BE A BETTER WITNESS

1Peter 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: 

16  Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. 

Acts 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 

Introduction

Good morning! I want to welcome you to church today as we wrap up our sermon series, Better. Each week of this series we have tried to highlight some of the ways that a relationship with Jesus can make our lives better. Fully submitting to Christ opens us to His transformative power.

The first week we looked at the impact God can have in our lives when we begin the new year with better priorities. When we put God first, the rest of our lives fall into order. If we get this backward, the most important things in our lives will suffer. Two weeks ago, we discovered that the people we surround ourselves with will have far reaching effects. Sometimes it is important for us to focus on having better relationships to experience the life that God has for us. Last week we considered how a connection to Jesus can help us make better choices. We are largely the choices that we make, and as we begin the new year, perhaps we need to operate with more Godly wisdom. God has given us the opportunity to share His love with the world. In order to do so, we must always be ready to give witness to Jesus through word and deed. We can either give Him a good name or be the reason someone would reject Him.

So this morning, we will finish our series by being challenged to live this year as a better witness.

BE A BETTER WITNESS

Sometimes as parents there are times that we were looking for a witness. This is because too often our children would do something in the home that results in something getting broken. Usually, you were not present when it happens, so we must try and gather information from our kids. Typically, of course, no one knows anything. But eventually you do get to the truth about what happened.

A witness is someone who gives evidence in relation to matters of fact under inquiry. Maybe you have been a witness to a traffic accident and had to give your statement of what you saw or experienced. Maybe you have been the witness to an historical event that you have shared with others over the years. The Bible talks a lot about being witnesses. Not in the ways mentioned above, but instead, witnesses to the power of the crucified and resurrected Christ. As a follower of Jesus, we are commanded to be witnesses for Christ. It is not really an option. In fact, it is the final instruction that Jesus gives his disciples before he ascends into heaven.

1 - THE FUNDAMENTAL JOB OF A BELIEVER IS TO BE A WITNESS

Being a Believer, in its simplest form is sharing with others what Jesus has done in your life.

It is offering up evidence from your own experience that would validate that Jesus is who he said he is. The book of Acts speaks to this mandate that was for Jesus’ followers then and for his followers that were yet to come.

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 

Jesus tells his followers that they will receive a helper called the Holy Ghost, and that spirit will empower them to be His witnesses. Then Jesus tells them that they are to share the good news about Him, His Word and their experiences with Him, with people everywhere. The Greek word used for witness is the word martus. Martus can actually be translated as martyr. It is a word that shows up throughout the book of Acts as the early Believers demonstrated their faith in Christ to others, even by giving up their lives. When Jesus references Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth, this was a way of drawing an expanding circle out from where they were at that moment, which was Jerusalem, to as far away as they could imagine. There is no place on earth that we are not meant to be advocates for, and examples of, the powerful results of living a life that is submitted to the leadership and love of Jesus.

There are certainly many things that Jesus wants us to do in response to his grace and forgiveness. We need to read the Bible. We need to spend time in prayer. We need to go to church. But the most basic response to faith in Jesus is to look for any way possible that we might tell others about Him. Through word and deed, we can be witnesses to the love of Jesus, the mercy of Jesus, the sacrifice of Jesus, the hope of Jesus, and the power of Jesus. We must be careful not to become so removed from the world that is in need of healing and restoration that we forget to be faithful to this basic calling. Don’t be so Hevenly minded that you’re no earthly good!

Perhaps in this new year, we need to challenge ourselves to live being a better witness. We need to commit to giving evidence to the love of Christ by what we say and do, to and for people, both near and far.

THE FUNDAMENTAL JOB OF A BELIEVER IS TO BE A WITNESS

2 - YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

There are other places in the Gospels where Jesus talks about what it means to be a witness. In fact, in the middle of his most famous sermon, Jesus tells his followers that they have a very important job to do. They are to be lights in the darkness.

Matthew 5:14-16 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 

15  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 

16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. 

Have you ever thought about how important light is? Without it, when everything goes dark, things become very difficult to accomplish.

You become keenly aware of how important light is when you have no access to it. When the power goes out at home at night the house is dark. And even though you live in the house it can become difficult to move around without bumping into somrthing. And don’t let there be a storm because then it can become frightning. But if you can get a working flashlight it makes moving around better because now you have light.

The importance and the significance of Jesus’ words to the disciples would have been clearly understood by those living at that time. If they wanted light, it had to either be daytime or they had to light something. They had to have a torch, lamp, candle, or something similar. Light was a precious thing that was not taken for granted. When Jesus was born into our world, he came into the midst of the darkness. He came to a people who were full of sin and brokenness. He was the only source of true light. This is the witness of His life, “You know what it’s like to be in the dark? You know how even a small light can change everything? That is what Jesus came to do. And when you place your faith, hope and trust in Him… you now have the same light that originates with Him living inside of you.”

Jesus tells them, “A city on a hill cannot be hidden”. When Jesus preaches this message, he was more than likely in the hills of Galilee. In the Ancient Near East, a city was often built on a high point of the surrounding area. This made it safe from invasion. It also made it extremely visible, especially at night. The placement of these cities was important because when someone was traveling in the dark, it was easily seen from far off as the only place that light would be present at night. Some scholars believe that Jesus would have been speaking and motioning to a city in that area called Safed that was some 2560 feet above sea level and would have been visible to everyone around.

You are a light to the world to illuminate the darkness and light the way for others. You are a city on a hill to be a visible place of refuge and protection. You will be important as light in the darkness and as visible to all as a city placed on a high point when you live faithfully for Christ.

YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

3 - DON’T BE ASHAMED

One of the greatest challenges to living as a better witness in this new year is the fear of what others might think about our relationship with Jesus. Some of us might be embarrassed. Some of us might be ashamed. Some of us might be timid about boldly living out our Christian convictions. The Apostle Paul was one of the greatest witnesses for Jesus. He offers us the reason for his willingness to live boldly for Christ in the book of Romans.

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

Paul writes that He is not ashamed of the Gospel. He will not be silenced. He will not hide His faith. The reason is because He knows that it is the power of God that provides salvation for anyone who believes in Jesus. Paul is writing to encourage his readers to be better witnesses because there is so much at stake. People’s eternal future is at stake. The power of God is with us to strengthen us and give us the words to share the good news of Jesus with those He brings across our path.

STORY:Arthor Leighton Ford writes in his book, ‘Good News is For Sharing,’ these questions to ask ourselves whenever we become fearful. He writes, “When I am conscious of the fear of failure holding me back, I go through a kind of personal checklist: Does this fear come basically from pride, a fear that I will not live up to my own expectations or to those of others? Do I remember that God has called me first to faithfulness, then to efficiency? Do I trust that the Holy Spirit is working before me, with me, and through me? Do I remember that I am called to be neither more nor less successful than Jesus Christ was? Do I remember that God does his greatest work when I seem to be weakest? Isn't that, after all, the mystery of the cross?” For when I am weak, He is strong!

DON’T BE ASHAMED

Conclusion

We hold in our hearts the good news of Jesus Christ. The good news is that because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our lives can be transformed and made new. We have experienced forgiveness. We have experienced hope. We have experienced joy. We are witnesses, but we must overcome our fear to share with a world that is in great need… The gospel needs to be shared.

Who is one person in your life that you can be a witness to? What is one thing you can do to be a better witness to the world around you? This new year, look for opportunities to be an advocate for Christ, and take them.

This is the call on our lives and the imperative command that Christ left with us… The truth is, we WILL HAVE a better year if we focus on better priorities, better relationships, and better choices… And because of the changes we’ve made in those three areas, we will naturally be better witnesses to the transformative power of Jesus Christ.

Our lives will bear witness to Him and will open up opportunities to share the good news with others. Let’s pray together that God would bring these opportunities to us and that this would be a Better year ahead.

THE FUNDAMENTAL JOB OF A BELIEVER IS TO BE A WITNESS

YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

DON’T BE ASHAMED

Prayer: “Lord give us grace and confidence to share your good news with others this year. Let our lives tell the story of your love and kindness. Bring the people into our community that you want us to witness to.”