Letter from Jon, June 2026
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Acts 1:8
Dear Liberty Family and Friends
If you have been with us on Sunday mornings over these last few weeks, around our celebrations of Pentecost Sunday, you will know that this verse in Acts, the very last words of Jesus to his disciples before he ascends to heaven, has been so key to our preaching. And as I write this letter at the beginning of a new month, I find that this verse continues to resonate in my heart and mind. To be Spirit-filled witnesses of Jesus Christ. I wonder if there is any higher calling. As believers and followers of Jesus, as apprentices of his life and teaching, to be witnesses of all we have heard, seen and experienced is our highest privilege and responsibility.
The word 'witness' is probably associated most often in court-room sessions and is used of those people who have had a first-hand experience of a situation; a crime or accident. If you are called to the stand as a witness it is because you were there when something happened; you saw or heard something which you are asked to give an account of. What did you see or hear or experience?
In the above words of Jesus, however, this is not the context he is referring to. This is not a witness stand in a court-room, at least for most of us. Our witness stand is our life, our home, our family, our school, our workplace, our city, our community. This is where we are called to be witnesses to the resurrection life of Jesus. And, as I have said over these last weeks, this not only means the words we speak, but also the lives we live, the attitudes and values we carry, the hope we have. We are witnesses to Jesus as we display the transforming work of the Spirit in our lives to those around us, not in a way that says 'look at me' but in a way that says 'look to Jesus'.
I am stirred again by the commission that Jesus lays before us, to make disciples, and I know that a fundamental part of making disciples is that we, ourselves, would be witnesses of Jesus. We would show what being a disciple looks like, what following and worshipping Jesus Christ means to us.
My prayer is that we, as a people of God together, would see this as our highest calling as we join God in his mission to see his kingdom come. My prayer is that we would have a renewed, Spirit-filled longing to be witnesses. As I said recently, my regular morning prayer is that I would be able to mention the name of Jesus to someone I encounter that day, to talk about my faith and give a reason for the hope that I have. But even if I never mention his name, I pray that my life, my actions, reactions and interactions, would bring honour and glory to Jesus. And when I mess up I would have the humility, not to live in guilt and regret, but to simply acknowledge my failure, receive his forgiveness and turn my life back to Jesus and go again. Because he is worth it.
May we know the joy and privilege in these days of being witnesses of Jesus together and seeing others turn their lives to God and choosing to follow him.
Much love
Jon
Jon Farrimond, 03/06/2026