Witness. Ever thought about that word? You hear it all the time in relation to Christianity. And it often seems to come across negatively to unbelievers. Why? I think it’s because of how Christians have twisted the meaning. By witness, believers try to cram what they believe down some one else's throat. They witness about their belief. What they know to be true. They parrot what they’ve been taught…..
Uh, wait – would that be allowed in court? In court a witness is not allowed to use speculation, hearsay or belief when they testify. They are only allowed to speak of what they have seen, heard, or experienced firsthand. Wow. So, when we witness, if we use the accepted use of the word, this means we are only allowed to speak of what we have seen, heard or experienced ourselves. Experience is a scary word in evangelical circles. For whatever reason. But doesn’t it make sense, if we are speaking to others about Christ, that we need to recount our experience? Tell our story. Our story. How can we speak to things that we have no concept of? We can say “I have heard”, or “the Bible says”, but the impact is so much greater when we tell our story, our experience, how we have seen evidence of God at work in our world and life. It has much greater impact when others can see for themselves the working of God in our lives. Standing on a street corner yelling through a bullhorn, or brow beating a friend, pummeling them with verses and platitudes over dinner is not acceptable. That is not the way to make our case, prove our point, or win anything. In our courts or in God’s.
That’s just what I’m thinking about today…….
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