January 27, 2008 -- "Witnessing"

Scripture: (John 1:29 - 42 NRSV)

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.' I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel."

And John testified, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God."

The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, "Look, here is the Lamb of God!" The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, "What are you looking for?" They said to him, "Rabbi" (which translated means Teacher), "where are you staying?"

He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o'clock in the afternoon. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated Anointed). He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas" (which is translated Peter).

COME AND SEE!

First service introduction:
[A pastor saw Robert Schuller’s TV program “Hour of Power.” One of the things that impressed him most was the practice of everyone turning around and shaking hands with and greeting the other worshipers seated nearby. The pastor felt that their church was a bit stuffy and could use a bit of friendliness. So, one Sunday he announced that the following Sunday they were going to initiate this custom.

At the close of this same service, a man turned around to the lady behind and said, “Good morning!” She looked at him with shock at his boldness and said, “I beg your pardon! That friendliness business doesn’t start until next Sunday.”

It was a good thing, but it was being forced upon her and she didn’t want to do it until it was official – if she would do it at all.

Something life changing was about to be forced upon John the Baptist, but he gladly accepted the change. He knew it was the will of God. John took a back seat Jesus.]

Second Service Introduction:
[A group of children were in the schoolyard bragging about their fathers. The first boy said, “My dad scribbled a few words on a piece of paper, called it a poem, and they gave him $50.

The second boy said, “That’s nothing. My dad scribbled a few words on a piece of paper, called it a song, and they gave him $100.”

The third boy said, “I got you both beat. My dad scribbled a few words on a piece of paper, called it a sermon, and it took 8 people to collect all the money!”

When John bragged about Jesus, it showed something of John that was quite extraordinary. John took a back seat to Jesus.]

John did not allow himself or his ministry to be threatened. He was not worried about his collection plates being less full. He understood that ministry is never about us, but about others. He saw his role as the one to prepare the way for Christ. In his own words, “I must become less; he must become more.” What a striking example of humility.

He lived out his word by pointing his own disciples to Jesus. The Baptist was also an evangelist. He could not resist pointing others to the best news ever delivered – Jesus Christ – even if it meant that his own disciples would leave him. Remarkable.

In Christian Theology in Plan Language, the following words appear:
It is easy to determine when something is aflame. It ignites other material. Any fire that does not spread will eventually go out. A church without evangelism is a contradiction in terms, just as a fire that does not burn is a contradiction.(p. 162.)

Evangelism must be part and parcel of our church life – and yes, our own lives.

Someone might ask us, “What Great thing do you know?” We just sang the hymn. When they ask, we who are indeed born again can tell of at least one great thing that God has done for us – even if it is only the fact that we have been saved by Him!

Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962), the world-famous violinist, earned a fortune with his concerts and compositions, but he generously gave most of it away. So, when he discovered an exquisite violin on one of his trips, he wasn't able to buy it. Later, having raised enough money to meet the asking price, he returned to the seller, hoping to purchase that beautiful instrument. But to his great dismay it had been sold to a collector. Kreisler made his way to the new owner's home and offered to buy the violin. The collector said it had become his prized possession and he would not sell it. Keenly disappointed, Kreisler was about to leave when he had an idea. "Could I play the instrument once more before it is consigned to silence?" he asked. Permission was granted, and the great virtuoso filled the room with such heart-moving music that the collector's emotions were deeply stirred. "I have no right to keep that to myself," he exclaimed. "It's yours, Mr. Kreisler. Take it into the world, and let people hear it." We must take the music of God’s great love beyond these walls – to where we work, live, learn and play.

If we can’t tell them what God has done for us, then we can tell them to Come to church with us and see.” That is kind of what Andrew did. He heard the good news and rushed home to tell his brother Simon to come and see the one whom God had sent to save them. A lot of people are afraid to come to church on their own. So, when you invite someone, tell them that you will pick them up at 8:30 or 10:30 and that you would be happy to sit with them.

There is an indirect way to witness to people. You can use a tract. Simply purchase tracts about salvation from a Christian Bookstore and leave them in places where people gather. One that I do regularly is a “tip tract.” After dinner at a restaurant, I leave a little two sided card with the tip. On one side it says thanks for good service. On the other side, it lists 5 simple steps to accept Jesus. By the way, if you do this, don’t leave a chincy tip. Give at least a 20% tip – even more if you can. It shows you really do care!

If some reason we can not tell about the great thing that God has done, and if for some reason we can not invite someone to church, we can certainly pray for the salvation of others. We have a friend named Gary who last May put his brother on the list of names of the un-churched that we were collecting. This was for the conference prayer initiative. His brother was out of church completely and, as far as Gary knew, unsaved. This past September, Gary got a phone call from his brother. His brother called to tell him that he just got saved and hard started to church. The power of prayer is grossly underestimated.

Today we have an opportunity to pray likewise. The ushers will now distribute some cards. I would like you to list as many names as you would like – names of those who are un-churched and/or possibly unsaved. If you would like the name or names to be confidential, please indicate so. I will share those names with small prayer groups in our church. I think that this will be one of the most significant things that we do in the life of our church. Please take it seriously. God will work powerfully if we commit to pray.

Finally watch how you live! People are watching, and it will make a difference when it comes time to witness. A young salesman was disappointed about losing a big sale, and as he talked with his sales manager he lamented, "I guess it just proves you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink." The manager replied, "Son, take my advice: your job is not to make him drink. Your job is to make him thirsty." So it is with evangelism. Our lives should be so filled with Christ that they create a thirst for the Gospel. (Preaching, November-December 1985.)

A Count by the name of Zinzendorf founded an order called the Order of the Mustard Seed. It had 3 principles:
1. Be kind to all people.
2. Seek their welfare.
3. Win them to Christ.

The Bible says, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent” (Luke 15:7 NIV). I can’t think of anything better!