You Will Be My Witnesses
These were some of the last words Christ Jesus spoke to His disciples just before He ascended to heaven after His resurrection. (Acts 1:8) Normally a person's last words are very important. In this case, it was so. All the time Jesus Christ spent with His disciples served as preparation for this great task He was entrusting to them. They were to be Witnesses of Him, of His words, and of His deeds.
A Witness is a person who offers evidence to confirm some fact, event, feat, or covenant.
When one offers the evidence, it itself constitutes the testimony, which can be given orally or concretely. Obviously, someone can't confirm something they don't know from personal experience. That is why it was important for the disciples to spend time with Jesus, hearing His words and seeing His deeds.
The disciples became witnesses not only to the historical facts of Christ's incarnation, death, and resurrection, but also to their own faith in Him, to the reality of His presence, and to the fulfillment of His promises.
Willing to testify to death, if necessary, the apostles brought new meaning to the meaning of the word witness.
We now also have the privilege of knowing the Lord through the Holy Spirit who lives in us and lets us know it concretely and safely.
When we talk about what we know we are testifying.
Our testimony goes beyond the simple forensic sense and includes a personal endorsement or support of what we are witnessing. This seal that we put on our words no one can refute since they are assured and faithful personal experiences.
How do I testify? When we testify, we must do so with the power and support of the Holy Spirit Himself. That is why Jesus said to His disciples: you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be witnesses to Me. We need the power of the Holy Spirit to be effective witnesses. Everything we do or say with the power of the Spirit must be with a sincere heart. There is no need to add broth to the soup. Tell the truth as it is and you will see how the Lord works. And your motivation must be love because it is clear that everything we do without love, is useless.
Where do I testify? Based on the Lord's words in Acts 1:8, we can identify four fields.
The first is in Jerusalem. You can testify to all those who live geographically near where you live and who are similar to you.
The second is throughout Judea. You can also testify to all those who live geographically far from you but are similar to you.
The third place is in Samaria. This consists of testifying to all those who are different from you but live geographically close to you.
And the fourth is to the ends of the Earth. Here you testify to all those who are different from you and who live geographically far from you.
The first disciples heard the voice of Their Lord and obeyed Him. Thanks to the obedience of these first disciples, in testifying of Christ, we today know God and are at peace with Him. Now our nations, our generation, and future ones also depend on our faithfulness to God's call. Will we do the same for them? I hope so!
