Is your witness for Christ in your words or in your actions? Do you desire to tell people to “pay attention to what I say, not what I do”?
But we all know, actions speak louder than words.
Instead of immediately trying to engage others in a debate about faith, what if we followed the direction that Jesus gave to His first believers? What if we were more welcoming? What if we did community together, served together, broke bread together. But, through it all, what if we lived differently, as someone holy, set apart, committed to Jesus, filled with home, filled with real joy?
Isn’t that the witness we are really called to give? John didn’t just speak about Jesus, he lived and walked with Him. He healed. He cared. The apostles followed Jesus, even when He had no place to lay his head. They also served those who gathered. They fed them, they prayed and healed them. They taught. They formed new churches and, as we read in Acts, encouraged one church to help another, even financially.
They lived their witness, with actions and with words.
How about you? If you aren’t there yet, it may be because you continue to rely too much on your own power and authority and not enough on His. You start your day with you in mind, your problems and challenges and not in the Lord. You check email, before you check the Word. The only time you hit your knees is to pick clothes off the floor, not to pray. It is hard to draw from the power, if you refuse to plug in.
My Answers:
8.
They immediately left John and followed Jesus.
After prayer, when I know that I have received direction from the Lord, I follow it, without looking back or second guessing.
9.
a.
He welcomed them, “Come and you will see”. He spent the day with them and they with Him
b.
To shut off the world and spend more time with Jesus. Instead of working around other things, to put Him first and to cherish the time. To prepare for the time with Him by praying.
The Notes are Good 