The Danger of Disconnecting From Jesus

Jesus said, “REMAIN in me … APART from me you can do nothing.” This statement is for those who are in Jesus, and it’s also for those who have never followed him. If you’ve never made a decision to follow Jesus, you need to get connected. It’s time to make dead things come alive. It’s time to get grafted into the family of God. But this is mainly a strong warning to the church. Jesus said these words to his followers. You need to know that if you’ve made a decision to follow Jesus sometime in the past, you have to stay connected. Go back to the disciples … did they fail? Maybe they failed in the moment … but not in the long term. The reason we know their names … the reason the church exists today … the reason the name of Jesus is known in every corner of the earth … is because these men didn’t leave the room. It was awkward; it was uncomfortable. And no doubt, following Jesus brought lots of awkwardness for the rest of their lives. Beyond awkward. We can say hard, difficult, conflict-laced moments for the rest of their lives. But they remained, and they didn’t back down. They stayed connected to the true vine, and it changed the world. And later in life, much later in life, Peter writes some words about a terribly awkward moment. Peter says seeing Jesus after walking away from him is the ultimate in awkward – it far surpasses awkward. He says it would be better if you’d never known Jesus to begin with. Peter who disowned Jesus – Peter who disconnected – is the same Peter leading the church and warning followers not to walk away. He knows the pain and awkwardness. Church – remain. It’s a word that can only be used for those who are connected. Jesus said this to his followers. He says it to his inner circle of eleven, as one of them has wandered off into the night to betray him. Church, remain and abide — stay connected.