Truths That Set Free 5 of 7

 

This is another MemCare program and we welcome you to a time of reflection and encouragement.  We have good news to share with you.  Wherever you are and whatever your circumstances, you are not alone nor in a hopeless situation when you know Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace.  I greet you with the promise He gave to His disciples, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

 

Today Edmund Spieker will continue his series Truths That Set Free. His theme is How can I be effective in my Christian witness? Welcome, Edmund.

 

Thank you, Scott. When I came to Christ at an early age, I was convinced that everybody needed to know the Good News of the Gospel. There was something burning in my heart and I could not keep quiet about it. I would discuss with my teachers and classmates in school and tell whoever wanted to hear that Jesus had forgiven my sins and that everybody could go to heaven by believing in Him. I cannot tell you about many results or people who were saved because of my testimony at that time. But I definitely still agree that it is extremely important that every Christian becomes an effective witness for Jesus.

 

Edmund, I agree.  I too know about the deep passion for Christ and for the people He died for.  Actually this is the reason I am today in Christian Radio. I wanted for my life to count and to tell as many people as possible the Good News of the Gospel.

 

In this series Truths That Set Free, you have emphasized a lot the fact that when we believe in Christ we are not only forgiven of our sin, but we receive a completely new life, so to speak. Christ now lives in us through the Holy Spirit. In other words, it’s not so much about us anymore but rather about the life and work of Christ in and through us.  What difference does this make in our approach to witnessing for Christ?

 

This is a pointed question and my answer is that it makes a great difference if I just speak my own mind or if I witness under the leading of the Holy Spirit.  

 

There are many followers of religions and philosophies of men who are very passionate about their convictions. People are ready to sacrifice and even to die for their ideas and traditions and there is nothing divine about them. 

 

To witness for Christ doesn’t mean that I win an argument. It rather should mean that I share about something I have personally experienced, something my life and words give proof of. A witness speaks about facts he saw and experienced. An effective witness for Christ not only speaks about what he knows and experienced, he also does it in the power given by the Holy Spirit. This is a critical factor and sets us apart.

 

This is why Jesus told His disciples, after His resurrection, to wait in Jerusalem until the promised gift from His Father had come. He said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 

 

An effective witness is one who has more than the right theology, methodology or strategy.  He has a personal and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus has told us that without Him we can do nothing. Paul, the greatest of all the apostles, confessed over and over that the only reason he was effective in winning people to Christ was because the power of Jesus was at work in Him.  He actually went so far as to emphasize that the power of God was best manifested when he was aware of his total insufficience and weakness.

 

I am always amazed when I study the history of the church in countries where Christians are persecuted.  It seems as if their total dependency on the Lord and their awareness of their personal weakness and lack of resources is used by God to empower them to be the most effective witnesses.

 

Edmund you have met with many Christians in very different countries.  Please share about people who have impressed you most because of their effective witness for Christ.

 

I remember that single man I first met in China. He had left a successful business career in order to become an itinerant teacher to the house churches. He traveled around with a little backpack and literally spent his life in ministry. He had been in prison because of his work and knew what suffering for Christ really meant. He was also the one who had a good answer to my question why the Church in that country had experienced such phenomenal growth.

 

He mentioned the three stages the church went through before it grew. The first was the stage of suffering when Christians were put in prison, Bibles confiscated, church buildings closed and many thousands martyred because of their faith. The second stage was the stage of prayer. Christians started looking up and calling out to the Lord. Instead of focusing on their own suffering and need they started to worship and praise the Lord, trusting Him to bring beauty out of ashes and to build His church no matter what.  The next phase was the phase of cleansing or sanctification. The Lord started to purify His children, allowing them to see their need to be transformed into the image of the Lord Jesus who had redeemed them with His blood. They started to understand afresh that the Kingdom of God is not about us, but rather the glory of God and His work in and through us.

 

Edmund, are you then saying that suffering, prayer and sanctification are prerequisites for effective witness?

 

Yes, Scott.  It is the biblical norm and it has to do with our need to let go of the old habits and nature of sin and selfishness. 

 

I remember being in a congregation of lepers in a leper colony in Manaus, the capital of the Amazon in Brazil.  Those people, who had suffered beyond my comprehension had the most vibrant and convincing testimony for Christ. I have never again been in a church service that was so filled with the presence and the joy of the Lord as in that colony. They literally lived out the hope of glory in their decaying bodies.

 

These people too were praying people.  I remember my surprise when they mentioned the names of people and ministries they were praying for. At one point a lady spoke up and said in the words of the prophet Samuel, “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you.” There was also a sincere seeking for a life of holiness.  I remember when the pastor of that church, who was a leper himself, mentioned to me to follow him since he had left the offering at his house.  I was embarrassed and told him not to worry since they had their own financial needs.  I will never forget his answer.  He said, “Brother, don’t worry about us.  We know our Lord and we believe the testimony of King David when he said, ‘ I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.’ The Lord is taking care of us.”

 

I could add many other names and places where I met people who were very effective in ministry because they were living in humble submission and total dependency on the Lord.

 

Edmund, thank you so much for sharing with us and encouraging us to seek a more intimate relationship with Christ in order to be a more effective witness for Christ.