Abide In Me

Well Good Morning everyone…you know… I think I’ve been here just enough at this point where some of you are probably saying “Oh yes, it’s this guy, I remember him” but you’re probably not quite at the stage yet where you’d be willing to share your family's super-secret hot dish recipe with me just yet.

We’re kind of in that weird middle ground…where if we bumped into each other at say Cabin Coffee or out in public…it would be a little awkward not to say hello, but almost equally as awkward to actually say

hello. Do we stop to chat or do we just wave and smile and move on? Have you guys ever been in those awkward social situations before?

Funny Story, Shortly after beginning to work on this opening, I bumped into Lynne Langseth at Menards. I don’t really think it was that awkward of an interaction, but I couldn’t help laughing about the timing of it. Now, If any of you are totally lost at this point, just to make sure we’re all on the same page, My name is Lawson Campbell and it’s my honor to be joining you again for what I believe is the third time now.

As I was thinking about us being at this vaguely familiar stage of our relationship…I realized that’s actually the perfect introduction for what I want to talk about this morning.

When I was here with you last summer, we looked at the story of the prodigal son, examining how both sons had fallen into a transactional approach to their father. I referenced Skye Jethani's book With, where he points out the Gospel isn't just about how people get to heaven, it's about how people get to God.

And as we are starting this new year, this idea of getting to God felt especially relevant to revisit. I don't know about you, but my social media feed is full of people sharing their resolutions and new year, new me posts.

Maybe you've made some resolutions yourself. Get to the gym more, eat better, save money, finally organize that junk drawer we all have. But here's what I've noticed about resolutions - they tend to focus on what we DO rather than who we ARE.

We resolve to do something, relying on our own willpower to accomplish it. And unfortunately, that's often how we approach our relationship with God too. We make spiritual resolutions: Read the Bible more, pray more, serve more, maybe even finally join that small group. These are all good things!

But just like those well-intentioned gym memberships and health plans, they often fade by February because we're focusing on the DOING rather than the BEING. What if instead of making resolutions about doing more FOR God this year, we focused on simply BEING WITH God?

What if rather than settling for that vague familiarity - that awkward social situation wave across the room relationship with God - we pursued something deeper? It’s the very thing Jesus invites us into in John Chapter 15. He's inviting us into what he calls abiding - a deep, transformative relationship that changes who we are, not just what we do.

So if you want to turn there with me We’ll be in John 15: Verses 1-17 this morning. Let me read you these words: (Slide)“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 does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. (Slide) 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. 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. (Slide) 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. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

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

(Slide) As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 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. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

(Slide)This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

(Slide) You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another”

Let’s pray and then we’ll unpack these words…(Opening Prayer)

Before we dive into Jesus's teaching on abiding, let me give us some quick context for this passage we just read. These verses are a part of what we call Jesus's upper room discourse, his final extended teaching to his disciples before his crucifixion. And if you track through these chapters, you see a beautiful progression unfold:

(Slide) In chapter 13, Jesus washes his disciples' feet - showing them what humble service looks like. It was an intimate act of connection. This was servant leadership in action, demonstrating what love looked like for his Disciples.

(Slide) Then in chapter 14, Jesus tells them I am going to prepare a place for you and promises that he and the father will make their home with believers. He's building this theme of intimate relationships, and introduces this idea of being indwelled with the spirit.

(Slide) And now here in chapter 15, Jesus takes this idea even further with this powerful vine imagery. And this metaphor would have immediately resonated with his Jewish disciples.

Israel was often described as God's vine in the Old Testament. Jesus does something radical - He says I am the true vine. He's essentially saying I am what Israel was meant to be. This was a very bold claim.

This isn't just a clever agricultural picture he was painting - it's the culmination of everything he's been teaching his disciples about an intimate relationship with him. From washing feet, to making his home with us…

Jesus was painting a progressive picture of what it means to be in a deep, life-giving relationship with him. He's showing us that the Christian life isn't just about following rules or performing services - it's about being intimately connected to him.

What I love about this is how Jesus began this metaphor by revealing his identity. He doesn’t start with what he wants from us, he starts with who he is. I am the true vine!

And Here's where we need to lean in, because Jesus doesn't just tell us who he is and leave us to figure out the rest. He goes on to tell us exactly what this abiding type of relationship looks like. And so as we are unpacking this idea of Abiding, here is our first point this morning:

(Slide) Abiding Requires Attachment.

Jesus doesn't say I am the vine, and you should visit the vine once a week. He says Abide in me. Everyone say Abide with me…ABIDE

(Slide) Let's talk about the word Abide for a minute. In the original Greek, it's the word 'Menó.' And if you were listening, you probably noted it occurs quite frequently in this passage. Was anyone counting? Have a guess at how many? It's used 11 times in these 17 verses alone. In fact, John really loves this word. In his Gospel, John uses the word a total of 40 times. In his 3 letters, he uses it another 24 times. That's not an accident, folks. He’s emphasizing something with his repeated use of this word. So what does this word Abide mean? It means to remain, to stay, to continue, to dwell.

When you dwell somewhere, you don't just visit - you live there. You make yourself at home. You know where the light switches are. You know which floorboards creak. You probably have refrigerator rights…where you can just help yourself to what’s in the fridge without having to ask.

And this isn't a new concept Jesus is introducing here. Just a chapter earlier Jesus told the disciples On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. He talked about the Spirit who would dwell with them. He even said he and the Father would make their home with believers. Are you seeing the pattern? This idea of dwelling, of making a home, of settling in for the long haul - it’s all over the place!

When Jesus uses meno in our passage, He's painting a picture of the most intimate kind of relationship possible. He's not talking about being a spiritual tourist or even a frequent visitor. He's talking about taking up permanent residence.

And here's what's wild - He uses this word in both directions. We're supposed to abide in Him, and He promises to abide in us. Think about that reality…Jesus residing within you.

When you look at how John uses this word throughout his writings, it's almost always in the present tense. It's not a one-time decision or something we did in the past. It's ongoing. Continuous. Always happening. Just like a branch doesn't connect to the vine once and call it good, our abiding in Christ is meant to be a constant, present-tense reality.

So what does that mean for us, the Church? When Jesus talks about abiding, he's describing something much deeper than casual check-ins. (Slide) Recent studies show that only about 2 in 10 Americans attend religious services weekly, and when you broaden to what's considered "regular attendance" the number goes up to about 4 out of 10, but even then we're talking about once or twice a month, and by the way this is all religious services, not just our Christian Churches.

Think about that in terms of any other relationship. Can you imagine if I told my wife, Hey Sam, I am totally committed to our marriage and so I'm going to make absolutely sure that I come home at least once or twice a month? That wouldn't work out too well for me! Yet somehow, we've convinced ourselves that this kind of sporadic connection is enough in our relationship with God.

Even weekly church attendance, while important, is just the beginning. Jesus is inviting us into something much richer. A consistent, continuous connection with both him AND his body, the church. That's why just a few verses later, he emphasizes loving one another. You can't do the one-other parts of scripture with occasional check-ins. Real relationships require regular presence.

Now, I want to be clear - this isn't about guilt or about doing more religious activities. Please don’t take away from what I’m saying that you should attend church more.

This is about recognizing that, just like a branch can't thrive with occasional connections to the vine, we can't experience the fullness of life Jesus offers through sporadic encounters. Abiding Requires Attachment - real, ongoing, life-giving attachment.

As we read on in our passage, we discover something else about abiding. You see, it's not enough to just be attached - our second point this morning is that Abiding Produces Fruit. (Slide)

When we're truly connected to the vine, something begins to happen naturally. Jesus tells us in verse 8, 'By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit.' He's talking about genuine transformation - not just behavior modification, but heart transformation…

Here I’ll reference my work at Damascus Way Reentry Center. I work with individuals who are transitioning out of incarceration, navigating the challenges that come along with it. What I've learned about successful reentry is that it isn’t just about changing behaviors.

It's about authentic transformation that comes from connecting to something - or rather Someone - greater than ourselves. Many residents we work with “know” the system. They know the right things to say and the proper behaviors to show. But it isn’t until they began to truly abide - to develop that deep, moment-by-moment connection with something deeper - that real change begins to happen. The fruit of transformation becomes evident not because they are trying harder, but because they are connected deeper.

I've discovered something similar in my parenting - we often mistake compliance for connection. When one of our kids acts up, my first instinct is usually to just get the behavior to stop. I want order restored, I want compliance, I want peace and quiet.

In their book “Discipline That Connects” Jim and Lynne Jackson comment that while what we desire as parents is usually long term obedience, we discipline our children in such a way to achieve short term compliance.

Our goals and desires often don’t match our actions and behaviors.

(Slide) They say “The goal of heart change is enhanced when we parents focus on long-term, big-picture aims instead of merely punishing to halt misbehavior. Thoughtful discipline helps our children to realize God’s purposes for them and builds the values and skills they need to walk a path that glorifies Him. But just as instant results don’t prove our communication effective (that it “worked”), discipline is more than managing behavior. At the heart of disciple in discipleship”

If we go back to our vine and branch metaphor, the branch doesn't bear fruit because the gardener threatens it with “or else”, It bears fruit because it's deeply connected to the life-giving vine. In the same way, true transformation - whether in our kids or in our own lives - doesn't come from external pressure but from internal connection. This is why Jesus emphasizes abiding before fruit-bearing. He knows that lasting change doesn't come from trying harder but from being connected deeper.

And this brings us to a crucial truth about abiding - it's not a one-time decision or a quick fix. Just as parenting is a daily journey of building relationships, our connection with Christ deepens daily through intentional attention. This leads us to our final point this morning about abiding. (Slide) Abiding Deepens Daily

If abiding is about developing this deep connection with Christ, what does that actually look like in our lives? Sometimes we make this more complicated than it needs to be. We think we need some profound spiritual experience or dramatic encounter. But Jesus uses this simple image of a vine and branches to show us that abiding is meant to be natural and organic

I thought it would be helpful here to interject a bit about how vineyards and vine growing actually works. The vines don't just grow wild and free. They need structure - and in the case of vineyards this is found in what is called a trellis. John Mark Comer points this out in his book "The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry." Here’s what he says:

(Slide) “What’s underneath every thriving vine? A trellis. A structure to hold up the vine so it can grow and bear fruit…What a trellis is to a vine, a rule of life is to abiding. It’s a structure - in this case a schedule and a set of practices - to set up abiding as the central pursuit of your life. It’s a way to organize all of your life around the practice of the presence of God, to work and rest and play and eat and drink and hang out with your friends and run errands and catch up on the news, all out of a place of deep, loving enjoyment of the Father’s company. If a vine doesn’t have a trellis, it will die. And if your life with Jesus doesn’t have some kind of structure to facilitate health and growth, it will wither away”

This is exactly what we need in our spiritual lives, some structure or as Comer says a rule of life - Not a set of restrictive rules, but a supportive structure that helps us abide in Jesus. The structure isn't the point - the connection is. The structure supports the connection.

The goal isn't to have the perfect schedule or the most elaborate spiritual practices. The goal is to abide - to remain connected to Jesus moment by moment. One of the biggest insights I've gained from John Mark Comer's teaching is that Jesus was never in a hurry. Despite having the most important mission in human history, Jesus moved through life at a walkable pace.

He had time for interruptions, time for meals with people, time for relationships. This wasn't because Jesus had less to do, it was because he understood the priority of abiding with the Father and living moment to moment. This is where the rubber meets the road in our lives, where we actually put things into practice. It's tempting to compartmentalize our spiritual life, to think we can only abide during our designated quiet time, when we're at church, or in the midst of what’s traditionally thought of as a “spiritual” moment. Abiding deepens daily not through grand gestures but through small moments of connection in everyday life.

It's about developing what Brother Lawrence called "Practicing the presence of God." If you’re like me, you’re probably thinking “That sounds good, but what does that even mean? I get why it’s important…I just don’t know how to do it!” It really can be an overwhelming endover trying to get started.

So I’ve compiled a list of some practices that I have found helpful for myself or have stolen from others. Think of these as training wheels, ideas to get you started. Part of the fun is that the process of figuring out how to abide is actually part of abiding itself. Trying things out, as you’ll never know what might work. So here are just a few ideas that you might take and modify to work for you.

(Slide) Here is one that has been great for me personally. Use Do Not Disturb mode on your phone, and adjust your notification preferences for apps. There has been a lot of research on the nature of notifications and how they’re actually designed to create an addiction.

(Slide) Another simple idea is to practice Set Hour prayers. Set an alarm for three set times throughout your day, for example 12pm, 5pm, and 9pm, and at those times say a quick prayer.

Or think about this, if you eat three meals a day, just pray before every meal! Communicate with God about what is happening in those moments.

(Slide) Another easy to implement practice would be to use Trigger Moments and/or Threshold Moments. Trigger Moments would be like every time blank happens, I will blank. For example, everytime my phone rings, I’ll thank God for my connection to him, or everytime I hear a dog bark I’ll thank God for nature and his creativity. Threshold Moments would be something like when I walk into a new room or building, I will be reminded that God’s presence is here with me. It’s a chance to reset every time your physical location changes.

(Slide) One final method would be to try using a gratitude journal. Each day, simply list one new thing you are thankful for that is different from what you listed the previous day.

After a year, you will have 365 things to look back and thank God for his faithfulness to you. There is a lot of science behind the power of positive thinking and how an attitude of gratitude can help drive this mindset.

Now, don’t rush away thinking you have to try implementing all of these. That would be overwhelming, and you’d find yourself more discouraged than when you started. Just start with something, one thing, and see how it goes. This isn't about adding more pressure or creating a longer spiritual to-do list. The practices I've shared aren't goals to achieve - they're just ways to position ourselves to receive what God is already wanting to give us. It really comes down to 3 simple truths:

Abiding requires attachment: it's about staying consistently connected to Jesus, not just giving him that awkward wave across the aisle. Abiding produces fruit - real transformation happens naturally when we stay connected to the vine. And Abiding deepens daily - through simple practices that help us remain aware of God's constant presence.

So as we begin this new year, I want to invite you to shift your thinking. Instead of another list of tasks to accomplish, what if we accepted Jesus' invitation to abide, and our goal for this year was to know him more, better, deeper, than we did last year. (Slide)

Here's the beautiful truth, the Father is eager to tend to us. The question isn't whether God is ready for a deeper relationship - the question is whether we're ready to truly abide. It may require some sacrifice or some reorientation of our priorities, but I can promise you it will be a worthwhile endeavor. Let’s pray!