June 18: We are witnesses

We ourselves are witnesses of everything He did in both the Judean country and in Jerusalem, yet they killed Him by hanging Him on a tree. God raised up this man on the third day and permitted Him to be seen, not by all the people, but by us, witnesses appointed beforehand by God, who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to solemnly testify that He is the One appointed by God to be the Judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about Him that through His name everyone who believes in Him will receive forgiveness of sins.   (Acts 10:39-43 — Holman Christian Standard Bible)

Here, in a few words, the basic truths of the gospel are presented. First of all, Peter says that he and the other apostles are witnesses of everything Jesus did, and of everything that happened to Him. They saw Jesus crucified and they saw Him after He was raised from the dead. They even ate and drank with Him after His resurrection. Many other people saw Him too, and Jesus commanded them all to spread the news that He is Judge of all men, and that forgiveness of sins is available to all who believe in Him.

These truths have the power to save you, and the world. No matter what the world thinks, whether it believes or not — these are still the facts. Jesus came into the world to save the lost — and we are all lost without Him. If a person rejects Him now, that person will one day stand before the same Jesus that he rejected, and be judged for his sins.

On that day, if people claim to be “good” or “righteous” their defense will be thrown out of court because only those who have faith in Jesus are acceptable to God, and enter heaven.

When you hear about Peter’s claim to be an eye-witness of all that Jesus said and did you may be tempted to be envious — wishing that you could have lived in those times. But the truth is, we are all called to be witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ today in the 21st century. We should not expect to see a vision of Him, and obviously He will not appear as a man on earth again, and yet we have been chosen to see His power and fruit in our lives, and to be eye-witnesses to the world of how He is true to His word and still does miracles and transforms lives today. And though we did not see Him on the cross or eat with the resurrected Jesus, we have an equally strong conviction of those events as Peter did. — Decide that you will no longer talk about Jesus, but rather be a witness of Him.