Sharing Personal Testimonies to Build Bridges with Non-Christians
Sharing personal testimonies can serve as a means of communicating the Christian faith to non-Christians, often by illustrating God's work in an individual's life. The New Testament uses the concept of "testimony" in various ways, from direct witness to Christ's identity to the recounting of God's actions.
John the Baptist, for instance, explicitly stated, "Ye youre selves are witnesses how that I sayde: I am not Christ but am sent before him" [3]. Here, testimony is a direct declaration of truth. Similarly, Jesus himself refers to the testimony he receives, noting that it is "not from man" but given so that others "may be saved" [2]. This highlights the salvific purpose behind testimony.
The Apostle Paul frequently emphasized the importance of proclaiming the Gospel, particularly to those who had not yet heard it. He aspired "to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation" [1]. This demonstrates a missionary impulse to share the message with new audiences. Paul also spoke of not being "ashamed of the testimony" of Christ, which Adam Clarke interprets as the Gospel itself, proclaiming "Christ crucified, and redemption through his blood" [5]. This testimony, though potentially seen as shameful by the world, becomes "the power of God to the salvation of every one that believed" [5].
Personal testimony, in the sense of recounting God's work, is evident in the early church. After their missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas "rehearsed all that God had done with them," emphasizing that it was not their own doing but "what God made them the instruments of working" [6]. They also shared "how he had opened the door of faith" for the Gentiles [6]. This act of sharing their experiences served to glorify God and demonstrate the spread of the Gospel. John Gill notes a similar dynamic when discussing the generosity of Gentile churches towards the poor saints in Jerusalem; this act of ministration led the recipients to "glorify God... for your professed subjection to the Gospel of Christ" [8]. The actions and experiences of believers, when shared, can thus become a form of testimony that points to God's work and the transformative power of the Gospel.
The concept of testimony also extends to the future generations of believers. Jesus tells Thomas, "blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed" (John 20:29). Tyndale House interprets this as Jesus pointing to "generations of Christians who, through the testimony of others, would believe without seeing" [7]. This suggests that the accounts of those who have experienced Christ are crucial for the faith of those who follow.
While the New Testament emphasizes the proclamation of the Gospel and the sharing of God's work, it also acknowledges that not all teachings or directives come with explicit prior scriptural backing. Paul, when addressing specific marital situations, states, "But to the rest speak I, not the Lord," indicating that some instructions were given for the first time under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, even if not directly found in existing scripture [4]. This highlights the ongoing nature of divine guidance and the development of Christian teaching.
Sources
- Romans “Romans 15:20 (BSB) — In this way I have aspired to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.”
- John “But the testimony which I receive is not from man. However, I say these things that you may be saved. -- John 5:34”
- John “John 3:28 (Tyndale) — Ye youre selves are witnesses how that I sayde: I am not Christ but am sent before him.”
- 1 Corinthians (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 7:12: But to the rest speak I, not the Lord - As if he had said: For what I have already spoken I have the testimony of the Lord by Moses, and of my own Lord and Master, Christ; but for the directions which I am now about to give there is no written testimony, and I deliver them now for the first time. These words do not intimate that the apostle was not now under the influences of the Divine Spirit; but, that there was nothing in the sacred writings which bore directly on this point. If any brother - A Christian man, have a wife that believeth not, i.e. who is a h”
- 2 Timothy (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on 2 Timothy 1:8: Be not - ashamed of the testimony - The testimony of Christ is the Gospel in general, which proclaims Christ crucified, and redemption through his blood. In the sight of the world, there appeared to be reason why a man should be ashamed of this; ashamed of him who was crucified as a malefactor; but, when this Gospel became the power of God to the salvation of every one that believed, it was a subject to exult in. Hence the apostle, Rom 1:16 (note), said, I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. Nor of me his prisoner - When our friends are in power and credit, we”
- Acts (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Acts 14:27: Had gathered the Church together - The Church by which they had been sent on this very important and successful mission. They rehearsed all that God had done with them - Not what they had done themselves; but what God made them the instruments of working. And how he had opened the door of faith - How God by his providence and grace had made a way for preaching Christ crucified among the heathen; and how the heathen had received that Gospel which, through faith in Christ Jesus, was able to save their souls.”
- John (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on John 20:29: 20:29 Jesus points to the generations of Christians who, through the testimony of others, would believe without seeing.”
- 2 Corinthians (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Corinthians 9:13: Whiles by the experiment of this ministration,.... That is, the poor saints at Jerusalem having a specimen, a proof, an experience of the liberality of the Gentile churches ministered to them by the apostles, first, they glorify God; by giving thanks unto him, acknowledging him to be the author of all the grace and goodness which they, and others, were partakers of; particularly for your professed subjection to the Gospel of Christ. The Gospel of Christ is the doctrine of grace, life, and salvation by Christ, of which he is the author, as God, the subject m”