My testimony embraces the fact that Jesus is my deliverance into the light, my peace and my life. Before believers had the Word in print, they shared the “word” of their testimony
I have always been moved to utter joy by the testimony of how God transforms and operates in our lives. It has increased my faith more than anything—I am sure many understand the awe that comes with a testimony of the working of our Living God. When an unbeliever hears a testimony of faith, is brings light to the darkness of satan’s shadow of fear, worry, doubt, and sin. When we experience deliverance into the light, when we bring the Kingdom to others they witness the reality of Jesus Christ in our love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. Before believers had the Word in print, they shared the “word” of their testimony. Early believers had something so powerful in the words of their testimony that embraced not only how they received the Lord, but how He manifested in their lives. There is something in what was happening with the early believers that caused them in the face of death to cling to their testimony. Sometimes, I wonder if today we really understand what that means. (Although Believers continue to die for their faith around the world and have been for the last 2000 years.)
The Word of Our Testimony Comes in Many Forms
The word of our testimony comes in many forms. The Lord seems to give “life” to our testimony as it is imparted to the unbeliever becoming a “seed” which takes root because it is in obedience to God’s Living Word. When we experience deliverance into the light of God’s Kingdom–when we share the Gospel with our testimony with an unbeliever, this is exactly what happens. “It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it” (Isaiah 55: 11). When we weave the Word of God into the word of our testimony, it germinates the seed of conviction within the unbeliever that will prosper. The word of our testimony is a powerful encouragement to the Body of Christ as it increases our faith.
From the slightest to the magnificent, God reveals Himself to each of us in a unique and personal way. God says we will overcome by the word of our testimony and that means that something supernatural happens first. Sometimes our testimony tells the story about how God answers our prayers even when we do not pray—He does something that merits praise just because He loves us. Sometimes our testimony is what happens through a leading of the Holy Spirit effectuated by conviction through the Word to repentance. God prompts us in another direction to save our life or reveal an aspect of His plan for us. Sometimes signs and wonders are “random acts of God” (A God Thing.) Through our testimony we declare the Kingdom of God. That is how Jesus overcame the world and that is how we overcome it too. Our testimony embraces how Jesus comforts and guides us through any obstacle with signs, wonders, and mighty deeds right here on earth today. “Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds” (2 Corinthians 12:12). Because we are in Jesus Christ, signs, wonders, and mighty deeds, are the manifestations of our walk with Jesus. He said that we would “do greater things than this” (John 14:12). Believe it or not, we are the apostles of Jesus Christ on the earth today.
“Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds” (2 Corinthians 12:12)
I am attempting to unpack 2 Corinthians 12:12 from the perspective of the word of our testimony. I tend to think that this scripture has been unapproachable to many Christians because we sometimes don’t believe that signs and wonders and mighty deeds like in the Bible are really happening in our lives–often as Christians we wonder where the mighty things are happening and may ask the question: “Will I ever see signs, wonders, and mighty deeds in my life? We often tend to have the impression that these matters are on such a grand scale that they are beyond reason. That’s right! These matters are beyond our rational mind that’s why they are the signs, wonders, and mighty deeds of God! Kingdom thinking is not logical–yet the workings of God are the most clear realities in this world. As it is written: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). The things we cannot see are all the signs, wonders, and mighty deeds the Lord has prepared for us to experience. We need to learn to discern the paradoxes of Kingdom thinking; we can embraces the fact that signs, wonders, and mighty deeds are a paradox in this world and that they do happen in the life of the believer. The word of our testimony talks about how God makes things right and delivers us out of our sin, troubles, addictions, fears, doubts, worries and fundamentally out of the dictates of this world. The Kingdom is impacting the world–our testimony isimpacting eternity right now.
