We don't often think about it, but being a witness carries two meanings. Both are revealed in the incident just described. The young man was present and an active participant in an event. He took in - witnessed - the event. But he also was witnessing to the event in telling me about it. He was making me aware of the event. Witness in this case is giving out rather than taking in. Witnessing involves perceiving and testifying. These two meanings are unbreakably connected. One cannot testify to something unless he have seen or experienced it first.
The time for our resurrected Lord to return to the Father had come. Just before He ascended, He gathered His disciples together and told them that the promise of the Father would be given them. They were go to Jerusalem and wait for the promise to come. Jesus told them, "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8)
Though some think it is, witnessing for the Christian is not an option. Jesus said, you "will be My witnesses," not "you should be My witnesses." Though we rejoice about the power we receive when the Holy Spirit comes in His fullness, we cringe about the witnessing part. We need not cringe, for witnessing is far more about being than about a systematized sharing of the gospel. It is about seeing and sharing, and the indwelling Holy Spirit empowers us to do both. Because we are witnesses, we can witness.
Paul tells us that God's Spirit witnesses with our spirit that we are His children. (Romans 8:16) We then, through our lives and our conversation, testify to this wondrous reality. The transformed Spirit-filled life cannot go unnoticed. Such a Christian cannot remain silent. Through the consistency of our lifestyle and our words, we witness for Jesus.
Have you ever noticed that we Christians see God at work in places and circumstances that non-Christians do not. That is because the Spirit has empowered us to witness God at work. We see God at work and tell others through deed and word and thereby point others in His direction. In the fullest sense of the word, we witness!
Just as the compass always points in the same direction no matter where it may be located, so our lives are to always point (witness) to Christ no matter where we might be. We need not fret about witnessing. It is being what we are by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Beloved, let us through consecrated faith, receive the gift of the Father so that we will be His witness everyday, everywhere, in every way!
Keep Close To Jesus
Pastor Gerry