“I will give power to my two witnesses…” (Revelation 11:3)
My favorite round of golf is a 7 am twosome around Scotland’s Royal Dornoch on a calm summer morning. A bond is created with the person who shares this two-ball experience. Even if you tee off with a stranger, he is a friend when the hats come off on the 18th green. For such a round, two is the perfect number.
Jesus also had an obvious fondness for twosomes. He sent out his disciples in pairs. (Luke 9). He chose 72 special followers and sent them out in twos. (Luke 10).
And then Resurrection Sunday brings us two different but amazing twosomes- one in the morning and another in the afternoon!!
When Mary went to the tomb on Sunday morning, she found two men – angels actually- in the empty tomb. Their message? “He isn’t here. He is risen from the dead.” (Luke 24:4).
And then a few hours later, on a Sunday afternoon walk, “two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus. As they walked and talked about everything that happened, suddenly Jesus Himself came along and joined them and began walking beside them.” (Luke 24:13).
God’s affection for twosomes even goes back into the Old Testament as well. Consider two obscure characters, Eldad and Medad, who missed a meeting in the Tabernacle where Moses blessed seventy prophets. But they testified anyway!
When Young Joshua complained that these two guys had missed the Tabernacle meeting, Moses admonished his younger colleague and said, “I wish that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his Spirit upon them all.” Numbers 11:29.
That happened over Easter weekend when a modern-day twosome, A.J. Hughes and Asher Braughton, came to our golf course in Alabama to testify about their 2023 Asbury revival experience. The weekend was built around an Easter Sunrise service near the 18th green. AJ and Asher are 19-year-old sophomores at Asbury. AJ is a TV/Media major. Asher is pre-med. Neither one is a preacher. But they have a story to tell, and they tell it with passion and fire.
The all-night revival meetings in the chapel ended on February 23. But the Revival has not ended. The next phase was: “Here am I, Lord. Send me.” (Isaiah 6:8).
Asher’s main word for our Alabama crowd was MORE. He reminded us – God still has MORE for us. More of His Spirit. More to do for God. For me, at age 72, there is MORE.
And A.J.’s main word for us was YES. His tearful response at the Asbury altar was simple, “Yes, God. I will go where you send me and obey your Voice.” He started by coming to Alabama on his first post-revival evangelism trip!
So, this Easter proved again the value of two witnesses.
Two angels told Mary Magdalene that the Lord Jesus had risen from the dead. Two men on the road to Emmaus testified that the risen Lord had appeared to talk to them on a seven-mile walk. (FYI, golf is normally a 7-mile walk).
And on Easter 2023, two young disciples testified that they had met Jesus face to face. The same bold Spirit that filled the two angels in the tomb and the two men on the road to Emmaus has now filled two college kids. With spiritual eyes, they have seen the Lord.
How about you? Have you seen him? Do you have a friend to walk with? I hope so.
PRAYER: Dear Lord, Give power today to your witnesses. Amen.