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ine, and show itself in action (1 John
3:16-18).
“No sooner is one converted than
there is born within him a desire to
make known to others what a precious
friend he has found in Jesus. The saving
and sanctifying truth cannot be
shut up in his heart.”—The Desire of
Ages, p. 141
“Christ came to the earth and stood
before the children of men with the
hoarded love of eternity, and this is the
treasure that, through our connection
with Him, we are to receive, to reveal,
and to impart.” —The Ministry of Healing,
p. 37
Factor 4: Witnessing brings joy
to the heart of God.
The well-known parables in Luke
15 about the lost sheep, the lost coin
and the lost son tell us that whenever
the lost is found there is joy in heaven.
“I tell you that in the same way there
will be more rejoicing in heaven over
one sinner who repents than over
ninety-nine righteous persons who do
not need to repent” (Luke 15:7).
“In the same way, I tell you, there is
rejoicing in the presence of the angels
of God over one sinner who repents”
(Luke 15:10).
“But we had to celebrate and be glad
because this brother of yours was dead
and is alive again. He was lost and is
found” (Luke 15:32).
If there is joy in heaven when the
lost is found, we will experience this
same joy in doing our work for souls.
What we do also gives joy to God’s heart
and demonstrates that the sacrifice of
Jesus was not in vain.
Factor 5: Witnessing contributes
to spiritual life. There is a relationship
between witnessing and character
development.
“God could have reached His object
in saving sinners without our aid; but
in order for us to develop a character
like Christ’s, we must share in His work.
In order to enter into His joy, the joy of
seeing souls redeemed by His sacrifice,
we must participate in His labors for
their redemption.”—The Desire of Ages,
p. 142
The Lord could plan a special program
or send a special dream so everyone
would know about the second coming
of Christ within one night. He
doesn’t do that for two important reasons:
The Lord wants us to develop
a character like Christ’s.
He wants us to experience
the joy of seeing souls redeemed
by His sacrifice.
A Christlike character is the only
thing that we will bring to heaven. And
it is possible to be developed if we are
working together with Him. Those who
are involved will have stronger power
to resist evil. It is important to involve
as many people as possible in witnessing
activities.
“Strength to resist evil is best gained
by aggressive service.”—The Acts of the
Apostles, p. 105
Personal Ministries Handbook, page 22