Witnesses

Introduction

Today’s passage ends with mentioning that these apostles were witnesses. Witnesses - this word can take on many different meanings based on the context of the word being used. You can be a witness to an event. You can be a witness to someone’s words or actions. You can be a witness in court. At any rate, today we are talking about these disciples and them calling themselves witness to Jesus death and resurrection. They are witnesses of the Holy Spirit coming upon those who believe and obey God. I have two questions for today. What were these disciples witness to? What are we witness to?

What were these apostles witness to?

Trouble

The apostles were witness to a broken culture, a compromised religion, a people lost and with no ability to turn back to God on their own for repentance and forgiveness. The people needed a new hope. They witnessed daily struggles and corruption and God less life. The religious authority could not lead them spiritually and struggled even politically. They were witness Jesus, innocent of any crime, put to death on the cross. They were witness to the hypocrisy of the religious leaders teaching one thing but living another way. They were witness of the religious leaders being jealous of the people swaying in favor of Jesus as a religious leader they could follow.

These disciples were arrested and threatened. They were forbidden to teach in Jesus’ name. They were brought before the council twice and thrown in jail. They were in direct conflict with the religious authority.

Grace

They were witness to Jesus, rising from the dead. Jesus Christ encouraged the disciples with their commissioning. The Holy Spirit empowered them by falling on them and moving them from scared and fearful to bold and powerful. These disciples were empowered to boldly preach, heal, and perform miracles in the name of Jesus. Jesus offered hope and a renewed spiritual life.

Even though they were arrested, the Angel of the Lord freed them. Even though they were threatened, it did not deter them but in fact emboldened them. The fact that they were having such effects on the people proved the point they were in fact being led by God because human authority had not sway on them nor did it have any power over them. In fact, people were being swayed by these disciples to believe in the power of Jesus’ authority. These ordinary people were undisputed performing miracles and healings and teaching with authority only God could provide.

In some ways, you could say they were uniting the people under Jesus whereas they were divided under the Sanhedrin and Romans.

What are we witness to?

Trouble

If I am honest, I hear lots of things that are wrong with the world today. I hear lots of things that are wrong with the church today. I hear disagreements and a lack of the respect in general for human life. In some ways, while we may not be in 1st century Jerusalem, we are not terribly far away either. There is a lack of spiritual leading. There is a general attitude of the church having lost its ways or changed so much that it is not the same church anymore. Circumstances have worn down generations where they are tired and weary and feeling less of the Spirit leading their lives.

There is also a move away from the church in general. For some reason, there is a trend of questioning whether the church is really needed to be spiritual. Or it is relegated amongst a list of other priorities where it sometimes wins out the day. Or the conversation goes like this that the church is full of hypocrites or full of people who are judgmental towards others. Or I believe more dangerously is a move towards withdrawing from the church community in general because people of reasons like disagreement within the church and fear of being controlled by others.

There is so much division going on, it breaks my heart to witness it. If I am frank, the devil is having his way by dividing us. The scariest thought for the devil is the churches coming together for the purpose of making disciples. If we are only focused on what is wrong with the church and separating ourselves from what is wrong then we end up even more isolated. Folks we are making it too easy on the devil in allowing him to divide us over anything and everything.

Grace

I see God’s grace in many individuals though. While we can find many faults and disappointments, there is still hope to be found. I have a passion to see the church united in purpose. I witness this happening in specific moments where a group of churches can come together for a worship service or come together for mission work. I see churches putting aside differences to be in community together. I see churches putting aside names and differences in theology in order to serve a higher purpose in serving in mission work together.

I work directly and indirectly with many other pastors who just like me, decide every day to serve in the task God has put them on. Despite people who object to the church, we go to church. Despite people who point out the brokenness in the church, we go to church. Despite the drama and debates that go on outside and inside the church, we go to church each time.

While the thought of throwing in the towel may cross my mind, I get up and decide each day, I will serve God in the church. While the thought of being tired from all the noise that takes us away from the mission seems to be the loudest, I will focus each day on the mission of making disciples.

I do see people in the church growing by God’s grace. I have seen over the past year a renewed interest in wanting to know more about God through the bible. I have heard some people describe a hunger to know more. I have witnessed some people stepping up into different roles because they saw the need and decided to serve in the church. Some of this is examples like organizing the cleaning the church. Others are organizing the restarting the children's ministry. While others serve in worship. Yet others still decide to make it to Sunday School and study the word together. I have seen others organize meal planning like Thanksgiving service. There are others who volunteer anytime a need arises and others who help with the administration side of things. All of us coming together and serving is the goal of discipleship. We come together to learn and grow and serve.

Bear Witness to each other

Each of us has within us that grace to serve in this church. I issued a challenge last week to a handful of people and today I want to issue this challenge to the whole church. This challenge is to pray and ask God to show you one person you need to pray for. This one person you are praying for needs to hear from you about what they may be gifted with and not know it. Often times, people may not recognize their giftedness in some area but others witness things they do and say which show them their giftedness. My challenge today is to pray and bear witness to this person what their giftedness may be in serving the church or others in general.

There are no limits when it comes to being gifted. I have some very young people preach. I have seen wisdom come from young and old alike. I have seen passion in young and old alike who are moved by God for a mission. Praying is something we all can do. Serving is something we all can do. Sometimes we just need a nudge or word of encouragement from someone else that sees that something in us.

Lets take a break from the negativity easily found where we speak about all the things wrong with the world and the church. This week and focus on something positive in each other and building up the body of Christ found in this church. Look for God’s grace at work because it is there. These disciples bore witness to this and we too have a responsibility to share about God’s grace expressed in the testimony of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit that comes upon those who obey God. Lets focus on being witnesses of the grace of God at work rather than witnesses who share all that is wrong with the world and each other.