Sermon Tone Analysis

Remain and Proclaim

We're going to cover another large section of Jesus' last words to his disciples here.

And he's probably talking with them as they walk through Jerusalem at night, heading toward the Garden of Gethsemane and Jesus is communicating desperately to his disciples that they should not be afraid even though he is going to leave- that they should trust him.

And so Jesus starts with an object lesson as they walk- as he often does.

Remind them about Q&A!

Have congregation turn to John 15

This statement is Jesus' last "I AM" statement and he uses 7 of them to indicate this is the complete revelation about himself.

I am the Bread of Life (Jn. 6)

++I am the Light of the World (Jn.

8)

++I am the Door (Jn.

10)

++I am the Good Shepherd (Jn.

10)

++I am the Resurrection and the Life (Jn.

11)

++I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life (Jn.

14)

++I am the True Vine (Jn.

15)

Fix Proclaim slides on this issue.

And the vine has the connotation of being connected.

In fact, this is the theme of this passage.

You see the word "remain" over and over.

It's the idea of resting in Jesus and letting him work through you.

And sometimes, it will be hard- that's the nature of pilgrimage.

So Jesus talks about the process of making a vine desirable- the gardener must cut off useless branches (damaged branches?)

so that nutrients aren't going to dead parts and he must clip off small parts of branches to make them grow in the direction that will best support the growth of the whole vine.

So, if we are walking with Christ, remember, sometimes it hurts, and that's a good thing.

In every situation, God is going to try to use it to shape us to be more like Christ- living a life totally dependant upon the Holy Spirit and remaining in Him.

So if it's hard, or it hurts right now, take heart!

God may be pruning you to help you grow!

Because very few (dare I say no?) branches grow perfectly, and each must be pruned by the gardener to function correctly.

So if there's no pain and there's never been any pain or hardship, or struggle in following Christ, then I would worry.

Because he does all of this for the purpose of making us bear more fruit!

We are not saved by our works, but they are evidence that we are saved.

In what areas of life is God pruning you?

Not only that, but there's the call to remain.

We must remain attached to the source of our growth, our power, our life- Jesus.

He is the vine that gives us the "nutrients".

And this is agian where prayer comes in.

We must ask God through Jesus for the strength to accomplish any bit of His will.

And this is not new.

This idea spans back to the Israelites on the shores of the Red Sea with Pharaoh's army bearing down on them.

Moses prayed for a miracle.

The sraelites shouted, "Why did you bring us out into the wilderness to die?"

But Moses' response was Exodus 14:14

Or, I like the way another version puts it:

"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

(NIV) And this is what Jesus means by saying over and over- "remain".

Very much like Psalm 46:10

In what areas of life are you "remaining in" Jesus?

Where do you need to live more by his power?

And in the remaining in Jesus, the result is that we will love one another.

And here, Jesus makes this well-known statement:

There are two ways that we can do this for one another:

(1) In life

(2) In death

This can only be enabled by remaining attached to Jesus- our vine.

So then, I'll ask:

What is the purpose of remaining in Jesus?

The purpose is that we must rest in Jesus to look like Jesus- that we love like Jesus.

And our remaining in Jesus is a proclamation of sorts.

The world will see our lives and it will be a proclamation to them.

The way we love one another will be a proclamation.

The way that we are willing to serve one another will be a proclamation.

Not that we only figurativeley proclaim the message of the word of God- we must also literally tell people.

There's a word-

κηρυξ- a proclaimer.

This is someone who speaks and acts on behalf of the king.

It is important that they communicate the king's message as it is given to them, without exaggeration and falsehood.

They are spokespersons.

We are all called to be κηρυξ, and it will show when we love Jesus and love one another.

And the world will treat us in a similar manner to how they treat our king.

And this is why Jesus goes on to say:

This is the lesser-claimed promise of Scripture, right?

No one wants to be persecuted.

No one wants to be discriminated against.

No one wants these things, but Jesus warns that we should expect them if we follow him.

Our lives proclaim on behalf of Jesus (both words and deeds).

And so, Jesus says that because he has testified (and because we testify) people are without excuse.

This sounds an awful lot like Romans 1, don't you think?

Jesus' life, our lives, Jesus' testimony, our testimony, and their conscience leaves them without excuse.

So go tell people the Good News.

It's Good News!

That we can be saved!

That Jesus wants to give us life by being connected to him!

The Gospel is sweet!

But the Gospel is not only sweet, is it?

The gospel is both sweet and bitter, isn't it?

Explain this!

But regardless of the message, we are to proclaim it.

Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will testify to us, and therefore, he will also testify through us.

And the world will react with disdain, and vitriol, and hatred, but some may be saved!

And just like they hate Jesus without cause, so they will hate us without cause, but the name of Jesus will be glorified.

And Jesus bluntly says:

Don't say, "woe is me!" if you experience this!

We should expect to suffer, because it is nothing compared to the joy and glory and celebration that's coming!

What conversations have you been avoiding with people for fear that they will react like Jesus warns?

Do not fear because the Holy Spirit is with you and Jesus will come to you and both will abide, remain, make a permanent home with you.

These are our παρακλητους.

Our comforters, our advocates, our allies, our paracletes.

They will stand by us when the world turns it's back on us.

Do not be afraid.

Remain in Jesus.

Proclaim about Jesus.