Witness

witness

Last week we opened up Acts 1:6-9 (http://f163865.wpengine.com/listen/) and heard Jesus say these words to his disciples: But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”  So often I heard that word witness and thought of people telling stories filled with drama, tears, and life altering events that I could only wish to experience.  Then I began to unpack the language in this verse.  The Greek word for witness in this sentence is “martyr,” the word we would later take into the English language to refer to those who suffer and are persecuted for sharing their faith.  The original meaning came from a courtroom setting.  This was a word that spoke of a person who would be called as a witness, to share their first-hand account of what they have seen, heard, and know.

Jesus command to his disciples is to be his witness, to share with others what they have seen and heard about God.  And this command is for us to, to be a witness to what God has done for others.  For me to be a witness takes the pressure off, it shifts my mental picture from needing an eloquent, thoughtful speech about God, to sharing stories big and small, ordinary and extraordinary of God’s work in our lives and all around us.

What have you witnessed of God at work around you?  Take time to share those stories, and invite others to share them with you too.  Remember these stories are powerful, not because of the humanness of them, but of the God who is at work in them.   It is not about making your story interesting, instead it’s about sharing about our awesome God and the ways He shows up in our everyday lives.

 

Pastor Bill