Show and Tell

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.

We all have a job to do once we get saved. Our job is to show Jesus in our lives, and tell others about Him. This is called The Great Commission. God doesn’t want anyone to perish. He wants everyone to accept Jesus and be saved. Does this mean that everyone is going to Heaven? No, it doesn’t. Not everyone is going to accept the sacrifice that Jesus made on the Cross. The thing is, we don’t know who will accept Him, and who won’t. We have to tell everyone and let them decide.

We are called witnesses. When we speak to someone about Jesus, we are “witnessing” to them. When we tell someone what Jesus did for us, we are sharing our “testimony”. It can sometimes be a little scary to do. Don’t feel bad for being afraid. We all feel that to some degree. We are putting ourselves “out there”, and risking rejection and ridicule. However, let’s put that into perspective. Jesus was rejected and ridiculed right up until He took His last breath on the Cross. We also need to keep in mind how important it is to talk to others about Jesus. We don’t want anyone to die and go to Hell. We want as many people to be saved and go to Heaven as possible. That will only happen if we step out in faith, open our mouths, and share Jesus.

Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

Did you know that you have a ministry? Yep, you sure do. We all do. Some of us minister to others through a church, or “ministry”. Some believers minister to others on the street, some on the internet, some on t.v., etc. Some, though, minister to others at their job. Some minister to their neighbors and friends. Some may minister to the people living in the same home as them. Everyone’s “ministry” is different, but what we are “ministering” is the same.

You don’t need to know the Bible in great detail to be a great witness. All that is required is to tell your story. Let others know what was going on in your life before Jesus, share how you came to know Jesus, and testify of how Jesus stepped in and changed you. It’s that simple.

Showing Jesus in our lives should be effortless. When we get saved, Jesus comes to live, or dwell, in us. He is the light of the world, living on the inside of every believer. Showing Jesus in our lives amounts to letting that light shine through us, reflecting Jesus in all areas of our life. As Christians, we should be full of joy that we’re saved and going to Heaven, we should be full of peace because Jesus left us His peace. We should be full of love because Jesus is living on the inside of us. We should be showing to those who know us best, that we have been changed in some way. That we truly are a “new creature” in Christ.

We’ve discussed what witnessing is. Let’s talk a little bit about what witnessing is not. It is NOT beating someone to death with our Bible. It is not done with our nose in the air, looking down on someone. It is not done in a spirit of judgment, self-righteousness, arrogance, pride, or finger-pointing. We have to remember that the only difference between us and an unbeliever, or lost person, is forgiveness. We’ve been forgiven because we accepted what Jesus did on the Cross for us, so now we are under the grace of God. We did nothing to earn our salvation. We just accepted the free gift. We have nothing to be arrogant or prideful about.

Witnessing Is NOT Finger-Pointing!

Witnessing about Jesus is an act of love, concern, and obedience. It’s more important than we realize. Don’t worry if you’re nervous at first. We all are. It’s like anything else. The more you practice witnessing, the easier it gets, until it’s second nature to want to share Jesus with everyone you encounter.

I hope you enjoyed this, and it helped in some way. Next week, Lord-willing, we’ll discuss false teachers. How to spot them, and how to deal with them.

Keep on Keepin’ on For Jesus!