You Are Witnesses

 

One of the most difficult assignments I faced in my first year of Bible College involved witnessing. As part of an introduction to evangelism course, students were asked to go out and witness to three different people and write about the encounters.

            With very little experience in sharing my faith in Jesus, I wondered where to start. A friend suggested that we go to the hospital and share the gospel with the patients. Our motivation for choosing the hospital was our assumption that the patients were a captive audience and couldn’t walk away. Even so, as my friend and I split up and went different directions, I found myself wandering endlessly around the hallways. I couldn’t find the courage to walk into a room and just start talking. I had never done anything like this before. Finally, I chose a room and was determined to go in and do this thing. But just as I was entering the room, I saw a sign on the curtain that said “quarantined.” I had inadvertently chosen the most restricted room to enter. 

            The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association conducted a survey for their trainees. One question asked, “What is your greatest hindrance to witnessing?” Nine percent said they were too busy; 28% felt they lacked the information to share; 12% said that their lives were not consistent enough; but 51% said the biggest problem was fear. Most of us are afraid of how the person we want to witness to will react. Will they reject us? Mock us? Belittle what we have to say? 

            As Luke concludes his gospel account in 24:44-49, he records Jesus’ final instructions to his disciples and says, “You are witnesses of these things.” With these words, Jesus gives the responsibility to his followers to share the gospel. 

            The questions emerging from this text are critical to our sharing of the gospel. What are we supposed to say? What does it mean to be a witness? And where do we find the courage to speak up for Jesus?

The Source of Our Witness (44-46)

 

Jesus had appeared to the disciples in the room where they were discussing his resurrection. He reveals himself, shows his hands and feet, and even eats a piece of fish to show them that he is truly raised from the dead, not a ghost. This is the physical evidence.

            However, Jesus then goes on to teach them what the scriptures had to say about himself. Jesus didn’t try to cover everything he had taught his disciples in the three-year journey they had together. Instead, he zeroed in on one point: how the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms explained God’s plan to save people from their sins through his death and resurrection. Jesus summed this up saying, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead…” (46). 

            This is the source of our witness, the scriptures. When you consider the qualifications of being a witness, it involves seeing, touching, hearing, and experiencing. In the most literal sense, we are disqualified in three out of four categories. That is, unless you consider that we are recipients of the witnesses in scripture. We see through Isaiah’s eyes or Luke’s eyes the prophecy and the fulfilment. Through the testimony of the biblical writers, we are witnesses of the resurrection.

            That seems a little shaky, doesn’t it? We are third party witnesses in a sense. All we have are some ancient documents and a wild story. As Paul reflected on the reactions of both the Jews and the Greeks to the crucifixion, he said the Jews saw the cross of Christ as weakness, and the Greeks saw it as foolishness. Those perceptions continue to cloud peoples’ minds today. They are blinded to what the Bible says unless someone opens their minds to the truth. (1 Cor. 1:22-25)

            Jesus does that. A beautiful little sentence is given to us in this text: “Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures” (45). A few years ago, Sharon and I had the opportunity to see the Grand Canyon. Taking a tour, we were brought to the first lookout point. But the tower and lip of the canyon were covered in a dense cloud. I was very disappointed and thought that our day would be ruined by bad weather. As we were standing at the canyon edge looking into the white denseness, a wind came up. And like the raising of the curtain to reveal the stage, slowly the cloud lifted to reveal the hand of the Artist. It…was…awesome. 

            When we share the prophecies and witness of the biblical writers with people, our task is to take them to the appropriate place and let Jesus open their minds. That’s his task.

 

The Message of Our Witness (47)

 

What are we supposed to tell people? Jesus made it pretty clear, he said, “…the Christ will suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” In these words, Jesus spoke of four things:

            The first was repentance. In Greek thinking repentance meant a change of thinking, while in Hebrew thought it meant a change of action. True repentance involves both. Charles Spurgeon preached a sermon titled, “Christ’s First and Last Subject,” in which he points out that Jesus began his ministry saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near,” and ends it by telling his disciples to proclaim repentance. 

            In the sermon itself, Spurgeon drew out four aspects of true repentance: illumination, where God opens our eyes to the horror of sin; humiliation, where we lay aside our pride and plead with God for mercy; detestation, where we hate our sin; and transformation, where we leave the sin, we formerly loved, outwardly and inwardly. Repentance is a lifelong process. 

            The second thing Jesus spoke of is forgiveness. Jesus was not trying to be heroic or defiant as he hung upon the cross. His purpose was to bear the sins of a disobedient and wrongful humanity in his own body (see Is. 53:4-6). Forgiveness is what we long for. Deep down, every person wants to be freed from guilt and anxiety and the consequences of sin. We want healthy marriages. We want to succeed in life. We want to improve ourselves. But truly, the greatest need humanity has is to figure out how to get right with God. And God responds, you will find forgiveness when you repent – turn away from that which harms your body and spirit – and trust in the power of Christ’s shed blood to wipe your sin away.

            Third, this truth will be proclaimed in his name. People will not find what they are looking for by trying harder, or even praying more or reading the Bible more, or attending every church service. Peter told the religious leaders of his day, those who tried to be better by doing all these things, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given to mankind by which we must be saved,” (Acts. 4:12). There is only one name that saves you. That’s the name we proclaim.

            Fourth, Jesus said that forgiveness would be preached in his name to all nations. For centuries, the Jews thought that being the “chosen people” meant that they would be saved and the rest of the world would go to hell. Yet the OT prophecies continually speak of the nations coming to God in faith (Is. 49:6). And Jesus’ final words were “go and make disciples of all nations.” In essence, who is the gospel for? It is for everyone.

            Jesus makes it very clear what we are supposed to say.

 

The Medium of Our Witness (48)

 

But what does it mean to be a witness? We spoke of seeing, hearing, touching, and experiencing something and giving an account of it. The question we ask ourselves is unnerving: Have I experienced Christ in my life? Is my faith in him merely rational, or is there a personal piece to it? 

            To illustrate, consider how you might respond to two different messages. If someone said to you, “A new band is coming to Winnipeg. They are probably worth hearing. I have read reviews and they got 4 out of 5 stars,” you might be interested. Maybe not. Or what if they said to you, “You have to hear this new band. I was at their concert and their songs rocked the arena. Their songs were life-changing”? The second person was transformed and promises that you would be too if you go and listen to this performance. 

            You are the medium that Jesus has chosen to share his message of forgiveness. Jesus was not looking for a skilled sales team. And you don’t have to have a dramatic rescue story from drinking and drugs. He wants people whose lives have been changed by his life to tell others how their lives can be changed by Jesus too. “You are witnesses of these things”

            Our witness of Christ is wholistic. In other words, going to the mall and approaching strangers, while effective in its own way, is not the only way to witness for Christ. If you look at 1 Peter 2:9-12, you will see that “witness” is multifaceted (read). 

            There are four aspects of Christian witness in this text. First, there is simply “being” – we are a people belonging to God. In the KJV, it says we are a “peculiar people.” Second, there is “worship” as witness – the mere fact that we are here Sunday morning worshiping God is a witness to the watching world that we are doing something unusual. Third, “purity of life” speaks to our society that we choose not to engage the passions of the flesh out of reverence for God. Fourth, “good deeds” are a powerful defense against the accusations of those who think Christians are a waste of space and out of touch with life. 

            Witness is wholistic in this sense; it involves all that we do as believers. Words are necessary, though, as Peter goes on to say, “…always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you…” (3:15). We share both in word and deed in response to all that God has done for us. It is out of who we are in Christ and whose we are as children of God that we go on to share and act in a way that is pleasing to God.

 

The Power of Our Witness (49)

 

Jesus said that his disciples would be witnesses to the world. But not just yet. They were to wait until the Holy Spirit came upon them. “…stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high,” (49).

            We do not witness on our own strength. Jesus gives us his Holy Spirit to empower and embolden us when we share Christ with others. 

            Think back again to Acts 4 where Peter and John were arrested for speaking about Jesus in the Temple. They were brought before the high priest and his council and interrogated. They said to them, “By what power or by what name do you do this?” Look at what Luke wrote in 4:8, “Then Peter filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them…” and he goes on to explain how it is in the name of Jesus that they spoke and acted. What is astonishing comes next in v. 13 where the council “perceived that that they were uneducated, common men…and they recognized that they had been with Jesus.”

            To be filled with the Holy Spirit sounds amazing and something beyond our understanding. But Peter simply told those who questioned him what he knew. He bore witness to the power of the name of Jesus. That’s what the Spirit empowered.

            Each of us who believes in Jesus has the Holy Spirit living in us. When we are faced with telling what we know about Jesus, he will empower us and give more meaning to our testimony than we will perceive. 

 

If standing on the street corners of Winnipeg and preaching repentance to strangers scares you, you are not alone. That’s not everyone’s calling. And it is something out of the ordinary for people who have life and jobs here in Rosenort; you have to go out of your way to engage that kind of ministry.

            Yet God brings people into our path every day that we can speak to about Jesus. Here are three things to consider as you enter into the week:

1) Do you know the gospel? Can you explain what you believe if you are asked? I am not asking if you know theology or can argue the finer points of the incarnation. The man who was born blind in John 9 but was healed by Jesus confessed that he did not know that much about Jesus. He did say, “One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” That’s a great testimony. It’s personal, experiential, and real.

2) Pray for opportunities to share Jesus with someone. One thing a prayer like this does is it prepares you to go into the day with your eyes open. It also says to God that you are open to sharing Jesus. You may even pray for a specific person you work with or are neighbors with. Even if you don’t have the opportunity to speak Jesus to them, your prayers will be effective.

3) Be a witness. You don’t need to debate, confront, persuade, or convict. You don’t need to argue philosophy or apologetics. Conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit; it’s not your job to convict. Our job is to share what we know. I once was blind, but now I see. 

            Jesus still opens minds to understand the truth about him, and then opens hearts to respond to his love for each of us. You are witnesses of the transforming power of Christ to change a life. Let’s not be afraid to tell others about Jesus. 

 

                                                            AMEN