Daily Devotions
Luke
Luke 1:1-4 "HAVE YOU EVER SERIOUSLY THOUGHT ABOUT BEARING WITNESS FOR THE LORD?"
Day 7 – Luke 1
Text: Luke 1:1-4
HAVE YOU EVER SERIOUSLY THOUGHT ABOUT BEARING WITNESS FOR THE LORD?
It was the Lord Jesus Christ Himself who charged His disciples to bear witness for Him. In Luke’s sequel to his Gospel, he recorded the last few words of the Lord Jesus to His disciples, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
The command to bear witness for the Lord is also commonly called, “The Great Commission.” In Matthew 28, the Great Commission was given its full description. The Disciples of the Lord Jesus were commanded to not only bear witness, but they were told that they must “make disciples” of believers. They must instruct them in all the things that the Lord Jesus had personally instructed them on (Matthew 28:18-20).
Have you taken the command to bear witness for the Lord seriously? Have you been a consistent witness for the Lord? Do you have problems with fulfilling The Great Commission?
“TO WRITE TO YOU AN ORDERLY ACCOUNT…” Luke 1:4
Let us learn from Luke the beloved Physician. He took the Great Commission seriously. He took it that the Great Commission was applicable to him personally. This is how he went about fulfilling the Great Commission.
1. He sought for “perfect understanding” first. In order to have this mature understanding, he did his homework thoroughly. He learned from “eyewitnesses and ministers of the word.” He sought to obtain a good understanding of his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
2. He then attempted to “write an orderly account” for presentation purposes. Luke was conscious of the fact that the person he was writing to was one he addressed as, “Most excellent Theophilus” (Luke 1:4).
This manner of address would suggest that this man was one who held a rather high position in life. Perhaps, he was a very senior person in the Roman Administrative circles. Luke was not awed by his position. Nevertheless, he must have felt that if one wanted to present a good testimony, then the necessary homework must be done. The challenge to write a good and “orderly account” was Luke’s way of understanding how he could fulfil the Lord’s command to be a witness for Him.
3. When we seek to bear witness for the Lord, we must have in mind very definite goals. Luke was very clear as to his purpose of writing his narrative. He wanted Theophilus to “know the certainty of those things in which (he had been) instructed” (Luke 1:4). Theophilus probably had some knowledge of the Christian faith previously. Luke wanted him to be quite certain about his knowledge of the Christian faith. The more thoroughly one is instructed, the more likely is the person going to have certainty of faith. Bearing witness is not just giving a testimony for the Lord. Bearing witness in the light of the Great Commission requires the Christian to know his faith thoroughly before he can hope to be an effective witness for the Lord.
WHAT IS THE LORD SAYING TO YOUR HEART CONCERNING BEING A WITNESS FOR HIM?
Some of us are almost ashamed to tell others that we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Some others do not know enough of their faith in the Lord to share effectively. Still others are just not taking the Great Commission of the Lord Jesus seriously.
The Church at large has suffered greatly in the last century especially. Wrong teachings have crept into the Church at large. As we look at the Church worldwide, we cannot but grieve that the Church community at large is not at all strong, with reference to the work of witnessing and making disciples of believers.
What is the Lord saying to your heart? Is He saying to you that you have not been a faithful witness for Him?
MAKING THINGS RIGHT- STARTING AFRESH
Thank God we have a great and loving God. He is ever willing to forgive. He is always desirous of restoring people to Himself, when they are truly repentant.
Let us be challenged by Luke’s personal example of bearing witness for the Lord. Let us bestir ourselves and start taking our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ seriously.
We do not know whom we can reach and touch deeply with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us pray that the Lord would help us all to come alive to the challenge of the Great Commission. Let us seek the power of the Holy Spirit, and then seek to bear witness for Him wherever the Lord has placed us. May we find great joy and significance in life through bearing witness for our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.