(Notes follow the video for the hearing impaired.)

Acts 10:34-43 NLT

[34] Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. [35] In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right. [36] This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel-that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. [37] You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism. [38] And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. [39] “And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross, [40] but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear, [41] not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses. We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. [42] And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all-the living and the dead. [43] He is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name.”

            Peter finally gets to tell Cornelius and the people who had gathered with him about Jesus.  He shares a little about Jesus’s ministry, death and resurrection.  He tells them about his own connection to Jesus.  And he tells them about being forgiven of sins by trusting in Jesus.  He finally tells them the good news.

            Peter had gone to where he had never been and had done something he had never done.  He had changed his mindset about who God accepts.  He had come to grips with the fact that God had sent him to tell this bunch of Gentiles about forgiveness through faith in Jesus.

            Pay attention to this next statement—Peter was able to share the good news with them because they were willing to listen to his message.  His message was meeting a need they had.  They wanted to know what God had to say to them, and Peter supplied their need by sharing Jesus with them.

            In order for someone to accept the good news about Jesus, the Holy Spirit must draw them to believe that God exists and that His word is truth.  They have to believe that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.  They have to believe that the word “all” includes them.  And they have to believe they can be forgiven by putting trust in who Jesus is as Messiah.

            God uses many things to bring people to faith in the good news.  He uses His written word we call the Bible.  He uses His spoken word delivered by His messengers.  He uses song lyrics, poetry and stories.  He even uses His creation to reveal Himself to people.  And there is something else God uses to bring people to knowledge about Jesus.

            When Peter shared his personal connection to Jesus and why he was willing to share Jesus with a group of Gentiles, he was using one of the most powerful methods God employs to spread the good news.  He was using his personal story about faith in Jesus.  We call that action giving a personal testimony.

            Peter had seen Jesus in action on a daily basis.  He had seen the miracle healings and deliverances.  He was there as Jesus taught his disciples how to pray.  He was there as the rooster crowed after he had denied he knew Jesus, but he was also there when he experienced the forgiveness of Jesus.  Peter had experienced the arrival of the Holy Spirit sent by the Father at the request of His Son.  And he knew his experiences with Jesus were real.

            Sharing a personal experience with Jesus is a powerful way to spread the good news about how God will forgive when we repent and put our trust in Jesus.  Sharing a personal experience adds a powerful impact to anyone’s testimony about who Jesus is as Redeemer and Savior of all whole repent and seek forgiveness.  Anyone under the sound of my voice today who has experienced forgiveness has a personal story to tell.

            You have a story, a personal experience, that involves how you decided to believe in Jesus and ask God to forgive you.  You have a story to share that gives glory to God because you trusted Him and were forgiven by Him.  You have a story to tell, just like Peter did.

            When we encounter new people and begin to build a relationship with them, we begin to learn what their needs are.  We draw them into to our two closest circles of influence.  As we interact with them, do things together and go places together, we will see times when their needs are similar to our needs.  It is then that we can begin to relate to them about how our needs are met through faith in Jesus.  It is then we can begin to tell them that part of our own story.

            Jesus didn’t die just for your sins.  He died for their sins, too.  Your relationship with God as a disciple of Jesus does not just mean you’re going to heaven.  It means you have been chosen by God to share your story with other people so they can make heaven their eternal home, too.  The Holy Spirit did not come just so the original disciples could be empowered to be witnesses in everyday life for Jesus.  He came so you can be empowered to share with other people how Jesus has changed your life, too.

            Now, here’s the catch to actually sharing your faith with other people.  You have to have their trust in order for them to listen to you.  To have their trust, you are going to have to intentionally build your relationship with them.  You have to intentionally seek opportunities to bring people closer to your circles of influence we talked about last week.  You actually have to decide to go out and make disciples of anyone who will become closer to you tomorrow than they are today.

            We’re going to do something right now you may have never done.  That’s okay, because Peter did something he had never done and a whole household was saved.  We are going to create a list of people we will call Closer Circle People.  These are people we know a little and intentionally decide to get to know more so we can find out what their needs are.  When we know what their needs are, we can begin to minister to them.  When they can trust us, then we can share our story with them, just like Peter shared his story with the folks gathered at the home of Cornelius.

            Write down the names of people you know who, as far as you can tell, do not attend worship services anywhere.  These are people you would call friends or acquaintances, but they are not people in your inner circle of influence.  These people are people with whom you can intentionally decide to create closer relationships.  Put the list on your fridge and look at it daily.

            Ask God to help you in drawing these people closer to Jesus.  Ask the Holy Spirit to help you have opportunities to get to know them better.  Pray for wisdom to discover their needs and how you can help fulfill those needs.  Then listen to God’s guidance and share your story with them when the right time comes.  You have a story to share.  They can benefit from knowing your story, just like those people in Cornelius’s house benefitted from hearing Peter’s personal experience with Jesus.

            If you have prayer requests, questions or comments, please leave them in the spaces provided below.  I encourage you to share links to this site and other messages or studies found in the archives.