Christ, Your Dwelling Place: Part 1
Christ, your Dwelling place • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
There is a big difference between living to be like Christ, and living out your union with Christ.
We have all heard those super amazing sermons that present abiding in Christ as something that we do. Most of the time, it says that if you do this today you will be closer to Him, if you do this today, you will abide in Him.
However, the more your thoughts are diverted to think that you are not one in Christ, the more it is a demonic message.
However, the Bible says that abiding is a permanent location and you are in and always in, forever.
Lifted up and pruned in Christ
Lifted up and pruned in Christ
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
When you read this you see that it says takes away. So does that mean God cuts off those who are not living right? DO we lose our salvation? In the original language, it says that he lifts up, rather than takes away. It gives a picture of a vine-dresser who is tying a branch to the rod, so that it gets support. This is not about a Father, the vine-dresser, who is punishing your lack of productivity, but rather this is showing a caring Father who lifts you up, so that you will be more productive.
This is a branch that is IN Christ, but it is not producing fruit.
Then it says that in John 15:3 “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.” . He is talking about the finished work of the cross. How is that possible? you may ask. It is because in Rev 13:8 “All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.” . The lamb of God was slain timelessly from the beginning. That is the reason why he says that you are already clean.
This also talks about pruning
clean
prunes it
This should be translated as "pruned"
The Greek word is καθαρός katharŏs, and it derived from the same word which is translated as purge or prune (καθαίρω kathairō) in the first two verses of John 15. What John is saying here is, that everyone of you who bears fruit, God prunes them, so that they bear more fruit.
Abiding in Christ
Abiding in Christ
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.
Abiding is a term that has been misunderstood widely. Many at times when would slip into sin, we will say, I was abiding in Christ, but then I stopped abiding in Him. The truth is your abiding is in Christ, that is where your location is. It does not change, but you were chosen in Him before the foundations of the world (Eph 1:4). You were placed in Christ. Your location does not change. Jesus is not saying “please try your best to trust me today”. But rather, he is inviting his disciples evangelistically that they abide in Him. He is saying to Abide in Him, because if they don’t abide in Him, they wont be able to bear any fruit. It’’s all or nothing. It is an evangelistic appeal. Even in 1 John 4:15 “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” it says that God abides in Him, and He in God. Also 1 John 4:13 “By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.” is clear that the Holy Spirit is the proof that He is abiding in us, and we are abiding in Him. He always abides in us, whether we realize it or not.
We may not be living out the best lives, or our lives might not be the reflection of who Jesus is, but the fact of the matter is that when we were born again, we were abiding in Him.
The point is that it is not about our striving but rather, it is not about trying to maintain or sustain. But rather you have been permanently connected, eternally bonded to Jesus Christ forever.
I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
This is an evangelistic invitation that says that if you are not joined to the Lord, we cannot bear any fruit.
If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned.
This is not talking about Christians, these are for those who are not abiding in Christ, and not born again (1 John 4:13-15). This again proves that what Jesus was saying earlier was evangelistic. He is saying that those who do not abide in me, will not be able to bear fruit and hence will be cast into the fire.
We are new creations. We are born of God, and we have the Spirit of God living in us, and have a permanent union with God.
If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
So does that mean, I can ask a Lamborghini and it will just show up. Not necessarily, when the abiding happens, there is a change in heart, and whatever we do, we do for the Kingdom, and if it is not from the changed heart, it may not happen.
My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.
It is not a threat, but rather it is a statement of fact. Starting from the beginning, this is saying that if you are joined to the Lord, and if you are not bearing fruit, the Father cares for you that he will lift you up, and help you so that you will bear more fruit.
it is exciting for the Father to see His kids bearing more fruit. Just like if you have a mobile device, and that mobile device needs to be connected to a network in order to be useful, we need to be connected to the Lord, in order to bear fruit.
Jesus is saying that by being connected to the vine, we are able to receive and transmit the resurrection life of Jesus.
Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.
Again, this is an evangelistic statement, and invitation to the disciples to be joined in the union with Christ.
If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
This is not a threat, but rather an evangelistic statement. This is saying that if you abide in His love, it is because you keep My commandments, and also that if you keep my commandments, it is because you are abiding in my love.
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
What are his commands? Is he giving 613 commands? No! the command he gives is given in John 13:34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” . See how love brings this all together. You cannot transmit, unless you are receiving. You cannot transmit love, unless you have received love.
So basically Jesus is saying in John 15:10 that if you do not love others, as I loved you, you will be abiding in my love. Jesus is saying that if you do not know how much Jesus loves you, how will you love others the way Jesus loved you. We need to soak, and bask in it.
Be a transmitter but first be a receiver
These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.
Our joy can be made full. Christianity can be made a joyful experience. It is possible to have Jesus come and move in side of you and have joy come as a fruit.
It is the joy of the Lord in us.
The only fruit bearing we need to do is the fruit of the spirit (Ga 5:22-23).
It is unleashed as we know the finished work of Christ. He has taken up his residence in you, and you have taken up your residence in Him.
So what do we do about this?
So what do we do about this?
Our feelings will not always tell us the right picture.
Religion will say that you need to do be more, try more, do this, and it will make you more closer to God. It pushes us into the law-based living with a conditional statement that if you do your part, then God will do his part. But that is not what the gospel is.
We can celebrate your union with Christ, right here, right now.
Our spirit was already recreated and one with the spirit of the Lord (1 Cor 6:17), and our soul will still be the same. It is only a new body that we will get. Even when we get the glorified body, and we will not be any closer to God than we actually are, right now. We are the closest to God now, in the spirit.