Lesson 7: The Tools for Witnessing (Acts 8, 9 & 22)

1. The “One on One” Tool





1. Read Acts 8:26-28. What do we learn about Philip
   in these three verses? (That the Holy Spirit led
   him and he was willing to follow.)





1. What do we learn about the eunuch in these
   verses? (That he was an important man
   (Secretary of the Treasury) that he was a Jew
   or a Jewish proselyte (Barne’s Notes) who had
   traveled to celebrate the Passover. A couple
   of commentaries I consulted indicated that he
   was probably not an actual eunuch. Instead,
   the word was used to indicate that he was an
   important “insider.” We also learn that he was
   studying the Bible.)

1. Read Acts 8:29-31. Is there a lesson about the
   “tool” of personal witnessing in this story so
   far? What is it? (The importance of the leading of
   the Holy Spirit and the importance of following
   the Spirit’s directions exactly. The eunuch, as we
   will see next, was reading Isaiah 53 — a
   messianic prophecy! What could be a better
   circumstance for witnessing about Jesus?)





1. Do you pray daily that the Holy Spirit will
   lead you to witness to the right person?





2. Read Acts 8:32-35. Can we expect that the people
   that we witness to will be reading the Bible?
   What can we do to recreate this situation in our
   witnessing? (The eunuch had an interest in the
   subject. If the Holy Spirit inspires an interest
   in the heart of the individual, we can encourage
   them to read the Bible to trigger more questions.)





1. Notice the sequence here. The eunuch is
   reading, Philip asks if he understands, and
   the eunuch then asks Philip for an
   explanation. Our lesson suggests that we:





1. Have the “student” read the Bible texts;





2. Ask them (like Philip) “Is this clear to
   you?”;





3. Answer any questions of the student; and,





4. Ask if they believe the doctrine.





2. Do you agree with this sequence? Is this
   simple enough? Are you prepared to witness?





3. Let’s read on. Read Acts 8:36-40.





1. Who decided the appropriate time for baptism?





1. Is this the way things should be?





2. I hear about people not being “ready” to
   be baptized – although they want to be
   baptized. Should we insist they know all
   the “doctrines” before they are baptized?





2. This story of Philip and the eunuch is an
   example of personal evangelism. What
   advantages or disadvantages does it have over
   big evangelistic series?





1. Does your church have an evangelistic
   series each year?





2. How many people are converted in these
   series?





3. How many are still with your church after
   three months?





4. Although it seems that you would convert
   more people with a big series, would that
   still be true if you had personal
   evangelism going on all year long with a
   committed group of members of the church?





4. I asked you before about how to recreate this
   perfect situation with Philip and the eunuch. Are
   small group meetings one way to do this? A number
   of members meet to study the Bible. They invite
   friends to come and study with the group. As a
   result, they are all reading the Bible. Have you
   tried this?





1. Your Testimony





1. Let’s look at another “tool” — personal
   testimony. Read Acts 22:1-5 to discover Paul’s
   personal testimony. Why do you think Paul started
   out his testimony like this? What is his purpose?
   (He wants his listeners to identify with him. He
   was a model citizen, a very successful man, from
   their point of view. He was someone they could
   look up to, someone with whom they could
   identify.)





1. When you witness to others, should you try to
   get them to identify with what you were
   before?





1. If you think this is a good strategy,
   why?





2. Let’s read on. Read Acts 22:6-10. You may have
   difficulty coming up with a story like this in
   your personal witnessing! What do you have in your
   life that is similar? (This is the conversion
   experience. The moment when you made the decision
   to turn away from your old ways.)





1. I have been a Christian all of my life. What
   should you do, if you are like me, and do not
   have a “conversion experience” to relate? Is
   personal testimony a “tool” you do not have on
   your tool belt? (What makes you decide to
   continue to be a Christian? That should be
   your “experience.” What keeps me a Christian
   is logic. I believe there is a God who created
   us because man cannot, with all of his
   computers and knowledge, perfectly replicate
   something “simple” like my hand. If man cannot
   replicate a hand, what kind of an idiot
   believes that body functions much more complex
   than my hand (like my eye/mind function) not
   only evolved, but evolved into the complex
   total unit that is a human? Logic tells us
   only a Master Intelligence could create man.
   If you think chance is brighter than you are,
   then I invite you to quit your job and see how
   chance gets your job done!

The brightest minds are currently looking for a unified theory of the universe. I would be
delighted to cross-examine anyone who believed
in a unified theory without a Master
Designer.)

1. Read Acts 22:11-16. What role did Ananias have in
   the conversion experience of Paul?





1. Why did Paul tell about the role of Ananias in
   his testimony? (This seems important. Paul is
   telling his listeners that someone like them
   helped lead him to Christ. They not only can
   identify with who Paul used to be, they can
   also identify with those who helped bring him
   to the truth.)





1. Who made the decision on baptizing here?





1. How would you describe Ananias as a
   witness? (You might want to read
   Acts 9:10-15 for more background on
   Ananias.)





2. Read Acts 22:17-20. Is Paul arguing with God? Why
   would he relate that as part of his testimony?
   (Once again, he is working on creating a bond with
   them. They would believe that Jerusalem was the
   center of the universe. They would believe that
   God would choose the Jews only for the message.
   But Paul wants to show them that God has corrected
   his thinking.)





3. Read Acts 22:21-24. Now you know why they put a
   floor in your church — and why you should only
   witness indoors! What do you think about this
   system of justice?





1. We have a story that is similar (in the end)
   to the Stephen story. Both Stephen and Paul
   gave a solid testimony. The result of their
   testimony is the intended converts thought
   they should be put to death. What does that
   teach us about testifying? That it is
   dangerous? That it is frustrating? That the
   quality of our witness is not always reflected
   in good results?





2. Last week we noted that the last approach of a
   failed argument is violence. We see that
   again this week. Why do you think the crowd’s
   “argument” failed? Does it have anything to do
   with the nature of personal testimony? (One of
   the great things about personal testimony is
   that it is hard to argue against. How can
   someone refute your personal story of a
   changed life?)





1. The Testimony of Healthy and Generous Lives





1. While the Old Testament has quite a bit to say
   about diet and health, the New Testament focus is
   on what comes out of your mouth instead of what
   goes in it. See, e.g. Matthew 15:11. Given this

focus of the New Testament, do you agree with the
lesson that “health evangelism” is important. Why?
(Notice the quote(Tuesday’s lesson): “[T]he great
object of [health] reform … is to secure the
highest development of body, mind and soul.” E.G.
White, Evangelism, p. 525-26.)

1. Read Acts 9:32-35. The healing of Aeneas caused
   the people in the area to convert. Were there
   already Christians in the area? Why hadn’t they
   converted the people before?





1. Why do you think the healing converted people,
   but the witness of the other Christians did
   not? (Different things will convince different
   people. The reason why healings, an emphasis
   on a healthy lifestyle, and that kind of thing
   draw others to the gospel is because that is
   the area of practical interest for many. Many
   will initially say about the gospel, “What
   will this do for me?”)





2. Let’s continue reading in this area. Read Acts
   9:36-39. What “tool” did Dorcas use in her
   witnessing?





1. Is this similar to the tool of healing and
   health reform?

1. Friend, what tools has God made available to you
   for witnessing? Have you carefully examined what
   you have and prayed about how you can use them to
   promote the gospel? I invite you to do that.





1. Next Week: Approaches to Witnessing.