I preached on "I am the Vine" this past Sunday. In the early verses of John 15, Jesus uses the word "abide" or "remain" numerous times. The picture of Christ as the vine and his followers as the branches emphasizes the strong connection we must cultivate if we are to be productive, fruitful Christians. In fact Jesus says "Without me, you can do nothing." We need His fellowship, His life, His power, His wisdom if our lives are to have any lasting value.
So I posed the question, how do I remain in Christ? "Abiding in Christ" sounds so wonderful, but also so poetic. How does it actually "work"? The way Jesus speaks about this, it must mean we are responsible to do something. And since Jesus talks about "no fruit" branches, "some fruit" branches and "much fruit" branches, it is clear that we must make an effort to abide if we are to bear much fruit.
So what should we do to stay closely in fellowship with Jesus. Of course we must obey his commands. Jesus tells us that repeatedly. I can't be disobedient and live in warm fellowship with Him. And I must take time to listen to Him (reading the Bible) and talking to Him (prayer). This helps me stay aligned with His perspectives and His truth.
To use modern terminology: I need to daily read his blog (Scripture reading for the day) and send my blog to Him (my longer prayer of the day.) This should take at least 15 minutes for the new believer or harried and hurried mother of pre-schoolers. It should grow into a much longer time as believers mature and discipline their lives to provide more time.
However we need to add to this the 24/7 "practice of the presence of God". We cannot depend on a Sunday check in with God to get us through the week. Nor should we depend on a daily blog exchange though this certainly can increase our "remaining". What we need is to include Jesus in our daily thoughts, interactions and actions during the day. We need to follow the example of many people who use facebook and/or twitter to write numerous messages to their friends during the day.
You don't do this but some people do. "I had a good breakfast today." "I walked to work and it is a lovely day." "My boss just came in demanding more paperwork. I am angry." "I had a great conversation with my co-worker over lunch." And the tweets or facebook postings just keep coming.
Now if some people do that to keep in touch with their friends, why shouldn't we keep "reporting" to Jesus that way. Not once or twice a day, but many times a day. "Practicing the presence of God." If we do this we will experience much more of the "remaining" that Jesus tells us we need.
To be continued.
So I posed the question, how do I remain in Christ? "Abiding in Christ" sounds so wonderful, but also so poetic. How does it actually "work"? The way Jesus speaks about this, it must mean we are responsible to do something. And since Jesus talks about "no fruit" branches, "some fruit" branches and "much fruit" branches, it is clear that we must make an effort to abide if we are to bear much fruit.
So what should we do to stay closely in fellowship with Jesus. Of course we must obey his commands. Jesus tells us that repeatedly. I can't be disobedient and live in warm fellowship with Him. And I must take time to listen to Him (reading the Bible) and talking to Him (prayer). This helps me stay aligned with His perspectives and His truth.
To use modern terminology: I need to daily read his blog (Scripture reading for the day) and send my blog to Him (my longer prayer of the day.) This should take at least 15 minutes for the new believer or harried and hurried mother of pre-schoolers. It should grow into a much longer time as believers mature and discipline their lives to provide more time.
However we need to add to this the 24/7 "practice of the presence of God". We cannot depend on a Sunday check in with God to get us through the week. Nor should we depend on a daily blog exchange though this certainly can increase our "remaining". What we need is to include Jesus in our daily thoughts, interactions and actions during the day. We need to follow the example of many people who use facebook and/or twitter to write numerous messages to their friends during the day.
You don't do this but some people do. "I had a good breakfast today." "I walked to work and it is a lovely day." "My boss just came in demanding more paperwork. I am angry." "I had a great conversation with my co-worker over lunch." And the tweets or facebook postings just keep coming.
Now if some people do that to keep in touch with their friends, why shouldn't we keep "reporting" to Jesus that way. Not once or twice a day, but many times a day. "Practicing the presence of God." If we do this we will experience much more of the "remaining" that Jesus tells us we need.
To be continued.
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