Personal Testimony = Conversion

Exodus 18:1-12

¹Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. ²Now Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, had taken Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her home, ³along with her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom (for he said, “I have been a sojourner in a foreign land”), ⁴and the name of the other, Eliezer (for he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh”). ⁵Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness where he was encamped at the mountain of God. ⁶And when he sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her,” ⁷Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. And they asked each other of their welfare and went into the tent. ⁸Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. ⁹And Jethro rejoiced for all the good that the Lord had done to Israel, in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians. ¹⁰Jethro said, “Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. ¹¹Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, because in this affair they dealt arrogantly with the people.” ¹²And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God; and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.

When Moses left Midian to following the voice of God back to Egypt, he also left his wife and children with their father/grandfather Jethro, for protection. Moses didn’t know what he would be facing as he dealt with the Pharaoh and so it was the better part of wisdom to leave his family with Jethro. Now, after the slavery in Egypt has ended and Pharaoh has been dispatched, Jethro finds Moses again in the desert to return his family to him. Little did Jethro know, he was about to encounter the Living God as well.

Moses and Jethro obviously had a congenial relationship bound by marriage and quite possibly by mutual respect. Most certainly the news of the plagues upon Egypt and the escape of the Hebrews slaves had carried to Jethro and Zipporah. Finding a campground that contained 2,000,000 people probably wasn’t very difficult! And so Moses and Jethro meet again and what a story Moses has to tell.

⁸Then Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them in the way, and how the Lord had delivered them.

While Jethro was called “the high priest of Midian” he was not a high priest of Yahweh. He represented whatever pagan god the Midianites worshiped. But now, upon hearing the amazing story of God’s rescue of the Hebrews as told by an eye-witness and main character, Moses, Jethro himself becomes a believer in the True God. Jethro is converted by the truth. And all that Moses did was tell his story. There’s the model for all of us. If you want to be a part of the conversion process for another person, know your own story and tell it! It’s not a difficult process. It means walking in relationship with someone and caring enough about them to tell them your own story of how God’s grace has been manifested in your life.

 

What has Jesus done for you? Inside of your answer to that question is your own personal testimony. It doesn’t have to be fancy or eloquent, just true.