St. Luke’s Evangelical Lutheran Church – Watertown WI
Pastor Mark Gartner
Sermon for Evangelism Sunday – October 5^th and 8^th, 2006

Dear Fellow Workers in God’s Mission Field,

Try to imagine a day when mom is going to have to be away from the house either to go to work or for some other reason. If your home is like ours, there are chores that need to be done throughout the week. So as mom is getting ready to leave, she leaves a list of the things she wants done while she is gone. She leaves her list of things for each member of the house to do, but as she walks out the door she says for all to hear, "Don’t forget to do the laundry." She wants all of the tasks on her list to be done, but her last words before leaving have special importance. She wants to make sure that the laundry is done when she gets home.

Jesus gives us encouragement and comfort for our lives. In his word, he gives us direction and guidance on how to live our lives until he returns. But at his ascension, right before he left to go to the Father in heaven, Jesus gave the disciples his final words of direction. He said, "You will be my witnesses." These words remind us of the very important work of sharing the gospel that he wants each of us to do. Today as we meditate on God’s word, we will see that it is by the Lord’s direction that…

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." These words were spoken right before Jesus ascended into heaven 40 days after he had risen from the dead. He was leaving because his work on this earth was finished. It is important for us to understand that Jesus’ life was not a life of random acts of kindness and a series of lectures to help people know more about God. If he had come for those reasons, he might have stayed longer. But Jesus’ life had a very specific purpose. He performed miracles and preached to reveal himself as the Christ, God’s chosen sacrifice for sin. He then offered himself on the cross for the sins of all people. His death was the death that God demanded for your sins and mine. His resurrection from the dead proved that God accepted his payment and that our sins are forgiven. This is Jesus’ work of redemption which he completed perfectly. Since that work was finished, it was time for Jesus to return to the glory of heaven.

But the disciples had to stay. Although Jesus’ work was finished, theirs was just beginning. As Jesus was leaving them, they showed how misguided their understanding truly was. They asked, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom of Israel?" They didn’t understand that Jesus’ work was done. They didn’t understand the work that Jesus had in mind for them. Left alone, the disciples would have failed miserably. Knowing this, Jesus promised to give them power from heaven itself. He promised them the Holy Spirit.

What a wonderful, perfect, necessary promise. In Luther’s explanation to the third article he writes, "I believe that I cannot by my own thinking or choosing believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him. But the Holy Spirit has called me by the gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, sanctified and kept me in the one true faith." The same Holy Spirit that called these men to faith, the same Holy Spirit that had strengthened their faith over the previous three years, the same Holy Spirit that kept them safe from Satan and all his schemes, would be given to them with power. The Holy Spirit would open their minds to a clear understanding of Jesus and his mission, and he would make the disciples see that it was time for them to be missionaries for the Lord. It was time to share what they had seen.

Left by ourselves, we are no better than the disciples. Our faith is weak and immature and our understanding of Jesus is incomplete. This spiritual immaturity can be seen in misplaced priorities. We have churches with bigger budgets for cleaning supplies than for outreach. We raise hundreds of thousand of dollars for buildings, but then don’t support the ministry done inside of them. We judge our congregation’s health by its financial position, and don’t give careful consideration to reaching out to the lost. Make no mistake about it, we need the Holy Spirit. And that is exactly what Jesus promises to give us.

We also receive power from the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit opens our eyes so that we can see. He makes us see our Savior and the forgiveness he offers. He makes us see our Savior and the peace he gives. The Spirit opens our eyes so that we see the work that Christ has put before us. The Spirit opens our hearts and motivates us to respond to Christ’s love by sharing it. Every one of us is a missionary for Jesus. Each of us can say that the Holy Spirit has worked saving faith in my heart and makes me see that…

How exciting that the Lord would give us such an important role of being his missionaries to share the gospel. Jesus tells his disciples, "When the Holy Spirit comes on you; you will be my witnesses." Clearly note that all that the Lord asks is that we be his witnesses. He doesn’t ask us to be judges. He doesn’t ask us to be God’s lawyers. He tells us to be his witnesses. Witnesses simply share what they have seen.

A classic case of someone witnessing by telling what they had seen can be found in the second chapter of the book of Acts. Ten days after Jesus’ ascension, ten days after Jesus told the disciples that they would be his witnesses, Peter did just that. On the day of Pentecost, with the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter shared his story. He pointed back to the words of the Old Testament to show the prophesies that the Christ would have to fulfill. He shared his eye-witness accounts of what Jesus had done to fulfill those prophesies. He showed the people how their sin led to Christ’s death. He pointed them to the forgiveness that the Lord offers in the waters of baptism. And the Holy Spirit used God’s word that Peter spoke to bring three thousand people to faith.

With the Holy Spirit’s power, we too can give testimony of our Savior. Don’t you already have the words of the Apostles’ Creed committed to memory? That is a great place to start a witness. Can you explain how Christ has exchanged your sin for his perfect life? That is a clear message of sin and grace. Can you share the comfort you have at night putting your hands together in prayer and putting your head down on your pillow in peace knowing that you are loved by your Father in heaven? That’s what people need to hear. When we look at what we have been given in Jesus Christ the question is no longer, "What should I say?" Rather it is, "How could I ever dream of keeping this to myself?"

Jesus wanted the message spread throughout the world. The message resonated throughout Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and the entire world. Wherever Christians went, they took Christ with them in their hearts and spoke to all kinds of people about the salvation that Jesus accomplished.

The Lord has also given you his gospel message, and he has placed you at this place and at this time in the world’s history. You are a missionary. You could say that your Jerusalem is your home. Your Judea is your extended family. Your Samaria is the street on which you live. The ends of the earth are every person with whom you will come into contact in your life. Sharing the gospel is your God-given responsibility. What a privileged role!

Nearly 2,000 years ago Jesus carried out God’s plan of salvation. When it was done, he left, but he will return to judge the world. Until that time, you have work to do. The Holy Spirit has made you see that you have a message to share. Go forward now and be the missionary the Lord has made you. Amen.