- Open Their Eyes –

[Shadrach]

Matthew 28:19, 20, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age"
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Witnessing is telling others about the forgiveness, love, deliverance, empowering, fruitful life, and ministry, that a person has found in Jesus Christ, after accepting Him as Lord and Savior of their life. Jesus' last instructions to His disciples before He ascended to His Father were in relation to witnessing. Acts 26:18 says, “Open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light”. Luke 15:10 tell us of the outcome of our witnessing for the Lord, “There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” If the blood of Christ has saved you, you have been commanded by our Lord to go and tell others about God’s love, mercy, grace, joy, and peace that only comes from knowing His Son Jesus Christ. In John 9, the man healed of blindness testified clearly what had happened to him: “Though I was blind, now I see (John 9:25). During Jesus short public ministry of about three years, He spent many hours teaching and healing people one at a time. Although the Savior preached to multitudes in Galilee and Judea and was often surrounded by a great crowd, He was never too busy to minister to men, women, and children one-to-one. A couple of illustrations regarding this are found in Mark 2:1-12. One day when a house at Capernaum was filled with people eager to hear the Master’s words, He stopped to give attention to a sick man who had been let down through the roof. On one other occasion, Jesus singled out a man of short stature who had climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Him. Jesus stopped, looked up, and said, “Zaccheus make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house” (Luke 19:5).
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I read some time ago regarding a janitor at the University of Arizona who was a devout Christian who longed for his son Michael to put his trust in Jesus Christ. Michael recalls his father lovingly pleading, “Take Jesus as your Savior!” Michael, a well-educated engineer, was moved but asked his dad to give some reasons why he should trust Jesus. His father had little education and could only say with tears, “All I know is that He is who He says He is. I love you and want you to know Him too.” My friend, a simple, heartfelt testimony of our personal faith in Christ can be a powerful witness. However, we need not stop at that point, no matter how educated or uneducated we are. We have the Scriptures, which tell us that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Writing this I was reminded of Peter who told believers they should always be ready to give a reason for their hope in Christ (1 Peter 3:15). In the book of Acts, we read about the Spirit-empowered witness of Stephen and Paul (Acts 6:9-10; 24:24-25; 26:24-28). Every believer in Christ is part of His great commission in the world. What Jesus told His disciples in Acts 1 applies also to us. We are His witnesses and therefore must speak and live so that others will glorify Him when they hear our message and see our faith in action.
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Closing thoughts:

I’m reminded of the apostle Paul who had an opportunity to witness to a governor, a king, and prominent citizens (Acts 25-26). We don’t know the results of his witness, but Paul was faithful where God had placed him. When you are concerned for the spiritual needs of others and God opens a door of opportunity, any place is the best place to share the gospel … whether it’s on a corner street, at work, or in a king’s palace. If the Lord has opened the eyes of our understanding so that we believe in Him, we can only humbly thank Him for His grace and mercy. Because we have done nothing to merit God’s grace and mercy, we need to keep praying that our Creator will do for unbelieving skeptics what He has done for us. If He has rescued you from eternal death, ask Him to use you to tell others of the One who gives new life and ask that He will, “Open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light.”