OPEN: Several years back, when having a computers was a fairly new experience for most people… a lot of folks got flustered over little things:
For example: one customer called in to customer service department to complain that he kept getting an "Access Denied" message every time he tried to get into a certain area of his computer. It turned out he was typing his password in all capital letters.
So, the Technical Support man said: "OK, let’s try once more, but use lower case letters."
After a pause, the customer replied: "But, I only have capital letters on my keyboard."
Another time, a technician with Compaq computers received a call from a man complaining that his computer wouldn’t read the files from his old diskettes(show picture of diskette). After trouble-shooting for things like exposure to magnets and heat failure to diagnose the problem, it was found that the customer labeled the diskettes then rolled them into a typewriter to type information on the labels. Diskettes don’t like to be rolled into anything.
Then there was the customer who called Dell Computers to say he couldn’t get his computer to fax anything. After 40 minutes of trouble-shooting, the technician discovered the man was trying to fax a piece of paper by holding it in front of the monitor screen (show picture of monitor) and hitting the "send" key.
APPLY: Now, I realize that some of you may still not understand what was funny about all that.
But the fact is… whenever we’re exposed to something new in our lives – like computers - we often find ourselves being overwhelmed and intimidated. We may think that - whatever it is – it’s just too complicated for us to do… so we just don’t do it.
There are people who look at the idea of sharing their faith, talking about Jesus, in much the same way.
It’s intimidating
It’s overwhelming
It just seems too complicated for them… so they just don’t do it.
(…pause…)
I. One of the most dynamic examples of witnessing (in the Bible) is recorded here in Acts 2
Now, granted, it’s a sermon. But still, all Peter was doing was sharing what he knew about Jesus. And ALL the elements of what makes for good witnessing are found right here in this chapter.
Now I’m not sure you’re going to personally baptize 3000 people like Peter did on Pentecost. But, even if you only change the life of ONE person (by following these concepts) you’ll be accomplishing more than many people do in their entire lifetimes.
Now is there somebody you like or care for that you’d like to make sure they went to heaven?
Would you like to be able to stand before God on judgment day and have Him proudly point out the person/ persons that you helped bring to Jesus?
THAT WOULD BE GREAT!
So… what is it that can we learn from Acts chapter 2 that would make us better at witnessing?
1st PRINCIPLE OF EFFECTIVE WITNESSING: Pray for the Holy Spirit to be involved
When many people think about the Holy Spirit and Pentecost they think of:
· …tongues of fire
· and they think of “speaking in tongues”
And they might think to themselves:
· If I could experience tongues of fire
· AND if I could speak in a language that I’d never learned
· If I could just have the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within me…
THEN I could really do something for Jesus!
(…pause…)
Well… YOU DO HAVE the power of the Holy Spirit within you.
How many of you are saved? (…ask for a show of hands)
If you’re a Christian - you HAVE the Holy Spirit.
When you were saved, Ephesians 1:13 tells us that “…after you believed, you were sealed with that holy Spirit…”
And Romans 8:11 tells us: “…if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”
You have all the power dwelling w/in you that Apostles had w/in them on the day of Pentecost
You may not have all the bells and whistles: The tongues of fire & the ability to speak/ tongues… those were all window dressing anyway.
Nobody got saved that day because of the tongues of fire.
Nobody gave their life to Christ that day because the Apostles spoke in strange languages.
In fact, spectacular fireworks like these never helped save anybody in Scripture.
The purpose of the tongues of fire, and of the Apostles speaking in tongues was to get the audience’s attention. Once the audience started paying attention Peter just stood up and shared about Jesus.
He spoke just like any other man… EXCEPT he spoke guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit
You have that same spirit dwelling in you!
So… the 1st thing to remember is - they had the Holy Spirit within them. That’s what made them so effective… (they weren’t doing this on their own). They had the power of the Spirit of God inside them.
AND so do you!
Don’t forget that… and don’t UNDERESTIMATE it.
Pray for God’s Spirit to be involved when you witness!!!
2nd PRINCIPLE FOR EFFECTIVE WITNESSING: Take advantage of the situations that God supplies.
Remember, the tongues of fire & Apostles speaking in tongues - were God’s idea. And God used them to get the audience’s attention. God supplied the opportunity – and then Peter stepped in.
We need to learn to EXPECT God to give us opportunities.
We need to PRAY for God to give us those opportunities
And then, we need to LOOK for those opportunities.
ILLUS: I remember when I was an intern with a church in Sault St. Marie, Michigan. It was something like a 4 or 5 hour drive from Bible College. And I’d pick up hitch-hikers.
I have since learned that that wasn’t the smartest thing I’ve ever done. BUT… at the time, it seemed like a good idea.
From the moment they stepped into my car, I would begin to pray for an opportunity to talk to them about Jesus. I’d made a deal with God that I wouldn’t bring the matter up… but if He would open the door… I’d start talking. And every trip, my passengers and I would get into a discussion about Jesus & faith. I don’t think I converted anybody… but I planted seeds.
Now, once in a while, God will set you up with a great opportunity.
ILLUS: Paul Thigpen tells of his freshman year in college. He wrote:
I had 2 Jewish roommates who knew I was a Christian. One day, I found them sitting dejectedly beside an open window in our dormitory. I asked them what was wrong.
“We want to play basketball,” said one. “We’ve looked and looked for a ball and can’t find one.”
“Hey Paul,” said the other, “Do you think Jesus has a basketball we could play with?”
“Well, maybe He does!” Thigpen said with a grin.
“I’ll pray that Jesus will send you a basketball right now.
But if He does - I expect you to thank Him for it.”
“Okay!” they said. So I bowed my head right then and there and prayed aloud to Jesus for a basketball.
Within 5 seconds after my “Amen,” a basketball fell through the open window into the lap of my roommate, as if it had fallen straight from heaven.
His jaw dropped. Then a 3rd friend shouted from the courtyard, “I found a ball for us. Let’s go!”
They claimed it was a coincidence. I responded: “You know whom to thank
Now, I don’t know if anything like that will ever happen to you… but I do know (I believe it with all of my heart) if you start looking for opportunities… God will supply them.
It may be as dramatic as a basketball dropping thru a window.
Or it may be as common and ordinary as a person asking you what you believe.
BUT look for/ AND take advantage of/ every opportunity God gives you.
1st Principle: When you witness, pray for the Holy Spirit to be involved
2nd Principle: When you witness, look for God to supply an opportunity.
3rd PRINCIPLE FOR EFFECTIVE WITNESSING: Use Scripture whenever you can.
If you look real closely at Peter’s sermon, you’ll find that about 70% of what Peter said that day came directly out of Scripture. Count them sometime… Roughly 2 of every 3 verses in Peter’s sermon were quotes from Old Testament prophets.
Now, I have to admit, I didn’t realize that until I prepared for this sermon… but it makes sense, when you think about it.
In Isaiah God declared: “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-11
God is making us a promise here. Whenever we quote Scripture – it has power. It literally has a power to accomplish God’s goals… God’s purposes
As the writer of Hebrews wrote: “… the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12
In other words, whenever we quote from the Bible, it has a power all its own
ILLUS: Peter V. Deison, in his book The Priority of Knowing God, tells about Ramad, a man from India who was a member of a gang of robbers. On one occasion, while burglarizing a house Ramad noticed a small black book containing very thin pages… just right for making cigarettes. So he took it.
Each evening he tore out a page, rolled it around some tobacco and had a smoke. Noticing that the words on the pages were in his language, he began to read them before rolling his cigarettes.
One evening after reading a page, he was convicted of his own sinfulness and his need for God. And he became a Christian because of what he had read.
Then Ramad turned himself in to the police. And, while in the prison, he led many others to the Savior. The Word of God became to Ramad "the power of God to salvation." Romans 1:17-18
So…
1st Principle: When you witness, pray for the Holy Spirit to be involved
2nd Principle: When you witness, look for God to supply an opportunity.
3rd Principle: Use Scripture whenever you can.
4th PRINCIPLE FOR EFFECTIVE WITNESSING Know what it was that changed you
Try to remember WHY YOU became a Christian
Whenever Peter preached, he almost always used the same argument. You’ll find it in Acts 2:36 "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
Did you catch that… you crucified Jesus… you’re guilty… you’re going to hell!
Later when Peter preached a sermon at the Temple he said: “The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. YOU handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. YOU disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. YOU killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.” Acts 3:13-15
And when Peter stood before the Sanhedrin, he preached “…know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom YOU crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is ‘the stone YOU builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’” Acts 4:10
As far as I can tell, Peter seems to be the only Preacher in Scripture that preaches like this. He’s the only preacher that literally gets in people’s faces… and repeatedly tell his audience that they were guilty of Christ’s death.
Why would Peter preach like that?
Because that was why Peter’s life changed.
Peter changed because he realized HE was guilty of Christ’s death
ON the night before Jesus was crucified, Peter had betrayed Jesus 3 times.
3 times, Peter had said: “I don’t know the man.”
Peter had handed Jesus over to be crucified
Peter had disowned Jesus
Peter had literally crucified the Master that he had loved.
And he never forgot that.
It was part of his life… and it became part of his witness.
So.. NOW, the question is
Why did you become a Christian?
What was it that changed your life?
If it’s part of your life… it can be a powerful part of your witness.
CLOSE: Basically, if God has changed your life… then you’re going to want Him to change the lives of others you care for. The only way that is going to happen is if you bring people to the Healer who healed your soul.
A missionary physician in one of China’s hospitals cured a man of cataracts. A few weeks later, 48 blind men came to him from one of China’s far corners, each holding a rope held in the hand of the man who had been cured. He had led them in this way, walking in a chain 250 miles to the hospital, that they too might be healed.
This morning, there may be those here who want to know how to become a Christian. Like the audience on the day of Pentecost, you may be asking: what must I do to be saved? In Acts 2:38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
