Int.- On October 9 my wife and I returned from a trip to China to visit our son and daughter in law. Since returning home numerous people have asked about our trip. Every time I am asked I spontaneously start talking about our experience. We have many experiences, both meaningful and challenging to share. We talk about the food, the driving, the scenery and our impressions. It is not like we are boasting or bragging. We have significant experiences from our trip that we want to share with others. In addition, many people are curious about China.
It occurred to me this week, the same thing is true of our spiritual experience. We are called of God to share our spiritual experiences with others. People are curious as to what God has done for us and what he can do for them. I want to look at a scripture that explains our responsibility in sharing our spiritual experiences.
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.” (I John 1:1-4 NKJV)
There are some valuable lessons in this passage about sharing our faith experience in Jesus. Notice three lessons.
I. The first lesson we learn is our responsibility. From this passage we learn that our responsibility is two fold.
A. Our responsibility is to defend the gospel and share the gospel. In the text the first of these responsibilities is not as obvious as the second. John never mentions defending the gospel but as you read his book you discover that he was defending the gospel against false teachers. In our text John mentions several rock bed doctrines that are central to the Christian faith. In verse 1 he mentions that Jesus was from “the “beginning.” Jesus is eternal! In verse 2 he mentions that Jesus is the source of eternal life! In verse 3 he mentions that Jesus is the “Son of God!” Even though we are never told that John is defending the gospel, we know this from a study of the book that bears his name. In chapter 2:22 he tells us that anyone who denies Jesus Christ has the spirit of the anti-christ.
Defending the gospel is what we call apologetics. Some people have been given a ministry of Christian apologetics (which is defending the gospel). Many of you are familiar with Josh McDowell’s book “Evidence that Demands a Verdict.” In that book McDowell defends the gospel of Jesus Christ. Another popular book is Lee Stroebel’s book “The Case for Christ.” Both of these men were skeptics who came to know Jesus. Each of them have a ministry of apologetics. You and I may not be given an apologetic ministry but we do have the ministry of defending the gospel against false teachers.
B. The second aspect of our responsibility is to share the gospel. The evangelical community calls this responsibility the “Great Commission.“ John is similar to a broken record. He repeats the same concept five times, in these verses: vs. 1 “Proclaim”; vs. 2 “Testify”; vs. 2 “Proclaim”; vs. 3 “Proclaim”; vs. 4 “Write”. John knew it was his responsibility, as a believer, to share the spiritual experiences (of His faith in Jesus)with others. It is also our responsibility.
Ill- The famous evangelist Billy Sunday was looking for people to tell about Jesus.
Since he was going to be in a particular city he wrote a letter to the mayor in which he asked for the name of individuals he knew who had a spiritual problem and needed help and prayer. How surprised the evangelist was when the mayor sent him a city telephone book. (EM Griffin, The Mindchangers, Tyndale House, 1976, p. 151. Contributed to Sermon Central by: Roy Fowler) Everyone everywhere needs to know Jesus Christ.
Some people do not understand Christian witnessing.
Ill- Norman Cates shared the humorous story of a guy who prayed this prayer every morning: "Lord, if you want me to witness to someone today, please give me a sign to show me who it is." One day he found himself on a bus when a big, burly man sat next to him. The bus was nearly empty but this guy sat next to our praying friend. The timid Christian anxiously waited for his stop so he could exit the bus. But before he could get very nervous about the man next to him, the big guy burst into tears and began to weep. He then cried out with a loud voice, "I need to be saved. I’m a lost sinner and I need the Lord. Won’t somebody tell me how to be saved?" He turned to the Christian and pleaded, "Can you show me how to be saved?" The believer immediately bowed his head and prayed, "Lord, is this a sign?" Are you looking for a "sign" to start witnessing? (Contributed to Sermon Central by: Richard Crow)
How can we share our faith? Consider the following opportunities.
1. You can write notes and letters.
2. You can share your story with others.
3. You can share good books such as Lee
Stroebel’s “The Case for Christ.“
4. You can visit people in their homes in order to
build intentional relationships with a goal of
sharing your faith.
6. You can take a class to learn how to present a
gospel presentation in an orderly fashion.
7. You can share tracts.
II. In I John 1:1-4 we discover our responsibility. Our responsibility is to defend the gospel and share the gospel. The second lesson we see is our motivation for sharing the gospel.
Ill- On the way home from church a little girl said, “Mom, I’ve been thinking.” The mother said, “Oh! About what?” The girl replied, “Well, my teacher this morning said God is bigger than we are. Is that true?” Again the mother replied, “Yes.” “Well,” said the girl. “If God is bigger than us and He lives in us, wouldn’t He show through?” If we are motivated Jesus will shine through us.
What motivates a person to share their faith and speak up for Jesus Christ? We see this in John’s life.
A. There must be an undeniable experience with Jesus Christ. John said he had “heard”, “seen” and “touched” Jesus. Obviously, the first twelve disciples had such experiences. However, you and I will never be able to hear, see and touch Jesus physically. Are we at a disadvantage? No it is possible for you to have a personal experience with Jesus that is as real as physically seeing, hearing or touching Him.
Ill- Over the years I have shared some of my experiences. I have shared good and bad. Some of my good experiences have included: a trip to the Holy Land, snow skiing in Colorado, a trip to Alaska and teaching in the Ukraine. However, I have also had some bad experiences. I have mentioned accidentally grabbing a naked electric wire, accidentally sipping a little paint thinner and accidentally burning my daddies parched pasture land. All of those are very vivid and very real to me. They are as real as seeing you sitting before me today. Such undeniable experiences have a way of working themselves from our memory into our mouth. They get shared. Your faith should be the same way. Your relationship with Jesus Christ should be so unforgettable that you desire to share it.
Some years ago I picked up a quote (the source I cannot remember) that said:
“You cannot give away what you do not have anymore than you can come back from where you have not been.”
B. We should be motivated by an undeniable experience but also by a meaningful experience(vs. 2,3). Notice the words that John uses in referring to his meaningful experience. In verse 3 he says he received “eternal life” through Jesus. In verse 3 he indicates that he received “fellowship with God” through Jesus. Finally, in verse 4 he indicates he received fullness of “joy” because of Jesus.
Ill- The following ad once appeared in a London newspaper: "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful." The ad was signed by Sir Ernest Shackleton, Antarctic explorer. Amazingly, the ad drew thousands of respondents, eager to sacrifice everything for the prospect of meaningful adventure.
(Today In The Word, August, 1989, p. 33.) People are looking for meaningful experiences.
In a 1991 poll, George Gallup, Jr., reported seven needs of the average American:
Let me mention the first two.
1. The need for shelter and food,
2. The need to believe life is meaningful and has a
purpose,
(National and International Religion Report, May 29, 1991. Contributed to Sermon Central by: Paul Fritz)
People are looking for meaning. We should share the meaning we have found in Jesus.
III. The third lesson we learn is the reward we receive in sharing our faith. John says “that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.“ John’s reward included personal fellowship with God but also the joy of seeing other people walking in fellowship with God.
Ill- There is an old gospel song which asks a vital question: “Will there be any stars in your crown?“ The question implies there will be stars in your Heavenly crown based upon the people you bring with you. Will there be any rewards waiting on you?
Ill- A story from the 2002 Grammy’s provides a meaningful illustration at this point. The New York Post reports that producers of the 2002 Grammy ceremony showered each of the show’s stars with a personalized gift basket said to be worth $16,000 each.
Britney Spears got a pair of $1,900 diamond earrings, a Blackberry pager, an iPod MP3 player, a free two-night stay in the Ian Schrager hotel of her choice, and some Tic Tac mints.
Janet Jackson and the guys of ’N Sync all received a one-year bi-coastal membership to Sports Club/L.A. (a $4,500 value) and a personalized bust of themselves in either bronze or aluminum.
If Grammy Award stars are honored so extravagantly for entertaining, what will be the reward for those who use their talents for eternal matters? “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done” (Revelation 22:12). What will God put in your personalized gift basket?
(Source: SermonCentral staff. Citation: Silverman, Stephan. “Glitzy Grammy Gifts Worth $16,000.” People.com, February 20, 2002.)
Ill- A Christmas movie illustrates the concept of reward. The movie is Home Alone II. In this movie Kevin (a small child) gets stranded in New York, isolated from his family. His parents thought he was on a plane headed to a holiday vacation with the rest of the family. When Kevin’s mom discovers Kevin to be missing, she is struck with fear (for Kevin). At the end of the movie Kevin is re-united with his family and celebrates a wonderful family Christmas. Two points can be drawn from that movie.
(1) Kevin’s mom was broken hearted at Kevin’s absence. Even so, believers should be broken hearted over those who are missing from God’s family.
(2) Kevin’s family celebrated when all of the family got back together. Believers should celebrate when people are reunited with God’s family.That is the ultimate reward for any believer. It is rewarding to know that you have brought someone into God’s family.
