Whenever I look back over the history of a
church that has stood for Christ for many years, I’m intensely interested in why
and how. And I’m always looking for the signs that
mark the health of a church. Those signs
can be summed-up in one phrase: Bold Witness.
When a church is
an organization it will
die like any other man-made thing. But
when a church is a sold-out for
Christ body it will grow, and thrive, and stand as a beacon of the
Gospel. But that will only last so long
as it keeps that mission of being a bold witness for Christ on the front
burner!
The question we
want to look at this morning is: How can
the church be a bold-witness for Christ.
Here are 8 reasons why witness becomes
bold:
1.
Faith in God Alone
But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so the number of men who believed now totaled about 5,000. Acts 4:4
To believe, in the language of
the Bible, is to trust-in, rely-on, and cling-to. This refers to Christ-followers taking God at
his Word that He would save them. The
church was growing rapidly, despite the possible consequences of being arrested
and even put to death. The Gospel message
of Christ birthed faith in the hearts of those who heard the witness of the
disciples.
Genuine faith knows no crippling fear. This was the beginning of persecution that
resulted in incredible growth. The
Pharisees and ruling elders were trying to stamp out this upstart bunch of
Christians, but it was like pouring water on a grease fire…persecution only
produced more courageous faith and growth.
John Wesley’s famous statement about
spreading the Gospel message is iconic to Methodists…or at least it used to be
back in the day when Methodists cared deeply about winning souls. When you place your faith in a building,
organization, another human being, or even yourself (as our culture seems to
have perfected), that faith will wither, fade and disappear altogether. But simple, undiluted faith in Almighty God
will move the mountains.
A second reason the disciples’ witness was
bold is that they were:
2.
Filled with the Spirit
Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them… Acts 4:8a
Many people are afraid of the very idea of
being Spirit-filled, but it’s really strange to me that anyone who has accepted
Christ as Savior would feel that way.
Perhaps it’s because of the excessive dwelling on this by some
groups.
But friendship with God means His presence
is going to dwell in you. And it’s not so
much that God takes-over your life against your will. Being filled with the Spirit is more about
surrendering that life. It’s not how
much of the Spirit you can get inside of you…it’s all about how
much of YOU does the Spirit have?
If you want your witness to be bold for Christ, give Him
complete control of you! Be filled with
the Spirit of God!
3.
Nothing but Truth
Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. Acts 4:10
Peter’s response to the Pharisee’s
question was so different than just a few weeks prior when he had sworn three
times he didn’t even know Jesus just to save his own hide. Peter’s weak faith had become strong, and just
couldn’t be silent any more. If you want
your witness bold, you must commit to truth!
4.
Exclusive
in an Inclusive
Culture
There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12
Now this is a deal-breaker for most people
(including a lot of Methodists). Peter’s
flat statement, NO OTHER NAME means just what it sounds like. There is no power to save us from our sins in
Allah, or Krishna, or Buddha, or any group denying the triune oneness of
Almighty God, Father, Son, and Spirit.
Salvation does not come from political
programs in Washington, educating our children beyond their ability, math
geniuses, social engineers or cloning Albert Einstein. Salvation is only by the blood of Jesus
Christ.
Now, that’s exceedingly politically-incorrect
in a culture that wants everything valued equally and without question. But, friends, how can we value
empty-headedness that winds up in Hell?
To be a bold witness, you must settle in your heart and mind
that Christ
alone can take people to heaven.
When Lazarus died, Jesus told Martha he
would rise again. She said, sure,
in the resurrection. Jesus
replied to the grieving sister: I AM
the resurrection…[1]
Those words “I am” have a familiar sound, don’t they? In the original language it is ego emi, the intensive, it is I…no one else!
Friends, if you miss it at this point you
have no witness, bold or otherwise.
Jesus, and Jesus ONLY is Lord. Inclusiveness may get you a gold star from
Washington, or a kudos on Facebook, but Heaven will be shedding tears over your
apostasy.
A bold witness for Christ is a Christ-only
witness.
The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13
The key to the Pharisees’
amazement was because the disciples had spent 3½ years with Jesus. They didn’t need seminary training or other
human guides; they had God covering every bone of their bodies.
Sticking with the Gospel as our mission (like the disciples did) will
confound the so-called wise. It will
stymie and silence the powerful.
Christ’s work done in Christ’s way will be its own validation. It will be a bold witness.
6.
Refuse to be Silent
But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:20
The Pharisees and Sadducees had issued a threat to the disciples to keep
Jesus locked in a trunk…don’t even mention his name! But Peter asked them a question in return that
no religious leader could answer without convicting himself. They asked if the elders were more important
than JHWH. And then they told them to
hang their threat on their ears…they could not obey even if they were
frightened to death; Christ had made them bold witnesses, and there was
no turning-back.
This was a courageous move by Peter, undergirded by the prayer of the
church. Peter’s faith had grown by
tremendous leaps and bounds in the few weeks since he’d denied he even knew
Jesus. He put that faith to the test
with the kind of boldness only a fool, or man possessing great faith can
muster. And when faith marries bold
courage, Christ is always honored. And
Christ, in turn, will always vindicate righteous faith! Let your faith in Christ make you a bold
witness, even in the face of threats!
7.
Ready to Deny Self
And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness. All the believers were united in heart and mind. Acts 4:29-32
When the rest of the disciples heard what had happened to Peter and John
they took right to prayer. They prayed
for boldness,
and the place shook with the Spirit’s approval.
And then they did the very thing Peter and John had been beaten for,
they preached Jesus boldly.
Some people misunderstand the concept of unity in a church body. It isn’t all the people thinking exactly the
same, so there are no disagreements.
Unity is all about cooperating to BE the people of God who proclaim the
message. You can have all the love-fests
you want, but if you don’t even try to win your community to Christ, you’d do
well to call yourself Rotary or Lions Club.
The church is all about being a mighty bold witness for
the name of Jesus Christ.
8.
Confident of the Resurrection
The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all. Acts 4:33
Despite
the possible consequences of being arrested and even put to death, the message
of Christ birthed faith in the hearts of those who heard the Gospel. Faith knows no crippling fear.
This was the beginning of persecution that
resulted in incredible growth. The
Pharisees and ruling elders were trying to stamp out this upstart bunch of
Christians, but it was like pouring water on a grease fire…persecution only
produced more courageous faith and growth.
Peter, the apostle who denied faith in
Christ in the cold, darkness outside of Pilate’s house while Jesus was being
unfairly beaten, tried, and illegally-convicted by a kangaroo court, more than
turned it around. He was so bold
to proclaim Christ it got him in trouble over and over, until finally he was
crucified. When it came time to be put
on his cross, he begged to be turned upside down, declaring he wasn’t even
worthy to be killed right-side-up.
These early believers, and many to follow
through history took heart and served their Lord. And that is what their testimony calls us to
do in this current tumult of our days.
I want to revisit with you what I told you
last November when we were in a season of prayer for the vote of General
Conference 2019, that we must also take heart; Christ is in your heart, and He
will not abandon us.
I asked you then an important question then:
what will happen after the vote
Then I asked you what I called a more
important question: what will you DO after the vote?
The possibilities I offered were these:
·
We can take our ball and go home…let this church fall apart on its
foundations.
·
We can sit and wait for the wave of the powerful to overwhelm whatever
is left of this denomination, until they kill it altogether, and just shake our
heads.
·
We can take heart and serve the Lord with gladness
The ordeal nearly robs Andy of all hope,
but in the final minutes of the movie he turns to Red and says: I guess it all comes down to a small choice;
you either have to get busy livin’ or get busy dyin’!
In February our delegates to the General
Conference took a bold witness step.
They stood on the side of Biblical marriage and sexual
relationships. That, my friends is the
same as the church praying for Peter and John while they faced the Pharisees. They got busy living a bold witness!
If I had the right as pastor to commission
you in your next steps as a church, here is what I would say: Get busy living!
With bold faith and unending courage, take
heart, take responsibility, and serve the Lord with gladness; serve Him with a bold
witness for Christ!
Go to VIDEO
[i] All Scripture quoted is from The
New Living Translation (unless otherwise stated) Title Image:
Pixabay.com
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