Sunday 09:01:13

Discipleship begins with relationship Following Jesus starts with being with him Before you can work for him, you have to connect with him God filled the earth with wonderful, beautiful things in a way that reflects his beauty and majesty and worth. But nothing he created is more beautiful, majestic, or worthwhile than He is. Our passage today is about bearing fruit. The Bible is rich in metaphors about producing fruit Israel is compared to a vine in the OT. Our growth in the character of God is called the fruit of the Spirit One of the Genesis mandates was, be fruitful, go fill the earth. About reproducing and spreading the authority and image of God all over the earth, But our image of God was distorted by sin. In our passage today, Jesus will tell his disciples to be fruitful there is a prerequisite: you have to be with me. John 15:1-11 V. 2 cut off or pruned Cut off - maybe a reference to one who never belonged to him. Maybe a reference to losing all reward for not following Christ, but not salvation 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 testing of our work How does God prune us? has Gods pruning made you more fruitful? V. 4. "Remain" is used 11 times in 8 verses. What is the key to being fruitful in God's kingdom? The key to being fruitful in God's kingdom is to remain in Christ Jesus' metaphor is He is the vine, you as branches have to stay connected to Him to bear fruit. How do you remain in Him? Be in the Bible daily. Pray at all times - no relationship works without communication. Be obedient. Follow him even in times of doubt or suffering When one of Jesus' followers remains connected with him, his life can become an endless source of fruit. Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. (Psalm 1:1-3 ESV) The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. (Proverbs 10:11) The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense. (Proverbs 10:21 ESV) When I am not abiding, daily living with Christ, I don't think Jesus' teaching is true I think you can produce the fruit that God wants by myself That's either arrogance or ignorance Failure to abide in Christ will result in a wasted life. A lifetime of abiding in Christ produces an endless harvest of the character of the Spirit within and the love of Christ without No one can sum up all God is able to accomplish through one solitary life, wholly yielded, adjusted, and obedient to Him. - D.L. Moody