How can I be an effective witness for Christ in a lost world?

A “witness” is someone who attests to a fact, so in order to be an effective witness for Christ, one must have firsthand knowledge of Him. John the Apostle speaks of this in 1 John 1:1-3, when he says, “That . . . which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at, and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of Life.” Today, we who have experienced new life in Christ give an account of His love and forgiveness, both verbally and in the way we live our lives. This is witnessing. To be effective in our witness, we should remember several basic things:

1) the THEME of our witness is Jesus Christ. Paul defined the gospel as the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). If we aren’t explaining the sacrifice of Christ, then we’re not really sharing the gospel. (See also 1 Corinthians 2:2 and Romans 10:9-10.) An important part of this theme is the fact that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation, not just one of many ways. “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

2) the POWER of our witness is the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit who transforms a life (Titus 3:5), and a transformed life is evident to all. As we witness, we should spend much time in prayer, appropriating the Spirit’s power so that we are enabled to let our light shine in such a way that others will recognize the power of God in us (Matthew 5:16).

3) the VALIDITY of our witness will be shown in how we live our lives. Philippians 2:15 sets this goal for us: “That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world.” The effective Christian witness will live his/her life above reproach in the power of the Holy Spirit, whose fruit we exhibit when we remain in Christ (John 15:1-8; Galatians 5:22-23).

Perhaps most importantly, we must be familiar enough with the Scriptures to be able to accurately and coherently present the gospel to others. “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15). Always being prepared means diligent Bible study, memorizing Scripture, and praying for God-given opportunities to share with those whose hearts have been prepared by the Lord to hear His message of salvation.

At time a time like this, where false Christianity has spread across all nations, Christ needs Genuine Witnesses to evangelise the world especially your local village in Africa.

Matthew 10:32. Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father who is in heaven.

Stand up for Genuine Christianity. As a true Christian it is your duty to witness to our Lord Jesus Christ and confess him with all your life.

John 1:6-8 There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.

An Evangelist bear Witness to Orthodox Christianity. This is a the process of bringing Orthodox teachings to people who are outside of the Church, in hopes that they will accept these teachings and decide to become a part of the Church.

Luke 12:8 I tell you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will also confess him before the angels of God.

In Greek language, the word witness is μαρτυρια, martyria, from which English derives the word martyr. Martyrs gave their lives as a witness for the Gospel of Christ. In Othodox Christianity, then, witness is primarily a character of one’s life more than a program of proselytism. Still, individual acts of evangelism can result from deliberate missionary work or evolve from a casual discussion about faith between an Orthodox Christian and a person (or people) outside the Orthodox Church.

Luke 15:10 In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”

A witness for Genuine Orthodoxy can be any member of the Church, clergy or lay; in any case, they should be worshiping with the Church regularly, and observing all normal practices of the Church as practiced locally and with the guidance of their spiritual father. During discussions about the Orthodox faith, a prepared witness will know Orthodox doctrine and be versed in Orthodox apologetics in order to best answer questions. It can also be helpful if the witness is familiar with various non-Orthodox ideologies.

Romans 10:9  that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

A witness for Orthodoxy can and should pray for God’s help in his or her task. Evangelism should be conducted out of love, and should be personal.

Revelation 3:5 Like them, the one who is victorious will be dressed in white. And I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but I will confess his name before My Father and His angels.

Orthodoxy teaches that a person must accept faith freely; faith cannot be coerced in any way. Such a conversion would be insincere and invalid.

Among the Saints, Confessors are witness that died at old age, while Martyrs are witness that spill their blood for the gospel. Our Lord Jesus Christ makes it clear

We have courses available at St Athanasius Seminary for you to become a Witness, Click here to apply.