The
Oberlin Evangelist
CHRISTIAN WITNESSES FOR GOD
August 28, 1844
Modernized by Cliff
Collins
“You are My witnesses,” says the Lord. (Isaiah 43:10)
In this message I will show:
I. WHAT IS IMPLIED IN AN APPEAL TO WITNESS?
II. WHAT IS ESSENTIAL TO THE COMPETENCY OF A
WITNESS?
III. I WILL STATE SOME THINGS THAT AFFECT THE
CREDIBILITY OF A WITNESS.
IV. THAT GOD’S CAUSE MUST DEPEND ON THE FAITHFULNESS
OF HIS WITNESSES.
V. WHAT ARE THE CONDITIONS THAT MAKE THE TESTIMONY
OF CHRISTIANS FOR GOD SUCCESSFUL?
VI. WHAT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE WITNESS?
I. What is implied in an appeal to witness?
1. An appeal to witness implies that there is a
problem between two parties, which can be settled by examining the facts.
2. An appeal to witness implies that all of the
parties, or one of the parties, will have to appeal to the facts in the case,
to solve the problem between them.
3. An appeal to witness implies an appeal to certain
people to establish the facts, and present the substantiating evidence. The parties agree to appeal to certain
people to determine the real facts in the case, and these people are witnesses. Now all this is true concerning God, and His
cause, in this world. God has a
controversy with men. The problem
concerns His moral character and government, and He has appealed to witnesses
to present and establish the facts. His
people are those witnesses. He has
called them as witnesses and He has placed His cause on their testimony. The issue is the moral character and
government of God, and the appeal is to those who know Him in this world, to
those who are familiar with Him, and those who are, therefore, the most
competent and credible witnesses.
II. What is essential for a witness to be competent?
A few things are required for a witness to be
competent.
Witnesses must be of a suitable age. They must have the necessary qualifications
to understand the circumstances that they testify to; and they must be in such
a position that they can speak from personal knowledge about the things that
they say. They simply can’t report from
hearsay or conjecture. These important
things make a person a competent witness.
Therefore, God’s witnesses must be able to speak from personal
knowledge. It won’t do any good to tell
about what others know, or to simply repeat what other people have told
you. If your testimony is to do any
good, you must speak from actual knowledge; you must state facts that you have
seen with your own eyes, and heard with your own ears, and have touched with
your own hands.
III. Some things that affect the credibility of a
witness.
Credibility means the amount of credit that a
witness is entitled to receive. It is
very clear that witnesses may differ a lot in the amount of credit that others
should give them. Some are entitled to
the utmost confidence, and others are entitled to little or no confidence at
all. And many things must affect their
credibility; many things must act together to give them more credibility or
destroy their credibility.
1. Substantial agreement with each other, in the
things that they testify to will affect their credibility. If one witness contradicts another witness
on fundamental questions, how can you believe either of them? However, please notice that some witnesses
may be able to testify to things that others can say nothing about, and in this
sense, there may be a lot difference in the testimony of different witnesses in
the same situation. One may speak about
things that the other knows nothing about.
But this will not destroy the testimony of either, provided their
statements do not contradict each other.
One may see what another never saw; one may, through situations and
experiences, learn what another never had the opportunity to learn. The fact that one did not see something is
no proof against the testimony of another who did see it. But they must not contradict each
other. Their statements must not contradict.
If one swears that a man was in New York City on a certain day, and at a
certain hour, and another swears the same man was in Buffalo on the same day
and hour, both statements cannot be true, and neither statement can be
accepted. There must be something wrong
somewhere because the two testimonies contradict. Moreover,
2. The statement of a witness must be consistent
with itself throughout. The witness
must not contradict himself. If his
story contradicts, if his story is not consistent throughout, if different
parts of his story don’t agree, the witness’ credibility is destroyed. Statements he makes must also agree with
statements he made at other times. If
at one time, he contradicts what he said some another time, you can’t really
know which statement is true, and you can’t accept his testimony. Or, if a witness’ testimony is inconsistent
with the things he does, this, especially in God’s cause, is fatal to the credibility
of the witness. If he says one thing
and does something else, it will ruin his credibility, since his testimony
concerns his regard for God and for his fellow man; and since it’s true that
actions speak louder than words, it follows that although a man says he loves
God, yet if he hates his brother, those around him will justly call him a liar.
3. The spirit of a witness, and the way he conducts
himself, has a lot to do with his credibility.
Anytime a witness displays a lot of prejudice and commits himself to one
side or the other, he cannot be reliable.
Anytime a witness cherishes a wrong spirit, he cannot be reliable. Anytime he displays hate against one
particular group of people and displays a selfish attachment to another group
of people, anytime he has not investigated the subject, anytime he has not been
candid, honest, and thorough in gathering the facts, in any of these situations
the witness is clearly unreliable.
4. How familiar he is with the subject matter is
also important to his credibility. If
everyone can see that he is familiar with the whole subject, that he knows the
whole question, and knows it perfectly, others must accept that he is a very
credible witness. Where everyone can
see that the witness is qualified, because of his character and position, to be
a good judge, and that he is perfectly comfortable with the whole question,
everyone must regard him as an extremely credible witness. A witness must know what he is talking about
when he testifies. Anytime it is
obvious that he does not know what he is talking about, that he is not sure
about the principle points being disputed, he is entitled to, and will receive
very little credit in court.
IV. The success of every cause that must be decided
by testimony depends on the character of the witnesses and the testimony that
they give.
This is true of any cause. The case is presented. An
appeal is made to the facts. Who will
step forward to establish those facts?
The witnesses! If they step
forward and establish those facts, they successfully testify, if they fail, the
case is lost. And this is also true of
God’s cause. What is God’s cause, that
is now under trial here on earth? God
is trying to maintain His government over men and get them to obey Him. Subduing their hearts is the only way that
God can do this. Since our hearts can
only be affected by the truth, that truth must be presented: and only witnesses
can do this. An appeal must be
presented to our minds, the kind of appeal that will carry conviction. A course must be taken that will bring men
back to God, and to convince men to quickly and wholeheartedly submit themselves
to God’s authority. How is this to be
done?
This matter is a subject worth investigating and
knowing. The facts in this case are the
criteria on which this case turns, God has made an appeal to the facts and His
appeal to men as witnesses to establish these facts accordingly will decide the
issue. God’s cause depends on these
things. The success of God’s cause
depends on the question of whether He will get a verdict in His favor. Whether all hearts will be given to Him or
at least, whether the universal judgment of man’s conscience and reason shall
turn in God’s favor must depend on the ability and faithfulness of His witnesses. This is no mere speculation; this is a
simple matter of fact. God’s cause in
the court of this world has always depended on and still depends on His people;
the witnesses to whom He has made His appeal.
Not only that, the witnesses are God’s people. They belong to Him and to no one else. He appeals no one else.
God appeals to all His people.
He makes no exceptions, but He calls every one to the stand, “you are My
witnesses! Stand up before the whole
world; arise in the courtroom of the universe.
Give your testimony on My behalf.
Testify what you know of Me.
Testify of what you know of My character and My government. Tell everyone what your eyes have seen, and
what your heart has known concerning Me and My cause. Take the stand and bear witness in this case between God and the
world, and let us hear what you know of these great realities.”
2. Inasmuch as God has thrown His cause on an appeal
to the facts, He Himself perceives that the issue depends on the faithfulness
of His witnesses. He has appealed
Himself. He Himself has appointed His
people to be His witnesses, and He sees, that His success in the eyes of men,
depends on their testimony.
The success of God’s moral government is conditional. It depends on faith. Faith depends on the conviction that certain
things are true. But how is conviction
produced? Conviction is produced by
evidence. Well, where does this
evidence come from? It comes from
witnesses. Who are the witnesses? They are God’s real people, and the Holy
Spirit adds weight to their testimony.
His true children are the only competent witnesses, they are the only
ones that are qualified to testify.
They are of legal age, and they can speak from personal knowledge. They are the best of all witnesses, and the
only competent ones. Their testimony
will decide the question, and their testimony should decide it.
V. What are the conditions that make the testimony
of Christians for God successful?
1. God’s witnesses must have personal
knowledge. They must be personally
acquainted with God, so that they can tell, not what somebody else has said,
not what they have heard reported, not what they have been told, not what Paul
said, or what Peter said, that John had heard, that they heard that this thing
and that thing is thought to be true.
They must tell what they know.
When they come to the stand, the judge will ask, “are you familiar with the
parties involved? Do you know anything
about the controversy between God and the human race? What do you know about this case that is in this courtroom right
now, that is pending between God on one hand, and wicked men on the other
hand?”
“I have heard”, you begin, “and I have been assured
by my minister”.
“But, what do you know? You say you have heard.
Well, where is that person who told you? You have only heard. Stand
aside then. Is there anybody here that
knows anything about this dispute between these two parties? If there is, let him step forward and truly
give testimony concerning it.”
2. Consistency is important for a successful
testimony. Statements between several
witnesses must be consistent. Unless
God's witnesses agree substantially with each other, if one swears to one
thing, and another contradicts what that first witness says, everyone will
become confused and the case will end in defeat. Consistency is also required in the story of each witness
throughout his or her story, and what they do must also agree with their
testimony. However, don’t forget what I
said earlier, that one may testify about things that others know nothing
about. That will not destroy the validity
of their testimony. Also, a successful
testimony requires a deep, rich experience of divine things, a deep insight
into the dealings of God. A successful
testimony requires a deep understanding of God and His truth and His salvation,
so you can testify to some of the most important and basic truths. Superficial believers are totally
incompetent to testify to some of the higher and deeper truths, which include
some of the most important issues that need to be sustained on God’s part.
3. Truthfulness is a condition of a successful
testimony. If the witness is known to
misrepresent, to pervert, or to falsify the truth, what good is his testimony?
4. The indwelling of God’s Spirit, and the revealing
of God to the soul by the Holy Spirit, so that it gives the person personal
knowledge of God, is required to make someone a successful witness. They cannot successfully testify unless God
dwells in them, and they dwell in God.
They cannot confidently testify unless they live and move and have their
being in Him in such a way that they have constant communion with God and are
fellowshipping with Him every day.
Unless they are living like this, they cannot bring the evidence that is
necessary to bear down on the unbelief of wicked men, and drive it away from
them.
VI. What is the responsibility of these witnesses?
1. Great interests are at stake. Suppose you are a witness in a case of life
and death. Suppose that on your single
word hangs the life of a fellow human being, you would feel that your real
responsibility is very great. Think
about it! The life of a fellow human
being depends upon your testimony! This
would affect you tremendously. Oh, it
would make your heart sicken and sink within you! You would carefully weigh every word that came out of your mouth,
and you would carefully think about every sentence. It is extremely important that you give just the right
testimony. You could do so much damage
on the accused person if he was really innocent. However, you could do just as much damage on the public’s
welfare, if the accused were really guilty on the other hand.
But, let’s go one step further. Suppose the earthly well or ill being of an
entire town depended on your word or your conduct. Suppose the lives of an entire regiment of men depended on your
testimony, and you were called into the presence of the commander and chief of
the armed forces, and your testimony would determine their doom. You would approach awe-stricken, all pale
and trembling, and you would inwardly, and perhaps audibly, groan, “Oh, how can
I stand under such a weight. How can I
carry such a heavy burden? Oh, what if,
by a slip of my tongue, I sacrifice the lives of all these men!
But, let us now go even farther. Let the life, not the earthly or physical
life, but the eternal life of a soul depend on you. Let us go even farther, let there be those all around you, whose
eternal destiny hangs on your words and deeds.
Let there be those whose unbelief or faith, whose repentance or
prolonged rebellion, whose submission or obstinacy, whose holiness or sin
depends on your testimony. Let there be
those whose sanctification or permanent purification, or their deeper and
deeper descent into filth and pollution, whose everlasting good or endless ill,
hangs on your look, on your words, or on your conduct. My friends, let this be the weight laid upon
you, and oh, what angel can estimate how immense your responsibility is. How can an angel calculate the importance of
your testimony?
God’s Spirit grabs a hold of an immortal soul, and
commands him to swear allegiance to God’s throne. He turns to you, because you claim to be a member of God’s
kingdom. He asks, “What sort of a king
is God”? But you have no testimony to
bear for your sovereign Lord. Your
mouth is closed. You can’t say one
solid word. All you can do is mumble
feebly and unintelligibly, make contradictory statements, and live a life that
tells others that your words are false.
What then? The Advocate is
sad. He can’t make any plea. His own witnesses have betrayed Him. His dependence on His witnesses has failed
Him, and He is silent and confused. The
judge turns to the jury, and the judge asks them, “Have you agreed on your
verdict”? They answer without even
leaving the jury box. “We have.” “Gentlemen, what do you say? Is God worthy of this man’s allegiance, or
not worthy”? And they answer, “Not
Worthy”. The Infinite God as lost His
cause. The jury has gone by your breach
of faith, your violation of trust, and the opponent makes his way out of the
courtroom gladdened by the strength of the verdict. But, those witnesses cannot stifle those disagreeable voices that
cry out from their own hearts, “false verdict”!
Treacherous witnesses! God is worthy! Oh,
witnesses, do not be deceived! But the
case is decided against God, the soul is set, the course is taken, and it will
not end until that soul descends down the sides of the bottomless pit. Oh, false witness, what have you done? Treacherous advocate, look at your
work! Faithless defender, you are
cursed by your own memory!
Christian! Witness! Beware!
You are on the stand; a word, a look, a falter, a stammer, and that soul
is gone!
2. Great interests are at stake. The world’s salvation is at stake. The glory of the Infinite God among men is
at stake. The honor and success of His
moral government is at stake. But, it
is also true that you can be as fully prepared as you please. You can be as thoroughly qualified to bear
witness as you desire. God will
provide, for you, every opportunity that you need; He will give you every opportunity
to get acquainted with His word and His ways.
God has spread out all the glorious facts in the case right before you
so you can fully and thoroughly understand it.
He has invited you, and He urges you, to search with the utmost
diligence. He throws His kingdom open
so you can see the deepest truths. He
lets you study, if you want to, and gives you plenty time to study at your
leisure. He also gives you all the
helps that you need to examine and learn all the great facts on which His cause
is established, so you can command a favorable verdict.
God urges you to obtain a knowledge that is so complete,
that is so deep, and an experience that is so rich and exquisite in all the
different parts of truth, in the whole plan of practical godliness, so you can
stand up in the presence of the court as straight and as tall as an angel, and
declare, with a voice that is as clear as a silver trumpet, from your own
knowledge and your own great experience, the wonderful things on which the
world’s salvation hangs. If you have
the advantage, if you have the ability, if you have God’s interests in your
heart, if you have opportunities to secure the knowledge that is needed in this
case, people will look to you as a witness, and so much depends on your testimony,
I ask you, what should you do? Ah, an
angel might tremble under such responsibility.
3. It is impossible for any Christian to tell how
much may depend on his own testimony, on his own individual witness. When the Lord takes His seat on that final
day of judgment, and all the events of the world and their causes and effects
are spread out and laid open before the eyes of all mankind, what wonders will
be revealed there. Everyone will see
the important changes that depended and turned on the testimony of each child
of God! What wonders will be revealed
there!
4. God Himself feels keenly sensitive towards the
result of the investigation. Never did
a person commit a cause to witnesses, who was so extremely sensitive to the
issue, as God is in this situation. God
is not selfish. He does not seek His
own ends. He is not motivated by
self-gratification. His work is not to
crush and discomfit His opponents, but God is motivated by love. He wants to save His foes. He wants to draw them over, to subdue their
wills, and draw them sweetly by the power of the truth to drink from the well
of salvation. His whole soul yearns to
do this. And God is very sensitive to
the progress of the great suit now pending between Himself and the human race,
a suit in which we must testify before angels and men. This suit, that is pending, is very
important to us. The results are very
important to us. God knows how
important His own reputation is, because His reputation is necessary for the
best good of the universe, and He knows the infinite importance of the
interests at stake in this controversy.
He desires, with all His heart, to see His case proved.
How does a man feel when he is engaged in a very
important matter, and he brings it to trial, and he calls his witness to the
stand? How he pays very close attention
to every word the witness says. And how
grieved and indignant he will be, if a principal witness turns out to be careless,
or ill-informed, or maybe even inconsistent, or worse than that, wickedly
perverse. If you placed yourself in
such a position, and you were the advocate of great interests, how would it
affect you if your witnesses failed you in the hour of trial! God is truly and deeply interested in the
trial. He has thrown His cause on an appeal
to facts, and therefore, he sincerely calls on witnesses, and expects them to
have a full knowledge, and a clear and accurate testimony, in order to return
an honorable verdict in His favor.
REMARKS
1. The world is now, and always has stumbled over
the contradictory testimony that nominal Christians give, for they give their
testimony even though God has not called them to testify. He does not even want their witness. He calls His own people, and no one else to
testify; but multitudes pretend to be God’s people, and perhaps they sometimes
think that they are God’s people. They
set themselves up as witnesses. Others
believe they are witnesses. But these
nominal, so called Christians, know nothing at all about God, and they bear
false witness because they think they know, and they testify as if they do know
all about God. However, by giving their
testimony, they dominate and outnumber the true witnesses; and the minds of the
jury and the by-standers become confused.
They are either at a loss to know what to think, or else they return a
verdict against God and religion.
2. Nominal Christians today, mere professing
Christians, so greatly outnumber God’s real people, that their witness in the
minds of men, generally, completely outweighs the testimony of the true witnesses. Persuaded by these false witnesses and glad
to get rid of an unwelcome subject, the world as a whole comes together and
cries, “Religion has nothing to offer.
It is worthless.” And if they
were right in believing that the majority of those professing Christians were
true witnesses, they would be right in their decision. If mankind accepts the testimony of the
majority of those who claim to be Christians as the true Christian witness,
what else can their decision be? What
other verdict can they give? What else
can they say in such a situation? They
must say exactly what they do say. But
notice, the evil does not lie in the fact that God loses His cause for lack of
evidence, but that so many come forward and place themselves on the witness
stand who have never been summoned, and who know nothing at all of the true
controversy between God and man.
3. God will reject their testimony in the great
court of justice on that awesome Day of Judgment. On that day, both the people who gave their false testimonies,
and the people who have been blinded by it and have stumbled over it will be
sent off together to that eternal prison-house. For God never appealed to incompetent witnesses. He has appealed to His true children, and to
no one else, and those who attend the trial should respect those people whom
God admits and those He rejects from the stand. Since multitudes press forward to bear witness, the decision of
who are competent and who are incompetent, is not determined beforehand. Instead, because God allows each and every
person to tell his story whether it is to the point or not, whether it is
consistent or not, there is a tremendous danger of deception. There is a tremendous danger of
stumbling. By-standers must be on their
guard. By-standers must be very particular
about whose testimony they receive, for if they carelessly rely on the
testimony of a witness that God never called, they, and they alone are responsible,
and they must bear the consequence of their carelessness. It is very important that everyone is willing
to thoroughly understand who are true witnesses, and who only pretend to be
true witnesses, but are really self-called witnesses. Their salvation hangs on their careful discrimination.
4. Because nominal Christians are a vast majority,
true Christians are suspected of heresy, fanaticism, and insanity. Those who know God are so few among the vast
many, (after all “so many can't be wrong”,) that they treat the witness of the
true Christian as false. They say that
the true Christian doesn’t know what he is talking about, that he is being
presumptuous and over-zealous. But, in
fact, true Christians are the only ones who know anything as it should be
known. It is sad to see how the truth
is perverted today, and how it is pronounced false because of the hypocrisy and
the ignorance of professing Christians, and the carelessness of sinners.
5. This fact also applies to ministers. Even ministers are often false witnesses of
God. Oh, how many are crying out
against the most precious truths of the Gospel, and thus leading others to
doubt the truth and power of God’s glorious truths.
6. Even true witnesses themselves often fall into
gross inconsistencies, and thus they destroy the weight of their own testimony,
and greatly weaken the force of the testimony of others. This is one of the most important goals of
the adversary. Satan’s chosen policy is
to prevail over the real people of God.
He would love to strike away, with one blow, everything they have
already accomplished. If he can nullify
the true testimony, if he can nullify the witness of those who do know, he will
be safe, for the testimony of those other “so called” witnesses only works to
his advantage.
How often have real Christians fallen under powerful
temptations, and then the force of their testimony is destroyed; its value is
lost, and nobody will believe it. They
have fallen, and who will give any credit to what they said before? When a person of high religious reputation
falls into sin, it encourages scoffers to remain in their indulgences and in
their intemperance, and it leads multitudes to turn away, and discourages many
who are truly seeking after piety. I
can hear the scoffers crying right now, saying, “That’s what happens when you
get too religious”. I can hear the
careless sinner boasting, “There was never anything real there”. Then the timid inquirer joins in, “Oh my
God, he has fallen! How can I ever hope
to succeed?” What a tremendous
influence that kind of conduct has on others!
When there is a traitor among the disciples, his defection produces
tremendous havoc!
7. Many who are, perhaps true witnesses, or many who
think they are true witnesses, have very little to say. They seem to have made their home among the
basic principles of the doctrine of Christ.
Their religion has dwindled away.
They have done little or no growing in the Lord at all. Perhaps they have even shrunk a little. They know little more, perhaps no more than
they did the day they committed their hearts and lives to Christ. The command to, “grow in grace, and in the
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ”, has never gotten their attention. They don’t seem to know what growing in the
knowledge of Christ means.
Many Christians today seem to stop right on the
threshold of the kingdom of God. They
appear to know next to nothing about Christ by personal experience. They have not grown up into Him. They do not go on to grow and increase,
learning first one thing and then another, and then another of Christ’s offices
and relations. Instead of gaining new
knowledge every day, instead of being able to say, “I have learned something
about God today that I never knew before.
I just learned something I never thought of before”. Instead of learning something here and
something there, instead of growing day by day in the experience of the grace
of Christ, they do not grow at all, but they remain mere babies, mere amateurs
in divine knowledge. And when they are
called to testify, they have to say they know very little of the controversy
that exists between God and men. And when
a witness know very little of the case, when he stammers and hesitates, the
jury becomes weary of listening to him waffle, and the judge will say, “That
man doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
It’s not worth wasting our time listening to him.”
It is remarkable that Christians can say so little
about a personal acquaintance with God.
How extremely little they can say.
You can be with them for years, attend prayer and conference meetings
with them for years, and what do you hear them say? Their experience isn’t more than an inch long. They can tell you everything they have
learned in ten minutes. They were
converted a long time ago. Now and
then, they have a conviction. They feel
compunction and sorrow for sin, they have a desire to do better, and they have
faint feelings of worship and adoration regularly rise up from deep within
them. But oh, they have never gone
within the veil. They spend their time
wandering around in the outer courts, and sometimes they enter into the glorious
inner sanctuary, which was opened by the sacrifice of the glorious Lamb of
God. But they have never seen the sacred
Holy of Holies. Their eyes have never
looked on those deep and flowing springs that rise from beneath the very throne
of God. They never drank from those
deep and flowing springs. They never
have felt that deep, broad river of peace flowing through their enraptured
souls, which pours its streams of living waters through the channels of salvation. Their eyes have never been opened to see the
wonderful things of God. They have
never had new and brighter revelations.
They have never sat entranced in so much joy that they could tell and
retell, and never tire of telling about the wonderful things that God has done
for them, and the beautiful things that He has showed them. No, alas!
Instead, their story is told quickly.
The same story is often repeated, a mournful tale, which is dishonorable
to God and disgraceful to themselves.
These witnesses are faulty. They neglect every opportunity that God
provides them to make them able to bear a most impressive testimony for God and
His Christ, and they shut their mouths.
Impressive testimony? Hear a
Christian who has truly experienced Christ tell his story. As he pours out his heart, see his tears
start to flow. See them trickle down
his cheek in front of the whole assembly.
He will make more impression than 500 unfeeling sermons. His statements, oh how simple they are! His faith, oh how free and natural it
is! His trust, how child-like it is!
I knew a young man, a sailor, who was converted
onboard ship. He had been raised at
sea, and so he knew nothing about religion.
On a voyage to China, in a most remarkable manner, he became convinced
that the Bible was true. He became very
anxious to have a Bible, and one day, he received a Bible from an old sailor
who had one, but he didn’t care about it.
The Bible was old. He covered it
carefully to preserve it as much as possible, but then one day he began to read
it. Oh, how he was filled with such
emotion! How his heart swelled! How his tears flowed! It was the word of God. Every word of it was true; every promise was
sure. How wonderful it appeared to
him! He sat and wondered, and read, and
wept, and wept, and read. He was so
happy that he forgot everything but God, and Christ, and his Bible. On their voyage, the ship stopped at a port
for supplies. The city was illuminated. It was a perfect blaze of light. As the ship sat at anchor, our sailor walked
the deck, and looked at the illuminated town.
“I was so happy”, he said, “with my Bible and my God, I could not help
exclaiming, I am happier than all of you”.
He said he did not once think about whether he was a Christian or not,
but his soul was all absorbed in love and joy.
After he shared this experience, our sailor told us
his experience of the faithfulness of God.
He didn’t think that the fact that God answers prayer was a big
deal. He didn’t consider that God
answering prayer was remarkable or strange.
God said He would hear His people's cry, and why shouldn’t He? He didn’t think that it was strange that God
should change the wind and give them a favorable breeze in answer to his
prayer. He would take his watch on
deck, the wind would be contrary, he would pray for a fair wind, and there was
never so much as a doubt that God would give him his request. He would kneel to pray, the wind would be
blowing on his larboard cheek, and before he arose, it would often turn and
come from the starboard. He did this
many times. “I did not think that it
was strange or remarkable”, he said, “I just thought that God answered
everybody’s prayer the same way. I
never thought about doubting His faithfulness and His readiness to answer my
prayer.” Thus, he went on through the
voyage, constantly trusting, and praying, and rejoicing, and learning a new
lesson in the unsearchable riches of the knowledge of Christ every day. His story, as he told it, ran through the
congregation like a stream of electricity.
He told about many things, all revealing the simple and child-like faith
and joy in Christ that his soul possessed.
In fact, if it weren’t for the hearty simplicity, and undeniable sincerity
and truthfulness of his testimony, few people would have believed him.
He was full of testimonies. He would come to my room after I first met
him, with a whole collection of experiences that the Lord had taught him
concerning the Bible and his own soul.
I wish you could hear his testimony.
It was as simple-hearted as a little child’s
testimony. He did not know what spiritual
pride was. He did not take the least
credit for his experiences, as though he were someone important or as though
God had specially favored him, for, as far as he knew, everybody thought, felt,
and trusted just as he did, and, as far as he knew, God answered them just as
God answered him.
Now if Christians could testify like he testified,
they would exert a power that would practically be irresistible. It would be most overwhelming. When he told his story, many things sounded
so remarkable, I went and asked a friend who I knew was familiar with the
sailor, concerning the young man (in fact, it was the seaman’s minister,). “Ah”, said the minister, “he is completely
genuine, you can depend on it”. And
indeed, everybody could see this was true, and yet it was remarkable to hear a
man relate so much about God from personal experience. I assure you, he never learned any of that
from man. It certainly wasn’t something
he had heard from someone else, but, when he opened the door of his heart, the
Lord Himself came in, and they had sat down together to a feast of the finest
things, to a banquet of love. Oh, it
was rich and delightful. I would rather
listen to him talk, than to five hundred learned men, who have no Christian
experience. His very looks preached,
and everything he said was of the most excellent kind preaching, for it came
directly from a heart overflowing with love, and full of the Spirit of the
Lord.
8. Here and there, you will find a most precious
witness springing up in the church. God
is never completely without such witnesses.
Blessed be His name! Once in a
while one will arise. And, glory to
God! He is multiplying such witnesses
throughout the land. Go through and
visit the churches, and every now and then you will find a soul so full; so
heavenly, so Christ-like, so deeply in communion with God. Listen to his or her experience, and you
will feel that angel’s wings are fanning you.
They are multiplying where the truth is proclaimed in its fullness, and
received in simplicity of heart. Such
witnesses are bearing their testimony, and it is taking effect; and although
there is a lot to overcome by their testimony, they will overcome as certainly
as truth can affect human minds, and the Spirit can convert them.
9. Many Christians are afraid and ashamed to say
very much. They are afraid that someone
may remind them of their inconsistencies.
And indeed, that would be true.
The best thing that those people should do, who cannot show a consistent
walk with the Lord, is to keep quiet.
The quieter they are, the better off everybody is, until they come and
walk with God and do His will.
10. The relationship that Christians have to God and
the world should be a very powerful argument when they go to God in
prayer. I am afraid Christians do not
consider this enough. They don’t realize
that they may come to God and say reverently, “Oh Lord, You have required such
and such a thing of me, to testify for You.
You want to call me as a witness for You. Now Lord, make me able to testify. Let me know You. Bring me
into Your presence. Seize and carry me
away with Your love. Oh, teach me the
hidden glories of Your word, that I may be able to tell others what I know,
that I may be able to testify what I have seen.”
Make up your mind, Christian. Be single-hearted. Go to God and say, “Oh
Lord, I want to bear emphatic testimony, so that men will be constrained to
believe.” Urge it on the Lord, and rely
on His word. Expect God to hear
you! This is a most convincing argument
at the throne of grace, one that will prevail with God for you.
11. God’s witnesses should realize that the world
watches them everywhere they go. Others
carefully watch them for inconsistencies.
They are always looking and trying to find something that will impeach
them as witnesses, and destroy their credibility. And if they can find anything that is even, in the least degree,
wrong or improper, if they can find anything that can throw any shadow of doubt
over your testimony, they will surely latch onto it. Please remember this, and be careful to live in such a way, and
speak in such a way that they will be compelled to say, no matter how their
hearts may writhe under it, that you are right.
12. There is nothing so fatal to a defendant in
court, as the failure of his own witnesses through ignorance, or because of inconsistent
testimonies, or a deliberate breach of faith.
Anytime a defendant’s own witnesses know nothing about his case, or they
tell contradictions, or they refuse to tell what they know, how can that
defendant defend his cause? Who shall
stand up for him?
13. Since God throws Himself on our integrity, and
our righteousness, and our candor, we should consider where we are. Consider, God casts His cause on you,
Christians! “You are My witnesses!”
“You are My witnesses!” You
should seriously realize the importance of where you stand. The burden of your responsibility should
weigh you down. The importance of
knowing all you can possibly know, of testifying to everything you are able to
testify to, and of bearing such a straightforward and unassailable testimony
that you irresistibly carry conviction to all those around you should burn in
your heart.
14. Christians should remember that they are always
under oath. Making a profession of
faith in Christ is really taking an oath for God. Christians are bearing their testimony all the time. They are always on the stand in court before
the judge, the jury, and bystanders.
Christians are constantly under the eyes of those who are to decide the
case. Please, never forget this. This case will never be settled and the
court will never adjourn as long as we live.
15. Professing Christians will always be considered
witnesses, of course, whether God calls them or not. Professing Christian, your testimony will be heard, even if it is
only a false testimony. If you have
made a profession of religion, your position is fearful. The eyes of the world, the eyes of God, and
the eyes of all the angels are upon you.
Your deposition will be written, relied upon, read in court, and be used
in settling the question in the minds of those concerned in the issue. It is incalculably important for you to remember
who and what you are.
Brethren, do we live and act in such a way that
those around us, by observing and learning from our lifestyle, by using us as a
pattern, will receive and witness a true picture of religion? This is a very serious question! Ministers assume a tremendous
responsibility, and so do young men preparing for the ministry, and all young
people that are being educated for the Christian field! What a cloud of witnesses are here! There is tremendous potential for wonderful
and glorious testimonies.
Are you resolved, young men, young women, that
nothing shall be lacking in your testimony, in your life, and in your
experience, that you can obtain by the utmost diligence on your part? Are you resolved? If you are, we here at Oberlin, will rejoice to lend you all the
help possible to accomplish your noble purpose, to prepare you to go out and
proclaim your testimony aloud to others.
But, if you are only serving yourself and the devil, if you are seeking
your own, and not the things of Christ, your labor and our labor will be
misapplied? We will be miss-employed in
preparing you, preparing you for what?
For what? To fight against God
and good in the world, and then be food for the flames of hell? A church is a cloud of witnesses! God’s people is a host of witnesses. And if ever a people were looked on as witnesses,
this is the people. Your testimony,
whatever it is, is going throughout the land.
The church and the world are hearing about what is happening here at
Oberlin; and when one of you falls, the tale is told with trumpet blasts
throughout America, throughout Europe, and in the islands of the sea. The
missionaries in the far off isles will hear it and mourn, from the rising to
the setting sun. Oh, brethren, how
shall we give the kind of testimony that must be heard until holiness covers
the whole earth as the waters cover the sea?