It's a Personal Thing
by Pastor Bill Pevlor
I am continually exhorting Christians to share their faith. It is, after
all, the main purpose for which Christ established the church. If we don’t
tell people about the wonderful creator and the salvation that He provided so
freely through the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus, who will? You can bet it
won’t be our government, public schools, the entertainment industry or our
secular society.
There are many reasons why most Christians don’t actively engage in
evangelism (the sharing of their faith). I believe the number one reason, by
far, is that most people are not quite sure what to say. They know what a
blessing and benefit a relationship with Jesus is for their lives, but are not
confident in how to effectively relate that experience to others. There are a
myriad of evangelism books to read and courses to take that would greatly help.
However, without a course or book on the subject, you are already equipped with
a powerful tool for spreading the Gospel; your personal testimony.
When a person becomes a Christian by making Jesus Christ their Lord and
Savior, there are dramatic changes in their life. A “personal testimony” is
a description of what happened as a result of that decision. If you’ve been a
Christian for more than a few weeks, you have gone through some changes. Many of
your thoughts and attitudes change, some of your actions change and your
priorities change. Even your family and friends notice “there’s something
different about you.” Second Corinthians, chapter five, verse 17 says “If
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has
come!” Jesus referred to this dramatic change as being “born again.”
(John 3:3) It is such a remarkable difference; it’s like starting life all
over.
If, in your life, you’ve never experienced this dramatic change, stop,
and immediately go back to square one. Make Jesus the Lord and Savior of your
life. Then, you too, will have a personal testimony. You can’t legitimately
testify about a life changing experience with God until you’ve actually had
one.
Your testimony is the most effective witnessing tool any believer can be
equipped with. People can always argue about whether there is a God or not. They
can argue whether Jesus is the Savior or not. They can argue with your doctrine
or any other spiritual issue, but they cannot argue with your personal
experience.
A good example of how a personal testimony can cut through all arguments
is found in the ninth chapter of the gospel of John. Jesus healed a blind man.
The man who was blind testified to all those around how Jesus had healed him.
This upset the Pharisees, mostly because of jealousy. The Pharisees questioned
the man, questioned his parents, and then questioned the man again. The
Pharisees tried to discredit Jesus and this great miracle with an order: “Give
glory to God. We know this man (meaning Jesus) is a sinner.” The once
blind man replied “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing
I do know. I was blind but now I see.”
The Pharisees could deny that Jesus was the Son of God. But they
couldn’t deny that a life touched by Jesus was changed.
All Christians should have a personal testimony of the change Jesus has made in their lives. All Christians are called by Jesus to be witnesses. Are you fulfilling your part in the Great Commission? If not, begin today. Tell someone what Jesus has done for you. An effective testimony will help the listener understand what your life was like before Jesus, how you came to know Jesus and how your life is different now that you know Him.
Pastors and preachers are always talking about God. Most unbelievers have conditioned themselves to tune them out. But when ordinary people share their extraordinary experiences with God, people can’t help but listen. When someone shares a personal testimony, Christianity takes a huge leap from being a lifeless compilation of dry, dusty dogma to a relevant, stimulating, faith building, snapshot of real life.
People are not all that excited about religious lectures, but they are fascinated by real life. So share your personal testimony. No one is more qualified to share your personal testimony than you; you’re living it.
If you’re not a Christian, ask someone who is to share their personal testimony with you. All Christians have one. And don’t think, “Oh, I’ve heard all that before.” You could hear a hundred different testimonies and never hear the same story twice. You see, it’s a personal thing.
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