Witnessing Christ

Several years ago, I taught a large Sunday School class of very bright teenagers. They could be too sociable with each other and very rambunctious at times. Keeping their attention was a weekly challenge.

One week I taught a class about the New Testament witnesses of Jesus Christ. I decided to set up a talk show format and arranged to have a gentleman help me by portraying an ancient scholar at the Alexandria Library in Egypt, Josephus Peruvius. Most of the students were assigned to be members of the audience. Still, some were given specific roles as people who had borne witness of Christ, like the two men on the road to Emmaus, Martha, the apostle Paul, the prophet Isaiah, a Roman soldier, etc. Each was asked to share their witness of the Savior. Josephus Peruvius would question them, and I served as the host/moderator. The interactions and challenges the students experienced in their quest to answer these questions were amazing. One (assigned to be Isaiah), who seemed more concerned with his girlfriend and the basketball he had at his feet, went home and read the passages of Isaiah about the Messiah and then talked to us about it the following week.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recognize other witnesses, such as Joseph Smith, who saw both the Father and His Son Jesus in his account of the First Vision, or the brother of Jared in the Book of Mormon who saw the finger of Jesus touch the stones before him, causing them to be filled with light.

The Old Testament also witnesses of Christ as Jehovah. Moses hears His voice from the burning bush and sees his finger inscribing the words of the Ten Commandments on stone tablets. Abraham also experienced God firsthand.

All these people, and many more throughout history, either heard, saw, or felt the presence of Jesus Christ, by many names and in many places. In my mind, He is the common denominator of world history.

Ancient Israel’s King David wrote these words in the 23rd Psalm, found in the Old Testament: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

I have my own version of the 23rd Psalm. It goes like this;

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want; He provides even when there seems to be no solution to the problem at hand.

He maketh my soul to lie down in green pastures, warm and green like a summer’s day even in the midst of an Alaskan snowstorm.

He leadeth me beside still waters and brings peace to my soul when I am uneasy and restless.

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness, with patience, compassion, and firmness even when the petulant child inside me wants to rebel and walk in worldly ways.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of civil unrest and social turmoil, I will fear no evil, for He is with me.

The Rod of His Word and the Staff of His Holy Spirit comfort me.

He prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies, who would mock, bully, or strive to silence and cancel me.

He anoints my head with the oil of abundant blessings in good times or bad.

My cup runneth over with children and grandchildren and with the knowledge of my ancestors and the witness of their lives.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, at least I hope I can live in such a manner as to be an influencer for goodness and mercy in the lives of those around me.

I hope to dwell in the house of the Lord forever, where love, peace, joy, and intelligence are boundless.”

We are all witnesses of Christ in some form or manner. Even the Pharisees and the Romans witnessed that He lived. I would argue that our very existence and the interconnectedness of the natural world around us witness the reality of something greater than ourselves controlling the universe.

I can find no reason, no proof, that Christ does not exist, and based upon my life experience, I testify that He does exist, that He Lives, and that He is the guiding force around us. Everything I have learned over the years only builds on that foundation.

This is my Faith and I’m sticking to it.

Karen Murray is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints experiencing life as a wife, mother, family historian, author, and political activist.