Boldness to Witness

It is not always easy to talk to others about Jesus. Yet all around us, there are people who need to hear about Jesus, and sometimes, they even invite us to share the gospel with them. How can we have the courage to do so? Two of Jesus’s followers, Peter and John, found themselves in this kind of situation. After Jesus ascended, they met a man in the temple who could not walk and was asking for money. Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk” (Acts 3:6), and the man was healed! All the people there were amazed, and Peter began to speak to them about Jesus. But the Jewish religious leaders “were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead” (Acts 4:2), and they put Peter and John in jail overnight to question them the next day. As Peter and John stood before the council, they did not shrink from witnessing about Jesus, but they courageously declared the gospel. This would not have been easy to do if God had not given them the courage, especially because the people on the council were the highest-ranking Jewish religious authorities. After Peter spoke, the elders and the rulers of the people were astonished, because they knew Peter and John were common men, uneducated. How did these two fishermen, who had no formal training in the Scriptures, gain the courage to say that they witnessed the death and resurrection of the Messiah? Then the council recognized that these men had been with Jesus. Peter and John had been close to Jesus during His ministry on earth. And after Jesus ascended, He sent the Holy Spirit to be in them. Because of this, they had the confidence and the courage to speak about Jesus (Acts 4:8). We can also have the courage to witness for Jesus, because the same Spirit is in us, as people who have put our trust in Jesus (Ephesians 4:4). Like the disciples, we can spend time being in the presence of our Lord. And this will cause us to gain confidence and boldness to be His witnesses to those who do not know Him. How do we spend time with Jesus? There’s no formula, but reading the Bible and praying are a good place to start. As we experience God’s love, we will have the courage to tell others about Him, because we have been with the Lord. • Enid Adah Nyinomujuni • In Acts 4:23-31, what did these people, the first Christians, pray for? How did God respond? they took note that these men had been with Jesus. Acts 4:13b (NIV)