More than 300 leaders hear President Jan Paulsen's Saturday sermon October 13 at the church's world headquarters near Washington, D.C. Paulsen addressed leaders as part of Annual Council, the world church's business meeting, which runs through October 17.

Church leaders should focus on their own responsibilities and trust leaders in other areas of the world to do the same, the Seventh-day Adventist world church president told leaders of the global Protestant denomination.

During worship, church president Pastor Jan Paulsen said local pastors and leaders should be encouraged and empowered to minister in their own areas and assignments.

"You and I have our designated areas of responsibility," Paulsen said. "Let's do our best there and trust others to look after theirs."

In his "Shared Responsibility -- Shared Trust" sermon, Paulsen addressed leaders gathered at the Adventist Church's world headquarters in Silver Spring (Maryland), at the start of Annual Council, the world church's business session, which began October 12 in the evening.

Paulsen acknowledged the need for updated policies and stressed unity for the worldwide church's approach to changes. He cited ongoing commissions examining the church's administrative structures and use of tithe. Leaders are expected to deliver the first report from the Commission on Structures, Ministries and Services later this week.

"These are examples of how we work together as a global community to address very comprehensive and complex issues," Paulsen said.

Recalling the Adventist world church's past discussion on women's involvement in church ministry, Paulsen said many woman trained in ministry are not so much concerned with the issue of ordination as with just being employed in ministry.

"Local churches are reluctant, and conferences find them difficult to place. That, I think, is a most unfortunate failure," Paulsen said.

But the issue, Paulsen said, that has the potential of dividing the church most is theology. He said he does not support another restudy of theological issues originally presented 50 years ago in the book "Questions on Doctrines," particularly regarding the nature of Christ.

"I think there is a reason why we have chosen generous language in describing our position as a church on the nature of Christ," Paulsen said.

"The uniqueness of Jesus Christ ... leads us to that," he stated. "I just cannot imagine a post-modern person in Europe, a businessman in Asia or Latin America, any more than a farmer in Africa will care one iota whether Christ had the nature of man before the fall or after," Paulsen said. "The realities of the world in which we live have other concerns and other priorities which occupy us."

Paulsen pointed to the Adventist church's statement of 28 Fundamental Beliefs and urged leaders "to resist any tendency to pluck out strains from any of these [doctrines] and make them into a separate and new doctrine." Such actions would be divisive for the global church, he said.

Paulsen also said he foresees tension with civil secular society on issues of marriage, cohabitation and same-sex partnerships.

"Society will test our conduct in some of these areas," Paulsen said.

"Laws in society will impact our conduct as a church, maybe particularly in employment matters and in the way we run our institutions.

"We are a law-abiding people, we are obedient citizens of any and all countries; but obedience to God takes first priority," he said. "It is important that we do not lose sight of that when the values of two different worlds collide."

Paulsen concluded his remarks stressing the primacy of obedience to God as a practical expression of Christian faith.

"Obedience to God expresses the practical side of faith, and its reference point is always someone or something outside my own person," he said. [Editor: Ansel Oliver for ANN/APD]