Lesson 284: "Witnessing About The Unseen"
The 3rd Commandment (Ex. 20:7) involves the quality of our personal witness of everything God’s name implies. His name represents His position as Creator (Elohim); “In the beginning God created (Gen. 1:1), Life giver (El-Shaddai); “I will make you very fruitful……I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come” (Gen. 17:1-7); Provider (Jehovah-Jireh) “Where is the lamb for the burnt offering? God Himself will provide” (Gen. 22:1-14); Ruler (Jehovah-Rohi) “The voice of the Lord is over the waters…the voice of the Lord is powerful and majestic…the voice strikes with flashes of lightning and strips the forest bare” ( Ps. 29); and Sustainer (Jehovah-Nissi) “As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning” (Ex. 17:8-16). His character: Righteousness (Jehovah-Tsidkenu) “This is the name by which He will be called: The Lord of Righteousness” (Jer. 23:5-8); power & peace (Jehovah-Shalom) “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9-16); Master of promises (Adonai) “I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people” (Hebrews 8:10-12). These names and their spellings vary in different commentaries.
While on earth, Jesus was the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15)! What do we on earth today have to “show” when we witness? Does your life’s testimony prove to others that God is indeed Ruler of your daily routine? Can you show to the lost beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is powerful enough to create the heavens and the earth and in His loving kindness, guarantee them spiritual life everlasting? Most of our impressions or beliefs about our family, close friends and acquaintances involve knowledge about their character as part of their reputation. Our interactions give us insight to these people’s characters and reputations. If we know these close ones very well and spend much time with them then we will see any growth of character or lack of it. In turn they will see the same qualities in you. The apostles chose seven men to become deacons/helpers because the work of the Lord was growing out of their ability to “keep up” (Acts 6:1-3). These men were to show evidence of God’s Spirit and wisdom in their lives before they were chosen and we too should look for these qualities in a person before choosing committee-men, teachers and workers in our church body.
Before God chose us He revealed His truth to us, forgave us, justified us and put His Holy Spirit within us. Before we were saved our father was Satan and we were no better than the Pharisees whom Christ told that they were of their father, the devil because they were doing Satan’s work (John 8:39-47). Now we are children of God part of our witness will be the characteristics of God showing in our lifestyle. The acts of a person who is controlled by the devil (Eph. 2:1-3) are listed in Galatians 5:19-20 but the good news about the characteristics of life through the Spirit is listed right after these (Gal. 5:22-25); these qualities are the fruit of the Spirit. Christians have received the Spirit of son-ship and by Him we cry, ‘Abba Father’ (Rom. 8:15); what a blessed privilege! God was the original Father of Adam but Adam turned us over to the devil through sin and only by the grace and mercy of God was His Son sent to take back the role of Father. Another hallelujah would fit in nicely here!
The quality of our witness must be much higher than what God expected of Israel. “To whom is given, much also is required” (Luke 12:48) and we today have been given the Holy Spirit which Israel did not have living within them. Some today do not believe in the Trinity and if this is you then you are still living under the “Old Covenant Israel”. Jesus did not do away with the Law and God’s Law WILL set us apart from the world but merely keeping the letter of the Law will not provide the complete witness that God is looking for and has provided you the power to witness. Paul made it clear that he did not “make up” the gospel but preached what he had received from the Apostles who actually witnesses these happenings (1 Cor. 15:1-8). We also have available to us the witness of the Apostles’ lives following the Resurrection. People today believe in their hearts what the Apostles saw with their eyes (2 Peter 1:16-25). Christ’s Resurrection gives every Christian hope for his own resurrection because we believe in the One who made this promise. Our living witness should show this hope to all who come in contact with us and we should be able to define the “unseen” to the ones who have not yet received their sight.
“I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me” (Acts 26:17b-18). “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18). “It is written; ‘I believed, therefore I have spoken’” (2 Cor. 4:13).
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