nor  by  power;  but  by  My  Spirit.’  The   work  of  God  is  to  be  carried  on  to  completion  by  the  cooperation  of  divine  and   human  agencies.       Those  who  are  self-­‐sufficient  may  be  apparently  active  in  the  work  of  God,   but  if  they  are  prayerless,  their  activity  is  of  no  avail.  Could  they  look  into  the  censer   of  the  angel  that  stands  at  the  golden  altar  before  the  rainbow-­‐circled  throne,  they   would  see  that  the  merit  of  Jesus  must  be  mingled  with  our  prayers  and  efforts,  or   they  are  as  worthless  as  was  the  offering  of  Cain.  If  we  could  see  all  the  activity  of   human  instrumentality,  as  it  appears  before  God,  we  would  see  that  only  the  work   accomplished  by  much  prayer,  which  is  sanctified  by  the  merit  of  Christ,  will  stand   the  test  of  the  judgment”  (Review  and  Herald,  July  4,  1893).     When  revival  and  reformation  do  not  find  expression  in  witnessing,  they   soon  degenerate  into  mere  sentimental  talk  and  eventually  die  out  altogether.  This   is  why  there  is  a  renewed  emphasis  on  evangelism  in  the  church  today.  Every   member  is  a  wonderful  missionary,  a  witness  for  the  Most  High,  and  has  been  called   by  God  to  share  their  faith.     Reaching  the  Cities     The  church  has  launched  Mission  to  the  Cities  as  a  major  emphasis  in   reaching  the  millions  of  people  in  about  650  of  the  world’s  largest  cities.  This  last 10   year  I  had  the  privilege  of  conducting  a  major  evangelistic  series  in  New  York  City.   The  Revelation  of  Hope  series  that  I  conducted  was  one  of  about  400  evangelistic   meetings  held  in  the  greater  New  York  area  as  part  of  a  comprehensive  evangelistic   approach  to  reach  New  York  City  for  Christ.  Pastors,  evangelists,  and  administrators   from  around  the  world  converged  on  New  York  City,  and  along  with  local   administrators,  preached  the  Word  of  God.  Pastors  and  lay  people  made  a  significant   impact  for  Jesus  Christ,  through  His  power.  This  comprehensive  approach  included   equipping  hundreds  of  lay  people  to  witness  in  harmony  with  their  God-­‐given  gifts:   Health  outreach,  youth  ministries,  Bible  services,  Bible  study  outreach,  literature   distribution,  lay  evangelism,  friendship  evangelism,  and  public  evangelistic   meetings.  As  a  result  of  these  massive  efforts,  over  4,000  people  have  been  baptized   already.       Cities  around  the  world  are  in  the  midst  of  a  similar  event  in  their  particular   locality  and  are  having  similar  results.  God  is  on  the  move  in  cities  like  London,   Tokyo,  Manila,  Moscow,  New  York,  Nairobi,  Johannesburg,  Indianapolis,  Kinshasa,   Lagos,  Luanda,  Sydney,  Paris,  Mumbai,  Cairo,  Sao  Paulo,  Mexico  City,  and  many,   many  more.  Tens  of  thousands  are  being  baptized,  and  this  is  just  the  beginning.  At   our  recent  annual  council  here  at  our  world  headquarters,  delegates  voted  a   document  on  world  evangelism  to  establish  or  strengthen  an  Adventist  presence  in   over  500  cities  with  a  population  of  1  million  or  more  with  little  or  no  Seventh-­‐day   Adventist  presence.  Most  of  these  cities  are  in  the  10/40  window.  Many  of  them  do   not  allow  any  form  of  overt  witnessing  or  public  evangelistic  meetings.  The   challenge  to  reach  the  people  in  these  cities  is  immense.  But  our  God  is  bigger  than