Do I Have A Witness?
Posted on Jan 19, 2014 by David Whetter
Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, who abides in which of us. Amen
Have you ever met someone that was so incredible or interesting that you had to tell someone else about that person? After my first date with my wife, Jill, I was only 17 years old and I can remember telling my mom, this is the girl I’ll marry. I/s sure my mom thought I was crazy but I knew that night and I had to tell someone. My mom asked me about Jill and I told her specifics about her and why I knew she was the one for me, and 38 years later, we are still together and still telling people about each other.
Or, have you ever watched something, or seen something, that you hast had tov tell others about? These days many of us do this after we watch a good sporting event, don’t we? Just stand around in the narthex, or down in the Salem Café, on a Sunday morning after a big game and you’ll hear comments like, “did you see those Jayhawks?” “Can you believe how well that Tharpe kid played? Or, just wait until the Monday after the Super Bowl in two weeks. There won’t be many places you will go where you wont hear someone talking about the game.
When we tell others about some we have met, or something we have experienced, that is called witnessing. We often witness about the one we have met, or the experience we have had, because we want others to know about that person, or experience in a similar way what we have experienced. When I was 17, I wanted my mom to meet Jill and experience the same kind, gentle, beautiful person I have come to know in Jill.
This past Wednesday, while spending the day off our cruise ship in the port of Cozumel, Jill and I took a tour of the Tulum Mayan Ruins in the Yucatan Peninsula. While on the tour we met a man that the locals call “Angel de Jesus.” In English, the literal translation is Angel of Jesus. This isn’t a title that has been given to this man. This is his actual name. Angel, as everyone called him, is a Christian, who is also a Mayan Native American who lives I the Yucatan and Angel witnessed to us for seven straight hours. No, he did not witness to us about Jesus, at least not directly, but instead he witnessed to us about his Mayan culture. You see, Angel is a professional tour guide and he was our guide for the Tulum ruins. He was proud of his Mayan culture and history and he wanted the people on his tour who had come to see some ruins to know his culture and history, also. So for seven hours he shared with us the rich history of his people. He shared with us how the ancient Mayans used mathematics to build their cities and temples and how they used mathematics to discover that the earth orbited around the sun and to develop a calendar that was so accurate, it even took into account the extra time that we now use to add the extra day in what we call leap year. And he shared with us how the Mayans traveled all over, including as far north as Georgia here in the US, where an ancient Mayan city was recently discovered. And he witnessed to us how his people believe that when one dies, one’s spirit lives on. Angel is a witness to his Mayan culture who wanted the 40 people on his tour to come to experience and know a little about his ancient culture. AS human beings we witness all the time to those people and experiences that we value in life.
In our Gospel text today, John knew he was born to witness to the Savior of people and although he was unsure who exactly that person would be, John tells us, “I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.” (1:33-34).
Last week you heard about how John baptized Jesus, and how John saw the Spirit descend upon Jesus and today we hear how John witnessed to that encounter with Jesus to hose who would listen. But that was not the end, we are also told that the very next day, again, John witnessed to who Jesus was, pointing out to the two of his disciples and so, those two disciples decided to go and see just who this Jesus was for themselves. They wanted to experience what John had already experienced. After spending just one afternoon with Jesus, Andrew had to go and witness about his experience with Jesus to his brother, Cephas, and he invited Cephas to “come and see” this Jesus. Andrew witnessed to his brother about Jesus.
Have you ever experienced Jesus in your life? I have. I have felt his presence and comfort as I have sat with people on their deathbeds. I have seen him in the eyes of my niece, Julienne, her body riddled with cancer, yet, still able to smile and blow me kisses. I witnessed Jesus this week through a young Pilipino man seeking to ask me questions about my faith. I have come to know Jesus and I want the world to know him, too. I am a witness to Christ and you, through the waters of your baptism, have been invited to be his witness, also.
Witnessing in the name of Jesus, and about how he has affected your life is not easy. When you witness for Christ, some people will think you are crazy. Some will think you are strange and try to avoid you. When you witness for Christ, some will want to argue with you and tell you he does not exist. In John’s case, being a witness for Jesus and literally cost him his life, as it would the rest of Jesus’ disciples. But, as we heard Isaiah say to us today, it is too light a thin that we should just be a servant, no we are call to be a light to the nations, so that Christ’s salvation might reach to the end of the earth (Isaiah 49:6).
Brothers and sisters, we are called to be witnesses to this Jesus, our Savior. We are to witness to the world, and like Andrew, and the rest of Jesus’ disciples, we are called to invite others to “come and see” this Jesus. AS I said before, witnessing about Jesus is not easy, but if we can witness about people we know, about sports and other daily events, surly we can find the time, energy and courage to witness for Christ and the salvation he offers to the world, can’t we? Go, be a witness and invite others to come and see! Amen.