When Jesus informed the disciples in Acts 1:8 that they would be His “witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth,” I am convinced they did not comprehend the totality of that Great Commission statement.
There are many things that the Bible says Christians both presently are and one day will be, but for now let’s focus on what Jesus meant when He said they would be His “witnesses.”
The word translated “witnesses” in Acts 1:8 is the Greek word “martures,” from which we get our English word “martyrs.” To be a biblical witness for Jesus Christ, then, means being a martyr.
Ultimately, if you’ve surrendered to God by faith in Jesus Christ, then you’re a walking martyr!
Many of the early Christians (and millions more since then) were tortured and murdered for their unwavering commitment to Jesus Christ. They were speared, crucified, stoned, sawn in half, boiled in oil, thrown to the wild beasts for blood-thirsty sport, set on fire as human torches for entertainment purposes, and otherwise met their end at the hands of one medieval device or another. Their public and unabashed profession of faith proved to be the basis for their persecution.
Our beloved brothers and sisters in Christ were not murdered because they loved their neighbor or refused to lie, cheat, or steal; and they did not have their life snuffed out because of their generosity in sharing their possessions with the poor, either. The breath of life was snatched from their lungs because they publicly verbalized the unrelenting faith they had in a crucified and resurrected Messiah.
All around the globe Christians today are still “witnesses” for the Lord Jesus Christ. We are all “martyrs” for the sake of Christ.
It has been estimated that, “An average of 171,000 Christians worldwide are martyred for their faith per year” (July 26, 2011; Christianity.about.com/od/denominations/p/christiantoday.htm).
According to The Voice Of The Martyrs, in a 2009 report in the International Bulletin of Missionary Research, researchers estimated that there were approximately “160,000 martyrs in mid-2000 and 34,000 at the beginning of the twentieth century. If current trends continue…by 2025, an average of 210,000 Christians will be martyred annually” (July 26, 2011; persecutedchurch.blogspot.com/2009/04/limits-of-statistics.html).
Those are certainly troubling statistics, but they are also more than just statistics. Those numbers represent my brothers and sisters in Christ.
Lord willing, this does not mean you will literally be killed for your faith in the Lord who purchased you, yet it very well could. But if your life ever does come to that transcendent crossroad, are you willing to hold fast to your faith, no matter the cost?
Consider the great apostle Peter for a moment. After reinstating Peter and calling him to the ministry of tending God’s sheep, Jesus then revealed that the day would soon arrive for the apostle to die for his faith, likely by crucifixion. The apostle’s martyrdom was part of God’s plan for Peter to glorify Him, even in death. Immediately after Jesus predicted Peter’s death, the Scripture says, “Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God” (John 21:19; italics mine).
Most Christians don’t want to hear that. But martyrs, you see, both live and die for the glory of God. There are no other options available to us. Living and potentially dying for God’s glory is God’s revealed will for your life.
Who are you living for right now?
Are you living for God or the god called Self?
What is your life’s purpose here in this world?
What are you willing to die for? More importantly, what are you willing to live for?
If God chose to take your life so that He would receive glory in your martyrdom—and He told you about His plan before it happened—would you be furious or thankful?
Our lives are truly a mist and if God so wills that your or my vapor be extinguished in order to manifest His magnanimous glory, our desire should be for nothing less. Yes, it is certainly a struggle to maintain this outlook in both life and death, but it is the only one acceptable to God. The very worst death can do is usher us into God’s very presence. And frankly, that sounds rather appealing. Doesn’t it?
Regardless of whether or not our lives come to an abrupt halt as a literal martyr for the gospel of Jesus, we need to die daily. Jesus made that unquestionably clear when He said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me” (Luke 9:23; italics mine).
In our contemporary culture, the majority of American Christians will never be severely harassed for their faith, let alone murdered. Yet we are all commanded to lay down our lives “day by day.”
That is our high calling.
That is your ministry in this world.
That is God’s revealed will for your life.
That is what it means to “Go” and be a passionate witness to all the nations. We need to die daily so that when we interact with the unregenerate sinners around us, it is as if they are interacting directly with the Spirit of God who reigns in us.
Yet this can only happen if we die daily, laying down our lives as a passionate witness in obedience to Great Commission Discipleship.
[stextbox id=”custom”]QUESTIONS FOR COMMENTING BELOW: Are you willing to live the rest of your life like that? Are you willing to be that passionate of a disciple? Do you really want God’s will to be manifested and done in your life?[/stextbox]
* Photo credit: rocor (Creative Commons)
Are you willing to live the rest of your life like that? Are you willing to be that passionate of a disciple? Do you really want God’s will to be manifested and done in your life?