The topic this week is Renewed in Witnessing

A witness is somebody who testifies what they’ve seen and heard. And it seems to me that, Biblically, there are two strands of evangelism or witnessing. There’s the evangelist, the one who is gifted in evangelism in the proclamation of the gospel. Not only do those individuals have a gift but they’re also seen as a gift to the church. There’s a verse in Ephesians 4 about how God gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to build up the church. But then there’s also the evangelism of everyday life. Sometimes that’s been called ‘gossiping the gospel’. I think that’s a great phrase, and that’s brought about by living lives that shine; lives that stand out, so that people ask questions. 

Paul brings this out in Colossians.

Colossians 3 is all about how to live the Christian life – the qualities of a disciple. Then there’s a summary at the beginning of chapter 4 where he says this in verses 2-6:

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.  At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Paul’s making a distinction between his ministry: where he needs a door for the word, so he can declare the mystery of Christ and proclaim the gospel with clarity of speech;

and the ministry of the church: who are to continue in prayer, to pray for Paul, to walk in wisdom towards outsiders, to have gracious words and to know how to answer people. 

Peter says something similar in 1 Peter 3:15 where he says: 

In your hearts honour Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defence to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,

So the evangelists proclaim, and the believers are to give answers. 

At the moment in our current environment, engaging with anybody is quite difficult.

But it’s also the environment where people are asking about what’s going on. There’s a certain hopelessness around, which I think is a God-given opportunity for us to ‘show off’ our hope. Maybe something to do with making most of the time.

It’s interesting to see how our 40 days topics tie together. We have to be filled with the Spirit to empower us, not only to speak but to live the kind of lives that that are growing in Christlikeness. We have to have the word of Christ dwell richly so that we know what we believe in why we believe it. 

There’s an opportunity at the moment because people want to talk a bit more, and it seems to be easier to engage slightly deeper. 

The importance of these one to one conversations is something I learned many years ago.

I had just started work in a small computer department at Bostik in Leicester. I’d been talking with my boss, who was called Bill, in his office and he’d asked what I’d been doing the weekend. I felt very brave and said I’d been to a Christian meeting. He asked me about it, wanting to know what that was all about, and what I believed in. 

So I shared the Bridge Illustration (Look at it here). Bill listened quite intently to this and watched as I drew it out.

When I got to the end, he thought a bit then said, “Well, that’s all very well. But first of all, you have to believe in that.” 

And he pointed at the word ‘God’ on the drawing. That brought it to a close, and we never really talked much about Christian things again. 

I felt it was a failure. I’d done it wrong. I should have tried to listen to where Bill was before launching out. 

Some time later we moved to Macclesfield, and eventually lost contact with Bill. 

We’d got involved with young people’s groups and whenever we talked about the Bridge Illustration, I’d use that experience as an example of how not to do it. Because I just thought at the time that I’d been a failure.

But some years later, we had a phone call from the Down’s Syndrome Association. They’d had a call from someone called Bill who said he knew me, could I call him back.

I called him straightaway, and he said he’d remembered that one of the last things before we lost contact was that we were in the process of adopting a child with Down’s Syndrome. So he called the association on the off chance that they might know us. 

But his big message was “Mike, I’ve become a Christian!”

Wow!!

He went on to say that it had happened some while before that phone call, but they’d had a session at his church where they were thinking about the influences that led up to them becoming Christians. He said his story had started with that conversation we’d had in his office where I shared the Bridge. He said what I didn’t know was a lot of things had been going on in his life. And I’d unwittingly, stirred them all up, which he couldn’t talk about, but I’d put them into a context – the gospel – and it began to fall into place for him. But he wasn’t ready, so he had to push back to give himself time. 

But a seed had been planted, and now he’s involved in a Christian support ministry down in Leicester helping people who have mental health problems. 

Often we don’t know the results of our conversations, but in the process of a person becoming a Christian, they’re like links in a chain. 

This time God was very gracious and gave me the privilege of knowing how that conversation, years ago, actually bore fruit. 

That’s not to say other conversations don’t, in fact quite the opposite. It’s just that we don’t always know.

I want to close with a couple of verses. 

One is Isaiah 55:10-11 where God says this:

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

And a great verse from the New Testament where Paul ends 1 Corinthians 15 with this verse (1 Cor 15:58)

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labour is not in vain.