What is the purpose of a Christian testimony?

     In the past 24 hours, I've heard 2 testimonies of faith. One of homosexual gossip columnist Perez Hilton, who shared of an encounter with God during a hospital stay, the other a theologian who shared how his formerly promiscuous wife was radically transformed by God's grace. Guess which one Christians on the internet decided to ridicule? Hint: not Perez. 

Despite being baffled by these reactions or lack thereof, it raises an interesting question about what purpose one's personal testimony serves and how we can tell whether one's testimony indicates whether the person has truly understood the Gospel message. The negative reaction to one makes me understand why some are reluctant to share testimonies or even struggles with other believers for fear of ridicule. I honestly expected more pushback towards Perez. No one is perfect until heaven and we shouldn't have too high of expectations regarding who our children marry or what someone's conversion will be like. It will be as God has sovereignly ordained. 

What should be contained in a testimony? Is a testimony the same as the Gospel?  How can we tell if it's genuine? 

What is a testimony? 

In Christian terms, a testimony is a declaration of God's faithfulness in your life. More specifically, as it relates to salvation, it is the story of how a regenerate believer was converted. People have various accounts of saving faith, some genuine, some appear so but prove to be false. Perez Hilton claimed to have a miraculous encounter with God during a hospital stay and as a result, he says he feels closer to God and wants to start taking his kids to church. Ashley Sheatz claims to been saved out of new age mysticism, drug addiction and sexual promiscuity. 


Is a testimony the same as the Gospel?

Too often, when Christians are encouraged to evangelize they are told, "just share your story". While helpful, we must not conflate that with sharing the Gospel. As the late theologian RC Sproul put it, "Our personal testimony is not the gospel. The gospel is the gospel. Our testimony is how we came to embrace the gospel." The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16) so it's crucially important that Christians know how to articulate it. The Gospel starts with who God is. Since there are many false gods, describing God accurately is key. God emphasizes His holiness three times in succession so God's holiness must be emphasized. God as the holy, sovereign creator rules the universe and demands worship and adoration. But here's the problem: we as fallen humans have rebelled against His law because we hate Him. Due to our rebellion, we are doomed to Hell unless someone takes our punishment. The good news is that Someone did. Through Jesus alone, a person can be declared righteous upon trusting in Christ for salvation as the only sufficient mediator between man and God. Through His death and resurrection, His righteousness is imputed, transferring the believer from darkness to light. 


 How can we tell if it's genuine? 

One word: repentance. Perez Hilton claims to have had an encounter, yet there is no record yet of repenting from his homosexuality. Ashley Sheatz immediately threw away all her new age and yoga material upon conversion and quit drugs and promiscuity. She recognized her sin, that she was a 
culprit, not a victim" and that she had violated God's holy law. It's not about some subjective experience. True conversion produces true, immediate change. For those criticizing Ashley or assuming her motives, ask yourself if that's more in line with Jesus or the accuser of  brethren and enemy of our souls. Pray for Perez. Pray for Ashley. Pray for critics. May the Gospel shine brightly and may God be glorified! 

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