HOW TO BE WITNESSES - Part 7: Witnessing Where?

REVIEW
So, we are on a teaching series right now where we are learning about what it means to be the Lord’s witnesses. And like I’ve made the point of, this is a much bigger part of our calling in Christ than most Christians believe.

You see, we live in a day where believers are focused on discovering their identity and understand what Jesus has done for them. And while knowing these things is critical, it is also important to understand what is expected of us after we’ve received His love & grace—and that is, we are called to be witnesses for Him.

So, church, we need to recognize how big of a part that our witness plays in our life here on the earth. It’s the reason the Lord physically left us here even though we’ve been raised up together with Him. It’s our purpose!

So, we started off talking about the power to be a witness. In other words, we have looked at the promised Holy Spirit and seen the role He plays in making us effective witnesses for Christ. And we discovered that in order for us to be lights to the world, we have to have power to do so. And this power is that second work of grace that is available to us when the Holy Spirit comes upon us and we are filled with Him.

Over the past two weeks, we’ve been looking at the word “witness” and we’ve learned that the Greek word used is martys, which is where we get our word “martyr” from.

So, when we think of the term “martyr”, we think of a person who gives their life for the Gospel—meaning, they are put to death because of their faith and/or the sharing of it. But the fact is, in the original sense of the word, a “martyr” was not just one who died for their faith; it is one who lived for their faith! Might we say that a witness—a martys—is one who is “dying to testify of Jesus Christ”?

Well, the fact is, we did die to become a witness because everyone who has called on the name of the Lord and been born again “died” to themselves and had their old man crucified in Him. Therefore, we have been born & created as His witnesses.

But our point was that a martys (mar-tose) is someone who is so committed to the cause of Christ that they are not only willing to die for what they believe but they will live their lives committed to bearing witness of what they believe.

So, are you a “martyr”? Am I a “martyr”? Are we someone who is willing to both live & die for our faith and are living our lives to testify of Him and make Him known? This is what I believe the mentality of the early church was and ought to be the same mind that is in us. Amen?

Now last week, we looked at Revelation 12:11 and learned how overcoming the devil in those he has blinded is done—by three things: 1. The blood of the Lamb 2. The word of our testimony 3. Not loving our lives to the death.

If you missed that one or any of the others for that matter, go back and listen to what the Lord has been teaching us about being His witnesses.

But again, our emphasis has been that of Acts 1:8—that we have received power to be Christ’s witnesses because of the Holy Spirit and therefore are called to testify of Him!

WHERE DO I START THEN?
So, the question many of us might have is – “Where do I start?” I mean, the immensity of the call can be so overwhelming because there are so many people out there who need Christ. Therefore, it can be intimidating to consider what the Lord expects out of us as His witnesses.

Well, I believe Jesus gave us a very practical directive to fulfilling His great commission of being Christ’s witnesses in Acts 1:8. In this verse, He said that His disciples would be His witnesses— “in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

So, I want you to notice that the places the Lord called them to be His witnesses in was progressive: He started in Jerusalem, which (as you are about to see) was the city where they were currently at. Judea and Samaria were the regions surrounding their city. And to the ends of the earth obviously included everywhere beyond the previous two. So, let’s look at all three of these in detail…

First of all, notice that the first place that Jesus mentioned for His Jewish disciples to begin was the city where they were currently at—Jerusalem:

You see, we know this is where they would be because in Luke 24:49, Jesus told them to tarry in Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on high. Therefore, when Jesus said in this verse that they would receive this power when the Holy Spirit would come upon them, He was referring to them being witnesses in the place they were doing the “tarrying”—thus, they would be in Jerusalem.

So let me say that it’s rather obvious that each one of us are not called to begin in the city of Jerusalem like Jesus’ disciples were; no, we are called to begin in our own “Jerusalem”—which is in the place where we are at. Therefore, geographically speaking, our “Jerusalem” could describe our neighborhood, our county, or our city—depending on how far reaching you want to make it.

You see, we are to find the places and opportunities around us in the “city” in which we live and take advantage of them. Yes, we need to actively be looking for the opportunities contained in our center of influence and comfort zone as much as we can! The possibilities are limitless. The key is just possessing a sense of urgency and an acute awareness of the opportunities around us!

Now I don’t believe we need to only look at this geographically either. Our “Jerusalem” can also describe certain people in our lives like our family, friends, co-workers, etc. So, in essence, our “Jerusalem” would be those close to us and where we are at. That’s where we are first called to be His witnesses.

What this teaches me is that one of the places that we need to put our focus on is our own household and in the household of God.

Have you ever noticed that from the Lord Jesus to the apostle Paul, they always went to the Jews first. Yes, when Paul went into a new city, he would go to the synagogue first. Jesus Himself was not called to the Gentiles but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. This is why Paul said in Romans 1:16 that this salvation is to the Jew first and then to the Greek. Yes, this describes those born Jewish, but it can also be applied to those who call themselves Christians and are churched.

We need never forget that—that the Lord has called us to be His witnesses within these church walls by loving one another. And this certainly applies to when we get together with other believers of other churches & denominations, which we are currently doing through Hope for the Heart of Georgia.     

This should be a practical lesson for us that when it comes to fulfilling the great commission we do not need to get bogged down by the immensity of the call and try to figure out where does the Lord want me to go. As Jesus said, we just need to begin where we are at! We need to first find the opportunities contained in our “Jerusalem” and be witnesses to those who are around us.

Then notice what Jesus told them next: He told them that they would go into all of Judea and Samaria. This was the surrounding country and region around the city that they lived in.

Now the fact that Jesus mentions Judea first is significant in the fact that Judea was one of the few regions of Israel and it was where the city of Jerusalem was located. So geographically speaking, our “Judea” might be the state we reside in. So whatever we consider our “Jerusalem” to be, our “Judea” is the much more expansive part of it—like if we look at our “Jerusalem” as our immediate family, then our “Judea” would be our more far reaching family members like our uncles, aunts, cousins, etc. If we consider our “Jerusalem” our friends who are close to us, then our “Judea” would be those who are just outside of our inner circle of friends. Do you get the point? Our “Judea” are those who are around us, which I’ll describe here in a moment …  

But our “Samaria” is different than our “Judea” in more ways than one.

You see, to the Jews, Samaria was not their preferred place of evangelism. There was a lot of religious prejudice there, so the Jews & Samaritans did not care much for each other.

So our “Samaria” is obvious: Geographically, it would be the places that are outside of our comfort zone. Like, for instance, to the southerner who was born & raised in Georgia, “Samaria” might be the northerner that talks a little differently and culturally, might be a little out of their comfort zone. But symbolically, the “Samaritan” might simply be the person who is different than you religiously, culturally, racially, sexually…the list can go on and on.

The bottom line is, Jesus was telling His disciples that they are not just called to be witnesses to those who are like them both physically and spiritually, but to those they don’t necessarily like, those who are different than them, etc.

Church, this is the Lord’s heart—that we possess His perfect love that goes beyond just loving our friends & family to loving the stranger & our enemies.  

Therefore, when we have done what we could do in our “Jerusalem”, we are to move on to “Judea and Samaria” which is symbolic of the places surrounding our circle of influence. This would obviously be the opportunities we are surrounded with and see in the “marketplace” or the place just simply outside of our comfort zone like Samaria was to the Jew.

You see, we all want to stay in our “Jerusalem’s” (i.e. the places where we are comfortable and that we are familiar with), but God has called us to eventually move out of our comfort zone and into a ministry that might stretch us. That would certainly be in the grocery store, the movie theatre, the airport, etc. So be aware of those “Samaria’s” that the Holy Spirit might desire to manifest Himself through you unto.

And, last but not least, He included all of the earth so that they were not confused about His intention to preach the gospel to every creature all around the world. So, this is a process to expand until we have covered the whole earth! Jesus has plans for His kingdom to spread like leaven until it fills the whole earth and this is only going to occur as you and I first claim our “Jerusalem’s” and then our “Judea’s and Samaria’s.”

Now going “to the end of the earth” is obviously not for everyone—for the Lord is not going to call all of us to go to the far reaches of the earth to share the gospel. Now some of us might be called to go outside of this nation to be His witnesses, but I would venture to say that most of us will not physically go beyond our “Judea / Samaria.” But here is what is awesome …

In this world we live in today where with just one click of a button you can communicate with people all around the world, we have an awesome opportunity to share the gospel and be a light from our own home!

Jesus taught us in Matthew 24:14 that this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world and then the end will come. And I believe the technology that we possess today is a big way that this is capable of happening. 

So I see this as another way that we can be witnesses! We can utilize the technology that we’ve been blessed with today to share the Word with people! We can use email, social media platforms, YouTube, etc. to spread the Gospel and share what God has done in our lives!

Of course, we know the devil has used these things for his purposes, but I believe God gave us the technology we have today to promote His agenda. So even though the devil has perverted it, using it for his purposes, that doesn’t mean that God doesn’t want us using it for cause of Christ. So, here’s the lesson in this: Let’s use it for His glory! Let’s take the tools God’s given us to be His witness to the ends of the earth!

I can’t tell you how many times I have posted a Scripture or an exhortation online on something like Facebook and get responses thanking me saying, “That was just for me today!” or “I needed to hear that.” Personally, I have a lisp when I refer to Facebook—To me, it’s faithbook! Lol.

I also use things like Facebook & YouTube to promote videos & teachings. I have over 10,000 people watching these things weekly. And that’s not just because I’m a pastor/minister. It’s simply because I’m utilizing the tools God has given to me, and figuring out the best ways to use them. 

What I’m saying is that there are a lot of ways to witness and testify of the glory & goodness of God to people that I might never see face to face. So we need to use those vehicles to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.

The bottom line, church, is that we love people. If we love our neighbor as ourselves, we will be a great witness in our own Jerusalem, in our Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Having God’s love in our hearts for others is the key, accompanied by having the right perspective on eternity.

So I would like to end today by sharing with you what I consider to be a parable that perfectly illustrates what it means to be a witness in all of these places in our lives—the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN
This parable is one that Jesus taught to answer the question of who our neighbor is:
You see, the Lord said that one of the greatest commandments is to love our neighbor as we do ourselves. Well, the real question then that comes up is “Who is my neighbor?” If you recall, this was a question that a lawyer asked Jesus, seeking to justify himself.   

You see, what this religious dude was trying to do was determine where the line was. What I mean by that is he wanted specific requirements to having eternal life, so that he could do the bare minimum to “pass the class.” But Jesus did not let people do this—because it’s not just about following a bunch of rules and fulfilling certain criteria; it was about actually having it in our heart to love everyone—which ranged from those we like to those who are our enemies.

So Jesus gave this man a parable to answer his foolish question—what we call the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

Jesus began this parable in Luke 10:30 by saying, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.”

So this “certain man” was obviously a Jew because he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. Now let me quickly make the point that if our “neighbor” that we are called to witness to was strictly in Jerusalem, then it would be easy for someone to just pass on by this hurting man because, after all, he technically wasn’t in Jerusalem, right?

So this Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho and something terrible happened—He “fell among thieves.” These thieves stripped him of his clothing, physically wounded him, and then left him there half dead. (All of these things pointing towards a far worse condition which we will get to in a moment).

Then, in verses 31-22, we are told— “Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.”

So both of these religious Jews—a priest and a Levite—saw the man yet passed by on the other side.

Now why would they both have chosen to go around the man by passing by on the other side of the road? It’s because people know instinctively that if they passed by close to the man, that they should be the one to help this man. It’s kind of like how we might see something that might solicit compassion on television, and we change the channel real quick before it tugs on our heart strings. Well, these religious guys did not want to cross that line even though they saw that there was someone in need on the road.

But then Jesus said in verses 33-35, “But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.” 

So Jesus used a Samaritan—a religiously and socially unacceptable person in the Jewish way of thinking—to represent to His Jewish audience the one who truly loved their neighbor. He did this to show that your “neighbor” is not just your friends and affiliates; your neighbor is also someone totally different from you. Therefore, Jesus’ point was that your neighbor is anyone you come across on your way regardless of the color of their skin, what side of the tracks they live on, their religious beliefs, etc. In other words, your “neighbor” is whoever you come into contact with and whoever is close to you at the time—not necessarily geographically, but also those whom you are aware of.

So, in verses 36-37, we see the culmination of Jesus’ point from the parable: He starts off by asking— “So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” Then we see the lawyer answering him – “He who showed mercy on him.” So Jesus answered and said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Now here is another important point that I believe we need to see in this Parable of the Good Samaritan: It also paints a beautiful picture of our Savior Jesus Christ and His redemptive work …

Notice in verse 30 that this certain man (a type of mankind) fell among “thieves.” Satan is called the thief in John 10:10. Then notice the three things that the “thief” did to him:

1. He stripped him of his clothing
2. He wounded him
3. And he departed, leaving him half-dead.

The stripping him of his clothing can symbolize several things: It can refer to stripping mankind of his robe of righteousness and garments of salvation which he lost when he transgressed in the garden. It can also refer to the same instance when he was stripped of his authority over the earth. And, last but not least, his “clothing” can refer to his prosperity thereby leaving him in poverty (one third of the curse of the law).

The “wounding” of this man describes his physical affliction. This symbolizes our physical afflictions consisting of all of our sicknesses, diseases, pains and infirmities.

Then with the last effect of the thieves, we see that they departed him, leaving him half dead. You see, this is always what Satan and sin will do to you: They will entice you, and then when they are through destroying your life, they will forsake you. But notice that they left this man “half-dead.” This symbolizes the state that man was left in after his transgression—half dead—that is, left alive physically, but dead spiritually.

You see, these three things – being stripped of his clothing, being wounded, and being left half-dead – can symbolize the three-fold curse of the law—poverty, sickness, and death. Our run-in with sin left us cursed, but our rescue by our “good neighbor” left us blessed.

Yes, this “Good Samaritan” is a type of our Lord and Savior as He too likewise “journeyed” and came where the man was. This symbolizes Jesus journeying from heaven to earth, where we are (vs.33). When He saw us, He was moved with compassion. Then, in verses 34-35, we see what Jesus did for us …

Number one, He bandaged our spiritual and natural wounds! How? By pouring on oil and wine! The oil represents the indwelling of the Holy Spirit upon salvation. The wine represents the infilling of the Holy Spirit after salvation. He then put us on his animal which describes us taking His yoke upon ourselves which is easy and light. Then in verse 35, after doing so much to take care of us, He departed but promised He would come again!

CONCLUSION
Church, Jesus perfectly illustrated how to love our neighbor as ourselves by what He did for us. And church, this is how we need to view & treat those first in our “Jerusalem,” then in our “Judea and Samaria,” and also everyone all around the world. We need to recognize that we are called to be witnesses to those we pass in the grocery store, those we sit next to at our jobs, those who live in our neighborhood, etc. etc. etc. The majority of these people are that certain man who fell among thieves. They are stripped of the garments of salvation and the robe of righteousness! They are wounded, damaged, sick, and infirmed! They are half-dead—being alive physically but dead spiritually!

Every day we pass someone in this condition, and the Lord has called us to love our neighbor by being His witnesses to everyone we come in contact with.
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Jesus has said, “Go therefore!” Go into your Jerusalem! Go into your Judea and Samaria! Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature and be His witness! Amen!