The Power of Sharing

The Power of Sharing

John Chapter 4 gives us remarkable insight into the transformational power that is released when someone lost encounters Jesus.

John 4:5-7; 10; 13-14; 28-30
⁵ Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. ⁶ Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. ⁷ There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.

 ¹⁰ Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.

 ¹³ Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: ¹⁴ But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

 ²⁸ The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, ²⁹ Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ? ³⁰ Then they went out of the city, and came unto him. 

This unnamed woman was so excited to have encountered Jesus that she left her belongings, went into the city and told everyone she met about Him. She was so excited about this revelation that she urged them to come and see the Messiah for themselves. This woman had a testimony!

The Call to Share Your Testimony

The term testimony is a very familiar term in our society. Most know it within the context of court or inside of legal matters. In a court of law individuals are called to provide testimony so that the truth of a matter can be revealed. Similarly, we in the church are called to testify, or tell the truth, about what God can do, has done, and will do continue to do until His return.

One could say that Mark 16:15 is every believer’s heaven sent subpoena.

Mark 16:15
¹⁵ And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

You may be thinking, “Yes, but that doesn’t apply to me. Jesus told them to preach, that isn’t my job.” But you’ve got to read the command portion of the subpoena.

Acts 1:8
⁸ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

So, Jesus is identifying that those who have received the Spirit are called (subpoenaed) to be a witness. And witnesses are called to give their testimony. Which is what Peter admonished the church to do in 1 Peter.

1 Peter 3:15
¹⁵ But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

We have been called to go out into the world and to tell others about the Gospel of Jesus, which is the Good News of the death, the burial, and the resurrection. We are to offer to anyone who will listen the truth that will give hope to someone lost in their sins.

Again, this call to witness came directly from Jesus and if we look at His example, we will get a good idea of who He’s calling us to testify to.

Luke 4:18
¹⁸ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

Jesus specifically mentions five things to look for, the poor (meaning distressed), the brokenhearted, the captive, the blind, and the bruised. If you just take a moment and look around, I am sure you will find someone who fits into one of these categories. There is a harvest field all around us, everyday as we go through our normal routines, we will find those who Jesus is looking for, and because we hold a “treasure in this earthen vessel” [2 Corinthians 4:7] that we have been commanded to give it to others.

The Value of Your Story

Everyone has a story. People can ignore or resist religious teaching, but no one can deny your personal experience. Sharing your story may be the key to reaching someone with the Gospel.

Sharing your story doesn’t have to be scary or difficult. God simply wants us to seek his Kingdom and His righteousness [Matthew 6:33]. Doing this will build a relationship with God and will also place a desire in our heart to begin building Kingdom relationships with others. Kingdom relationships begin by telling others what God has done for you.

Mark 5:19-20
¹⁹ Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. ²⁰ And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.

Here in Mark chapter 5, Jesus had delivered a man from demons and as He was about to depart on a boat, the man desired to go with Jesus. But we see here that Jesus told him to go home and tell others the great things that Jesus had done. He did, and the Bible says, “all men did marvel.” The Lord wants us to tell others about the things God has done for us, and when we tell it with compassion and love, those who hear us will marvel at what we say, what we do, and how we live, especially if they knew us before we met Jesus.

The Hope from His Story

Your story can open a door that creates a connection between what God’s doing in your life and what He wants to do in someone else’s life. And while that door is open, we must also share the story of Jesus. When Jesus said “preach the Gospel” [Mark 16:15] he was talking about the good news that He died, was buried, and resurrected to redeem us. And when we connect His story with our story of repentance, baptism, and the infilling of the Holy Ghost, we are opening a door for God to connect with them.

His story is a story of miraculous power. Whatever a person needs there seems to be a story in the life of Jesus that meets that person at that need. If a person needs healing, the Bible is full of Jesus’ earthly ministry where he healed. If deliverance from addiction is needed, there’s stories in the Bible of a God who delights in breaking chains. Whatever the need, He is waiting to answer. As you study the Word, and become more familiar with His story, you will find places where it connects with your story. You can then use that as a catapult to bring hope to those around you.

The Power to Be A Witness

Just as a witness in court has a role, our role to be a witness about God is an important duty. The good news is that we do not have to do it alone. We do not have to rely on our own abilities. God has given us the power and authority to fulfil this command. When you receive the power of the Holy Ghost in your life, you have what it takes to be an effective witness. We have been given power, but we testify with gentleness and respect, as commanded by Peter [1 Peter 3:15]. We should be ready to share the “hope of glory” [Colossians 1:7] inside of us, with a meek and loving spirit, willing to lead others to Christ.

The easy part is you just have to simply tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.