 |
| Acts
4.20 (NIV) “For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” |
 |
| Speaking what one has seen and heard is the essence of witnessing.* |
 |
One
night, in my role as a camp counselor, I was having trouble getting the little
girls in my cabin to settle down and go to sleep. Finally, one little girl
piped up, “There’s a room full of girls here and I just have to talk!”
Perhaps Peter
and John could relate to that little girl. They were filled with the Spirit and bubbling over with good news to share.
They literally were not able not to speak! Such exuberance was a new
development for them. Remember when they were not so bold? Here they were in court where one is supposed to tell the
truth about what you have seen and heard and they are being commanded not to
speak! Instead of quaking in fear, they are willing
to pay the price of this defiance with their lives.*
As someone has pointed out, “A leader’s
execution is not a usual recipe for heartening his followers,”* so
what accounts for the difference in their
demeanor? They were pumped because of what they had seen and
heard. Have you ever witnessed something astonishing? I saw the explosion of
the space shuttle Challenger; I saw
(on TV) the airplane flying into the second tower of the World Trade Center; I
saw a boy and his bicycle thrown across an intersection after colliding with a
pick-up truck. When we see something like that, isn’t it our natural reaction
to want to tell someone? Imagine being an eye-witness to the events that Peter
and John had seen. What a story they had to tell!
Can you give a first-hand account of what you have seen Jesus do in your
life? How anxious are you to share your
story with anyone and everyone – regardless of the consequences?
|
 |
| Actively sharing your faith solidifies your personal convictions.* |
No comments:
Post a Comment