Witnesses

Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

My Dear Comrades, Have you grown tired of this subject? I trust not. For myself, from my earliest days until now, the subject of holiness has never lost its beauty. To speak of the power of Christ to cleanse the heart, to fill it with love, and to keep it from falling, has always been one of the greatest joys of my life.

And it remains so still.

Surely, we ought to make this known—not only with our words, but with our lives—that Jesus Christ came not only to forgive sin, but to cleanse the heart and make it pure. But perhaps some of you still doubt. You may wonder whether such a life is truly possible. Let us then hear the testimony of others. We begin with those whose lives are recorded in Scripture. Enoch walked with God for three hundred years and pleased Him. Noah was called righteous in his generation.

Job was declared upright, a man who trusted God even in suffering. Abraham obeyed God fully, even when the cost was great. Isaiah was cleansed and immediately yielded himself to God’s service. Zacharias and Elizabeth were described as righteous, walking blamelessly before God.

John spoke of perfect love. Paul could appeal to others as witnesses to the holiness of his life.

These are not small testimonies. They show what God is able to do. And if we look beyond Scripture, we find the same witness repeated. John Fletcher declared that he was dead to sin and that Christ was his all in all. Others have spoken of a moment when God’s power came upon them—not in judgment, but in love—filling them with a new life. Another testified that he had walked in this liberty for many years, kept by the power of God. These are not imaginations.

They are real experiences. And so, my comrades, you are left with a decision. You have heard that such a life is possible. You have seen that God is able and faithful. You have been shown the way.

What will you do?

Your Lord is waiting to bring you into this life of purity and love.

Do not delay.

Enter in—by faith.

And if at first you do not succeed, do not give up. Continue. Seek again. Trust again. For the promise remains sure.