A Powerful Testimony

A personal testimony is a useful witness for believers of the transforming and saving power of Jesus Christ through the Gospel.  The impact can be lessened when the focus is primarily on the sinful season of life before Christ or a conversion experience itself.  This leads to people thinking their "testimony" is boring or ordinary if they were raised in a Christian home and did not have a dynamic shift from drug-dealing pimp to pastor.  Those who glamorise a sensational conversion can potentially encourage people to seek a feeling or moment comparable to what they have heard to affirm the reality of God's work within them.  If a testimony stops at conversion, it isn't much of one.  A testimony without the Gospel lacks the power to save.  As a child of God in relationship with Jesus Christ there is much more to say with Him as the primary focus.

A testimony does not need to be long to have great impact.  I remember asking a friend how his wife changed after trusting in Jesus.  After a brief pause he said, "When she became a Christian she became a totally different person.  It was a good change."  It was not the person she was previously which impacted him but the loving person she became and continued to be day after day.  I like what pastor McGee said about the witness of a changed life:  "Note that Zacchaeus did not come to the door and say, "I want to give my testimony:  Jesus saves and keeps and satisfies."  Rather he said, "Half my goods I will give to the poor, and I will make right the things that have been wrong."  By this I know he has been converted.  And, friend, this is the only way the world will know that you are converted.  They do not know it by testimony; they know it only by what they see in your life.  If it were not for his changed life, I would never know that this old publican got converted." (Thru the Bible, Vol. IV, pg. 333)

When a person is born again through faith in Jesus, there will be a contrast inside and out compared to how we used to be.  Focusing on what we used to do or how much better off we are now misses the point entirely:  a testimony isn't so much about how we have changed but Who has transformed us by grace through faith!  The Pharisees grilled the man born blind Jesus miraculously healed so he could see clearly.  They asked, "Give glory to God, for we know this Man is a sinner."  The man answered in John 9:25, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see."  The difference between this man's testimony and ours is at this point he had never seen Jesus, for he had been sent to wash in the pool of Siloam and came away seeing.  The Pharisees were hung up on how Jesus did miracles rather than the signs He did leading them to rejoice, believe, and follow the Saviour Jesus.  They cast the man out of the synagogue for his impertinence to suggest Jesus was of God because of the miracle He had done.

John 9:35-38 reads, "Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" ³⁶ He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" ³⁷ And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." ³⁸ Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him."  The man had been cast out of the synagogue, but he was not alone because Jesus sought and found him.  How different life would be for a person who had been born blind who suddenly could see perfectly, and even more profound is the difference in a person who has passed from life to death through faith in Jesus, knows God who speaks with him, worships His Creator and follows Him every day.  Now that is a testimony worth sharing that brings honour and glory to God!

Speak God's Word Faithfully

I am amazed how the Bible remains as relevant as ever:  the very issues faced by the early church concerning practices, doctrine, liberty and society are ongoing.  Seeing the scriptures have been inspired by God for our learning, one might assume the lessons would have been learned by now.  Alas, our own lives are a testimony against this idea.  Like the children of Israel who saw God's miraculous wonders and did not obey Him, we can be exposed to the teaching of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit and remain in darkness.

Psalm 119:105 says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."  There are a lot of people who claim to have knowledge to shed light on the true meaning of the scriptures who distort the truth, a practice far more dangerous than outright lies.  With the internet it has never been easier to share the scriptures or espouse twisted interpretations of them than today.  It is very easy to choose interpretations which suit our own prejudice and bias and to reject wholesale those who do not align with our current understanding.  With our feet firmly planted in the truth of the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, the light of God's word guides us to a safe haven like a lighthouse does a ship in a stormy sea.

I increasingly appreciate the power of God to reveal Himself and to protect us from error.  In the days of Jeremiah the prophet, people prophesied falsely in God's name and shared dreams which contradicted the word of God spoken through him.  In a land rife with error Jeremiah did not try to censure or oppose all the error which floated around.  God spoke in Jeremiah 23:28-29:  "The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; and he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat?" says the LORD. ²⁹ "Is not My word like a fire?" says the LORD, "and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?"  There is a difference between the word of men and the word of God even as chaff is separate to wheat.  Chaff is the thin, papery and indigestible covering of grain which blows away in the wind and is lost forever during threshing.  Wheat can be planted, produce a crop, be ground into flour to make bread and sustains life.  Chaff and wheat grow together yet are fundamentally different.

God's word is not threatened, undermined or undone by dreamers and false prophets.  God does at times speak through dreams and through prophetic utterances, but His word spoken faithfully and rightly divided provides all people need to thrive.  God compared His word to a fire that consumes, a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces.  Prophets spoke God had not spoken to, and they ran when He had not sent them.  They were spiritual plagiarists and forgers, repeating lies rather than speaking God's word faithfully.  God was against the false prophets and would hold them to account.  The exhortation given to Jeremiah is a fitting one for those who fear the LORD today:  we have His word and let us speak God's word faithfully.  It is implied we would also walk according to it in the fear of the LORD.

Jeremiah 23:32 says, "Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams," says the LORD, "and tell them, and cause My people to err by their lies and by their recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not profit this people at all," says the LORD."  Better to stick to the truth revealed through scripture than to rely on dreams for guidance.  There were reckless prophets before Jesus, and those promoting falsehood remain to this day.  If we will profit and cause others to do so, let us be those who seek the LORD and speak His word faithfully.  There are many who recklessly lead others to err, but what is the chaff to the wheat?  Should we cease from sowing grain to pursue those who scatter chaff?  God's word is good and satisfying for our souls, and we ought not to become weary of feeding on it, following and sharing it.

The Life-Giving God

 Often God does not answer our prayers in the way we expect.  Because we believe there is no time like the present for God to do His miraculous works we can become disillusioned and complacent when nothing good seems to happen.  So many of our problems stem from a perspective which focuses on the problems rather than God who is sovereign, powerful and glorious.  We forget God operates outside of the confines of times to accomplish His purposes which are far greater in scope and impact than our requests give Him credit for.

Baruch was a man who feared God who was troubled and dismayed with the state of Israel.  Life was hard and the word from the LORD was not uplifting in the slightest.  When it seemed life could not be any worse, life became exponentially more so!  After Baruch wrote the words of woe dictated by the prophet Jeremiah he thought, "Woe is me!  The LORD has added grief to my sorrow and I find no rest."  A child of God who feels and says this often has neglected to consider the goodness of God who graciously speaks to us and brings comfort to our hearts.  The fiery trial we beg God to bring to an end may be permitted to continue, and the exercise of faith in looking to the LORD will work to refine us through it.

God had a word for Baruch and for those who find rest elusive in Jeremiah 45:4-5:  "Thus you shall say to him, 'Thus says the LORD: "Behold, what I have built I will break down, and what I have planted I will pluck up, that is, this whole land. ⁵ And do you seek great things for yourself? Do not seek them; for behold, I will bring adversity on all flesh," says the LORD. "But I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go."  Baruch was looking for rest where none could be found, in the cessation of judgment from the LORD upon a rebellious, faithless people marked for judgment.  God pointed out how Baruch's lack of rest came from striving to seek great things for himself when he could have been best served seeking God.  God would tear down what He had built like a builder does an unsafe, condemned house from its foundation to make a habitable structure again.

Israel would go into captivity and there would be great adversity, yet God would give Baruch life wherever he went.  In Jerusalem, Babylon and along the way God would be a loving Father to Baruch.  It may not have been the life Baruch would have chosen for himself, but it was better than he or anyone else deserved.  Has not also God been gracious to us through Jesus Christ who is the Resurrection and the Life?  In Christ we are protected and preserved in all seasons of life because our souls have been redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus who died on Calvary and rose from the dead so we can live forever.  We have a life to live beyond the boundaries of this earth in the presence of God forever!  Isn't He the great One we ought to seek, the God who is with us and will never leave or forsake us?  The God who gave us life knows how to live to the full, and this abundance is ours in Jesus Christ alone.

Encouragement from Discouragement

I spent the majority of this week speaking at a teen camp, and it was a fruitful time.  It was a blessing and privilege to have the opportunity to teach young people about God as we studied Psalm 1.  Much prayer and study went into preparation for the delivery of messages and answering questions.  The LORD didn't just speak through me but spoke to me, and told me exactly what I needed to hear when I needed it most.

The impetus for this post was born out of a discouraging situation.  During one of the talks I misspoke when talking about the boab tree and off the cuff related the tree's incredible ability to store water to a camel.  Of course camels do not "store" water in their humps and thus it was an awful analogy--one I would not be allowed to forget.  A camp film was made which one camper was asked about what he thought about the talks and he did not hold back:  "He botched the talk," he said with a frown.  "Camels don't store water in their humps.  It's fat."  When I saw the footage I was disappointed an off-handed comment would be so distracting and send the wrong message.  Everyone had a good laugh, and it was certainly awkward for me.

Later I was praying and a bit discouraged about my mistake, how it likely (at least for one person!) took away from the impact of the Gospel.  Before bed I felt led to continue reading through the scriptures and arrived at Psalm 7. Though I had read through this copy of the Bible many times I discovered something I never noticed before:  a typo at the end of chapter 7 that ended with a colon instead of a period.

Out of discouragement God brought encouragement!  I had not noticed the typo before and it took nothing away from the meaning of the passage.  In a similar way my error was not a hindrance in any way from people receiving the truth of the Gospel because God's word is living and powerful.  I also found encouragement that the publisher had made a punctuation error but God still chose to use them to print His word.  God chooses to use imperfect people like me who make mistakes and He is able to redeem even our failures for good, to humble us and instruct us concerning our need to rely upon Him.  Isn't it amazing God chooses to use flawed people?  We are all undeserving of the privilege to serve Him as He keeps refining and sanctifying us along the way.  Jesus doesn't wait until we attain an arbitrary level of skill before connecting us as a functional, fruitful member of His Body the Church:  by grace we are saved through faith, and we walk by faith despite our failures.

How glad I was to hear a report at the end of the week that many campers chose to follow Jesus Christ as LORD and Saviour!  All glory to Him who does wondrous things even when we miss the mark.  We are fools to place our confidence in ourselves, experience or preparation:  we are wise to continually rely upon God to lead us and make our feeble efforts fruitful according to His glorious design.