Witness to the World

Take your copy of God’s word this morning and turn in your Bibles to John 15:8:

Today’s message is entitled “Witness to the World”

We have been looking closely at the Disciples Cross.

I hope you’re seeing this enough that you’re starting to memorize it. (Show Disciple’s Cross Graphic)

This is the Disciple’s Cross.

It’s a teaching tool developed by a man named Avery T. Willis.

He developed this as a teaching tool.

His goal was for people to visually see these elements of the Disciples life as they live out the faith in Christ and His work Jesus accomplished on the cross.

As your Pastor my hope, goal and aim is to make Disciples of Jesus who make more Disciples of Jesus.

Our goal is to raise up people who follow Jesus in such a way that others want to follow Jesus.

And so we’ve been concentrating on this topic for two months.

What is a Disciple?

And how do I become a Disciple?

And we’ve used this teaching device, this Disciple’s Cross, to answer those questions

A Disciple has to have Jesus as the center of their life.

Jesus has to be number 1.

The rest of our lives have to flow around the fact that Jesus is our priority.

He is at the center of the Disciple’s Cross.

He has to be at the center of the Disciple’s life. (Abide in Him)

Once Jesus is center, we move to the bottom vertical axis.

It represents the need for a Disciple to be grounded in the Word of God.

And that Word is the Bible.

The Bible is not an accessory in the life of a disciple, it’s a necessity.

We have to spend time daily with the Lord in His Word.

When we do that, there’s four things that happen.

We get to know the Lord.

We get guidance and direction from the Lord.

We bring our needs and desires to the Lord.

We see God make a difference in our lives.

Then we move to the upper vertical axis of the Disciple’s Cross.

And that part of the Cross represents prayer.

Prayer is also a necessity of a disciple of Jesus.

It’s the Disciple coming into the holy, awe-inspiring presence of God.

We need to pray and we need to know how to pray.

We begin with thanksgiving.

Then we move from thanksgiving to praise.

We move from praise to confession.

We follow up with asking, which involves petition and intercession.

Last week we moved to the right horizontal axis. (And I want to publicly thank Rick Corely for bring last weeks message)

That part of the cross represents fellowship.

Jesus didn’t save us to exist in a vacuum, by ourselves.

To be a Christian means to be part of Christ’s body—the Church.

It’s means to be part of a loving relationship with Jesus and with each other.

Today we move to the left horizontal axis of the Disciple’s Cross.

And that section represents a Disciple’s WITNESS.

Witness

Martin Luther once said, “Every Christian must become Christ to his neighbor.” Was he suggesting that each Christian should die on a cross to atone for the sins of his neighbors? No, he was saying that Christ is invisible to our unbelieving neighbors. They don’t see the cross, the empty tomb, or the transfigured Jesus. They don’t see Him in His ascended glory, and they don’t see Him at the right hand of the Father. All they see is you—and in seeing you, they must see Christ.

What does it mean to be a witness?

To witness means that you show people something they don’t see

There are many ways to do this, according to Scripture. When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we’re doing something visible that shows forth the Lord’s death until He comes.

Jesus spoke of another way to witness which Rick talked about last week: “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).

The way Christians relate to each other—which is something that people can see—bears witness to Christ.

And yet there is something else people will see that is being produced in you. Lets look at what that is as read John 15:8.

Read John 15:8

John 15:8 NKJV

8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

Fruit bearing is visible of Christ in a disciples life.

Our fruit proves that we’re a Disciple.

The world knows we’re Disciples by our love for one another.

And we prove we’re a Disciple by the fruit that’s produced in our lives.

Fruit shows up in the life of a Disciple.

Fruit is not something we strive to produce.

We don’t try real hard and out pops fruit.

It’s not something we can do on our own.

It’s something God does through us.

When Christ is the center of our life, we have that seed for fruit in our lives.

When we’re grounded in His Word, that seed is fertilized.

We put ourselves in position where the Holy Spirit can produce fruit in us!

What does this Holy Spirit produced fruit look like?

1. Read Galatians 5:22–23

Galatians 5:22–23 NKJV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

When Christ is the center of our lives, and we’re in the word, praying, and in fellowship with other Disciples, these things start popping up in our lives.

We start learning to love and to be loved.

There’s joy and peace.

Believe it or not, our patience starts growing.

We treat people better, trust God more, act more like Jesus.

This is the fruit that pops out of us.

And there’s something that starts happening then.

People notice we’re different.

They see something in us they haven’t seen before.

And it attracts them.

They’re looking for everything they see in you.

And they want to know what it is that is giving you what they are seeking.

And that leads to the best fruit of all. Really its the root of the fruit.

That that is Jesus Christ.

Read again John 15:8

John 15:8 NKJV

8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

“By this My Faith is glorified” it is the fruit you bear that points people to the source, or the center of it all. Jesus! He is glorified when His fruit is visible.

If someone tomorrow comes up to you and says, “What’s going on in your life?” how will you respond?

You may say, “It’s Jesus in me!”

And then what if they say, “Cool, how do I get what you have?”

“How can I have Jesus in my life?”

How will you respond?

Read 1 Peter 3:15

1 Peter 3:15 NKJV

15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

The Bible tells us we should always be prepared to tell people what’s going on in us.

Be prepared.

If someone asks you right now how to know Jesus, what would you do? How would you respond?

Some of you may say, you need to come to my church and hear what the pastor has to say? Or you worst yet you may say, well I am not sure let me get back to you on that.

As I said earlier, I want our church to be made up of disciples who make Disciples.

We are not to be fearful in sharing the gospel with others or passing that opportunity off to someone else for another day.

For today is the day of salvation. You must be prepared yourself to be able to lead someone to the knowledge of who Christ is.

My primary job as your pastor, is to teach the Word of God and equip you for the ministry.

So I want to prepare you for leading someone you love and trust to the Lord.

(Hand outs here—I prepared a half page with verses from the Roman Road and gave to everyone in the congregation.)

This is a layout for what’s known as the Roman Road.

This is not the only way to help someone come to know Jesus.

But it is a way when you may not have another.

Let’s walk down the Roman Road toward eternal salvation.

1. God’s Salvation is Available to Everyone.

Romans 1:16

Romans 1:16 NKJV

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

2. God Loves You and Wants You to Turn to Him.

Romans 2:4

Romans 2:4 NKJV

4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

3. But We’ve All Sinned and Missed God’s Standard.

Romans 3:23

Romans 3:23 NKJV

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

4. God made a Way for Sinners—Through Jesus.

Romans 5:8

Romans 5:8 NKJV

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

5. We Deserve Death for Our Sins but We Have Forgiveness and Life Through Jesus.

Romans 6:23

Romans 6:23 NKJV

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

6. Confess and Believe for Salvation in Jesus.

Romans 10:9–10:13

Romans 10:9–13 NKJV

9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

7. When we Confess and Believe We are no longer Condemned.

Romans 8:1

Romans 8:1 NKJV

1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

8. Now we give ourselves to God and Let Him Transform our Lives.

Romans 12:1–2

Romans 12:1–2 NKJV

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

I. Tuck this away in your Bible.

1. Fold it up and put it in your purse or wallet.

2. Memorize it.

3. Always have a Bible ready.

4. Just do what you know and trust Jesus for the rest.

What Is the Great Commission? (Chapter One: What Is the Gospel?)

The battle between the Persian army of Darius I and the troops of Greece that took place at Marathon in 490 BC was a watershed moment in the Greco-Persian Wars and in the history of Western society.

Until that point, Darius had not been defeated in his quest to conquer Greece, and Persian dominance across the Mediterranean region had grown steadily for more than one hundred and fifty years.

The defeat of the superior Persian forces by the Greek army at Marathon ushered in the two-hundred-year influence of Classical Greek culture and the decline of the Medo-Persian Empire.

This was a hugely important battle—yet the people back home had no idea of the outcome in the battle’s immediate aftermath. They had to wait anxiously to get some word of what had happened.

But today, in most cases, we don’t have to wait very long for updates on significant events. We live in a world where news travels very rapidly, with sophisticated technology to announce what is going on around the globe in a matter of moments.

In the ancient world, though, it was not like that. A battle of strategic importance for the history of the nation may have been taking place two thousand miles away, and it would certainly have taken some time for reports to travel so far.

Armies in the ancient world used runners to carry word about the outcome of battles. The people at home would post lookouts to watch for some sign of a messenger.

It’s said that the watchman could tell by the bearing of the runner whether he was coming with good news or bad.

One of the enduring legacies of the Battle of Marathon is as the inspiration of the marathon-length race.

The legend is that a runner brought news of the Athenian victory to the city of Athens and dropped dead from exhaustion after he arrived. He pushed himself to the absolute limit because he was bearing good news, and he wanted the people to be able to rejoice in it.

The Apostle Paul alluded to these practices in his epistle to the Romans, where he said, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” (10:15).

Picture how the watchman could see the feet flying as the runner rushed to the city gates to bring good news. It was a beautiful sight, and the people would shout celebrations of victory at the sight of him.

Romans 10:15 NKJV

15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!”

We have good news, great news, the best news. Let’s go and share it with the world.