1 Peter 3:15 - Sharing Jesus.
1 Peter 3:15 (KJV) But sanctify the Lord God
in your hearts: and be ready always to give an
answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the
hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
1 Peter 3:15 (NIV) But in your hearts set
apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give
an answer to everyone who asks you to give the
reason for the hope that you have. But do this with
gentleness and respect,
1 Peter 3:15 (AMP) But in your hearts set
Christ apart as holy [and acknowledge Him] as Lord.
Always be ready to give a logical defense to
any one who asks you to account for the hope
that is in you, but do it courteously and
respectfully.
1 Peter 3:15 (CWR) Continue to give the Lord
Jesus Christ the most honored place in your life.
Then you'll be ready to give an answer to people
when they ask about this hope bubbling up inside
of you. Don't be afraid to tell them who gives
you this hope, but do so with gentleness and
respect.
COMMENTARY
Sharing Your Testimony
A time-honored, effective method of
evangelism is your personal testimony. Just telling
about your spiritual pilgrimage. The skeptic may
deny your doctrine or attack your church, but he
cannot honestly ignore the fact that your life has
been cleaned up and revolutionized.
Now I'm not talking about some stale,
dragged-out verbal marathon. That kind of testimony
never attracted anyone! I'm speaking of an
effective, powerful missile launched from your lips to
the ears of the unsaved. Consider these five
suggestions:
1. You want to be listened to, so be
interesting. It's a contradiction to talk about how
exciting Christ really is in an uninteresting way.
Remember to guard against religious clichs, jargon,
and hard-to-understand terminology. Theologians,
beware!
2. You want to be understood, so be
logical. Think of your salvation in three phases and
construct your testimony accordingly: (a) before you
were born again - the struggles within, the
loneliness, lack of peace, absence of love, unrest, and
fears; (b) the decision that revolutionized your
life; and (c) the change - the difference it has
made since you received Christ.
3. You want the moment of your new birth
to be clear, so be specific. Don't be vague.
Speak of Christ, not the church. Emphasize faith
more than feeling. Be simple and direct as you
describe what you did or what you prayed or what you
said. This is crucial!
4. You want your testimony to be used, so
be practical. Be human and honest as you talk.
Don't promise, "All your problems will end if you
will become a Christian," for that isn't true.
Try to think as unbelievers think.
5. You want your testimony to produce
results, so be warm and genuine. A smile breaks down
more barriers than the hammer blows of cold, hard
facts. Let your enthusiasm flow freely. It's hard
to convince someone of the sheer joy and
excitement of knowing Christ if you're wearing a face
like a jail warden. Above all, be positive and
courteous. Absolutely refuse to argue. Nobody I ever
met was "arm wrestled" into the kingdom. Insults
and put-downs turn people off.
Ask God to open your lips and honor your
words but be careful! Once your missile hits
the target, you'll become totally dissatisfied
with your former life as an earthbound,
secret-service saint.
No persuasive technique will ever take
the place of your personal testimony. If you
have not discovered the value of telling others
how God rearranged your life, you've missed a
vital link in the chain of His plan for reaching
the lost. [Chuck Swindoll www.insight.org.]
TESTIMONY
Every believer has a story. Never doubt
it! It may not seem dramatic. It may not raise
goose bumps on a thousand arms. It may never be
the subject of a book or movie. But we have all
experienced rescue on a grand scale. God "has rescued us
from the dominion of darkness and brought us into
the kingdom of the Son he loves." God has saved
us from a lifetime of futility and given us
purpose, a destiny, and a reason to get up in the
morning.
You may not realize it, but people love
to hear that personal account. It's the story
of redemption played out in each of our lives
when we tell others how Christ has sustained us
through the toughest of times. Keep telling your
story. Don't ever stop. Even those who know it need
to hear it again.
Lord, I'm truly stunned - sometimes
overwhelmed - to think how You have used my story
through the years. You have even taken the dark
parts and low moments and somehow woven them into
a story of hope, light, and promise in Your
name. Please use my story as long as I live to
show Your love and power to others. [A Spectacle
of Glory by Joni Eareckson Tada and Larry Libby
re Col. 1:13]
ILLUSTRATION
A revival can begin with one sermon.
History proves it. John Egglen had never preached a
sermon in his life. Never.
Wasnt that he didnt want to, just
never needed to. But then one morning he did. The
snow left his town of Colchester, England, buried
in white. When he awoke on that January Sunday
in 1850, he thought of staying home. Who would
go to church in such weather?
But he reconsidered. He was, after all, a
deacon. And if the deacons didnt go, who would?
So he put on his boots, hat, and coat and
walked the six miles to the Methodist Church.
He wasnt the only member who
considered staying home. In fact, he was one of the few
who came. Twelve members and one visitor. Even
the minister was snowed in. Someone suggested
they go home. Egglen would hear none of that.
Theyd come this far; they would have a service.
Besides, they had a visitor. A thirteen-year-old
boy.
But who would preach? Egglen was the only
deacon. It fell to him.
And so he did. His sermon lasted only ten
minutes. It drifted and wandered and made no point in
an effort to make several. But at the end, an
uncharacteristic courage settled upon the man. He lifted his
eyes and looked straight at the boy and
challenged: Young man, look to Jesus. Look! Look!
Look!
Did the challenge make a difference? Let
the boy, now a man, answer. I did look, and
then and there the cloud on my heart lifted, the
darkness rolled away, and at that moment I saw the
sun.
The boys name? Charles Haddon
Spurgeon. Englands prince of preachers.
Did Egglen know what hed done? No. Do
heroes know when they are heroic? Rarely. Are
historic moments acknowledged when they happen?
You know the answer to that one. (If not,
a visit to the manger will remind you.) We
seldom see history in the making, and we seldom
recognize heroes.
But wed do well to keep our eyes open.
Tomorrows Spurgeon might be mowing your lawn. And the
hero who inspires him might be nearer than you
think.
He might be in your mirror. [Max Lucado
Daily Devotional at maxlucado.com]
CLOSING PEARL
Anika was our German shuttle bus driver
who carted us and our luggage from the Munich
airport to our hotel. As we pulled away from the
curbside, I said, "Anika, we're going to pray here in
the back seat. But you're driving, so don't
close your eyes!" The look she gave us in the
rearview mirror said it all: You people are odd. We
were wonderful examples of 1 Peter 2:9, "...a
peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the
praises of him who hath called you out of darkness
into his marvelous light" (KJV).
But it's the odd things that stick in
your mind. And sometimes your heart. The next
morning when Anika loaded us up to take us back to
the airport, she thanked us after we prayed out
loud for her (we also interceded for her live-in
boyfriend, as well as her parents, whom she hadn't seen
for years). When we said goodbye, she commented
with wet eyes, "I like you people. There's
something about you that makes me happy. I wish I
could go with you."
"You can," I said. "One of these days
we're going to lift off, and we'll go higher than
any airplane could ever take us. It's all about
following Christ." Anika smiled. We were one more
stepping stone in her long journey which, I'm
convinced, will land her in heaven.
Sometimes evangelism doesn't mean
delivering the whole Gospel message at a curbside and
asking for a response before the light turns green.
Everything we say or do that moves an individual one
step closer to Jesus and salvation is evangelism.
And allowing our joy in Christ to just spill
over and splash on others is as powerful a
witness as a three-point sermon.
Holy Spirit, fill me with your joy today
as I walk in your presence and lean on your
strength. I pray for the opportunity to move at least
one person at least one step closer to heaven.
[Joni Eareckson Tada Daily Devotional:
http://www.joniandfriends.org/daily-devotional re Acts 16:25]
CLOSING THOUGHT
If the love of God flows through us, we will
find ourselves sharing that love with those
around us, for God is love, and that love is bigger
than its container, the Christian, so it must
overflow. Al Bryant [Time with God SB]
EXCELLENT VIDEO SERMON ON THIS TOPIC
Turning Your Story into Hisstory by
Dwight Nelson:
http://www.pmchurch.tv/service/2008/10/04/turning-your-story-his-story
LINK FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS PASSAGE
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2017/20171001-1545.html
EXCELLENT VIDEO SERIES ON 28 REVELATIONS OF
JESUS
1st of 28: Divine Dining:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_7j1QIKqmY
2nd of 28: Pictures of the Divine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lNI-OQ7-eQ
3rd of 28: A Dirty Bible:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMkPvBuuFd4
YOUR COMMENTS
If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in
hearing from you. Thanks in advance and let's keep
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred
Gibbs
