Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Daryl Fawcett]

The following is a report on the 2012 ASI Convention that Kevin Paulson wrote and gave me the permission to post here:

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

It was my privilege this past week to be present at the annual ASI convention in Cincinnati, Ohio. 

To use the word "watershed" to describe this year's convention is not an understatement.  What happened in Cincinnati brought the aggregate of ministries and businesses known as ASI (Adventist Laymen's Services and Industries) much further along in a process that has been notable for the past few years, away from the vocal controversy-avoidance and non-involvement in major church issues which has characterized the organization in the not-too-distant past.

Indeed, the willingness of ASI to directly confront issues of Biblical and spiritual faithfulness at its recent international gathering is one of the most positive developments in recent Adventist history.

I well remember, and painfully, other experiences in the recent journey of ASI.  In the early 1990s, with the vilification of the so-called "independent ministries" very much in vogue, any number of ASI members and organizations went out of the way to "prove" to the church that THEY weren't among the carpers and criticizers dwelling on "the faults of Jesus' bride."  I recall one man who passed out buttons at one such convention for what he called the "Aaron and Hur" club, implying unqualified support for the denominational status quo and urging members (in his words) to "stop criticizing everyone else,"  No distinction was made by such persons between constructive and destructive criticism, nor was any acknowledgement offered that departure from the inspired blueprint was a very real thing in the contemporary church.

On another occasion, I remember an article in the Pacific Union Recorder reporting on an ASI convention.  I don't remember the date or article title, but I well remember the statement of one person interviewed for the article.  Recalling the words as best I can, the interviewee said: "These people don't have time to talk about all the bad things happening in the church.  They're too busy talking about Jesus."  Thoughtful church members could only wince yet again at the exaltation of the fictive, unscriptural Jesus who presumably stayed out of controversy and just "focused on the positive."

In many respects, ASI has been notable for encouraging, perhaps unwittingly for certain ones, the notion in some Adventist circles that it isn't the business of faithful church members to try to correct internal denominational problems, that that is God's business only, and that our job is simply to focus our energies and resources on preaching the gospel to the world and flooding the church's gates with new converts.  The fact that genuine revival and reformation are the ultimate and indispensable precursors to true evangelism has not always been carefully or explicitly recognized.

This year's convention seemed almost to specialize in breaking this mold.  A number of seminars focused specifically on contemporary issues of controversy in the church.  One excellent seminar was held on the subject of Last Generation Theology, titled "The Mystery of God Revealed."  It was conducted by Jeff Marshall, currently campus chaplain at Bass Memorial Academy in Mississippi and vice-president for evangelism at GYC.  Jeff's wife Jerlanda also helped in the presentation.  It was beautifully done.

Another seminar addressed the dangers of so-called contemplative prayer, and was conducted by Howard Peth.  Don Mackintosh, Kameron DiVasher, John Bradshaw, Dwayne Lemon, and other seminar speakers also focused on LGT-related issues. 

Dr. Neil Nedley's morning devotionals focused on mental and physical health and their relationship to spirituality.  One of his messages, focusing on Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War, made pointed comparisons to the current crisis of unity over women's ordination in the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Indeed, the specter that hung over the entire convention, and animated countless conversations in the halls, hotels, and dining room, was the recent action of the Columbia Union in challenging General Conference authority on the ordination question.  Strong support for Elder Wilson and the General Conference leadership was palpable and vocal among those present.  The interview on 3ABN with Elder Wilson on this subject, on Wednesday evening, sent a clear message to all that the GC is not backing down, and that denominational policies currently in place exist for the very purpose of addressing circumstances such as these.

A similar panel discussion was held Thursday evening on the subject of spiritual formation.  Mark Finley and others were involved in that discussion.  Again, a pointed and controversial contemporary issue was placed in the crosshairs of attention.  A new day indeed for a collection of ministries and individuals who in the past have tried conspicuously to sidestep such unpleasantness.

But without question, at least in my view, the high point of the convention took place Sabbath afternoon, when Elder Wilson took the podium by himself to address the issue of denominational unity and the need for strict faithfulness to the Word of God.  Many at the convention had been waiting especially for this moment.  I had referred to this pending message in many conversations as Elder Wilson's "Pearl Harbor" speech, comparable perhaps to President Roosevelt's declaration of war on Japan in 1941 or President Kennedy's speech about the missiles in Cuba in October 1962.

For those who haven't yet heard Wilson's message, I urge you to go to the 3ABN Web site or elsewhere and find it, and listen.  I can honestly say it was perhaps the strongest sermon by a church leader at any level that I have heard for as long as I can remember.

The sermon, for those who have not yet heard it, focused on the devil's efforts to destroy the unity of the church, on the experience of Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel (an analogy few could miss under the circumstances), as well as the citing of two powerful Ellen White statements (PK 139,140) on the need for the voice of stern rebuke in the church.  Wilson continued by urging members not to compromise on three key points, among others:

     1.  Biblical authority
     2.  The sanctuary message
     3.  Righteousness by faith and the unifying of both justification and sanctification (a clear attack on the "justification-alone" gospel so popular just now in many Adventist circles, even among some professed conservatives.)

Needless to say, the President's message was refreshing as well as powerful.  A new day has truly dawned in the Seventh-day Adventist Church.  Speaking in the hallway afterward with Dr. Colin Standish, who was present at the meeting, he spoke of how "thrilled" he was with the president's address.  We commented how, not too long ago, such candor was not often heard by the faithful outside of self-supporting camp meetings and convocations.  Now such clarity is coming from the General Conference President himself.

Without question, Elder Wilson's convictions have helped speed the metamorphosis of ASI from a previously myopic focus on evangelism to a more active recognition of denominational problems as the real impediment to finishing the work and seeing Christ come in our lifetime.  The president's leadership has inspired thousands throughout the Adventist world, and that inspiration was notably evident at the recent ASI convention.

All the signs indicate that decisive measures will likely be taken by the General Conference in the near future to curtail the burgeoning liberal rebellion in the North American church and elsewhere.  It is imperative that all of us sustain the President of the General Conference with our prayers and verbal pledges of support.
 
We are living in momentous, even traumatic times.   The present world leader of the Seventh-day Adventist Church gives every evidence of possessing the reformatory zeal of a Josiah and a Nehemiah, the charisma and articulation of a Roosevelt or a Kennedy, and the dauntless courage of a Winston Churchill.  Like the jowling patrician who led England and the free world through blood, toil, tears, and sweat, it would appear Ted Wilson has been divinely chosen to lead God's end-time church through the present exigency.

Dunkirk and the blitz must come before Normandy.  The times ahead will try the souls and consecration of us all. 

May the Lord find each of us faithful, is my prayer.

God bless!

Kevin

[Artiste]

Thanks for posting that report, Daryl.  I always enjoy Kevin Paulson's contributions that I see from time to time.

It's also good to hear that ASI is coming around to acknowledging church issues.

I remember in the past (late 80's) that church officials, like NAD or GC presidents, liked to come to the ASI sessions and take part in some of the music or just to be at the Saturday night banquet.   

[Artiste]

All the signs indicate that decisive measures will likely be taken by the General Conference in the near future to curtail the burgeoning liberal rebellion in the North American church and elsewhere. 

I'm happy to hear that.