Vance Havner a very practical down home preacher said, “One day of green pastures and still waters is followed by dark valleys and miry swamps and a thousand whys lie unanswered, tabled for the future.”
When it comes to unanswered whys from God we all too often ask more whys instead of what!
In Acts chapter 1 the disciples of Jesus were asking why questions before Jesus ascended into heaven.
Acts 1.6 “Lord is it at this time you are restoring the Kingdom of Israel?”
Let me translate for you.
1) Lord you promised your Kingdom would come and Rome would fall is it to happen now?
2) Lord we are the seed of Abraham, decendants of David when do we take charge?
3) When do we get our ruling seats in the Kingdom (remember Peter and James mom)
4) When do we get our rooms in the Temple.
Jesus responds (pay close attention) Read Acts 1.7 but
I believe Jesus was saying, “You r not asking the right Questions!!!”
It is for God the father to Fulfill prophecy in His time.”
What should they have asked? Most of us remember or have learned about JFK. Ask not what your country can do for you ask what you can do for your country!
Jesus, “Ask not what God can do for you ask what you can do for God!”
This is the setup for the Jesus’ Last words (significant) before His ascension.
Read verse 8.
I. To be powerful witnesses we must be plugged in to God.
A) Today’s World
1) Laptops, PDA’s, Cell Phones
2) Got to have it plugged into a power source
3) Illustration: IV Pump – Thought it was plugged in but it began beeping If you are not plugged into God you batteries will run out.
B) Today’s Christian (has got to be plugged in)
1) If you instruments are not plugged in they are useless pieces of
carbon.
2) If we are not plugged into God by way of the power outlet of the Holy Spirit we become useless instruments.
C) Why did Jesus tell them they were to be plugged in?
1) They had a hard job ahead, they could only do it in the power of God.
2) They would be tested by many difficult challenges, including death, they needed the peace of God’s spirit.
We also need the same Power, and Peace and assurance that comes by way of God’s Holy spirit.
Why? We too have a tough task before us.
John 1.12 “but as many as received Him to them He gave power (the right) to become the children of God.”
As soon as we receive Jesus we receive the Holy Spirit.
As soon as we receive the Holy Spirit we are to be witnesses of what God has done in our lives.
II. Definition of witness
A) Greek martus or martur
1) Most often we see the word witness 29 times
2) It means: To affirm that one has seen or heard or experienced something.
a) Acts 4.18 commanded to stop witnessing Jesus
b) Acts 4.19 “But Peter and John answered and said to them, “whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge.
20 “for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
a) The two Greek words here used carry the idea that they literally could not stop telling about Jesus. The holy spirit Had so moved them by what they saw they were compelled to speak of Jesus.
Luke 14.23 “Master said to the slave, “Go out and compel them to come in” (Wedding feast)
3) Vance Havener “We do not have a secret to be hidden but a story to be heralded.”
1) Definition of Herald: a person who announces important news (good news?); “a chieftain had a herald who announced his arrival with a trumpet.”
2) The gospel is good news blow your trumpet.
B) Translated martyr
1) The same word used of Stephen when he was stoned
2) The ultimate sacrifice for the spreading of the good news!
a) We need to recognize that we too are called to die for our faith. (take up your cross)
b) To die to our fears, desires, designs.
c) A witness or martyr is to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
1) Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life
2) Are you sacrificing so that someone can hear the truth?
C) Righteous record
1) Another way to translate is to bear record
2) We are to be like a filing cabinet. People see the record of god’s love when they draw files from us.
So what do they see coming out of your filing cabinent?
Love, Compassion, Hope, Courage, Peace
Or Hate, Fear, hopelessness, Anger
We are not only to give our lives, witness what has happened in our lives (telling How God has changed (transformed) us. Our lives are to be a living record of God’s love to the world.
The world ought to be able to file us away under message from God.
4) Objections to being a witness
a) Plate is too full
-- Good thing God’s wasn’t when you were a sinner
b) I have other priorities
-- If you ask God he will allow those priorities to be a place where you can witness.
c) I don’t have time (work, etc)
-- Make you mission to witness, Christ where ever you are.
d) Too many church activities.
Activities in and of themselves are not bad. But this is may opinion on Activities.
All activities should be viewed as an opportunity to witness God’s love through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
We ought to use activities as a way to place ourselves as an mission outpost in a lost and dying world that is headed directly to hell. We have the only ticket out of the most horrible place in all the universe. Let’s bear record to it.
We now should understand the definition of witness, what about the decision to witness.
II. Decision to Witness.
A) Matthew 4.19 “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men”
1) We must decide to learn from Jesus to be fishermen
2) Good thing
a) He just wants us to throw the nets out He will put the fish in them.
B) Great Commission Matt 28.19-20
1) Take the fishing Rod of the Gospel
2) The hook of the Holy Spirit
a) There is spiritual warfare every time you share your faith
b) The natural man does not want to witness
1) sweaty palms, heart rate increase
2) Guess what, it doesn’t get any better!
3) But we must walk worthy of our calling.
4) Our calling and commission is to witness
c) Sometimes it just means telling them how God changed your life a couple of bible verses and pray for them!
d) You do not save the person, you just tell the story!
3) That should release a huge burden
a) You mean all I have to do is be friendly and tell them Jesus can (illustration of magic trick with rope from touch a life conference(take the knots out of their life)
4) Go in the great commission
a) It means to pursue the journey on which one has entered.
b) On your walk of life Jesus says make disciples
---- In other words tell people about your every day struggles and share how God helps you and changes you to live daily.
III. Destination of Our Witness
A) Jerusalem – Cabot
B) Judea and Samaria – Lonoke County, Arkansas
C) The Ends of the Earth – All the world
Mexico, Chile, Slovakia, Russia, China, Greece.
Marines slogan
IV. Dedication of our Witness
A) According to George Barna
Only about half (53%) of born again Christians feel a sense of responsibility to tell others about their faith. In other words, nearly half of born again Christians do not think that it is their personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs with those who do not know Christ.
Is it any wonder churches are either declining or dieing in the US?
B) Someone said
Go when you feel like it and when you don’t
Go by faith and not by feeling
Go when it’s convenient and when it’s not
Go in season and out of season
Go when you have fished all night and caught nothing.
Go when you succeed and when you fail
Norman Geisler
Some years ago, Norman Geisler wrote a candid article in which he said: “I have a confession to make. I was a director for a Christian youth organization for three years, a pastor for nine years, a Bible college teacher for six years, and in all that time, I did not witness for Jesus Christ. I scarcely ever shared my faith one-to-one with other people.”
Geisler offered several reasons for this: He didn’t think he had the gift of evangelism. Hefelt instead his gift was that of teaching the Word to those already Christians. He had read a book about evangelism and God’ sovereignty that had turned away his zeal for personal evangelism. He had known someone who had practiced impersonal, cold-turkey evangelism, and Geisler had determined that “lifestyle” evangelism was more desirable. But as a result, he lived a Christian life but seldom vocalized his witness to an unsaved person.
Eventually, Geisler became convicted by the words of a little song that said: “Lead me to some soul today, O teach me, Lord, just what to say.” Those words became a sincere prayer for him, and his life began to change.
One day, Having prayed that prayer, he was approached by a girl from the college where he taught. She had spiritual needs in her life, and he was able to lead her to Christ. (She later went to South America as a missionary).
Shortly afterward, Geisler volunteered to participate in a Monday night visitation program at his church. On his first outing, he found himself knocking on the door of a man who turned out to be an atheist. “Do you mind if we ask you a very serous spiritual question?” asked Geisle, when the man came to the door. After a long conversation and a couple of visits, the man prayed to receive Christ into His heart (He is now a deacon in a church with his family committed to Christ as well.)
Now Geisler says: The most rewarding experiences I’ve had in my Christian life have not come from teaching, pasturing, or ministering around the world. They have come from meeting with non-Christians and seeing one after another come to know Christ.
Salt and light – Salt has to touch the meat to keep it from going bad, Light has to be turned on to shine in the darkenss!
B) Prepare – Mark your bible, pray your heart out, then let you light shine.
The idea is that Jesus told us to Go. To tell others as we live the reality of god with us!
Do you want our church to grow? Then bear record of what God is doing in your life.
Conclusion: God calls us to be records, eye witnesses, even sacrifices for the spreading of the good news. We are to trumpet that news with excitement, authenticity, looking always for the opportunity to share what we have seen, heard and experienced.
God will miraculously reward our work if we will be His witnesses.
Have you experienced the good news of Jesus.
The disciples could not be stopped from telling of what they had seen and heard
Is there anything stopping you?
Will you today make it your prayer.
God put people in my path that I can share Jesus with.
And give me the wisdom and ability to tell the gospel through my story.
