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People Who Preach—Ministers Offer Themselves WillinglyGod’s Kingdom Rules!
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8-10. How did conventions give impetus to the preaching work? Give an example. (See also the box “Early Conventions That Gave Impetus to the Preaching Work.”)
8 Convention discourses. Eager for direction, the Bible Students gathered at Cedar Point, Ohio, U.S.A., from September 1 to 8, 1919, for their first major convention following World War I. On the second day, Brother Rutherford gave a discourse in which he pointedly told the delegates: “A Christian’s mission on earth . . . is to proclaim the message of the Lord’s kingdom.”
9 The climax of that convention came three days later when Brother Rutherford delivered the talk entitled “Address to Co-laborers,” which was published in The Watch Tower under the title “Announcing the Kingdom.” He stated: “In sober moments a Christian naturally asks himself, Why am I on the earth? And the answer of necessity must be, The Lord has graciously made me his ambassador to bear the divine message of reconciliation to the world, and my privilege and duty is to announce that message.”
10 In that historic discourse, Brother Rutherford announced that a new magazine, The Golden Age (now called Awake!), would be published for use in directing people to the Kingdom as mankind’s only hope. He then asked how many of those in the audience wanted to have a share in distributing this journal. A report on the convention explained: “The response was an inspiring scene. Six thousand people, as one person, arose.”b Clearly, the King had willing supporters who were eager to proclaim his Kingdom!
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