Be My Witnesses
Acts 1:6-9
Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are
you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know
the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 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.” After he said this, he was taken
up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
Like "Go!" and "I send you," this top missional word from scripture is from the mouth of Jesus. While the previous two commissions are focused on moving us into mission, this one describes what we are to be (and therefore do) when we get there. "You will be my witnesses." We are witnesses. And what do witnesses do? Well, they witness.
The story continues to unfold...
Acts 1:8 functions as a word from Jesus to all his disciples in all times and places, but it also has a specific function in the book of Acts. Acts chronicles the expansion of the church throughout the known world empowered by the Holy Spirit. The story unfolds as follows:
- The coming of the Holy Spirit, empowering the Apostles' witness to Jesus
- Apostles witness to Jesus in Jerusalem
- Apostles witness to Jesus in nearby territories of Judea and Samaria
- Apostles witness to Jesus throughout the known world
As the witness continues wherever we live, the story of the expansion of the church continues. We're all characters in the ever-unfolding story of a Spirit-empowered witness to Jesus Christ in the world.
Unavoidable Identity
Jesus says "You will be my witnesses." Categorically, we are just that. The question is "What kind of witnesses will we be?" We can be good witnesses, speaking and doing the truth of what we know of Christ, our lives reflecting his grace and love. And there exists the possibility of us being poor witnesses, our lives obscuring his grace and confusing those who are looking for a resemblance between the Jesus we proclaim and the lives others see us live.
Representing Jesus
Just as Jesus "incarnates" God's presence in human existence, we "incarnate" Jesus' presence in the world. That means we are representatives of Jesus in the world today, by what we say and how we live. The apostle Paul uses the term "ambassador" to describe the same concept: "We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were
making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled
to God" (2 Corinthians 5:20). Ambassadors have an active mission of representing the country that sends them, and this includes living a "representative life" in the midst of a foreign culture.
Testimony - report what you know personally
The word witness comes from the world of court proceedings. Being a witness for Jesus is about sharing with others what we know - no more, no less. It doesn't require us to become experts. Witnesses share what they've seen and heard. One of the great verses of the bible that describes what a verbal witness to Jesus is all about comes from 1 Peter 3:15 -- "Always be
prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the
hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." The Christian religion is meant to grow from the testimony of practitioners, not the pronouncements of professionals.
A Word and Deed Reflection of Reality
To be a witness of Jesus to others is to reflect Jesus' reality. This involves both what we say and what we do. Speaking of Jesus is essential: who he is, what he means to us, how people can discover new life in him. But how we live is just as important: the way we treat others, the causes to which we are committed, how we invest our time, talent, and treasure. In mission, whether solo or in a group effort, speaking of Jesus and doing as Jesus did go hand-in-hand.
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