He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. John1:7-9
Yesterday was Ascension day. Part of Jesus' Ascension day message was "You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth."
In our passage for today John the Apostle is talking about John the Baptist (JohnB). He describes the role that JohnB played in announcing the coming and mission of Jesus the Messiah.
JohnB was a witness and Jesus calls us to be witnesses.
Let's learn from JohnB:
1. We come as witnesses. A witness tells of what they have seen and heard and experienced. They can't witness to something that they have never experienced. (See Acts19:13-16 to see the worst case scenario of doing this.)
2. We testify about the Light. We talk about Jesus. Not about ourselves or our programmes or our clever ideas. We talk about Jesus: Incarnate, Crucified, Risen, Ascended and Soon Returning.
3. We do it so that people will BELIEVE. This is urgent!!
4. We are not the light. Oh how tempting this is!! It's so tempting to want people to recognise what good people we are and that they LIKE us. But we are not the light. We need to get out of the way! JohnB put it like this: "He must increase and I must decrease." (Joh.3:30)
5. JohnB was on a timetable as he was the forerunner for Jesus' earthly ministry ("The true light... was coming into the world"), But there is an urgency to our work too, because Jesus is coming again and we should be ready!!
So, to sum it all up, our mission is to be REFLECTORS. Being witnesses of Jesus - the light of the world!
--------------------------------
Have a look at these lyrics and go to the website listed to listen to this lovely song that puts it so well!
"Reflector"
Since I've found your love
I've never needed anything to fill my heart
Even when I fall
You're always there with open arms to pick me up
From the start I knew
No one else could make me feel the way you do
Everyday i want to grow
Just a little bit closer, just a little bit closer
I want to be a reflector
I want to shine with your glory
I want to let the whole world know that you're
Living in me
I want to burn with your fire
Shine my light a little brighter
I want to let the whole world know that
Jesus Lives in me
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkLSoIXtOaM
---
--------------------------
Theo Groeneveld theo@emmanuel.org.za
You can see past EmmDevs at http://emmdev.blogspot.com/
