Pricille Metonou
Director of Women's ministries and trust and Legal services, West-Central Africa Division

The story is told of a businesswoman who lives on one of the islands of Africa. She grew up participating in the life of the nearby Seventh-day Adventist church. When she became a young adult, she began to live a double life. She participated in the activities of the church while at the same time going to night clubs, smoking, dancing, and hanging out with the boys, one of whom she later moved in with. From this relationship, a baby girl was born. A few years later the young man died. Not very long after that she buried her 8-year-old daughter.

The woman was devastated. Her imperfect knowledge of God led her to accuse Him of being the cause of her misfortunes. But our merciful God met her where she was. Through a series of dreams He gave her the strong impression that she needed to have a closer relationship with Him, and that this closer relationship would be achieved through three days of prayer and fasting. So with encouragement and support from her mother, she did.

At the end of the period she came to believe that she should confess and repent of her sins. She experienced godly sorrow, and began regretting her double life. She wanted to change completely. Finally, she went to her pastor, told him the story of her life, and asked for baptism. A few weeks later she was baptized.

She has been transformed, and is now totally committed to the Lord. Today she shares her faith, preaches the gospel, plants churches, gives money to build churches, and provides salaries to gospel workers in her area. What a transformation! She was transformed by Christ to witness for Him. And that's exactly what God wants all of us to be and do for Him.

It has always been the will of God that each believer be His witness. He said it to the children of Israel in Isaiah 43:10, "You shall be my witnesses" (NKJV). Christ repeated the call to witnessing in the New Testament after His sacrifice on Calvary for the fallen race, and just before He returned to heaven (Matt. 28:19, 20).

We are all called to be Christ's witnesses, no matter our position, gender, age, or how much time we have spent in the church. Actually, we are commanded to be His witnesses.

What Does It Mean to Be a Witness for Christ?
According to one Bible dictionary, a witness is one who gives testimony to what they know about someone they have had an experience with. The witness may give their testimony even at the cost of their life, such as a martyr does. In fact, the English word "witness" came out of the word "martyrdom."

The implications are unavoidable. We humans are conceived in iniquity, born in sin, and accustomed to doing evil. We seem to be more experienced in the things of darkness, therefore witnessing for Satan rather than witnessing for Christ.

Whenever a person has an encounter with Christ, they are never the same again. It is usually a life-changing event. To the person who is willing, it will be a life-changing event for the better. God will give that one the power to become a son or daughter (John 1:12).

In the process of transformation Jesus may use disciplines or tests that we call trials. We should look upon them as we look upon a graduation class test: through this process we can graduate from one grade to a higher grade. Transformation is a continuous process, growing from strength to strength until we become like Him and become His witnesses.

Jesus did it for the apostle Paul, who put Christians in prison until he met Christ and was changed into a great evangelist. He did it for Mary Magdalene, who had seven demons. She served Jesus even in His death: she was the last to leave the cross and the first to come to the tomb, and she was the first to announce to the whole world a risen Savior. Jesus can transform us as well.

When we experience the transforming power of Jesus, we want to witness to that fact. Witnessing becomes a natural outgrowth.

Peter and the disciples were strictly forbidden to preach, under punishment of imprisonment. Yet they chose to obey God rather than man. The young, persecuted church reacted with the never-ending witnessing syndrome, "Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word" (Acts 8:4).

Similarly today, anyone who has had an experiential knowledge of Christ will find it impossible not to witness for Christ or talk about Him. How can we stay idle without telling this dying world that there is salvation in Jesus? Today, our environment is overpolluted, we are scandalized by the immorality of our times, families are broken, people are dying from AIDS, optimism has given way to despair, and men's hearts are failing them for fear. These and many other symptoms are the cries of a world looking and longing for something better. Our witnessing for Christ is the only means of bringing hope and healing.

In the tsunami tragedy of December 26, 2004, a powerful lesson was given to us. A tourist who spent four days looking for her cousin was asked how she was coping with the loss. She said, "I cannot go home without him." Oh, that the church will come to the same conclusion; we cannot go to our eternal home without our brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, relatives, and our fellow human beings.

What Does a Witness Have to Do?
If they had to answer this question, most people would give answers such as these: "We can witness for Jesus by preaching the Word in all circumstances, in season and out of season; by distributing tracts; by giving Bible studies; by praying for people, visiting the sick and the prisoners; and by singing and praising God." However, an answer worthy of our contemplation would be what Jesus told the man out of whom He had cast some demons. "Go and tell your friends what the Lord has done for you." We can witness just by telling others what Christ has done for us.

Ellen G. White puts it very powerfully: "Our confession of His faithfulness is Heaven's chosen agency for revealing Christ to the world. We are to acknowledge His grace as made known through the holy men of old; but that which will be most effectual is the testimony of our own experience. We are witnesses for God as we reveal in ourselves the working of a power that is divine. Every individual has a life distinct from all others, and an experience differing essentially from theirs. God desires that our praise shall ascend to Him, marked by our own individuality. These precious acknowledgments to the praise of the glory of His grace, when supported by a Christlike life, have an irresistible power that works for the salvation of souls" (The Desire of Ages, p. 347; italics supplied).

The most powerful testimony is our life. Someone has said that the words of humans are weighed in grams, but their deeds are weighed in kilos. We are to be living epistles everywhere and at any time--in our private and public life, with family members, and with strangers (2 Cor. 3:2).

The story is told of a lad who was attacked by a gang of armed robbers. They searched the bag he was carrying for money, but found none. One of his attackers then decided to ask him, "Do you have money?" He said, "Yes, my mother put it here," indicating his back pocket. Instead of taking the money, the thieves stood still. The "naked truth" from the mouth of this young disciple of Christ neutralized all their evil intents. The thieves were astonished. The leader of the gang then asked the boy, "Why didn't you hide your money?" The boy responded, "My mother is a Christian, and she told me to always tell the truth no matter the situation."

The answer mended a broken chord in the thief's heart. Tears fell from his cheeks when he remembered what his Christian mother had taught him, and saw how far he had drifted. He left the gang and returned to the Christian life that he had once known.

Another powerful way to witness for Christ is by our influence. Do we forgive as Christ forgives when we have the opportunity to deal with our enemies? Stephen's willingness to forgive his captors led to the conversion of Saul. Paul's forgiveness and respectful response to his captors had a profound effect upon the prison authorities, thereby leading to the winning of the jailer. People using their influence in such powerful ways are still with us.

A story was told about a woman in Rwanda who had survived the horrific killing of her family by a friend of the family. She was able to see his face when he was carrying out the horrible crime. While working at the prison, she discovered her family's killer in the jail. What would she do? What should she do? Insult him, or try to poison him? Instead of revenge, she chose to treat him well. She visited the enemy with encouraging words and forgiveness. When the pastor came to preach in the prison, the man repented, asked the woman for forgiveness, and was baptized.

The Rewards of Witnessing
Witnessing gives many rewards. One is that the person witnessing receives the joy and satisfaction of seeing people transformed in the here and now. What joy is ours to see the prostitute changed to be the Sabbath school superintendent! The murderer changed to become the music director! The drunkard transformed to be the deacon, the preacher, or the elder!

Friends, maybe you are going to church merely as a habit. Or you may even be involved in church activities while living a double life. If so, it is time to come to Christ for a thorough transformation. All we have to do is be transformed by an encounter with Jesus, and live to witness to it.