Who is Responsible for Witnessing?
Many Christians are asking God, why there has been over 2000 years and the end
has not come? But God told us to do some things that we have not done yet. The
disciples of Jesus also asked “what shall be a sign of Your coming, and the end of
the world?” (Matthew 24:3). Jesus answers them many things through Matthew
chapter 27, in verse 14 He says “and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached
in all the world for a witness to all nations, and then shall the end come”. God
cannot be locked into our time table, as we desire to do as Jesus told us in Matthew
6:33 “but seek you first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these
things shall be added to you”. Seeking the kingdom is doing what the kingdom
desires, we see in II Peter 3:9 “the Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some
men count slackness, but is longsuffering to us ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance”.
Our witness is based on the authority of Jesus Christ. God gave Jesus authority
over heaven and earth, on the basis of that authority, Jesus told His disciples to
make more disciples as they preached and taught (Matthew 28:18-20), therefore we
are to go whether it is next door, or to another country and make disciples. It is not
an option, but a command, to all who call Jesus Lord. With the same authority Jesus
still commands us to tell others the good news and make disciples for the kingdom.
Remember He told His disciples in Acts 1:8 “but you shall receive power, after that
the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me both in
Jerusalem, and to all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth”.
Jesus told them in Acts 1:4 “that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for
the promise of the Father which says He, you have heard of Me”. We need that
baptism of the Holy Spirit, if it is not evident in your life, that you have that witnessing
power, just ask for it.
Look at the change the resurrection, and baptism of the Holy Spirit made in the
disciples lives. At Jesus’ death they scattered and feared for their lives. After
seeing the resurrected Christ, and being filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they
were fearless and risked everything to spread the good news. These men would not
have risked their life for something they knew was a fraud. It is important to know
this, so we can have confidence in their testimony. 20 centuries later, we can still
be confident that our faith is based on fact. Most of the time people don’t witness is
because of fear; fear of what that person will say, but the Bible tells us in (II Timothy
1:7) “for God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a
sound mind”. Our job is to tell others, the Holy Spirit will convict them.
The Bible says “I exhort therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers,
intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men. For kings and for all that
are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and
honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior. Who will
have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (I Timothy 2:1-
4). So we know that it is God’s will for us to witness to others. Jesus as He sent out
the 70 said to them “the harvest is great, but the laborers are few; pray you,
therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth laborers into His harvest.
Go your ways, behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves” (Luke 10:2-3). Paul
tells us in Romans 10:14 “how then shall they call on Him in whom they have not
believed? And how they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how
shall they hear without a preacher?
God warns Ezekiel in Ezekiel 3:18-21 “when I say to the wicked, you shall surely die,
and you give his not warning nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way to
save his life, the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require
at your hand. Yet if you warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor
from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your soul.
Again, when a righteous man does turn from his righteousness and commit iniquity,
and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness
which he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood will I require at your
hand. Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he
does not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also you have delivered
your soul”. Let us take this seriously, ask for that holy boldness and then tell
someone what God’s plan of salvation has given us.
If we have experienced the gospel as real good news, we will not be able to keep it to
ourselves. Jeremiah said “but His word was in my heart as a burning fire shut up in
my bones”. We are supposed to love the things that God loves and hate the things
that God hates, and as I have mentioned before “God does not want one to perish”.
Let’s understand that the only way to help this come to pass is to get up and go ye
therefore.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: January 11, 2008
Many Christians are asking God, why there has been over 2000 years and the end
has not come? But God told us to do some things that we have not done yet. The
disciples of Jesus also asked “what shall be a sign of Your coming, and the end of
the world?” (Matthew 24:3). Jesus answers them many things through Matthew
chapter 27, in verse 14 He says “and this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached
in all the world for a witness to all nations, and then shall the end come”. God
cannot be locked into our time table, as we desire to do as Jesus told us in Matthew
6:33 “but seek you first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these
things shall be added to you”. Seeking the kingdom is doing what the kingdom
desires, we see in II Peter 3:9 “the Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some
men count slackness, but is longsuffering to us ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance”.
Our witness is based on the authority of Jesus Christ. God gave Jesus authority
over heaven and earth, on the basis of that authority, Jesus told His disciples to
make more disciples as they preached and taught (Matthew 28:18-20), therefore we
are to go whether it is next door, or to another country and make disciples. It is not
an option, but a command, to all who call Jesus Lord. With the same authority Jesus
still commands us to tell others the good news and make disciples for the kingdom.
Remember He told His disciples in Acts 1:8 “but you shall receive power, after that
the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me both in
Jerusalem, and to all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth”.
Jesus told them in Acts 1:4 “that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for
the promise of the Father which says He, you have heard of Me”. We need that
baptism of the Holy Spirit, if it is not evident in your life, that you have that witnessing
power, just ask for it.
Look at the change the resurrection, and baptism of the Holy Spirit made in the
disciples lives. At Jesus’ death they scattered and feared for their lives. After
seeing the resurrected Christ, and being filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they
were fearless and risked everything to spread the good news. These men would not
have risked their life for something they knew was a fraud. It is important to know
this, so we can have confidence in their testimony. 20 centuries later, we can still
be confident that our faith is based on fact. Most of the time people don’t witness is
because of fear; fear of what that person will say, but the Bible tells us in (II Timothy
1:7) “for God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a
sound mind”. Our job is to tell others, the Holy Spirit will convict them.
The Bible says “I exhort therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers,
intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men. For kings and for all that
are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and
honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior. Who will
have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (I Timothy 2:1-
4). So we know that it is God’s will for us to witness to others. Jesus as He sent out
the 70 said to them “the harvest is great, but the laborers are few; pray you,
therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth laborers into His harvest.
Go your ways, behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves” (Luke 10:2-3). Paul
tells us in Romans 10:14 “how then shall they call on Him in whom they have not
believed? And how they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how
shall they hear without a preacher?
God warns Ezekiel in Ezekiel 3:18-21 “when I say to the wicked, you shall surely die,
and you give his not warning nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way to
save his life, the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require
at your hand. Yet if you warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor
from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your soul.
Again, when a righteous man does turn from his righteousness and commit iniquity,
and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness
which he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood will I require at your
hand. Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he
does not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also you have delivered
your soul”. Let us take this seriously, ask for that holy boldness and then tell
someone what God’s plan of salvation has given us.
If we have experienced the gospel as real good news, we will not be able to keep it to
ourselves. Jeremiah said “but His word was in my heart as a burning fire shut up in
my bones”. We are supposed to love the things that God loves and hate the things
that God hates, and as I have mentioned before “God does not want one to perish”.
Let’s understand that the only way to help this come to pass is to get up and go ye
therefore.
Sermon by: Harriet Bond
Date: January 11, 2008
