Day 95: For such a Time as this...

​Please visit days 71, 77, 83, and 89 for previous reflections on irresistible Christianity during the COVID19 crisis. Tomorrow we will resume our daily Scripture readings, meditations, and reflections.  Together we will find stability in studying Scripture!

​Share Hope through testifying to the gospel of Grace

Are you prepared to share the hope within you? (1 Peter 3:15) This week’s reflection on Christian witness during the COVID19 crisis is rooted in Acts 22 and seeks to empower the shaping of your story for more fruitful sharing of hope. 

The Apostle Paul’s heart for evangelism is seen in Acts 20:24 where we read, “I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace.”  But HOW did Paul testify to God’s grace? 

Paul’s passion for evangelism exposes the paranoia many Christians have in regards to testifying to the gospel of grace, or sharing our faith.  Studying a skeleton outline of how Paul shared his story will empower us to prayerfully discern how to share our own stories, testifying to the gospel of Grace and sharing hope with family and friends. Please join us by reading Acts 22 and engaging the framework below.

Shape your story
We hope you will take time to bring shape to your story using the skeleton framework offered in Acts 22 in order to share your story with a friend or family member. God wants to use you to share gospel hope with others!

Paul’s pattern of gospel proclamation provides a pathway for you to shape your story:

1- Make it personal. In 22:3 Paul begins with a personal introduction, highlighting the personal nature of all effective evangelism. 
2- Identify the real problem. In 22: 4-5 Paul (briefly) describes his rebellion against Jesus, boldly claiming his sin problem. Effective evangelism will never minimize or mask our sin problem. (See 1 Timothy 1:15)
3- Celebrate the solution. In 22: 6-9 Paul highlights the centrality of the work of God, resisting the temptation to glorify his own work. This is a big step for a recovering Pharisee! We are saved by grace alone, not by our works, and a personal encounter with the living God is the only solution to our sin problem. Paul articulates this thoroughly in Philippians 3:4-11. 

When we meet Jesus Christ personally we are born again, (John 3) becoming new creations in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17) God’s transforming grace has implications for all of life. Paul’s proclamation on gospel transformation displays: 

A- A new direction, (22: 10-11) 
B- A new community/ family, (22:12-19) and 
C- A new purpose. (22: 20-21)  

Men and women who are new creations in Christ celebrate these three realities with Paul and should share them with others as part of testifying to the gospel of grace, sharing our story.

Share your story
God gives His people the opportunity to testify to the gospel of grace. Please use the outline of Paul’s testimony to put flesh on your own story in order to share your story with others. In fact, we challenge you to shape your story and share with a friend or family member this week. Please send us names we can be praying for! ([email protected]) And follow the questions below to empower the shaping of your story:

1) Who are you? (Keep it personal!)
2) What was your need? (The problem is sin!)
3) When did you meet Jesus personally and how did Jesus provide the solution through His finished work? (Christ alone saves by grace alone!)
4) How has God’s grace changed the direction of your life?
5) Where do you see new purpose for your life?
6) (To your friend) Do you want to know this God of Grace through Christ?

Please use this COVID19 season to shape your story, give thanks for God’s abundant grace in your story, and share with a friend or family member. Prayerfully consider who the Lord wants you to share with, making a call or writing an email in response to the nudging of God’s Spirit.

God wants to use us to share hope through sharing our stories, testifying to the gospel of Grace! May He have mercy on us and be pleased to use us to draw people to Himself.