Sharing Jesus

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full
understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.
Philemon 1:6

I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4My message and my
preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the
Spirit's power, 5so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.
1 Corinthians 2:3

God didn’t ask us to convert people, he asks us to share our faith! Reflect on the follow
passages: Zechariah 4:6, John 16:8.

In a conversation, what might sharing Jesus look like if we are trying to convert them,
versus letting God do the work in people’s hearts? Is there a difference, practically?

What is a testimony? The act of testifying means that you can share something that
happened in your life personally. People are not born Christians; people become
Christians when they experience conversion and repentance (Matt. 18:3; John 3:1-21).
This means that as Christians we should be able to explain how the life we live now is
different from the one we used to live and what God did for us personally. A testimony is
a powerful tool—the blind man in John 9:1-41 and Paul in Acts 22 and 26 are just a few
examples of how people use personal experiences to share Jesus with people.

Practice sharing personal testimonies (small group leaders—your story will help
encourage them in this). Challenge them to write out at least a one paragraph-long
testimony of their encounter with God for your next session.

Exercise: go around and share one type of sin (doesn’t have to be too personal) that
each person struggles most with. Examples can be pride, unforgiveness, fighting with
friends, ungratefulness, laziness, cursing. How did Jesus show you a better way to live?
How has the Holy Spirit helped you overcome these habits and form better, healthier
lifestyle?

God changes hearts. Remembering this will help us be bolder when sharing Jesus with
others. We should simply be an example and share Jesus, praying that the Holy Spirit
do the rest of the work in their hearts.

Reflection: Philemon 1:6 links evangelism with being a Christian so closely. How does
my passion for seeing hearts change and turn to God compare to where it should be?
Have I really experience God’s grace in my life so that I can share my testimony with
others?

Prayer: God, give me the courage to share you with those in my world. Help me to
understand the difference between sharing Jesus and trying to convert people, and Holy
Spirit, help me to put my encounters with you into words so that I can tell others what
you have done in my life.