Happenings 13 June 2019

Have you ever been asked to bring witness about something? Maybe you’ve seen a crime or a car-crash, and been required to give your testimony in court. The role of the witness is to give evidence; it is not up to the witness to move from the witness seat and onto the judge’s bench. The right to bring a verdict still lies very much with the judge. The same applies to Christian witness, and in fact, the language of witnesses figures large in the New Testament. The first followers of Jesus (and every follower after them) had the role of telling people about their risen Lord. The actual belief and conviction in the lives of their hearers was the work of God’s Holy Spirit after hearing their testimony. So, what makes a credible witness? Firstly, people who are in the position of having something to tell. For the first disciples, it was the fact that they had seen, talked with and touched the Jesus who was once dead and was now no longer. For us, it is the evidence of God’s power and presence in our lives. Secondly, credible witnesses are those whose lives are consistent with their words; in short, those whose character shows integrity. That, too, is what we are called to – lives where our words and actions match, and where our ‘doing’ amplifies our ‘speaking’. It is not our job to convict – that job still belongs to God. Our role is simply to live to tell.

In Him
Murray