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Musings on Faith #8 Christ - the Gospel's Truth | |
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As a member of the legal profession, one of the things I must consider on a regular basis is testimony - the testimony of my client, my witnesses, and the testimony of my client's opponent and his or her witnesses. Testimony, presented as evidence, is an integral and indispensable part of the judicial system. Testimony is also integral to our walk as Christians. We are commanded to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world, and, for each of us, that begins in the world, or community of persons, in which we live our daily lives. As a part of our witness we share our own personal testimony of how Jesus came into our hearts and saved us through His grace and atonement, and made us His own, and what a miraculous change He has wrought in our lives. For me, however, the most powerful and dynamic testimony ever given by man is the testimony, written down for the ages, by those who actually walked with Jesus when He was here among us on the earth, of the things they saw, heard and experienced as they followed Him and were taught by God the Son Himself! For me, the most powerful of all those powerful witnesses is the Disciple John. It has always seemed to me that John had an understanding of the spiritual side of Jesus - for He was both God and man, Spirit and flesh, while He was here with us - unlike any |
(Continued) other writer of the New Testament. In 1st John, 1:1, John literally gives testimony, as though on the witness stand in a courtroom, of what he has seen and heard. He says "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched - this we proclaim concerning the Word of Life (NIV)." In all of this he is referring to the person and the Spirit of Jesus Christ, whom he personally saw and heard and experienced and touched during Jesus' three years of ministry, and then in death, and then, most amazing of all, after the resurrection! Wow, what a witness! This awesome testimony continues in verses 2 and 3: "The life [Jesus Christ] appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father [God] and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ (NIV)." I submit to you, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, that no more powerful, no more authoritative, no more certain testimony has ever been given. The Truth has been told; it is up to each of us to receive it. Yours in Christ, Tom Woodard |
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