Why and How to be a Witness?

Why Witness?

The answer is quiet simple.

Christ commanded us to do so (Matthew 28:18-20).

Matthew 28:18–20 ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Jesus’ last commandment to the disciples was to be evangelistic. Evangelism consist of leading people to Christ and discipling them to help them get deeper.

Who do we witness to?

Nations comes from the Greek word ethnos which is where we get our word for ethnicities. So in other words you are to be a witness to anyone no matter their background or culture. And to be a witness to all nations you don’t necessarily have to leave the United States to do so. Think of the diversity of people you run into on a regular basis.

When we witness to someone the work does not stop upon their salvation, it is just beginning. Jesus did not just say baptize (salvation) but to make disciples and teaching them to observe all that Jesus commanded. That is one reason I have been spending so much time teaching all how to study because you need a solid understanding of Scripture so you can go forth and faithfully carry out the great commission.

As you are going remember Jesus is always with you.

Your a megaphone for Jesus.

You are following Him to where He leads and speaking what He leads you to say. Which is bringing us to our next step...

Evaluate Your Life Before Witnessing

To be a good witness you need to have your life in order. The passage Matthew 7:1-5 comes to mind:

Matthew 7:1–5 ESV

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

We often here the first two words quoted to us, but people rarely give it to us in complete context. This passage is telling you to evaluate your life because your sin should be your number one issue. So you hold your life up to Scripture, but then you take the word to the people. Preach the Gospel to people. As people get saved discipleship begins and you hold them against scripture. In a since you deliver the verdict not the judgement.

What area of your life do you need to work on?

2 Corinthians 6:3 is another scripture that comes to mind when making sure we got our lives straight.

2 Corinthians 6:3 ESV

We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry,

F.I.R.E.

When witnessing to people a method i find very useful and one of the best is the FIRE method. In a sense we do this method in the long run with our friendships, but you can also use this in quick conversations.

F- Family

So you start off back getting to know someone. F and I both can be done in the same step. We all come from a family. You always can ask someone do they have siblings or you may know a family member of theirs. Or you could tell them a short family memory you have relating to whatever the situation is.

I- Interest

Everybody has things they like to do. A lot of times the interest is a given, given the environment (example football game). Find some common ground to build a relationship around.

R- Religion

After you have built a general relationship with them you can start getting a little deeper and personal on a spiritual level with them. Many ways you can get to this. Take analogies from the situation to transition to the convo. The wonder of creation. What you think is after this life?

E- Evangelize

At this stage you share the Gospel with them

The Gospel

I personally like using Romans 5:12-21 when i share the gospel with people, but really you just need to find a passage that works good for you. But also the Roman road is a good method too and that is the method we will discuss tonight

Romans 1:20–21 ESV

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Romans 3:10 ESV

as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;

Romans 3:23 ESV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 6:23 ESV

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 5:8 ESV

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 10:9–10 ESV

because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

Romans 10:13 ESV

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

If you get to go through all the way to this point you need to then ask would they like to have a relationship with Christ. Then pray with them and help disciple them or get them connected with the resources they need.

When we share the Gospel we must show the need for a Savior, the power of our Savior, and how Jesus’ power transforms lives.

Testimony

Also something else to do when evangelizing is sharing our testimony.Sometimes you get to do both and sometimes just one or the other. So what does it look like to share your testimony? What does it mean?

Your testimony is you testifying to what Jesus has done in your life.

I am going to share mine with you just to give you an example of what it looks like.

Share Testimony

A few personal details about you?

Family, upbringing, hobbies, etc.

How was were life before Jesus?

How were you mentally?

Bad habits?

Were you content?

Did you have anger problems?

How were you saved?

How did the events around your salvation look?

How has your life changed since salvation?

What are some struggles Christ has brought you through since being saved?