You are my Witnesses (Part 2)

"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" (Romans 10:15)

Witnesses are expected to be on the move, because they have a message of hope for God's people before the curtain of their life is pulled or their sun sets. They act as if today would be the last day for those who need to be witnessed to; aware that God has not promised anyone they would see tomorrow. Nobody knows the day or the time when we would depart this world. Exiting this world without having heard the good news or being saved following an encounter with the Saviour of the world - our Lord Jesus Christ - would amount to an unfulfilled life, void of meaning. Bible teaches that there is no other name by which humanity can be saved. "Salvation is to be found through him (Jesus) alone; in all the world there is no one else whom God has given who can save us." (Acts 4:12)

There is a pressing need for souls to be saved before it is too late. Witnessing is concerned with making attempts at salvaging our spiritual beings in order to put them in tune with the word of God. Establishing spiritual contact on an earthly plane begins with the soul. That's where it all starts. Paul poses the question: "How can they believe if they have not heard the message? And how can they hear if the message is not proclaimed? And how can the message be proclaimed if the messengers are not sent out?" (Romans 10:14)

"Faith comes by hearing the message, and the message comes through preaching Christ." (Romans 10:17) Jesus assembled his disciples and commissioned them in groups of two, to go to the lost sheep of Israel: "As you go preach this message: The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give ... what I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roof." (Matthew 10:27) It was quite an exciting experience for them. They returned all jubilant with the results, but put emphasis on the wrong thing - that the spirits obeyed them and not that they had brought souls to the kingdom. "... do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (Luke 10:20)

We cannot afford to hoard the good news; someone somewhere needs it desperately in order to stay alive. That person could well be at the end of her/his tether and is about throwing in the towel. One dose of the Word of God can make a difference in their lives. God called us to witness, but there are some people who do not want to witness; either they feel they do not have the time or they just do not feel up to it. Their busy schedule would not permit them. Jonah, a prophet of God, thought it was not worth the trouble.

The people of Nineveh had sinned against God to the extent that he would have punished them like he did Sodom and Gomorrah; literally wipe them off from the face of the earth. However, God in his mercy thought of giving them a second chance. For this reason, he called his servant Jonah to go and witness to the nation of Nineveh - that depraved nation. Jonah had a better plan; he decided to flee. He was to go east he went west, thinking he could escape from the assignment. Unfortunately, we can run away but we cannot hide, for God is everywhere. David wrote: "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast." (Psalm 139:7-10)

God put obstacles on Jonah's path to bring him to his senses. Rough seas rocked the boat he was escaping in and when the sailors found out that he was the reason for God's anger he asked that he be thrown overboard. He landed in the belly of a big fish where he spent three days before being vomited on shore. This time around, he was compelled to undertake the mission God had sent him on. (Read the Book of Jonah for the full story.)

It is God who choses us; when he does we had better obey for we will find no way of escape except we comply and the task is fulfilled. If Jonah had not gone, a whole nation would have been destroyed. When Jonah ministered to the pagan nation they repented and God saved them. Righteousness exalts a nation; God's wrath will come down on any nation that is soaked in sin by deliberately flouting God's holy laws in outright disobedience.

Have you been attentive to the Word of God to go and witness or have you turned a deaf ear? Do you prefer the comfort of your home rather than saving souls for God? Is it fear of failure that has gripped you or have you been imagining the dimension of the obstacles that would cause a hindrance? Remember that when God calls he equips and emboldens; nothing can come against the will of God.

The greatest witness we can come across in the Bible is John the Baptist, who was the forerunner to Jesus Christ. The one of whom Isaiah prophesied: "A voice of one calling in the desert prepare the way for the Lord, make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it." (Isaiah 40:3-5) As he took up his ministry, he said of Jesus: "But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry: He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire." (Matthew 3:11-12) How precisely he described the Messiah, the Chosen One of God - Jesus Christ.

Our Lord Jesus himself prior to ascending into heaven declared to his disciples: "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8) The mission field for spreading the word is vast. God said; "You are my witnesses." You have heard though you have not seen, so nothing should stop you. Jesus said, you will be my witnesses everywhere - at home, in your home town (Jerusalem), in your neighbourhood (Judea); in enemy territory (Samaria); and everywhere. You won't miss this opportunity to help save someone, would you? Be a witness for Christ!