witnesses to salvation

He 2.1-4; For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.

Who are the witnesses of this great salvation of ours?

1. God the Father - it is He who spoke "through the Lord"
2. Christ Jesus - He is the mediator, the go-between
3. The eyewitnesses - that is the apostles and those who had spent time with Jesus
4. God again but specifically through signs and wonders and gifts
   

So how do these witnesses cause belief? In and of themselves, they do not. That is, while they certainly confirm the reality of God's great salvation, there is another side of the equation. This other element is the heart and mind of the observer to receive that witness.

The god of this world is at work to blind those that are his (2 Co 4:4-6). BUT - God the Father, through the power of the Holy Spirit, creates in the hearer this ability to see rightly what the witnesses are revealing (Mt 11:27; 16:17).

In a recent small group study we looked at Lk 11.14-23. We noted that although the people were eyewitnesses to the same exact event, their reactions varied greatly. It wasn't a matter of burden of proof, it was a function of the condition of their heart. I noted that while I am sure that not all claims of miracles in the Name of Jesus today are true, I was sure that no amount of evidence would convince someone to believe different than the precondition of their heart would allow. Except the Holy Spirit reveal the truth, the person receiving the witness will not be swayed.

Remember that we are to live Kingdom lives thereby fulfilling our portion of the role of witness but we must pray that the Lord of the harvest open the heart of those He has called to receive the Word of Life - Jesus Christ, Our Lord and King.

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