Friendship with God Part 9 - Bearing God's Fruit

Intro/Welcome

Good Evening

Good to be with you today

A little bit shorter service today to make time for this important vote

So let’s get right to it.

Today

We are continuing in our “freindship with God” series as we are going verse by verse through John 13-17, perhaps Jesus most important teaching to his disciples

Today we begin John 15, and we’ll be in the first 8 verses.

Jesus gives us one of the richest metaphors as to what it means to follow him.

God’s Purposes

If I were to ask you what is God’s purpose for humanity what might you say?

You might say ‘to glorify God’

to make a better world

to love others

Those would be true

John 15:8 (ESV)

By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

Bearing fruit glorifies God.

It is the mark that ‘proves’ we are disciples/followers of Jesus

Let that sink in:

“bearing fruit is how you prove to be my disciples”

No matter what period of time you live in

No matter what denomination you are in

No matter what part of the world you live in

This is God’s Purpose

To bear fruit for Him.

Gen 1:28.

Nothing new: This has always been God’s purpose:

But where Adam and all of us have failed — Jesus succeded

And now, in Christ, we can bear fruit for God by the power of God.

Genesis 1:28 (ESV)

28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

God’s purpose it to bless us that we might bear his fruit.

Questions

What does it mean to bear fruit?

How does that glorify God?

How do we do it by God’s Power

What we will see today is this:

God’s purpose for us is to produce God’s Fruit by God’s Power

Bible

We will be in John 15:1-8.

Go there in your Bibles

Let me pray for our time.

Pray

Isaiah 61:1–4 (ESV)

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor;

he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;

3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.

4 They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

Context

John 15 is built upon John 14.

John 14 is about how we enter into a new life and a new relationship with God by trusting in the person and work of Jesus.

This new relationship is one of Union with God — God dwelling inside of us.

John 15: In John 15, he turns to what it means to live out of this new relationship with God —

to bear God’s fruit in a fallen broken world.

Text

Let’s read the entire passage and then we will unpack it.

John 15:1–8 (ESV)

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

I. God’s End Purpose for us

Let’s actually begin at the end, becuase Jesus summarizes his point and it establishes God’s purpose for us.

John 15:8 (ESV)

8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

1. God’s Glory is the End Goal

Sole deo gloria — To God’s Glory Alone

This is the whole point.

Jesus lived his life to glorify God the Father

How was God glorified in Jesus?

He demonstrates God’s love for us by dying for our sins and rising to give us new life

Jesus is bearing fruit for God

John 12:24 (ESV)

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

Ransoming a people for him

transforming people to be worshipers of God rather than self

so that we too would have hearts that seek first teh Glory of God rather than the glory of self.

How is God Glorified?

by becoming fruit bearing disciples of Jesus.

really this means — becoming more like Jesus

which is the end goal of disciplship

that our lives would begin to look more like Jesus’s live

Now before we go any further, let’s go ahead and define what the bible means by “fruit”

what fruit are we supposed to be producing.

2. Defining Fruit

There are two kinds of fruit in the Bible:

Internal Fruit

External Fruit

Both mean growing in Christlikness — becoming more like Jesus — which is the end goal of discipleship and following God

Romans 8:29 (ESV)

29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Becoming more like Jesus both in his internal and external life.

A. Internal Fruit

i. Fruit of the Spirit

This means character — Fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV)

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Notice the centrality and primacy of Love.

It’s the thing Jesus said “love one another just as I have loved you”

This is growing in character, becoming more like Jesus in the inner man.

ii. Works of the Flesh

As opposed to Works by Flesh

Galatians 5:19–21 (ESV)

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

B. External Fruit

External fruit are the ways we minister to others.

It is disciple-making

What does that look like?

Answer: we do what Jesus did.

we make disciples by showing and sharing the love of God

1. Showing God’s Love

showing through acts of service and mercy

to widows and orphans

to these least of these

2. Sharing the love of God

our reason for serving others

our reason for hope and joy

Sharing the gospel message of God’s love for people.

What was the early church’s growth strategy?

serve the poor

take in those in need

sacrifice for others

This was how the christian church took over the Roman Empire in a few hundred years.

3. Where do we bear this fruit?

Where we live, work, eat, and play.

a. Live

In our families - Parents over your children

your children is your mission field

your disciples.

b. Work

In our workplace - how we perform our work, and the relationships we develop

Where we live — our neighborhoods/apartments and dorms

who has God placed around us?

c. Eat

discipleship around the dinner table

Food brings people together

praying for your waitresses

Story: I saw a guy lead our waitress to faith

d. Play

Where we play

What do you do for fun?

Relationships are the Key

God has put himself in proximity to people, because he has put you in proximity to people and he dwells in you.

3. Fruit Bearing as the Mark of a Disciple

John 15:8 (ESV)

8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

It says “bearing fruit proves that you are disciples/followers of Jesus”

Let this sink in:

How do you know you are really a disciple of Jesus?

You are bearing fruit.

It’s really that simple.

That should sober us and cause us to look at our lives and ask

Are we bearing fruit for God?

If the answer is “no” then the answer is not to despair or feel shame or condemnation — that is from the enemy

The answer is quite simple and encouraging:

The answer, as we will see, is to come back to Christ.

God doesn’t call us to do something he doesn’t intend to empower us to do.

God’s purpose for us is to produce God’s fruit (not by our own power) but by God’s Power

So what does this look like?

II. The Vineyard

1. The Vine and the Vine Dresser

John 15:1–3 (ESV)

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.

A. Jesus is the TRUE VINE

Jesus is the vine — the TRUE VINE

that means there are false vines

Israel = false vine

In our own day:

There are false vines

that means there is bad fruit — fruit that doesn’t last

that means we can abide in false vines

how do you know? — by the fruit (Matt 7:15-23)

Matthew 7:17–20 ESV

17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

B. The Father is the VINEDRESSER

The Father is the one who is cutting off and/or pruning

This speaks to the soveriegty of God and an intimate relationship we have with Him through Jesus.

Think about pruning:

grabbing each branch and examinig it

personally snipping away the parts that are unfruitfuil

This is an intimate expression of God’s tender care for us.

C. Something is always happening

God is committed to our growth in Christlikeness

So we are being pruned/discipled/sanctified always.

So when pain comes we can trust in this verse b/c it speaks to God’s purposes in v 2

The Why? — so that we might bear more fruit

Pain has the potential to bear more fruit.

D. Not earning salvation/God’s love

Bearing Fruit does not earn God’s Love/forgiveness

The first thing he says is

“ you are already clean” b/c of the word I’ve spoken to you

John 15:1–3 (ESV)

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.

It’s actually the same word for ‘prune’ in v 2.

Jesus is saying, even though the father is pruning/cleaning the vine, you are already clean b/c of the word i have spoken to you

In other words bearing fruit doesn’t earn salvation = being clean

but God is at work, since we are clearn/his/saved, so that we might bear more fruit = become more like Him.

John 13:10 (ESV)

10 Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.”

E. Transition

But now, what is the secret?

How do we produce God’s fruit by God’s power?

Answer Abide:

2. Abiding in Christ

This is the core of it — Abiding in Christ.

It is both simple and humble

John 15:4–6 (ESV)

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.

To abide = to remain = to dwell

Mutual Indwelling = us in Christ, Christ in us

Galatians 2:20 (ESV)

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

What does it mean to abide?

Two images:

A. Your house.

What does it mean for you to abide in your house?

You go there

You spend time there

You enjoy the shelter, the safety, the refuge

You can leave your house and never come back

but you have to choose to dwell there -

you have to see it as your home.

This means spending time with Christ / in Christ

B. Vineyard

The second image is to really examine the metaphor of a vineyard

How does a grape grow?

It abides — remains literally in the vine

The vine is its source of nurishment, nutrition

it is how the grape grows and comes to maturity

to leave the vine is to die.

The life of the vine is literally in the grape

how do we do connect into Jesus?

C. How to Abide

Nothing new here, it is a matter of doing what you already know to do

1. Spend time with God

Abiding in Christ at the very least means talking to Him and hearing from Him.

John 15:7 (ESV)

7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

A. Hearing From Him

The Word of God

The Spirit of God in our Inner man

God will speak to us in His Word and through His Spirit

B. Talking - Prayer

We can talk with God all throughout our day

at any time

We need to schedule time to pray and we need to be prayerful throughout our day.

On your commute

Waking up early

Last thing you do before bed

When you go to the bathroom

Go for a walk

around the dinner table

Abiding is cultivating that relatinship with God — freindship with God

It is going to Christ for nourishment and nutrition

What do you go to in times of distress, uncertainty and anxiety? — Where do you go?

I’ve learned more and more to go to Christ

This is intimacy with God

and it is the only source of sustained power for bearing fruit

and it will happen naturally.

Illustration: GROCERY STORE

Going to the grocery store

we have to choose to go there

It is where all the food is if you are hungry.

c. Answered Prayers

Wwhen we abide in Christ look what happens?

John 15:7 (ESV)

7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

Answered Prayer.

John 14:13–14 (ESV)

13 Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

Why?

The more time we spend with Christ the more like Him we become

The more our desries match his desires

The more he delights to answer our prayers.

Biblical Principle: We become like that which we behold/worship

Illustration: We become like that which we behold.

Rock / Stars - Celebrities

Movies

2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV)

18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

2. Be commited/devoted to His Mission

Growing in our Love for Christ leads to obeying His commands

Leads to bearing fruit

there’s an organic cause/effect relationship here

The more time we really spend with Him

the more we become like Him

The more our heart becomes like His heart

How does this come to past?

We are abiding in Christ.

If we abide in Christ spending time with Him

talking to Him and hearing from Him

Our hearts will change

Our prayer lives will change

Our relationships will change

Our famliies will change

our Church will change

The world might even change.

This is the power of Friendship with God — of abiding in Christ.

It can change the world.

It has been for the last 2000 years.

III. Closing Exhortation

If we catch a vision of the simplicity of following Christ and actually put these things into practice — we will bear God’s fruit.

Think about the potential to produce fruit by God’s power

Images of Grapes/Vineyards:

Grape

Grape cluster

Branch/Vine

Vineyard

Vineyards/Vineyards

There is potential in every one of us to not just produce a fruit, not just a vineyard, but vineyards of vineyards.

This is the power of God — if just one person catches the vision of God’s power in the gospel.

That means each one of you has the potential to be a at the center of the next movement of God.

Charles Spurgeon

one grape that made vineyards.

Abiding in Christ is the Key

It will transform your life

and will begin to transforms the lives of those around you.

has the potential to transform the world.

Application:

1. Are you producing God’s Fruit? — or some other fruit?

2. Are you producing God’s Fruit by God’s Power?

If not, the answer is not to try harder

The answer to to come to Jesus and Abide in Him

Commit to Spend time with Jesus

In His Word and in Prayer

Commit to God’s purposes in your life

fruit bearing / internal and external

Commit to God’s power in your life.

You cannot do this on your own power

it takes an intimate relationship with God

By the Power of the Indwelling Spirit.

If we follow these simple steps, God’s power can be unleashed upon us and we could witness a move of God.

Abiding in Christ

Producing God’s fruit by God’s Power

Closing Prayer

Extra

The Multiplicative Power of Fruit Bearing

Think about the power in a single grape.

It holds the power to multiplication

It’s not just the potential for one grape

not even one branch

not just a vineyard

but vineyards of vineyards

This is the power of God — if just one person catches the vision of God’s power in the gospel.

That means each one of you has the potential to be a at the center of the next movement of God.