In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of being a witness for Jesus in the world. He highlights the fear and uncertainty that exists in the world today, but encourages believers to find comfort and confidence in their connection to Jesus. The preacher shares stories of individuals who have found hope and transformation through their faith in Jesus, including a girl in Brazil and a man in Mexico City. He emphasizes that God can use anyone, regardless of their past, and calls believers to embrace their role in the worldwide mission of spreading the gospel. The sermon also references biblical passages, such as Luke 21 and Matthew 28, to support the message of being a witness for Jesus.

In New Zealand I spoke in a prison about the text, you are the light of the world. Can you say that to commit a crime? Yes. There are people in many prisons who are real evangelists. I think of Mexico City. There was a man who had 18 years to repent. And therefore he must have done very terrible things. But Jesus had laid his hand on him and half of his companions had already been converted by his clear testimony. Jesus knew every man. When I had finished my message, a prisoner stood up and said, Comrades, this morning I read in my Bible of three murderers. One was called Moses, one David, one Paulus. We know them as heroes of God, but all three had killed people. What can God do from a person who is completely given to him, even if he is a murderer? So there is hope for us. He was right. What can God do with a person who is completely given to him, whether he is a decent or an indecent sinner? Jesus has a mission for everyone. Just as the Father sent me, so I send you. We have the same task as Jesus. A worldwide mission. In Matthew 28, verse 19 he said, Go and make all peoples young. In this time when the Antichrist marches up like this and hundreds of thousands use their lives to spread atheism, every child of God must be an evangelist. It's about obedience and being ready like never before. The most important thing is not how much we do, but what Jesus does through us. When Jesus gave the commandment in Apostles 1, verse 8, Be my witnesses throughout the world, he first said to us, You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit, which will come upon you. The Holy Spirit is ready to fulfill your and my heart. As the light is ready to fulfill a room, I open it for its shine. Where it is so very dark in the whole world, we have the wonderful task, Let your light shine before the people, that they see your good works, that are the fruits of the Spirit, and glorify the Father in heaven. In Luke 21, the Lord Jesus has said so much about this time in which we live. He says in verse 13, All this will be an opportunity for you to bear witness to me. Yes, now there is plenty of opportunity to bear witness to Jesus, because the hearts of men are full of fear of the things that will happen. You are very afraid of hydrogen and nuclear bombs everywhere. And you are right, there are terrible possibilities in the world now. How wonderful it is that we, when we are connected to Jesus, can say, we will not be afraid, even if the earth collapses and the mountains fall into the sea. The devil tries to destroy this wonderful certainty by doubt. In Brazil I know a girl who found the Lord Jesus and was always happy. Once I saw her again and her eyes were very sad. She said, I doubt everything. I doubt that I found the Lord Jesus, that he made me a child of God. I doubt that the Bible is true. Yes, I even doubt that God exists. Then I leave you with John 16, verse 8. The Holy Spirit will lead you away from sin, justice and justice, from sin that you do not believe in me. Not believing in Jesus or doubting him is the greatest sin. She sat down, but then she said, what do I have to do? Then I could help her and read to her first John 1, verse 7 and 9. When we confess our sins, then he is faithful and just to forgive our sins. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us of all sins that we confess. I urged her to do it immediately. And she folded her hands and prayed, Lord Jesus, help me no longer to doubt. Amen. Then I asked her, if a child has taken chocolate against his mother's will, does it have to go to the mother and say, help me no longer to steal chocolate? No, it must ask for forgiveness. So it is with our sins. Yes, we can call for help, but first we have to humble ourselves and confess our sins. Then we can expect forgiveness and cleansing. She understood and then she prayed, Lord Jesus, will you forgive me that I have doubted? Afterwards she could ask for help. The word of God says, be strong in the Lord. And we can be strong. But at the moment when we realize that a sin is in our heart, we must bring it to the Lord and ask for forgiveness. He will sink you into the depths of the sea. As it says in Micah 7, verse 19, he will warm us again, dampen our misdeeds and throw all our sins into the depths of the sea. He will forgive and forget you. Not only doubt can make our testimony powerless, also bitterness. If we cannot forgive, no streams of living water can flow out of us. But when Jesus tells us that we should love our enemies, then he also gives us the love he demands of us. In Africa I was in a prison cell where a young man sentenced to death was sitting. He looked healthy and strong. How tragic that he should die now. I sat next to him and prayed for a word from the Lord. Do you know of the cross of Jesus Christ, in which he bore the sin of a whole world, also your sin? He nodded. Do you believe in Jesus Christ, that he wants to be your redeemer? Yes, I love him, but I have not always been faithful. Politics has completely taken up my time and strength. But now I know all the sins of Jesus. He has forgiven me. If I can continue to live, I will only serve him. Have you forgiven the people who brought you here? Your opponents, who may have your death on their conscience? No, I hate them. I can understand that well. I want to tell you an experience. During the war in Holland I saved Jews. Once a man came to me and told me that his wife had also helped Jews and was now arrested. He said, your life is in danger, but there is a policeman who wants to release you if we pay him 600 gulden, but I have no money. I can help you, I said. I'll be back in an hour. During this time I brought the 600 gulden together. I gave them to him for the rescue of his wife. But he was a traitor. His wife was not even in prison. The enemy had ordered him to determine whether I would save Jews. The man thought, I can also earn a little money. He went home with 600 gulden in his pocket. But after five minutes the police came, who arrested our whole family. When I heard later that this man had betrayed us, hatred came to my heart. I had not only given him my last money, but also lost my freedom. But there I read in the Bible that hatred is murder in the eyes of God. Matthew 5, verse 22. Then I was glad that I knew what I had to do with my hatred. When we confess our sins, the Lord is faithful and just to forgive us, and the blood of Jesus purifies us from all sins that we bring to him. I brought my hatred to Jesus. He forgave and purified my heart with his blood. After the war, this traitor was sentenced to death. I wrote to him, what you did was to the effect that my father, 84 years old, my brother, his son and my sister died in prison. I myself suffered a lot because of you, but I forgive you everything, because the Lord Jesus also forgave me my sins. He lives in my heart, so I can forgive you. Jesus also wants to come into your heart and make you a child of God. Confess your sins to him At the cross in Golgotha he shed his blood for your and my sins. He wrote back to me, I prayed, Jesus, if you give such love to someone who follows you against his enemies, then there is still hope for me. I confessed my sins to him, and now I know that I am a child of God, cleansed by the blood of Jesus. After I had told the prisoner this story from my own life, he wrote a letter to his wife, forgive my murderers. You can't, I can't either, but Jesus can. If we don't want it, then we ourselves have no forgiveness. When I spent 18 years as a countryman through the world, I suddenly became ill. The doctor told me, if you continue to work like this, this is your last year of work. If you take a year off, you may be able to work another ten years. I thought about it with my employer, my healer, and he told me very clearly that this advice was from him. In Luesa, a beautiful house in Uganda, I was able to live this Sabbath year. It was not only peace, I was also able to work a little further. We made a plan for the new year, and it became a good plan, with a nice program. For three months we wanted to be in different African countries, two months in America and three months in Eastern Europe behind the Iron Curtain. But my heart was not happy. I said to my Lord, I would rather stay here. There is a lot of work here in this city. I want to do a lot for you. We have meetings every day, worry about souls and write books, but I want to sleep in the same bed every night. Everyone can understand that in my old age I want to withdraw more from the travel activity. Then joy came to my heart. Yes, this was a much better plan. But then a visitor came. It was an African preacher from Rwanda, a dear child of God. He greeted me and said, we are so happy that you are coming back to Rwanda. Five years ago you helped us through your messages and reports. You said back then, not my faith carried me through during my prison time. My faith was weak and wavering. It was Jesus. He carried me through. He said, I am with you every day. The African preacher was a civil war with us in these five years. Many of us were in prison. We remembered everything you told us. It comforted us a lot. That is why we are so happy that you are coming back to Rwanda. I myself was not so happy. The conversation had taken a completely different direction than I had wished. I asked, how is the church in Rwanda? What message do you need? The preacher did not hesitate for a moment. He opened his Bible and read Revelation 2, verses 1 to 5. But he said to the angel of the church in Ephesus, he who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lights, I know your works and your work and your patience, and that you cannot bear evil. For my sake you work and are not tired. But I command you again that you leave the first thief. Remember what you have fallen from and do evil, and do the first works. Where not, I will soon come to you and push your lights away from his cities, where you do not do evil. This arrow hit me right in the heart. Not Rwanda. Not the congregation of Ephesus needed this message. It was Koritenboom. I had left my first love. Eighteen years ago I came out of the concentration camp, starved, weak, but there was a great love in my heart, love for the Lord who had carried me through so faithfully. But also love for the people around me, a desire to tell them, Jesus is a reality, he lives, he sees. I know from experience. I went to Germany, lived between ruins. I was interested in saving souls for eternity, to make the honor of the Lord great, that everyone had to hear it. We can never fall too deep. The eternal arms always reach even deeper, which carry us. And now I was interested in my bed. I had lost my first love. Suddenly I became very happy. I read Revelation 2, verse 5. If you do not turn around. I recognized that the door of the bosom is wide open. I could bring my sin, my cold heart to him who is faithful and just. 1 John 1, 7 and 9. I did it. I knew and asked for forgiveness. And there it always happened, when we bring a sin to God in the name of Jesus. He forgave. Jesus made my heart pure in his blood. And a heart purified by the blood of Jesus, he fulfills with the Holy Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is love. Not my first love, but a much greater love of God, poured out in my heart by the Holy Spirit, which was given to me. Romans 5, 5. I traveled on. And what a joy it was to experience God's love, which gave me streams of living water for the thirsty world in Africa, America and Eastern Europe. Of course, it may be God's will that old people withdraw and accept a rest in great gratitude from the Lord. But for me the way of obedience was to travel on. If not as much as before. It is important to be vigilant in this time. Jesus himself warned us that in these days, because unbelief will take over, love will be cold in many. It is easy to belong to many, but I have a wonderful message to tell you. The door to conversion is open. Hallelujah! Peter says, you celebrate it with unparalleled, radiant joy, when you reach the goal of your faith, the salvation of your soul.