Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

A woman with the Dare to Care like Jesus Program told this story: “A Christian baroness, living in the highlands of Nairobi, Kenya, told of a young national who was employed as her houseboy. After three months the boy asked her to give him a letter of reference to another landowner who lived some miles away. The baroness, not wishing the houseboy to leave just when he had learned the routine of the household, offered to increase his pay. The lad replied he was not leaving for higher pay. Rather, he was trying to decide whether he would follow after Christ or Mohammed. This is why he explained that he had come to work for the baroness three months before. He had wished to see how Christians lived out their faith. Now he wanted to work for three months for the man who followed Mohammed and then he would decide which way of life he would try to follow.

The baroness was stunned as she recalled her many blemishes in her dealings with the houseboy. She could only exclaim, ‘Why didn’t you tell me that from the beginning!’”

How many times is our witness much less than we wish it were? Are their times unbelievers would be hard pressed to know we are Christians because of the ways we live outside these four walls we call church.

Peter writes, In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Our witness begins with what really is the desire of our hearts. Often what we think the desire of our hearts is isn’t born out by how we live - just ask the baroness.

A minister had come a great distance to visit a family living in Africa. He called in their steward and he set before him three things: a picture of the family, several gold coins, and a Bible. The steward was asked which by his actions did his employer valued most. The steward examined each item carefully and slowly in his hands. After much thought he selected the coins, handing them to the minister “These,” he said, “the man must treasure these, for he spends the most time with them, these get most of his attention. The woman spends her time with the family, but as for the book… this they rarely take up, and if their God lives in there He never comes out.” …

Jesus once said where your treasure is there your heart will be. (Matt 6.21) How many of us need to take an honest look at what the desire of our hearts really is, and how that desire shapes the witness we give by how we think, speak, and act? If somebody picked up the things of our lives would they know we value Christ most of all? Is He in our hearts, on our lips, and with us as we go about out days?

Peter writes, Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. Our hope is found in Christ. Peter writes, For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. Our hope is built on the fact that Jesus is God. He was accredited to us by signs, wonders and teachings. He came from heaven and took up our humanity. He lived the witness we can never seem to live. He lived without cruelty of thought, word or deed; He lived without deceit, envy, or unforgiveness. He was kind and compassionate. He had a heart for the needs of others - He was without sin, thus He was righteous before God.

By and through His humanity He took up the guilt of our sins, that which makes us unrighteous before God. He took upon Himself all the times we’ve lived anything but a good witness. He took from us all our unrighteousness – all our sin. Then He went to cross and there He was put to death in the body. By His death the guilt of our sins was atoned for – paid for. By His death we are made righteous.

Then three days later He was made alive by the Spirit. He took up His life again, so that we would have real hope, a living and transforming hope. He wasn’t just some holy man who laid down his life for others. NO! This was and is the Christ who could and did overcome all things even death and the grave for us. He rose again to say never will I leave never will I forsake you. The Jesus who healed the sick, calmed the storm, and overcame even death is for us. It is in that Jesus we can put our hope… It is that hope that can transform the witness of our lives.

Remember last week as part of the baptisms I poured those blue beads into the water symbolizing all the promises that our risen Lord Jesus had put into the water. Into that water He puts forgiveness, life, hope, comfort, adoption, and much more. Those gifts were there for Jack and Ali-yana (the two children who were baptized). Those gifts were poured out upon them along with faith to trust all that the Holy Spirit had lavished upon them. Those gifts were there at our baptisms, too. By water and Word our triune God- Father, Son and Holy Spirit- have saved us.

What is written is true: baptism now saves you, not because of the removal of dirt from the body but all because God has pledged to be of good conscience toward us, to incline Himself to us. When our witness is pitiful and weak, and our sins are many, He who has shown and shows such great patience with us has promised to forgive us, renew us and give us real hope.

Our hope and witness should be built on nothing less than the Jesus who came from heaven for us, lived for us - teaching us about God, doing time and time again miraculous things, taking our place under the wrath of God against sin and raising again to life for us. He is a God who declared Himself to be for us, the righteous for the unrighteous, and if He who was and is over all things is for us, then in the end who or what can ultimately overcome us?

In this God/man, who did all this, we have our hope - a hope given us in baptism. A hope that is nurtured by the working of the Holy Spirit every time we hear the Word of God, share our Jesus with others, and seek to live out our faith before others. Jesus is our hope and this hope, this Jesus, becomes our witness

A Missionary in India was once teaching the Bible Study to a group of Hindu ladies. Halfway through the lesson, one of the women got up and walked out. A short time later, she came back and listened more intently than ever. At the close of the hour the leader inquired, “Why did you leave the meeting? Weren’t you interested?” “Oh yes,” the Hindu woman replied, “I was so impressed with what you had to say about your Jesus that I went out to ask your driver whether you really lived the way you talked. When he said, ‘yes,” I hurried back to hear more about your Jesus.”

All around are people who are watching to see how we live out this hope to which we’ve been called. Lord, help us live in such a way as to treasure Your Word and Sacraments. Lead us to repent daily of our sins and seek to rid our lives of that which is offensive to You. Help us to live such good lives among those who don’t believe that even though they may think us too weak-minded or old-fashioned to follow after Jesus, that they may see You at work in us: loving when others would call for hate, giving when others would hold back and seeing when others would look right past. Create in us a witness that they will be drawn to You. Create in us a witness that inspires the houseboy to want to look no further.

Amen.