SUCCEEDING AS A WITNESS FOR THE LORD

by Pastor Mitch
September 19, 2014

Israel – A Failure As A Witness

Israel had everything going for them. They were a nation blessed greatly by the Lord God. In the text ofIsaiah 43, the Lord had done everything to make Israel a great and mighty nation. He had called them by their name and redeemed them. They were special and precious in His eyes and He loved them with a great love. He blessed them richly as a nation and called them to be His witness.

“‘You are My witnesses,’ says the Lord,
‘And My servant whom I have chosen,
That you may know and believe Me,
And understand that I am He.'” 
Isaiah 43:10

They were meant to be an outstanding nation that would bear witness for the Lord God. They would be given the privilege to know Him, to come to faith in Him and to understand Him deeply. God gave them all things so that they may be good witnesses for Him. Did they succeed in being a witness for the Lord? No, they did not. They failed miserably. The people of Israel did not call upon the Lord because they had grown weary of Him (Isaiah 43:22). The people of Israel were caught up with their own sins. When it came to being a witness, they were a total failure.

The Lord Jesus – A Success As A Witness

“I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness,
And will hold your hand;
I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people,
As a light to the Gentiles, to open blind eyes” 
Isaiah 42:6

In total contradistinction to the witness of Israel is the great witness of the Lord Jesus. He too was specially called by the Lord God to be a light to His people and the Gentiles. He was meant to open their blind eyes and to bring them out from the prison of sin. God would specially keep Him and enable Him. Did the Lord Jesus succeed as a witness? Absolutely “Yes”. The Lord Jesus said:

“But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish – the very works that I do – bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.” 
John 5:36

The Lord Jesus bore witness for God through His works. The great works that He did established Himself as a great testimony for the Father that He was truly sent from Him. He succeeded with flying colours in bearing witness for the Lord God

12 Disciples – A Success As A Witness

“You shall be witnesses to Me” 
Acts 1:8

Not only did the Lord Jesus establish His witness for God, He also commanded His disciples to bear witness for Him. They too would succeed in being the Lord’s witnesses in Jerusalem and other areas. The power of the Spirit of God would be upon them and they would bear testimony of the Lord Jesus as the Messiah. Did they succeed in doing so? Yes, they most certainly did. Peter and the others testified of the Lord Jesus as the Son of God and thousands came to know Him (Acts 2:47).

We – A Success As A Witness?

We too have everything going for us. The Lord God has richly blessed us spiritually. Let’s seek to follow the example of the Lord Jesus in bearing witness through works. Let’s seek to be Spirit-filed that we may boldly spread the gospel. We could end up becoming like Israel, a failure as a witness if we chose to go our own way. Celebrating Bethany’s 40 +1 anniversary is a good opportunity for us to share about the work that He has done in our midst. Let’s do all we can to testify of our faith in God.

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