pramsay posted on May 30, 2006 04:54 1075 views

Does this sound familiar? “I’m such a lousy witness – I never tell anyone about Christ. Others find ways to share the good news about Christ with co-workers and friends but me? My lips are sealed. I just don’t think I could do it. But the Lord doesn’t want me to go around feeling guilty all the time or beating myself up over my failure to be a witness, so I will just forget about it. It’s just not one of my things.

Did you know that you have a responsibility to tell others about Christ? It is our christian duty. The Apostle Peter wrote to the christians and told them to always be ready to share the Gospel. It should be on the tip of your tongue. When someone opens the door for such a conversation, even just the slightest crack, we are to put a little word through that crack for Christ. So often we try to console ourselves by saying: “But, I’m too shy.” That may soothe our conscience down here – but when I stand at the Judgment Seat of Christ up there, will I be able to look my Saviour and Lord in the eyes and say: “Sorry Lord – I just couldn’t muster up the courage to tell anybody about You. I looked for opportunities but it never seemed like a suitable time to bring You into the conversation.” If christians stand in the background as observers and witnesses at the Great White Throne, will my co-worker point me out and say: “Well I worked beside that guy over there for years and he never told me that I could escape the Lake of Fire by trusting You as my Saviour. He never mentioned a thing to me about You or the forgiveness of my sins.”

“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

Does my lifestyle prompt my friends, neighbors and co-workers to ask me why I live the way I do and think the way I think? Peter was writing to christians who were being persecuted for their faith. He said: “When people ask you, always be ready to give them a solid explanation of your faith –

  1. who Christ is;
  2. why you needed Him;
  3. what He did for you;
  4. how He has changed your life and
  5. what He can do for them. “

There are other verses to remind us of our responsibility to actively share Christ with others without waiting to be asked. But right now we are thinking of the bare minimum – the occasions when people do ask us. I really can’t let myself of the hook by thinking: “Well, I would witness if somebody asked me, but nobody is asking me – so that’s why I am quiet, Lord.” That’s scary. Why is no one asking me? That should bother me. Am I blending in with the world around me so much that no one sees the difference and no one bothers to ask? Is no one impressed with the change that Christ is making in my life? “Why, Lord is no one asking me? Am I hiding my light? Have I got too much in common with those who are traveling to Hell?

If I was fulfilling the first part of the verse, more people would be asking me. If I sanctified the Lord God in my heart, if I elevated Christ to the throne of my heart and gave Him the keys to the ignition of my life, people would be asking me. If they’re not asking me, the problem is within. It starts in my heart.

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