To Make Man Whole: Towards a Strategy for Gospel-Centered, Comprehensive Health Evangelism
Authors:   ,   Andrews University, Allen Kyle 
Published: June 2023

Problem Historically the Seventh-day Adventist Church is an evangelistically oriented movement. In harmony with this historical precedent, the evangelistic focus of the Church has included an emphasis on God’s plan to restore the whole person—to make people whole physically, mentally, and spiritually. This wholistic focus on evangelism is based on Christ’s method of a threefold ministry of preaching, teaching, and healing. When this is the practice, many prejudicial barriers are reduced and the reception of the message the Church is called to share is made easier. Despite this focus, the evangelistic strategies of the Church have often not effectively integrated gospel evangelism with medical missionary work, also known as comprehensive health ministry. When they are not united, evangelistic work does not have the full wholistic impact on the community. A founder of the Church, Ellen White, counseled that the two should be united. This separation is one of the most significant challenges facing the Seventh-day Adventist Church today. The purpose of this project is to outline the key principles and steps that can lead to the development and implementation of a combined strategy for comprehensive health evangelism. This approach will enhance the outcomes of the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s evangelistic work in both local church settings and wider fields of ministry. Method The task of this project was to identify the key principles and steps that lead to the development and implementation of an effective strategy for comprehensive health evangelism. This was accomplished in four ways: (1) a theological and biblical basis was formed showing how the gospel proclamation is associated with the healing ministry found in scripture; (2) current and historical literature was reviewed on topics including missional trends in local church ministry, engaging millennials in the church, and the historical use of medical missionary work in evangelistic outreach; (3) principles for successful comprehensive health evangelism were identified in the ministry of three men who served as gospel-medical pioneers in the Seventh-day Adventist Church; and (4) the study of a modern-day example of comprehensive health ministry was explored in the example of Your Best Pathway to Health. Results The result of the research was the discovery of evidence that supports a unified strategy between gospel evangelism and comprehensive health ministry. Theologically, historically, and with modern-day experience, the research demonstrated that there is validity and strong support for following a unified strategy for comprehensive health evangelism. The research showed that utilizing such a strategy breaks down barriers, reduces prejudice, makes people more open to listening to the gospel message, and engages volunteers in the mission of the Church. From the principles and lessons learned from the research, steps for the development and implementation of a strategy for comprehensive health evangelism in a local church and area-wide context were outlined. Conclusions The evidence from this study establishes that the development and implementation of a unified strategy for comprehensive health evangelism should be prioritized and integrated into the evangelistic work of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.