Many people think that witnessing is about preaching or teaching the Bible. Witnessing goes beyond those two things. Witnessing is a way of telling what has happened to you and your experience so far after your salvation. You believed in Christ as your Savior and Lord. Because you believe in Him, Christ has come into your life. You have prayer for His Spirit to fill your life. Because of these things, your life has been changed. Other people have seen the change in you. You are a witness. A witness, therefore, tells the truth of what he/she has seen or what has happened to him/her. Many witnesses of Christ have died because of their witness. We too should be willing to die for the cause of Christ. What you do, what you say, and the way you live are all witnesses to others.
After Jesus arose from the dead and before He returned to heaven, He made a great claim, a great command, and a great promise (Mathew 28: 18-20). Jesus’ great claim is in the first part of Mathew 28: 18-20. The last verse has the great promise of Jesus. The rest of this Scripture has His Great Command. With His power and His promise, you should be an effective witness to Him.
Our Lord’s last spoken word on this earth was, “You will be my witness” (Acts 1: 8, NIV). What is a witness? A witness tells what he has seen and heard what he has seen and heard what he has experienced. Christ has not asked you to be a lawyer, who argues, or a salesman who sells, but a witness who shares. Personal witnessing is the only way this world will ever know about our precious Lord. Many unsaved will never be saved unless someone goes into their homes and shares Christ with them. It was said of the Christians in Rome that their faith was spoken of throughout the whole world (Romans 1: 8), and of the Thessalonians, “…the word of the Lord has sounded forth, from you,…in every place…”(1 Thessalonians 1: 8). These men and women had been with Jesus and the world took notice of the great difference it made. They turned the world upside down or right side down (Acts 4: 13). Do your friends take notice that you have been with Jesus?
“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men” (Mathew 4: 19, NIV). Christ’s command is to follow Him in an obedient life. As you do, He promises to make you a fisher of men. You witness what you do as well as what you say. At home, at work, or at school, there should be something about you that is different – kindness, love, patience, honesty, consideration, sincerity, and a cooperative spirit. Tell your friends and neighbors about Christ who makes your life different.
The task of a witness
The Christian witness is to know God’s will to see the righteous one and to equally hear the words from His mouth. (Acts 22: 14, 15; 1 John 1: 3. Jesus commissioned us to evangelize for Him. (Acts 1: 8). The purpose of evangelism is to expand the kingdom of God on earth and in heaven. The God’s will we are talking about is for every person (2 Peter 3: 9). Therefore, is necessary to have faith in God so that we can call upon His name to be saved (Romans 10: 13; 14, 17). As a witness of Christ, we need a righteous and obedient life for Jesus to be able to make us fishers of men (Matthew 4: 19; John 16: 7-11). When we surrender our lives to God and allow the Holy Spirit to control our lives, the Holy Spirit will continue to fill us always (Acts 4: 31). The Holy Spirit will begin to work in you in these three areas: He will testify about you; He will prove sins wrong in your life and He saves you (John 15: 26), John 16: 8 and Titus 3: 3-5).
The tool of a witness
The tool (eternal seed) God uses to bring men to salvation (1 Peter 1: 23, 25; Luke 8: 11). The word of God is what can sustain us as a good witness. So, in witnessing, let us be deep in the word of God and use it. It is our tool that we can rely on. (Mark 4: 14). During our witnessing, let us understand the fact that all are sinners (Romans 3: 23), we are still sinners (Romans 5: 8), and the wages of sins are death (Romans 6: 23).
The testimony of a witness
Life before: Apostle Paul talks about a man who was once a Jew and was zealous for God. He shared what he had seen and what he had heard (Acts 22: 3-5). A witness has to share what he/she has seen or what he/she has heard about the salvation and gospel. You have to share the testimony of how your new life is different from your old life.
Salvation experience: Paul had a harsh encounter with salvation on the way to Damascus (Acts 22: 6-13). Do you know that as a witness, you have to share your salvation experience in a way people will learn from it the day, the time, the place; The incident prompted you to surrender yourself to Christ if you are sure of your salvation. Your salvation experience will prompt people to come to Jesus voluntarily.
Life after: God wants us to do His will after sharing our salvation experience (Acts 22: 14, 15). As a witness, you have to compare your new way of life to your old way of life. Then glorify your new way of life and condemn your old way of life. Thank God for what salvation has brought to your life. You should make sure to let people learn from your new life; life after salvation.
The action of a witness
There are actions to take if you want to witness God. The word of God with prayer is very important (Acts 4: 29) and you should have boldness and utterance to speak the mystery in Christ (Colossians 4: 3). When you go for witnessing, your attitude and Spirit be compassionate (Mathew 9: 36; Psalm 126: 6). We should start witnessing from our friends and households (Mark 5: 19) and to the world (Acts 1: 8; Mathew 28: 19). When we are leading people to Christ, we should try to follow them until they are matured (1 Thessalonians 2: 10-12). As you are witnessing, the following steps should not be left out. The steps are prayers, speaking the word of God, and following up.
Study more about witnessing and prayer
Mathew 18: 19-20; Acts 2: 41-47; Psalm 119: 11; Romans 12: 4-5; 1 Peter 4: 10; Galatians 5: 22-23; Colossians 3: 8-10; Philippians 1: 6; Romans 5: 10; 1 Corinthians 2: 14; 2 Timothy 3: 16; Philippians 4: 6; and Mathew 28: 18-20.
Conclusion
You know you have changed a life that Christ lives in you and Christ controls your life. You need to tell others about these things. You need to tell people who Christ is, what He has done for you, and how you feel about Him now. Apostle Paul knew how to tell people about Jesus. He told everyone who would listen. Read aloud (Romans 1: 16). At least in two places in the Bible, we heard what Paul said when he told people about Jesus. Read (Acts 22: 1-15 and Acts 26: 9-20). Notice that both times, Paul talked about how he was saved by the power of God so they would understand (Acts 22: 1-15 and Acts 26: 9-20).
Most unbelievers have never heard anyone tell their story as Paul did. Everyone has a different story to tell about how he/she was saved. Your own story is different from all others. How you became a Christian is your own story It is a witness that only you can give.
