Witness Pt.1
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Introduction
Introduction
What’s the single most significant event that’s ever happened in your life? (For the purpose of where we’re going, it can’t be when you were born or when you came to faith in Jesus Christ.)
2 competing events for me -
When my grandmother passed away.
When I met my wife.
How did that event change your life?
When my grandmother passed away…our home just never really recovered.
Here was the other reality for me personally…I got really angry at God and ran further and further away from Him, into rebellion, for the next 10 years of my life.
When I met my wife…of course if you’re married you know what it means, I mean, if you’re committed to making your marriage work you reorganize and restructure the majority of life around that person, and they do the same for you. (Two people become one).
But, again, here’s the other reality, the spiritual reality…my rebellion against God, my running away from Him from the age of 14 to 24 ultimately manifested itself in my marriage.
Here’s the next question: Do you show and/or tell people how that event changed your life?
Tension/Truth
Tension/Truth
This morning we’re starting a new series entitled Witness, and you’re probably smart enough to have put two and two together to know what this series is going to be about.
This morning we’re going to be in the book of Acts, we’ll probably spend a decent amount of time in the book of Acts during this series, and so the first thing I want to do is just give you a quick introduction to the book.
Acts is called Acts, because it records the Acts of the Apostles. To expound on that a little bit…
Acts records the acts of the apostles of Jesus Christ in light of His death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and everything else He did and said.
If you brought your bible with you this morning…Acts 1.
Pray.
Before we jump into Acts let me sort of establish some context for us.
Here’s the thing, when Jesus left His throne in heaven and came to earth circa 0-33 AD, there were real people living real lives, and for some number of them, 12 of them in particular, but also about 120 other significant individuals. Jesus interjected Himself into their lives in really significant way.
(Image of Peter and Andrew fishing.)
These people were just living their lives. Some of them were fishermen, just trying to earn a living catching and selling fish. One of them was a tax collector. One of them was a zealot, which meant he was essentially anti-government, anti-roman rule, and probably would have been willing to go to extreme measures to overthrow Rome as the dominating empire.
All these people, 12-120, they were just ordinary people, living ordinary lives. Can you imagine if Jesus came and inserted Himself into your life?
These guys believed that their Messiah would be militaristic, governmental, and religious leader. Meaning, primarily, that He would overthrow Rome and re-establish Israel as a sovereign nation.
And then, when that time comes, and I know we’re probably all familiar with the story, when Jesus is going to make His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, instead of going into the government area, the Roman praetorium, and overthrowing Rome He goes to the temple and overturns the money changers tables. What Jesus was upset about, was not that Rome had come in and oppressed Israel, but that the Jewish religious leaders had perverted the worship of God at the temple of God.
And then, less than a week later, He’s betrayed, He’s arrested, He’s falsely accused and tried, then He’s crucified, and He dies, and He’s buried.
Can you imagine how significant all this would be in your life. And at this point it’s probably nothing but devastating.
Especially for the 12 who walked away from their ordinary lives in order to be Jesus’ disciples…, “What are we supposed to do now?”
But then, a few days after He’s crucified, He comes back to life. And at first there’s just rumors.
At first it’s some women who are saying Jesus has come back to life, Mary Magdelene, Mary the mother of James, Salome, Joanna and some others.
(I think they’re probably hysterical and have had a hallucination.)
But then, Jesus appears to you and your buddies.
And over the course of 40 days Jesus just sort of randomly and mysteriously shows up.
How significant do you think that would be in your life?
How significant would what He said in each one of those appearances be to you?
This morning we’re going to look at one of Jesus’ statements in His final appearance to His disciples.
1 The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,
Former account - Luke’s gospel (account of the life of Jesus)
Theophilus - can’t get into it
to do and teach - acts of Jesus, the things that He did, and His teachings (teachings - sayings)
2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen,
3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
His suffering - crucifixion
Alive - resurrection
Many infallible proofs - when you examine the evidence, Jesus really rose from the grave.
Forty days -
Speaking of the things - giving testimony
37 Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”
Jesus’ life, in everything He did and everything He said, bore witness to the truth. And what, or Who is truth?
4 John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
Pause - if Jesus told you in this moment, that the Holy Spirit (Who is God Himself) was going to immerse you, how would you respond?
Here’s how the disciples responded…
6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”
They’re still looking for a militaristic, governmental leader to overthrow Rome.
Here’s how Jesus answered their question.
7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.
Jesus’ fancy way of saying “no!”
Then He brings it back to what’s important.
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Power - dunamis (doo-nah-mis) force. “May the force be with you.” Because the Holy Spirit is power. The same Holy Spirit that hovered over the face of the deep, when coupled with (IMO the voice of Jesus) brought creation into existence.
You’re going to be baptized with that same power.
Witness - It's the word behind our English word martyr, although originally it did not simply mean "someone who dies for his faith." The connection developed because the early Christian witnesses were sometimes called upon to authenticate their testimony of Christ by giving their lives.
Notice: Does the scripture say, “you shall witness”? No, what does it say, you shall be witnesses.
I don’t think Jesus is saying, there’s a task I have for you to go accomplish. I’ve got a job for you to get good at. I think Jesus is helping them understand their identity in Him.
One of the mistakes I think we make in our understanding and our practical implementation of “witnessing” is that we think it’s just a task to accomplish on Jesus’ behalf.
End of the earth - (greek word for soil), that there’s no land that’s restricted from being witnessed to. If there’s soil and some ears, witness.
The disciples seem unconcerned with what Jesus tells them right here.
Contextually: This is apart of Jesus’ answer to a question they asked Him. Are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?
Jesus - man listen, we’re going to take this thing so far beyond Israel.
Out mindset has to be as big as Jesus’, conquer the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
Probably because they were amazed.
I think these angels were saying this as much for all believers for all time just as much as they were saying it for these guys.
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey.
We are called to witness, to give testimony, to Who Jesus Christ is.
Not just a task.
But a vital part of our identity as followers of Jesus Christ.
We have to have an absolute dependence on the Holy Spirit within us.
This is something I learned early on in ministry.
You and I cannot do what only God can do. You and I don’t have the power to change anyone.
We have the responsibility to do and speak of Who Jesus Christ is with the expectation that the Holy Spirit is with us and that He can do what we cannot.
Application
Application
a witness: someone who testifies to what he has seen, heard, or knows to be true
15-second testimony
There was a time in my life when…
I was fatherless…a dirtbag husband…neglectful father.
But God…
became my perfect Heavenly Father, and showed me what it means to be a man. (Love my wife as Christ loves His church, how to love my children the way He loves me.)
Now I am filled with…
a desire to love my wife as Christ loves His church…to love my children the way God loves me.
Tie 15 second testimony cards into next series “This is my story.”
Video testimonies.
Closing
Closing
Repent, believe, obey.
