Testify

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

TESTIFY

Acts 23:11

11 The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, "Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome." 

NIV

We have dealt with these preceding words twice, but now we come to what God spoke to Paul about having testified regarding Jesus in Jerusalem, and now he was going to Rome to testify about Jesus. The parallel that comes to our mind is the difference between the Jewish world and the Gentile world, which is like the church world of believers and the world of non-believers. It is absolutely fine for us to share our testimony about Jesus within the community of faith, the church. In fact, we should all consider how the Holy Spirit broke into our lives, bringing us face to face with our sinfulness and need for repentance. We should want to tell our story of how Jesus came into our lives, how he made us new people, and saved us from the penalty of death. When we testify about Jesus, we encourage one another, building each other up, strengthening each other's faith. We should not assume that everyone in church knows that we are born again, filled with the Spirit, or that everyone in church is born again and filled with the Spirit. That is why we should testify whenever we can, to everyone we can. However, Paul was being sent by God to Rome to testify. We could see that as our being called to share the gospel message with those outside the church. That is not as easy as it sounds, for as a general rule,  we believers do not associate very closely with the outside world. We shop in stores or maybe work there, but do we speak about Jesus openly, boldly, and with confidence? Sometimes it is difficult to join a conversation at the checkout or as we walk through the store. Have we just resigned ourselves to silence? We notice the use of the word "must" when the Lord tells Paul he must also testify in Rome. Have we, as believers, been told to preach the gospel and make disciples in all nations? Have we resigned ourselves to giving some support to missionaries who, some might testify, bear witness to Jesus? In contrast, others work in ministries that are not in direct contact with people from around the world. If we never testify to anyone, what does that mean? We believe we should testify, but are we? We might say that God is good, and he is, but are we testifying about how Jesus saved us, or that he changed our lives, and that he can change anyone's life? We need to testify.