18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Introduction
Shortly after I became a Christian as a teenage boy, my home church had a special week of study of the book Every Christian’s Job by C. E. Matthews. The thesis of the study was that every Christian should be a witness, an evangelist, and a missionary for Jesus Christ. Being a new Christian, I believed that I should do everything that Jesus told me to do. Since I had not grown up in a Christian home and since I had no opportunity to observe Christians in the church, I didn’t know any better than to believe that. Whatever Jesus said, I thought I was supposed to do. So I started trying to share my faith at my home, with my classmates at school, and on the job.
It was years later as I began to study the Bible on my own that I came to realize just how central witnessing is in the Christian faith and how crucial it is to discipleship. Witnessing, evangelism, and missions were at the heart of Jesus’ ministry. He came to seek and to save those who were lost. He busied himself about that work continually. When he met the lost woman at the well, he did not discuss water pollution, but he told her about the living water and she was saved. When he visited with Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, he did not discuss the political situation of Palestine. He told Nicodemus, “You must be born again.” When he counseled with the rich young ruler, he didn’t talk to him about economics. He told him how he could find the life for which he was looking. When he went to the home of Zaccheus the tax collector, he did not discuss needed tax reforms—he brought salvation to his house. Jesus was always an evangelist, a missionary, and a bringer of good news.
As he called his 12 apostles, he trained, organized, and sent them to evangelize. Later in his ministry, he enlisted 70 others whom he instructed, organized, and sent out in the same way. He told them and he tells us, “As the Father hath sent me, so send I you.”
After his resurrection and before his ascension, Jesus spoke these words: “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:18-20). These words have been called the “Great Commission.” They are in fact the commission of every disciple. They set out for us the work of every individual believer as well as every church. We are to make disciples, mark them by baptism, and then mature them by teaching all the things that Jesus commanded.
Some Christians seem to feel no responsibility for this kind of going and winning. They say, “People know where the church is; if they want to come they can do it.” However, knowing where you ought to be doesn’t mean you know how to get there. A Boy Scout lost in the woods may know very well he ought to be back at the camp. However, the fact that he is lost means he doesn’t know how to get there. He needs someone to guide him. People who are spiritually lost also need guidance.
Jesus never suggested that worldly people should come to the church. He commanded the church to go into the world. Since Jesus is our model and example as well as our Savior, we need to go after the lost as he did. It is our responsibility.
Some Christians feel they have no right to witness. They say, “A person’s relationship to God is a private affair. It is none of my business. I have no right to interfere.” If you feel that way, you don’t realize God’s command and Christ’s authority. If the police thought I was dealing in marijuana, do you think they would hesitate to come and talk with me? If the IRS thought I was not paying my taxes, do you think they would hesitate to come and talk to me? If I owned a restaurant and the county health officials felt that I was not keeping it clean, do you think they would hesitate to talk with me? By what authority do the police question my gardening? By what authority does the IRS question my tax paying? By what authority does the health office question my cleanliness? They have authority vested in them by the government. By the same token I am a person under authority. Jesus told me to go and I must do it or be guilty of insubordination to my commander and chief.
Nothing we do is quite as important as winning people to Jesus Christ. Dr. L. Nelson Bell, the father-in-law of Billy Graham, gave 25 years of his life to serving the people of China as a missionary surgeon. He helped build and operate a large missionary hospital. It was recognized around the world. They had a full-time Bible evangelist who witnessed to every patient. Later in his life when he was moderator of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, someone asked him how many of his former patients were still living. He replied that most likely 98% of them would be dead by now. Then he added, “Which shows that what we did for them spiritually is what really matters.”
It is important that the hungry be fed. It is important that the naked be clothed. It is important that the poor be housed. It is important that the sick he healed. It is important that the illiterate be taught. But it is imperative that the lost be saved. What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?
Any Christian who does not recognize the responsibility to be a witness, a missionary, and an evangelist has not the slightest idea of what discipleship is all about. The prayer then of every one of us ought to be:
God help me see in all I meet
In country road or city street,
Not just people passing by,
But poor lost souls for whom Christ did die.
Not only does the ministry of Jesus, the example of Jesus, and the commission of Jesus indicate that we are to be busy about witnessing, but the figures and symbols used for disciples in the Bible also spotlight this. There are three of them that are especially impressive: fishermen, laborers, and ambassadors.
First Jesus compared us to fishermen. He said, “Follow me, and I will make you to be fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19). To most of us today fishing is just a sport. It is something we do for fun. However, Jesus was talking to professionals when he said these words. Fishing was a matter of life and death to them. To these men who fished for a living, Jesus said, “Up until now you have caught fish for men. From henceforth ye shall catch men for God.” Those very words to those men indicate that witnessing and soul-winning can never be a casual, part-time occupation. We are to give ourselves wholeheartedly to reaching others for Christ.
The second symbol that Jesus used was that of a laborer. He said, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest” (Luke 10:2). All of us know that there are seasons when a farmer’s life is reasonably relaxed, but that is not true of the harvest season. When the crop is ripe in the field there is an urgency to get it in.
My first two pastorates were in farming communities. When the crops were ready for harvest, the farmers worked from sunup until sundown, seven days a week. They sometimes put lights on their tractors and combines and worked late into the night. Their fields of grain represented a sizeable financial investment, and months of labor and toil. It was of great value to them. Every day they delayed increased the risk of losing the crop, so they went about their work with urgency and diligence. Jesus used this analogy to impress upon us the urgency of witnessing.
My favorite analogy is that of ambassadors. Paul declared that we are ambassadors for Christ. We speak in his place. We urge the world to be reconciled to God through him (2 Corinthians 5:20). An ambassador is a delegate of the emperor or the king. He serves in a foreign land, represents his own kingdom, and knows that his kingdom is judged by his attitudes, words and actions. What he is, what he does, and what he says all reflect upon his native land. His voice is the voice of the king.
I have made several trips to Belize in Central America. The Baptist manse we stayed in on several of our trips is located next door to the American consulate. The last time I was there I noticed a sign at the driveway of the consulate building. It said, “Do not even think of parking here.” We have all seen signs that say “No parking” or “Please do not block the driveway.” But this one said, “Do not even think of parking here.” When I read that sign my first thought was, “What a turkey that consulate must be! It is no wonder that America has such a bad image around the world.” To a measure, in Belize all U.S. citizens are judged by that one man because he is our official representative to that foreign country.
In one of my previous pastorates, a member of my congregation was appointed as an ambassador to a foreign country. Actually he bought the appointment by making a sizeable financial contribution to the political party in power. The president soon became a “lame duck” president because he decided not to run again. He would be in office only a few months longer. However, he appointed this man as an ambassador and he and his family moved to the foreign country for that brief period of time.
When a new president was inaugurated, this man and his family moved back to our city. A close friend of his told me one day that if he came to church I should not address him as “Doctor,” but that I should refer to him as “Mr. Ambassador.” I replied to my friend, “Don’t hold your breath until I do that.” How Mickey Mouse can you get? Anybody that enamored with titles does not deserve the title of ambassador. I wasn’t about to call a man “Mr. Ambassador” when he had bought his position and served in it only a few months. That’s ridiculous.
We are ambassadors for Christ and that is no Mickey Mouse assignment. Christ is our king, heaven is our home, and we are here on this earth as his representatives. We speak in his place. We represent his cause. We urge all men everywhere to be reconciled to God through him. As ambassadors of Christ we represent him. We witness for him by what we are, what we do, and what we say. Our attitudes, our actions, as well as our appeals bear witness for Christ.
There are always those who try to set living the Gospel and sharing the Gospel over against one another. I like what Paul E. Little said in his book How to Give Away Your Faith. He wrote, “Which is more important in witnessing, the life I live or the words I say? This question throws the consistency of our lives and our verbal witness into a false antithesis. It’s like asking which wing of an airplane is more important, the right or the left! Obviously both are essential and you don’t have anything without both. Life and lip are inseparable in an effective witness for Christ.”
We are to bear witness to Christ by what we are, what we do, and what we say.
1. We represent Christ by what we are.
First, we represent Christ by what we are. Before his ascension Jesus said, “But ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Jesus did not say to us, “Do witnessing.” He said, “You shall be witnesses.” How easily we fall into the trap of doing witnessing and not being witnesses. Witnessing and evangelism always begin with “being.” It depends on what you are. Jesus also tells us that we are to begin where we are, and then keep working until we have preached to the ends of the earth. That means that we are to think globally, but act locally. Where does our world begin? It begins at the tip of our toes and extends to the uttermost parts of the globe. We are to begin by winning people to Christ where we are.
We must be witnesses where we live, where we work, where we go to school, and where we spend our leisure time. That is our world. If we don’t win people where we are, then we certainly are not going to be effective in winning people where we aren’t. Let me put my finger on you. If people in your family are going to be converted, then it is up to you. If your schoolmates are going to be converted, it is up to you. If people where you work are going to be converted, it is up to you.
We’ve got to do something to make ourselves available to God and to people. You may say, “There are other people who can do it better than I.” How many other people are burdened for the people you are burdened for? How many other people have the same circle of friends and interests as you? You are unique and the people you know and associate with are unique to you. There are others who touch their lives, but never in the same way you do.
If you are going to win people who know you, then it is imperative that you be a good example. In fact, what the world needs is not more sales talks, but more samples of the power of Jesus Christ. I had in my church a man who sold vitamins and health foods for a living. He was the most emaciated, pale, dried-up man I have ever seen in my life. He looked like death warmed over. I have seen manikins in department store windows who looked more alive than him. He was so pale that he could make a new bed sheet look dingy.
He came to me once and said, “Preacher, you need to be taking these vitamins and eating this health food.” I asked, “Do you take these vitamins and do you eat that health food?” He replied proudly, “Yes!” I said, “Then I don’t want any.” If you are going to sell vitamins then you had better have some vitality about your life. If you are going to sell health foods, you’d better look and act healthy. How can I be impressed with your product if it doesn’t seem to be helping you?
Our first responsibility as disciples is to live in such a way that we make Christianity contagious and appealing to other people. It was Elmer Wheeler who coined the slogan, “Sell the sizzle, not the steak.” Packaging is important. Atmosphere does count. There are a lot of people who pay a lot of money for an ordinary meal in an extraordinary atmosphere. The atmosphere of the church is tremendously important also. If your packaging of the Christian life is not appealing to people, they will not be attracted to Christ. What about your disposition? Your smile? Your attitude? If you are a critical, complaining, anxious, and uptight person, how can you ever influence anyone for Christ? If you go around criticizing the weather, the church, the company, and the country, who will want to be like that?
On the other hand, if you have in your life peace, self-control, joy, purpose, and direction, other people will like what they see. They will want to know where you got it and how much it will cost them.
Show people that Christ makes life better. If your life is boring, don’t tell anybody that you are a Christian. If the only difference between you and other people is that you go to church one or two hours a week, then that is not enough difference to care about. People are already busy. They enjoy sleeping in too much on Sunday morning. If you can’t show them more than that, then they won’t be interested. If you laugh at the same jokes, have the same attitudes, and are dominated by the same values, then you will attract no one to Christ. You may be a moral man but still be miserable and miserly. The world doesn’t expect us to be perfect, but it does expect us to be different. So if you don’t walk the walk, don’t talk the talk.
2. We represent Christ by what we do.
Second, we represent Christ by what we do. Abraham Lincoln said, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” If we want the world to be attracted to Christ, then we must be attractive not only in our attitude but also in our actions.
If you want to reach people, including members of your family, build a bridge of love. Remember them on their birthdays. Call them up occasionally. Write them notes. It is the little things that count. Keep the lines of communication open and the bridge of love in good repair. Mow the neighbor’s yard, pick up his trash. Become all things to all men. In short, show them love and compassion and minister as Christ did.
When I pastored in a college community and young people were saved, I would tell them that when they went back home not to tell anybody about their conversion. Why? Because most of their parents expected them to pick up something nutty at college anyhow. So I told them to make a list of all the things that they had been doing through the years that their parents complained about. Then they should start doing those things right. Soon their parents would be so surprised that they would wonder what in the world had happened to them. Then they would have an opportunity to tell their parents, who would in turn listen.
The Bible makes this telling comment about Jesus’ life: “He went about doing good” (Acts 10:38). That’s one of the secrets of his effective witnessing. We are to do the same thing. The Bible says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). This is lifestyle evangelism. If people won’t believe your words, they will at least be impressed by your works. It is a way of making contact with the lost world. Whatever you do, you must be genuine and not phony. Your love must be a sincere expression of Jesus Christ inside of you. You can’t fake it. You can’t fool the world.
3. We represent Christ by what we say.
Third, you represent Christ by what you say. As important as your attitudes and actions are, they are not enough by themselves. Living the Christian life is essential, but it is not sufficient. People may look at your life and know that it is different from theirs. They may even want what you have, but they won’t know why it is different or where they can get it unless you tell them. How can you, by the life that you live, tell people that Christ died for their sins and was buried and raised again on the third day? It just can’t be done. To live your faith and never speak it is asking too much of you and too little of the Gospel.
If Jesus were to charge the church today in courtroom fashion, he would charge us with malpractice of the mouth. We have not told others of Jesus Christ as we should. Christianity is not difficult to communicate. It is simple. We make it hard by our extreme efforts. We give soul-winning courses that take eight weeks or eight months to complete. This communicates to our people that winning other people to Christ is extremely difficult.
As a result Christians are scared to death to tell anybody about Jesus Christ. They memorize every possible question any non-Christian could ask as well as the correct answers. They want to have all of the bases covered. When they have done that, we say they are equipped. They aren’t equipped—they are incapacitated. We have them so intent on nailing people with the Bible that they go out as unnerved as an elephant on ice.
How do you witness? What do you say to lost people? How do you share your faith? First, you give your testimony. That’s simply telling people what has happened and what is happening in your own life right now. What has Christ done for you? Has he forgiven your sins? Are you at peace with your past because of his cleansing? Has he given you fulfillment? Has he enabled you to love those whom you did not love before? Has he brought you into a new circle of friends? Has he given your life meaning beyond yourself? Has he given you the calm assurance of the fact that you are mortal and that when you die you share in the hope of the resurrection? If so, tell other people about it. That is witnessing.
On the other hand, if you have been saved and sanctified for 40 years and all the Lord has given you is arthritis, don’t tell anybody about it. The marvelous thing about a testimony is you can use it almost anywhere. People readily identify with it, and it has a note of authority about it. It does not need to be polished. It needs only to be natural, simple, sincere, and believable. You are an expert on what God has done in your life. Tell somebody about it. It is your feel, not your spiel, that counts.
It’s been said many ways by many people: “People are moved more by the depth of your convictions than by the height of your logic.” So tell people what Christ has done for you. Then share the Gospel with them. In fishing terminology, your testimony is the bait and the Gospel is the hook. What is the Gospel? It is the power of God unto salvation. But what is it?
We have all heard the Gospel but do we know what it is? If you came upon a wreck and a man was dying and you had to give him the Gospel in just two or three sentences, what would you say? Don’t say, “Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.” Don’t even quote John 3:16 to him. That is not the Gospel. Paul gave us the Gospel when he said, “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). That is the Gospel. Christ died for our sins. Christ was buried. Christ was raised from the dead. It is this marvelous truth that can be used so effectively in winning people to Jesus Christ.
Keep your witness Christ-centered. He is the bread of life. He is the water of life. He is the light of the world. He is the good shepherd. He is the one who reconciles us to God. He is the one who died for us. He is the one who can make people into new creatures. Keep focusing on Jesus Christ.
Then trust the Holy Spirit to convict. Remember that the Holy Spirit is God’s lawyer and you are his witness. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, unrighteousness, and the judgment to come (John 16:8-11).
When the great Methodist missionary E. Stanley Jones was a young man, he studied to be a lawyer. But then God called him to preach. In one of his first sermons he decided to make a defense for Christ. In very legal and technical form and language he prepared a brief concerning the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. As he presented his sermon, the audience was unmoved and disinterested. As he came to the conclusion of it he closed his manuscript and said, “Let me close by sharing with you a few words of personal testimony concerning what Jesus Christ has done in my life.” Then in the next two or three minutes he shared with his audience in a very personal, effective way about the power of Jesus Christ in his life. As he gave the invitation, the people were greatly moved and responded to God’s call. Later he remarked to a friend, “I failed as a lawyer for Christ. But I succeeded as a witness.” That’s what God wants out of us. He wants us to be his witnesses. The Holy Spirit is already working as his lawyer.
Very few people are ever converted by one witness. Usually it is an accumulation of experiences and witnesses that brings them to Christ. Most of us are just links in a chain that bring people to Christ. I would like to be the clinching link, but I can’t always. I must be a witness and leave the door open for someone else to follow after me. I must not get in an argument and offend people so that no one else can come along and witness after me.
I have read the Bible forward, backward, and upside down, and I can’t find anything in it that gives any physical specifications for being a witness for Christ. I can’t find anything in the Bible that says that you are to be beautiful, young, educated, or possessed of great gifts of oratory or any other attributes but obeying the Great Commission.
It is not a sin to never have won another person to Christ, but it is a sin to not try. The Lord never demanded that we be successful. He does demand that we be faithful. He does not hold us responsible for how the experience turns out. He does hold us responsible for going out. That’s a disciple’s commission.