The Power to be a witness

 

The Power to Be a Witness

Now there are two arguments against what I am about to talk about today.

The first one is one that religion absolutely loves to try to tell people.

That the anointing and power and demonstration of the Holy Spirit passed away with the disciples and all that is available to us today is the ability to get saved.

The second argument is that is the pompous religiosity thinking of the modern church that your job my job anyones job is to lift up someone else in the spotlight so that they will draw men unto themselves and we help them fulfill their ministry unto God.

12 disciples were sent out by Jesus,

Matthew 10

King James Version (KJV)

10 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

17 But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;

18 And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.

19 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.

20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.

Matthew 11

King James Version (KJV)

11 And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.

 

Now I just told us that Jesus has sent out the Disciples and that they were anointed to teach and preach and be witnesses for God, Your actually adding support to what you said was not true… That the disciples were special and that when they passed away it was done away with… Well did you know that it was not just the the disciples that were called and chosen and that we are called and chosen too.. and other followers as well were sent out –

 

Luke 10

King James Version (KJV)

10 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.

2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.

3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.

4 Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way.

5 And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house.

6 And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.

7 And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house.

8 And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:

9 And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

10 But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say,

11 Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

12 But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.

13 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.

14 But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.

15 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.

16 He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.

17 And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.

18 And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.

19 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

20 Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.

22 All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.

23 And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see

 

All of them returned – the disciples and the others… All returned with the same message and testimony that amazing miracles and signs and wonders were done at their hands as they went.

 

We were all called and we were all chosen to be witnesses for Christ. All of us… Not just called and chosen… but through our relationship with Christ, our testimony of His love and goodness, and the renewing of our minds by the Word of God, we are being equipped and empowered.

 

God called us and He equips us for the work of the ministry.

 

The right tools for the right job. When you are building a house, working on a car, or fixing a leaky sink, having the right tools makes the job easier.  I am talking about being equipped and prepared with the right tools for the job.

 

Jesus was a carpenter – So trust me when I tell you that he knows that the right tools for the job make things easier.

 

Acts 1:7-9

King James Version (KJV)

7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

Isaiah 40:29

He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

 

Matthew 28:17

17 And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.

18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

 

Luke 24

King James Version (KJV)

44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,

46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:

47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

48 And ye are witnesses of these things.

49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

50 And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.

Acts 4

King James Version (KJV)

4 And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,

2 Being grieved that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

3 And they laid hands on them, and put them in hold unto the next day: for it was now eventide.

4 Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.

5 And it came to pass on the morrow, that their rulers, and elders, and scribes,

6 And Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.

7 And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,

9 If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole;

10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.

12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

14 And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

Mark 16

15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.

20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

A “witness” is someone who attests to a fact, so in order to be an effective witness for Christ, one must have firsthand knowledge of Him. John the Apostle speaks of this in 1 John 1:1-3, when he says, “That . . . which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at, and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of Life.” Today, we who have experienced new life in Christ give an account of His love and forgiveness, both verbally and in the way we live our lives. This is witnessing. To be effective in our witness, we should remember several basic things:

 

1) the Heart of our witness is Jesus Christ. Paul defined the gospel as the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). If we aren’t explaining the sacrifice of Christ, then we’re not really sharing the gospel. (See also 1 Corinthians 2:2 and Romans 10:9-10.) An important part of this theme is the fact that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation, not just one of many ways. “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

 

2) the POWER of our witness is the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit who transforms a life (Titus 3:5), and a transformed life is evident to all. As we witness, we should spend much time in prayer, appropriating the Spirit’s power so that we are enabled to let our light shine in such a way that others will recognize the power of God in us (Matthew 5:16).

 

3) the VALIDITY of our witness will be shown in how we live our lives. Philippians 2:15 sets this goal for us: “That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world.” The effective Christian witness will live his/her life above reproach in the power of the Holy Spirit, whose fruit we exhibit when we remain in Christ (John 15:1-8; Galatians 5:22-23).

 

Perhaps most importantly, we must be familiar enough with the Scriptures to be able to accurately and coherently present the gospel to others. “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15). Always being prepared means diligent Bible study, memorizing Scripture, and praying for God-given opportunities to share with those whose hearts have been prepared by the Lord to hear His message of salvation.

 

God Has Given Us The Power To Witness

‘Now to Him Who, by His power that is at work within us, is able to do superabundantly, far over and above

all that we ask for or think’ (Ephesians 3:20).

 

The power that propels the spiritual weapons to the place where they are needed, is the Holy Spirit.

 

‘For the Kingdom of God is not based on words but on power’ (1 Corinthians 4:20). Two people can pray the exact same thing with two different results. It is not the words we use when we pray, it is in the power behind the words that bring the desired results. ‘The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know what prayer to offer as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with yearnings and groanings too deep to utter. He Who searches the hearts of men knows what is in the mind of the Holy Spirit because the Spirit intercedes on behalf of God’s people, according to the will of God’ (Romans 8:26 & 27).

 

In the measure we yield to the Holy Spirit, is the measure our prayers become effective. If we are not filled with the Holy Spirit, we can’t yield to Him and our prayers will not be effective. The one and only power that makes our prayers effective, is the power of the Holy Spirit. ‘With all prayer and requests, pray at all times in the Spirit’ (Ephesians 6:18). If we have not received the Holy Spirit, then it is impossible to pray in the Spirit.

 

When Paul, the other apostles and the disciples preached the Gospel in the power of God, the whole of Asia heard the Word of God, the Lord did many miracles and the Word of God prevailed (Acts 19:8,10, 20 & 26), much to the distress of some non-believers. At that time in history, the Gospel went out to the whole world (Romans 1:8). What is now Africa heard the Gospel through Philip and the Ethiopian man. Ethiopia was a Christian nation until fairly recently. Philip was caught away and was transported supernaturally to the area of what is now around Gaza, where he continued to preach the Gospel (Acts 8:26 to 40).

 

Jesus said, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). There is a difference between witnessing and being a witness. To witness is to merely to see an event with the eyes.

 

To be a witness is to speak of the event with the mouth. Jesus said the Jews would be His witnesses; or they would speak of His ministry with His testimony. That is not the whole story. We also have to be a witness to

the unsaved by the way we live. We need to be God’s examples on earth – to be the salt or sweet seasoning of God (Matthew 5:13). We need to show His character, His nature, His love, His grace and we also need to explain about His judgement on those who refuse to believe. We can’t say one thing with our mouths, and another with our lives. Our lives have to line up with what we say about the Lord. We need to talk about Jesus and once we have their attention, then we can explain about other things regarding the Gospel. ‘With

great strength and power the apostles delivered their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Great grace rested upon them all’ (Acts 4:33).

Witnessing is simply telling what God has done for us. His testimony is telling people what Jesus has done for us on the cross, and we need to tell the whole earth. People who have been saved from tragic lives by giving their lives to Jesus can be very effective witnesses. The apostles witnessed about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and that He is alive. We need to let everybody know that Jesus is alive. Some religious people today, just as religious people did in the days of the apostles, protest strongly when they are faced with the actual power of Jesus and His Name. ‘We definitely commanded you not to teach about this Name (of Jesus); yet here you have flooded Jerusalem with your doctrine and you intend to bring this Man’s blood

upon us’. Then Peter and the apostles replied; “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:28 & 29). Under the power of the Holy Spirit, they had filled Jerusalem with the doctrine of the resurrection of Jesus. That was done by every believer carrying His testimony.

 

‘They have overcome the devil by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony, for they did not love their life even when faced with death’ (Revelation 12:11). This verse says, ‘They overcame him (the devil)’. It is our

responsibility to defeat him and that is why we have been given the weapons needed for this warfare; the belt of truth; the breastplate of righteousness; the preparation of the Gospel of peace; the shield of faith; helmet of salvation; and the sword of the Spirit’ (Ephesians 6:10 to 17). ‘For the weapons of our warfare are not physical, but are mighty and powerful for pulling down (evil) strongholds’ (2 Corinthians 10:4).

 

We must not be ignorant of the power the Holy Spirit has given us.

The Holy Spirit has given us power to witness and testify. “Not by might, not by power but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts”

(Zechariah 4:6). It is the power of the Holy Spirit that empowers us to spread the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and Jesus said, “I must preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, for this was the reason I was sent (Luke 4:43) … This Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole earth for a testimony to all the nations, then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14).

So… Looking back at Acts 1:8

Acts 1:8

King James Version (KJV)

⁸ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Is this verse for you now?  Yes.  Same Spirit, same Lord, same need.  Do you need power when witnessing to unbelievers?  Acts 1:8 is a promise from Jesus that you will not be left empty handed when sharing the truth of Christ’s love and sacrifice for sinners.

1. You will received Power
   1. What power?
      1. The power that comes from the Spirit of God.
      2. The power that opened the eyes of the blind, and the hearts of unbelievers.  The power that raised the dead.  The Power that comes from God Himself.

• This is the power that is promised to those who wait on God and to follow Him because it is of God, from God, for the redeemed…. it is the power of the Holy Spirit that lives in you and can abide upon you and will work through you.

1. Power to do what?
   1. In this context, it is the power of God for the disciples to be able to preach the word and perform signs and miracles as a testimony to the power and authority of God’s saving gospel.
   2. It is the power to speak the word of God
      1. Open your mouth and let God fill it.
   3. Matt 10:19 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.
   4. 20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.
      1. Power to understand the word of God
         1. Sudden and profound illumination of God’s word.
      2. Power to experience God in a fuller way.
         1. A more intimate relationship, hearing His voice, knowing His will.
      3. How do you get this power?
         1. Prayer: In Acts 4:31, after prayer, the Holy Spirit filled the room that the apostles were praying in.
         2. Laying on of hands: “And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying” (Acts 19:6).

• Obedience: “And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him,” (Acts 5:32)

4. When do you receive this power? When the Holy Spirit Comes upon you.
   1. “And all the circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the Gentiles also.  46 For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God” (Acts 10:45-46).
5. Prophesying
   1. I will in those days pour forth of My Spirit and they shall prophesy” (Acts 2:18).

• Profound Repentance
  1. “And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as He did upon us at the beginning.  16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how He used to say, ‘John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’  17 If God therefore gave to them the same gift as He gave to us also after believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?”  18 And when they heard this, they quieted down, and glorified God, saying, Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life,” (Acts 11:15-18).

1. Speaking the word of God with boldness
   1. “And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31).
2. What is the purpose of this power? To be Witnesses for Jesus.
   1. “…but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses…”
   2. Not your own witness. Not witness for someone else’s ministry… but witnesses for Christ.
   3. Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks… and when the Holy Spirit is in and upon you, you shall speak of Jesus.
      1. John 15:26says, “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness of Me.”
   4. Finally, Jesus tells us where you are to be a Witness for Him: Everywhere.
      1. The text speaks of their present location: Jerusalem.
         1. For you it is where you live.
      2. Then it speaks of the local area
         1. For you it might by the county you live in.
      3. Then it speaks of the world
      4. It is easy, sometimes, to be a witness for Him only at church or among our friends who are also Christians.  It gets difficult when we have to stand for Jesus when things can be inconvenient. …. but, the Holy Spirit overrides our feelings, fears, and faults and moves us to sacrifice in love to fellow man and obedience to God.
      5. LaMarque needs your witness of Jesus. Watch the news – it is quite evident the USA needs Jesus.
      6. You have been commissioned. GO YE… You’re not alone, you’re not powerless, you are equipped.

Conclusion

It is the Holy Spirit that gives you the power, the strength, the boldness, ability, and the confidence to be witnesses for Jesus. You can’t do it on your own.

If you want to be a bolder witness for Jesus, you need to be praying for it, obeying the Lord, and submitting to the will of the Lord.

Don’t be scared of experiencing God.  Don’t be scared of being a witness for Him either.