Wimps into Witnesses
April 11, 2004
Acts 4:13
Easter Sunrise Service at SkipJack Cove
Galena-Warwick United Methodist Charge
Warwick & Galena, Maryland
Rev. Dr. Lawrence D. Jameson
back to our church home page
Acts 4:13
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were
unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men
had been with Jesus.
Our Lord is alive.
Three days after his torture and death on a cross,
God raised him from the dead.
According to his promise,
he is here right now in our midst.
Hear the good news:
Jesus Christ turns wimps into witnesses.
ONE What is a wimp?
You know what a wimp is.
It’s a slang term.
The Dictionary (dictionary.com)
says that a wimp is:
A person who is regarded as weak or ineffectual.
Someone who acts in a timid or cowardly fashion.
The Thesaurus (thesaurus.com)
offers these helpful synonyms:
chicken, cowardly, fearful, gutless, lily-livered,
pusillanimous, scared, timid, unmanly,
weak-kneed, yellow, wuss
That pretty much describes the followers of Jesus
before the resurrection.
It is true
Jesus told them not to interfere.
He told them
why he was going to Jerusalem.
Matthew 16:21 records his words.
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples
that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things
at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law,
and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
The disciples didn’t like or understand what Jesus told them.
No one would.
They couldn’t persuade Jesus to change his mind.
All they could do was follow.
That was brave.
It took courage to follow Jesus and watch him die.
But it was a frustrating sort of bravery.
The crucifixion was out of their control.
They watched. They observed. They saw with their own eyes.
And there was nothing they could do to stop it.
Have you ever seen something really big
happen right in front of your eyes?
I remember a stormy night
when I lived near Ocean City, Maryland.
I actually watched a house
break off from its foundation
and float out to sea.
No one was inside, thank God.
I stood there simply amazed
by the power of the ocean.
I felt weak and ineffectual,
completely unable to stop what was happening.
Many people refuse to visit inside a hospital.
I think I understand why.
Sometimes, inside a hospital
we come face to face
with just how fragile
our bodies and our lives really are.
None of us will never forget September 11, 2001.
We all saw the television broadcast
of the twin towers falling down.
That was a terrible loss, on many levels.
When Jesus died,
that’s exactly how the disciples felt.
Powerless. Outgunned. Overwhelmed.
Later on, when the time was right,
what they saw in terror,
they proclaimed with boldness.
TWO Something happened
Something happened
to dramatically change the lives
of the frightened disciples.
The wimps became witnesses.
Women and men
who had been meeting in secret
behind locked doors
suddenly started doing incredible things.
The book of Acts says that
they turned the world upside-down.
They fearlessly stood up
in front of Kings and Judges
and proclaimed the good news.
And this wasn’t a temporary change.
It didn’t stop.
Regular people, who were not known for bravery
were suddenly willing
to lose everything.
They were willing
to be tortured, killed, and mistreated
if that was the price for talking about Jesus.
Acts 5:41 says that the disciples were:
rejoicing because they had been counted worthy
of suffering disgrace for the Name.
What happened?
They saw something bigger than their problems.
They saw something gigantic
which didn’t make them feel powerless.
They saw something profoundly meaningful
that gave them inner strength and confidence.
They saw Jesus Christ alive.
The wimps retired. The witnesses got down to business.
THREE We
are witnesses
Sisters and brothers in Christ,
you are witnesses too.
You didn’t live two thousand years ago,
and you were not present at the resurrection.
But you are witnesses.
You are the world’s greatest expert
on the things
that God has done for you.
No one in the world
knows more about you
than you do.
You are the undisputed, best,
most credible expert witness
on this topic. Period.
When you say,
that God has
forgiven, cleansed, empowered,
healed, guided, given strength,
helped, instructed, directed,
encouraged, enlightened, or shown you his love
NOBODY can contradict that,
because you are the expert on you.
When you speak up for Jesus Christ
and tell people
with honesty that God has been good to you,
God uses your words to change lives.
In Acts 4:13 the Bible says,
When they saw the courage of Peter and John
and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men,
they were astonished
and they took note
that these men had been with Jesus.
Dear ones, Jesus Christ the resurrected Lord
is with you
right now.
He is completely able and ready
to astonish the world
with his hand on your life.
He is turning wimps into witnesses
today.
Let us pray.
Dear Jesus,
thank you for showing me
my weaknesses and frailty.
On my own power, I am ineffective.
But with your power, I am ready for anything.
Lord, unlock the power of my testimony.
Teach me how to identify and confess to others
your mighty hand on my life.
By faith, I thank you in advance,
for answering my prayer. Amen.