Strive to abide

Strive to Abide

May 4, 2025

John 15:7-11

Who LOVES brownies? Pick one kid to come up. Give the recipe and help them put the stuff in the bowl. Hand them the instructions and make sure it’s right. Then, send them to the oven with Heidi’s help.

I find that my relationships with others becomes authentic and real when you do a task with them. The harder the task, the closer two people become. Now I know that my time with (kid selected) was short, but I thought it was a great time. I picked that kid, they did not pick me for this task. I picked them because I wanted to get to know them more.

Now, they were the ones who put the ingredients into the bowl, (all of which I supplied), they were the ones who stirred and they were the ones who responded to my instruction. I am hoping that you all are seeing where I am going with this. If you are still a little lost, don’t worry, I’ll bring it home for you.

READ John 15:1-11

I went back and grabbed 1-7 in hopes to bring us all back to where we left off last week. This message is a part two of last week’s message on being apart of and connected to the vine of Christ. The word “ABIDE” sums up this entire section. But, there are words in this section that must come along to provide a real meaning of that word “ABIDE”.

Before we get into this, let’s focus on our context a bit. Remember that Jesus had just concluded the upper room discourse, dismissed Judas to betray Him, had instructed them that He was THE Way, THE Truth, and THE Life. He concluded the meal by saying that He would provide a helper (the Holy Spirit). Today’s message will pull all that together for us with one word, Abide.

1.             Obedience that leads to abiding.

We hate that word “obedience” don’t we. It challenges our minds, our natures and sends even the most mature Christian into a tail spin. The reason is that we don’t want to admit it, there is someone who is in charge and it’s not us. We chafe against the concept that we may not be as big as we may think. But, today I want us to see the word “OBEY” or “Obedience” as a method to truly abiding. It is not a four letter word that we should quickly discard.

Let’s do a quick survey: Vs 3 “Already you are clean because of the WORD…Vs 7 If you abide in me, and my WORDS abide in you. Vs 10 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…Vs 11 “These things I have spoken to you…”

Do you see the very LARGE red neon sign that ties up that word ABIDE? Do you not see that the means to abide is to obey the Words spoken by the Son and the revealed will of the Father. That revealed will of the Father is in your laps, in your hands and offered freely to you and me. It’s His Word instructing us on how to get to “Abide”.

Let’s define that word “Abide” one more time in case we missed it last week. The word “ABIDE” meno: means to remain, rest and stay with. Think of (the kid that I called up) they were with me, remained with me, and stayed with me doing what? Following my instruction on how to perform that task.

Abiding is based on the fact that you know what you are attached to, and because you know who you are abiding with, you WILL obey and love it! It is a heart that is seeking the will of the Father and being willing to change our actions based on the will of the Father. Abiding is the conforming of one’s heart based on the will of the Father.

Our obedience to the will of the Father is the unity in spirit with the Father. Those who are just with the Father without obedience are addressed in our passage. Look back at verse 5,6:

“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[1]

Those, like Judas, were very comfortable being around the vine, being around the other fruit baring branches all the while not being OF the vine. There are those who are here today comfortable in this position. They have not been made clean by His word. They have not repented of their sin and have chosen the easy path of hanging out with the vine and not being apart of it.

My concern is that there are those who are good with the abiding idea (fun part) all the while not obediently seeing that they must conform the will of their hearts to the will of the Father. Obedience is a requirement to understanding that word abide. In short, those who obey are the ones truly saved, with truly regenerated hearts.

This is why Jesus spends so much time talking about fruit baring. One can fake obedience for only a short time but soon true obedience will always be revealed by the fruit that they grow. If the fruit is bitter, poisonous and destructive, they will be cut away by the great Vine Dresser (the Father) in order to help those who are truly baring fruit bare more fruit.

But, Pastor, I have seen good people who are not obeying God’s Word do good things. What about those? Allow me to be very clear about that. Augustin refers to these deeds or works as “splendid vices”. Even the persons best intentions are from a heart that does not seek God first. Rather, a heart that loves self. The obedience of the lost is like a branch without fruit. We may see “fruit” but God is the one who judges it’s value.

Hebrews 11:6

6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.[2]

It is 100% impossible to please God, obey God and abide in Christ without the saving faith in Christ. For the wicked, the one whom is not saved by the Vine, they have no means to restrain the wickedness of their hearts.

Even the very best of those not in the vine are considered poisonous. Oh, it may look good by us, but to God, it is filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) and will be tried and burned by the Great Vine Dresser. You see, obedience is an act of physically and willingly following the command of God.

But Pastor I can’t obey! I always fail! Look brother and sister, God is not asking or telling you something you can’t do. He is not asking you to come into church next week being 7’ tall. What He requires, He provides!

Remember dear brother and sister, obedience is 100% possible through our abiding relationship to Christ! I would challenge you. If you cannot obey, how are you abiding in Christ? The two go together. Genuine faith in Christ as your Lord and savior is your way to abide and obey.

PAUSE

The goal with this point is for the believer to know that you have all the tools in your toolbox to obediently follow the Will of the Father. The only thing that the believer may be struggling with is maybe God is showing you an area to repent.

If I have explained this right, you will see that obedience is a gift from God to the believer enabling them to rest, remain, and stay with their Savior. Notice, He is not asking for or requiring of the believer to have perfection. What this text is requiring from us is abiding in Him.

I would like to draw you back to my introduction. Now, our relationship is good, but when those brownies come out, and after the sermon, my relationship will be better with (the kid I picked). The point is this, they followed my instructions. I had to correct some actions but at the end, the relationship is growing.

God the Father, wants you to abide with Him. He will purify you the true believer so that when you do Abide in Him, you are free from the sin and shame that characterized your life.

Vs 3 “Already you are clean… This is a work of God Justifying the believer. Who is He talking to: BELIEVERS not Judas. BUT, notice, none of these followers that He is talking about is perfect! Peter (denied Him 3 times and was called Satan, James, John through mom tried to negotiate an elevated position in heaven (pride). Each had times of complete failure and yet Jesus said they are clean. How?

Vs 3 “You are clean because of the Word that I have spoken to you…” Each of them are flawed. He is not telling the believers something they cannot do. He is interested in their transformation, not their perfection.

For us, does it feel like you have taken 3 steps forward and then 4 back when you look at your spiritual walk with Jesus? Even when you take three steps forward and four back and you think you are failing, you need to hold up! God knows your failures and He knows your struggles. He is not looking at the steps so much as the entire race. Does your life have fruit? If so, abide in Him to help you during the backwards to take greater strides forward!

In light of that, Vs 7 “ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you” should come closer into context. NO it is not name in and claim it!! This is in light of your relationship to who you abide in.

If (kid I pick) asked me, how many scoops of butter to put in, would I tell them? Or, what happens if they would have fallen flat on their face walking up here? Would I help them? Absolutely! It is my will that they come to me. Now, keep that into mind when you pray.

When we abide, when we obey, when we are righteous, those prayers we pray move mountains. The prayers of the man or woman who truly abides in Christ will change the world! James 5:6 “prayers of a righteous person…can accomplish much.”

2.             Obedience that leads to love.

Vs 9 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 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[3]

This is like describing blue to a blind man. Abiding in Him is Love that is incomprehensible for our minds. It’s definition is a weight too heavy for us to lift. Before I define it, let me tell you that it is not dependent on our perfection.

Some have read these verses by saying, God will only love me if I keep His commandments. Since I cannot do that perfectly, then there is no hope for me. To say this is missing than entire first point of this message. Notice, where does this Love start? It starts with God granting you and me the ability to obey and thus ABIDE in the One whom He loves most, His Son!

When we understand this relationship, we than understand that God is not expecting perfection, rather He is expecting an obedient and abiding heart.

Ryle writes:

“By the grace of God we may make Christ’s laws our rule of life, and show daily that we desire to please Him. So doing, our gracious Master will give us a constant sense of His favor, and make us feel His face smiling on us, like the sun shining on a fine day[4]”

Parents, how much joy and love do you gush on an obedient child? Describe the love and joy you have when that young terrorist in your house humbles their little wicked heart and does exactly what you asked even without your prodding.

You think you are getting close to the level of Love God has? Yea, not even close!

Vs 9 “as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.”

Church, I have had three kids and watched in anticipation as they each came into the world. As wonderful as they are, nothing prepared me for the site of right after all had settled. When those nurses placed that baby on Heidi’s chest, true love was on display. That child had just ripped her apart, put her in the most pain I have ever seen. Those children had done nothing to deserve that tender love that she showered on them as they rested on her chest.

A.W Tozer writes:

READ page 98-99

I struggle getting my mind around the height of such love. But, Jesus Himself tells us, as The Father Loves Him (who was perfect in obedience and perfect in abiding in the Father) I start to see the stars of love high in the sky as Tozer wrote. The only thing I can do as your pastor is to point. I can say, it’s right there, do you see it?

How do we attain that kind of love? Do as Jesus did! Obey HIM and ABIDE in HIM! That is the path to the stars! That is where we find perfect Love that casts out all fear, on the chest of our savior.

In light of that love, we should be all too happy to obey at all cost! We should run to His Word and ask, “Lord, show me please how better to obey!” Not from obligation, but because of such deep love being shown to us. Our desire to obey draws us ever closer to abide in Him and His Love.

3.             Obedience that leads to Joy.

VS 11 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joymay be in you, and that your joy may be full[5]

Please circle these power words: I, MY, JOY, IN (abide) YOUR, FULL. Who is telling us this? JESUS. Who owns this joy? HIM (my joy). Where is that joy going to? IN you (speaking of an abiding relationship) and as a result, YOUR joy may be full. Look at the dependance on the source of the vine of Christ. Our joy comes from that vine and it is FULL!

For three years Jesus demonstrates the Joy of the Father. Even when they watch Him weeping over Jerusalem (John 11:35) and even in the garden, as Jesus wept blood drops, Jesus says “Not my will but your will.” Even when Jesus was not “happy” and was weeping, the JOY was still on display. It was a Joy for being about the Father’s will.

When we are abiding in Christ, it leads to ultimate and unrestrained joy. Now that we are obediently abiding in Christ, we should demonstrate a new and heavenly joy on our faces and our hearts. It should be obvious!

It does not mean we go through life as a happy idiot. No, instead our joy is a perfect Joy because it comes from our source through abiding in the JOY source.

This is the creational order. We are fulfilling the creational mandate to glorify God as we all abide in the joy of our creator. It creates actions from this Joy that the lost will not comprehend.

I am re reading the Fox’s Book of Martyrs. What strikes me is that when saints are going through the torments, others see the Joy of the Lord. There are several accounts that the executioners lay down their instruments of horror and JOIN the saint in death. They see this Joy and respond!

What about you? Can others see the Joy of the Lord on you? Some of us need to be reminded that there is a Joy of the Lord that we should demonstrate! Instead, some “believers” have had their joy robbed for far too long. They have exchanged their joy for bitterness. This is caused by a distorted view of God, which in turn we have a distorted view of love.

The means for having this Joy is to remain abiding in HIM. The source of this abiding is being IN Him, IN His Word, With the body of believers.

4.            Strive to abide.

Okay pastor, how do I do this? For some of you, it needs to start at knowing who to abide in. Maybe your life looks like a laundry list of ignoring God’s commands. You would be the definition of disobedience.

You can’t get to obedience without faith. You can’t abide in something you do not know. You may be sitting here saying, “yea, but I want that love you speak of. I want that joy you speak of.” I’ll tell you, if that is you, hear me that you cannot have that love, joy or relationship with your creator unless you are IN Christ.

There are only two things that is required according to the Gospel. Repentance and Faith. The Gospel or the good news for salvation for those who are not saved are:

1.            Repent: Recognize that you are a sinner that has separated you from the Vine of your creator. See your sin as rebellion from God. Turn from that sin today!

2.            Believe: Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ that He is The only way, truth and life for salvation!

Notice that obedience is not on that list. Obedience is a result of these. So, with that in mind, let’s go over some tangible ways of abiding in Him by taking you back to my analogy in the beginning. I called (kid’s name) up. I gave them the recipe. I even sent Heidi with them to bake the brownies.

You can see that I acted like the Father. I gave them the Word. I worked with them and then I sent my help mate to walk them to the next phase in life. Every follower of Christ receives the call, gets the Word, is helped through their lives and are blessed with the Helper.

Now, your brownies may look different than mine. Our races are unique but what is the same no matter what is the Father, Son, HS and the means to abide, His Word. We will never mess up our lives if we are abiding in all of these. If we abide in Him, His Word, the brownies will turn out no matter how bad it looks. (Job).

Jonny Ardavanis commented:

“Jesus says in John 15 abide in my love, and in the same breath He says “abide in my word”…..because you cannot abide in the love of God if you are not abiding in the word of God. If you are abiding in the word, you can pray and ask God’s Holy Spirit to satisfy you with His love.”

Maybe you are here and saying, “but I have been asking to be satisfied and feel anything but. I would ask, look at how you are abiding in Him. How has your time in His Word been? How is your prayer life? Where are you seeking joy from? You see, to abide in Christ screams of a new and intimate relationship in Him.

Look, abiding in Him is not implying perfection! But when we abide in Him we are walking the direction He is pointing us. If we are IN His Word, IN HIM and IN His love, our races may look different. Some run fast! Some run on a track, some are cross country runners. But, they are all grounded back on who they abide in, HIM.

Church, I want each of you to strive to abide. You will have nothing but true Joy when you do! Just like the kids will have joy when they eat those brownies today in Sunday School.