Nothing strikes fear in the heart of most believers than this one word:
Witnessing! I can hear the shrieks in my head as you read this word. It conjours up sermons from the past that produced guilt because you didn't leave a tract at McDonalds, that you have not shared your faith with your neighbor, and that you still have not memorized the Roman Road verses. It brings to mind those strange people that carry signs by the road side, or the ones that go around your neighborhood knocking on doors, invading the private homes of people they don't even know.
Believe me...I can feel your fear. I have been there. Fear of witnessing...of sharing your faith is very real...and very common.
But it shouldn't be.
I think often that the reason for much of our fear is two-fold.
One: We think witnessing is something that it isn't. We feel that whe have to have a degree in greek and hebrew and that we have to be able to answer any and every question that someone throws at us.
Two: We have bought the lie that we don't know how to be a witness.
I want to offer you some ideas, some thoughts of mine that just might relieve you of your fears and release the inner-witness inside of you.
First of all, if you know the Lord as your Savior, then you are a witness. You see, being a witness is not something you do, it is something you are. If Jesus has changed your life, brought you from darkness to light, from lost to found, from dead to alive, then you are a witness to what He has done in your life.
Second, a witness does not have to have a degree in anything. If you are called to be a witness at a trial, you don't have to go to law school. You simply have to testify to what you have seen and heard. When it comes to being a witness for Christ, it's the same thing. All we have to do is testify to what we have seen and heard. You may not know all the ends and outs of theology. There are people that use big words to impress people, but we are called to be a witness and you don't need to have a degree to be a witness of anything...you just tell what you have seen and heard, and experienced.
Third, you don't have to have all the answers to every question you will get asked. In fact, there is no way you will have the answers to every question you are asked, and even if you did, some people wouldn't believe the answer anyway.
Fourth, don't think you are the one that is responsible for the salvation of anyone...because you're not. That's the job of the Holy Spirit. Don't worry if you might say something wrong...in fact, let me assure you of this, you probably will say something wrong, but it's not about you, how well you speak, how good you look, how smooth your voice soungs, or how convincing of a case you make...you and I just need to be obedient, and let the Holy Spirit do His thing...after all, He's much better at it than we are.
So remember when you wake up tomorrow, when you go to work tomorrow, when you go shopping, go to school or go get your hair cut....you are a witness. We're not called to be the judge, jury, executioner or a super salesman. Just share what happened to you....share WHO happened to you.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so!
Pastor Dave
3 comments:
Pastor,
I spend just about every waking spiritual moment thinking/dreading the idea of witnessing. For me, it is a fear of rejection. I know it's not me they reject, but boy is it scary. Still, you bring up good points here. We must prepare simply to tell it as we saw it happen to us...be a witness. This is good stuff.
Dan, I get where you're coming from. After all, the gospel is the cure for the disease that all mankind is suffering from. If someone gave me the cure for cancer in a little glass tube and told me to take it across town, I would be fearful...what if I dropped it, what if I lost it..etc. But with the gospel, Christ is holding the cure, we're just delivering the message of how we found the cure. It's really about letting go and letting Him. Once it becomes natural, like talking about our kids, our job, our family, then we can plant seeds all day long as we encounter people. Yeah, rejection is tough, and sometimes, they are rejecting us...it might cost us once the conversation "heats up", but Jesus said we would be blessed when we are persecuted and rejected by men. So in the end...it really is all about HIM! Thanks for your comments.
Pastor Dave
I completely agree with you, Dan. I think that many are scared to witness because they don't think that they have one, or they don't "know how". The wonderful thing about Christ and His salvation, as Pastor Dave points out, is that if you are a Christian, you have been changed....as Paul says in Romans 12:2, you are transformed by the renewing of your mind. We as Christians have a witness, whether we realize it or not. If you have a mouth and are saved, you have a witness. Doing it is tough, but thankfully we can be strong in the power of the Lord and in His might. As we are told, "with God, all things are possible". You can do it!
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