Being a witness of Christ needs to be more than sharing what we believe or what we heard from someone else. Like us, Paul was in Christ after the Ascension, but he did not share with others what he heard from the disciples. In Christ’s appearing to him, Paul received all that the disciples experienced and that is what he delivered to the world. This Pentecost we should contend to be witnesses like Paul. 

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Show Notes:

The disciples and the apostles of Yeshua (Jesus) were true witnesses. They were witnesses of His resurrection and of His appearings to them. Even more they were witnesses of the Scriptures because He opened their minds to understand everything that was written in them concerning the Christ. So they had an experience with the Lord that was beyond seeing Him with their eyes and physically interacting with Him. They had an impartation that truly equipped them to be witnesses.

When we engage in witnessing today, I think we have to be honest and admit that we are not expressing those same qualifications. Witnessing for us is simply the process of telling others what we believe. We are not sharing firsthand experiences of seeing or hearing or receiving from Yeshua. However, the more we move into the end times, the more we need the qualifications of those first witnesses of Christ. Yet is it possible to witness what they witnessed two thousand years after the fact?

I believe it is and we have the perfect example in the apostle Paul. Paul was not with the disciples of Yeshua to witness everything Christ did. Yet when Paul saw Christ after the Ascension, his mind was opened to behold all that had transpired with Christ. He became a witness in all respects like the disciples and delivered to the world what he received directly from Christ. I believe it was by the Holy Spirit that Paul was able to have these experiences that made him a witness. And by the Holy Spirit we should be contending for the true experiences with Christ that will make us witnesses.

Key Verses:

• Luke 24:25–30. “He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”
• Luke 24:31–32. “Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him.”
• Luke 24:44–45. “He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.”
• Luke 24:48–40. “You are witnesses of these things.”
• 1 Corinthians 15:3–8. “I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received.”
• Acts 22:6–15. “You will be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard.”
• 2 Corinthians 12:1–7. “I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord.”

Quotes:

• “I believe this generation needs witnesses, not just people talking about their faith.”
• “When we look at the ministry of Paul, we recognize that Christ appeared to him just as He appeared to those on the road to Emmaus, just as he appeared to the disciples and apostles.”
• “Paul is giving as a witness what was delivered to him, what was imparted to him, what he saw when he saw Christ. So his mind was opened to see, to behold all that had transpired with Christ.”

Takeaways:

• Paul was a true witness. And he became that witness following the ascension of Christ.
• If Paul could become such a witness, then I believe we can also. Paul is proof that we can become witnesses in our generation.
• Please remember there is a great deal of difference between being a witness and being a believer talking about our faith. We need to be witnesses to this generation.