Acts 1:8, 2 Corinthians 5:20

Steve Holloway

So why is talking about Jesus hard? Why do we feel the need to drop subtle hints and hope that people notice? Being a disciple of Jesus is being in a relationship with Him. He is so desperately in love with us that we are always in the forefront of his mind. His every thought, action and emotion are centered on His creation. He wants us to have such a depth of relationship with Him, that our lives are fully submerged and centered on Him. On a human level, I can demonstrate how this is not unlike the relationship I have with my family.

My wife and kids mean the world to me. I don't stop talking about them, (ask anyone in my office). I don't wait to see if anyone notices my wedding ring, or whether I behave in a fatherly or husband-like way. I declare it because I am proud to love, and be loved by them. Everything I do affects them. Whether I decide to take a speaking engagement, where I go and how long I stay away; is all considered in light of how this will affect my family.

Some people react strongly when I talk about my children.

"I don't want kids" or "I haven't got time" or "they're so messy".

I don't spend my time trying to persuade people to have children, but when I speak about mine, people question their own position. The difference between me talking about or signifying my relationship with my family and our relationship with Jesus is that once we put our trust in Him, He said that we automatically become His witnesses. Jesus didn't ask us or even command us to be witnesses. He stated that we are.

'But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.' Acts 1:8

If you witnessed a car accident you would not have a choice whether you saw it or not. But the result is that you would have a choice either to be a reliable and vocal witness or alternatively, refuse to testify and take the stand.

We are all witnesses but we are not all lawyers (thank goodness). A witness testifies to what he/she has seen and experienced, a lawyer will take those statements and all the other evidence and deliver a compelling case. You could say this is the evangelist's role.

Sometimes the roles are shared. I am an evangelist but I am also a witness. I am a witness through my conversion to Christ and an evangelist by the calling that He has placed on my life. Whichever role we have; we are all ambassadors.

'We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.'
2 Corinthians 5:20

We have all the authority and power of truth, justice and righteousness.

Let's stop getting freaked out by the idea that we've got to convert the whole world... because we haven't. All God has asked us to do is be reliable witnesses of our relationship with Him. If we were half as good at declaring our love for Him to others, as we are by singing about it, then our friends will know we're in a relationship and will want to be in it too.