We started a new sermon series in the Book of Acts on Sunday. In Chapter 1, the disciples ask Jesus, "Is it now that you intend to restore the kingdom to Israel?” They want to know if they will get up from under Rome’s power and if they will get a chance to be rulers of this restored kingdom. They have no idea that God’s kingdom will be open to Gentiles. Their role will not be rulers of a new earthly kingdom but be witnesses about the King to a lost world. Jesus told them,
“It is not for you to know times or seasons that the father has fixed 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 (Acts 1:7-8).”
God's people are called to be witnesses as their primary mission and activity. The Greek term martypes means witness, and it is also where we get the term martyr, to witness unto death. Jesus calls us to witness, and testify to others God’s new life in us by his death and resurrection.
Jesus, in the gospel of Luke 19:10, said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.” Also, in Matthew 28:18-20 he calls us to make disciples of all nations. Rick Richardson (Professor of Evangelism at Wheaton College) says, "Evangelism is core to the personal mission of Jesus (Luke 19:10), and it’s essential to accomplishing his multiplication vision (Acts 1:8). If we are going to fulfill Jesus’ Kingdom vision, we must be serious about his personal mission which entails reviving evangelism.” But the state of evangelism today is in trouble.
Barna Research study found nearly half (47%) of Millennials (26-40 years old) practicing Christianity say it’s wrong to evangelize. In another Barna report in 2021, one in five (22%) say they have not had any conversations with non-Christians in the past year. People are reluctant to share their faith. In the past, some Christians treated people as projects presenting the gospel to get them to heaven; it was not relational. Today, often the goal is to invite people to church. The focus is on church growth rather than evangelism. We need to understand that to be a disciple of Christ, we are to participate in sharing our faith. Evangelism may seem like a lost cause, but for Jesus, it is his only cause.
If you trust in Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life and desire to follow him, how can you be Jesus' witness where you live and work? We are to be naturally supernatural. This means to partner with God's empowering Spirit in everyday life. One step might be praying for a non-Christian you interact with regularly and for the opportunity to talk about your faith in Christ. Let's pray that we will be witnesses in Ashburn and all of Loudoun County and wherever the Lord takes us.
