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Articles Written By Dale Lee

Learn More To Do More Project


I CAN WITNESS FOR JESUS©


(Article's content based on a pamphlet published with the same name
in the Recovering Sinners™  Series in October, 1996, by Dale Lee)



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I Can Witness For Jesus Several Ways I Can Witness For Jesus
Am I Being A Good Witness I Need Training Before I Can Witness For Jesus
I Can't Pass My Witnessing Responsibility To Another Person Each Christian Is A Role Model
Paying A Price For Being A Christian Are You Being A Pain To The Devil
Your Comments Are Wanted

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I CAN WITNESS FOR JESUS©

   

I can’t
I don’t know how
I am afraid


These are common reactions by many Christians when they are confronted with the idea that they are to witness to a person. What makes Christians scared to tell people about Jesus when Jesus is supposed to be Lord of their lives?



The Random House College Dictionary defines two aspects of the word, witness, as:

     1. to see or know by personal presence and perception ...

     2. to bear witness to; testify; give or afford evidence.


For a person to be a witness for Jesus, he is to live his life in a way that his activities and words are evidence of the teachings of Jesus. People will know without doubt that he has complete faith in Jesus. The heart of witnessing for Jesus is not how much you “know” about the Bible, but the things you do for and with people that shows them that you and Jesus care about them.


Words are cheap and easy to say, but a person’s actions are better indicators of his true beliefs and values. It seems that many Christians are more concerned about what people think about them than what God thinks about them. When a Christian’s words and actions do not agree, observers will think that not so nice word, HYPOCRITE. Is it possible that what some Christians say they believe is not what they actually believe?


If a Christian knows what he believes and why he believes it, then his personal witness, becomes the process of telling other people what he believes. It is that simple.

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SEVERAL WAYS I CAN WITNESS FOR JESUS


A. I live each day in the manner that reflects the teachings of Jesus through the way I conduct myself.
B. I prepare myself through personal study and activities to be a more effective witness for Jesus.
C. I talk to people about their relationship with God and Jesus.
D. I invite people to attend activities at my church.
E. I put forth the effort to make a visitor to my church feel welcomed.
F. I put forth the effort to help a new church member feel welcomed and become a member of my church’s social family.
G. I get to know church visitors or church members that I do not know by inviting them to my home to share a meal or visiting them in their homes.
H. I support the church by giving a tenth of my money, time, skills, gifts, etc.
I. I organize, lead, and/or participate in activities that will introduce people to my church and the teachings of Jesus.
J.

I support the activities of my church through my attendance.


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AM I BEING A GOOD WITNESS


Rate how well you perform the above ten ways to witness using the following five numeric codes. On a sheet of paper you will keep, write in a column the letters, A through J. Using the following chart, write beside each letter the number that describes how you rate yourself.


1. Never do it.
2. Seldom do it.
3. Do it when I have time.
4. Often do it.
5. Always do it.


Based on how you rated yourself, how good of a witness are you? What do you need to change so you can give yourself a higher rating?

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I NEED TRAINING BEFORE I CAN WITNESS FOR JESUS


Some people are not comfortable with “witnessing,” because they consider witnessing for Jesus to be a process of arguing with a person about “What the Bible says” until the person submits to their way of thinking. Other people say they cannot talk to people about Jesus, because they have not been trained to witness.


Contact your pastor for a witnessing program with which he is familiar and can assist you as you prepare yourself to be a more effective witness.


Use your favorite internet search engines to search for methods for sharing your faith with people. You must be wise in the selection of witnessing methods that will not cause you to say anything you do not believe.

Witnessing training programs are available if a person or several people are willing to commit several months of time and effort. Two such formal witnessing training programs are Evangelism Explosion (EE) and Continuous Witness Training (CWT).


Two easy to learn witnessing plans are Four Spiritual Laws (http://www.crusade.org/fourlaws/) by Dr. Bill Bright, Campus Crusade for Christ, International, and Romans Road To Salvation (http://www.the-roman-road.com/ ). Each plan promotes using a few scripture verses when talking with a person about his relationship with God and Jesus.


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I CAN’T PASS MY WITNESSING RESPONSIBILITY TO ANOTHER PERSON


The Holy Spirit works through Christians which means witnessing is the combined effort of the Christian and the power of the Holy Spirit. God holds each person accountable for what he does and does not do. A person can only do what his skill, knowledge, and faith enable him to do. His commitment to being a witness is the direct result of his faith in Jesus. Each person has the ability to increase his knowledge and skill.


If God and Jesus are important to a Christian, why are many Christians reluctant to stand-up and let people know they are a Christian? How important is God’s opinion of you to you?


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EACH CHRISTIAN IS A ROLE MODEL


A Christian should not do anything that would hinder people from viewing him as a role model of the teachings of Jesus. He should give attention to what he does each day. He should evaluate each thing he does by considering how his actions and words will be interpreted by a non-Christian. There is a lot of responsibility that goes with being a role model. As a Christian, a person is a role model of Jesus even if he does not want to be an example.


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PAYING A PRICE FOR BEING A CHRISTIAN


Taking a stand for what the Bible represents can cause a person to “pay a price” for being a Christian. A Christian is to take a stand against conditions in his culture that are not supported by the Bible. A Christian cannot always be “modern” and “politically correct” while representing Christ. The values of a society can change, but the teachings of the Bible have not changed. A Christian can expect some people to discriminate against him for his beliefs. At the same time, his actions will enable him to be a symbol of hope for other people.


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ARE YOU BEING A PAIN TO THE DEVIL


The Devil does work to place obstacles in the path of effective witnessing Christians to attempt to cause them to become discouraged and reduce their efforts to serve Jesus. These Christians have to depend on the power of God to overcome the obstacles.


Are YOU being a thorn in the Devil’s side through your efforts to serve Jesus?


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YOUR COMMENTS ARE WANTED


If you have any questions or comments, please contact:  Dale Lee.



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(A-10/96)