“YOU WILL BE MY WITNESSES” Acts 1:8
We are his witnesses, each and every one of us who call ourselves Christian, but we aren’t necessarily good witnesses of God’s love and forgiveness. We all know people who have been put off church by Christians who have been bad witnesses to God’s love, grace and acceptance; people who have been intolerant, judgmental and plain unfriendly.
Our witness lies not only in what we say but how we are as well. People notice things like hypocrisy and back-biting. We like our cosy gatherings where every one is well dressed and polite; where we can feel holy, calm and peaceful in the presence of the Lord. But the purpose of the church is not to provide a social network for ‘good’ people but to reach out to those still in their sin. All saints have a past but all sinners can have a future.
So we all need to be good witnesses to God’s compassion for the lost and draw people to Jesus by our acts of love and kindness; our sincerity and generosity. Let us welcome into our church meetings those people who need God’s grace; the prostitutes, drug addicts and drunks as well as professional people with money and status. And let us love with all our hearts those who he has put us with in our church families and neighbourhoods.
There may be little obvious difference on the outside between Christians and good kind non Christians but God sees the heart, and the fruit we manifest in our lives is the fruit of the Spirit of God so therefore it is supernatural and so must have a great impact.
Galatians 5:22-26
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.”
We are his witnesses, each and every one of us who call ourselves Christian, but we aren’t necessarily good witnesses of God’s love and forgiveness. We all know people who have been put off church by Christians who have been bad witnesses to God’s love, grace and acceptance; people who have been intolerant, judgmental and plain unfriendly.
Our witness lies not only in what we say but how we are as well. People notice things like hypocrisy and back-biting. We like our cosy gatherings where every one is well dressed and polite; where we can feel holy, calm and peaceful in the presence of the Lord. But the purpose of the church is not to provide a social network for ‘good’ people but to reach out to those still in their sin. All saints have a past but all sinners can have a future.
So we all need to be good witnesses to God’s compassion for the lost and draw people to Jesus by our acts of love and kindness; our sincerity and generosity. Let us welcome into our church meetings those people who need God’s grace; the prostitutes, drug addicts and drunks as well as professional people with money and status. And let us love with all our hearts those who he has put us with in our church families and neighbourhoods.
There may be little obvious difference on the outside between Christians and good kind non Christians but God sees the heart, and the fruit we manifest in our lives is the fruit of the Spirit of God so therefore it is supernatural and so must have a great impact.
Galatians 5:22-26
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.”
