Sermon Tone Analysis

This evening I have been given a topic to preach on.

In fact, not only was I given a topic, I was given a title for my message as well, it is “The Person of Truth.”

And I am supposed to demonstrate how Jesus is the person of truth and how vital that understanding is to our walk in Christ.

But, there is one problem.

I don’t like topical messages.

I don’t like assigned topics.

I don’t like being given assigned texts.

And I have been given all three of these things-

The passages of Scripture I am supposed to cover are:

John

John

But, I am not going to really preach from any of them.

I am going to try to stay on topic, but I am being slightly rebellious and I am going to preach from a different text of Scripture tonight.

Of these three texts the one that I am most drawn to is .

It is this text that I have learned from more than perhaps any other this past year of just how vital Jesus Christ is as the person of truth.

But in order to show you that tonight we need to look at vv. 1-11 and of those we will zero in on vv.

7-10 and major on 9 and 10 primarily.

So, I will attempt to cover my assigned topic, but I am going off script (apologies in advance to my Father-in-law).

These 11 verses are fundamentally important to the practical daily living of every believer.

Why is that so?

Why are these verse so critical?

It means the difference between an abundantly fruitful Christian walk and a dry, destitute, fruitless Christian experience.

And what do these verse have to do with Jesus Christ as the person of truth?

Mainly this:

If we are to have an abundant fruitful Christian life then we must fully participate in an abiding relationship with the person of Jesus Christ.

What does it mean to have an abiding relationship with the person of Jesus Christ?

To understand that there are two questions that we must answer

I. What does it mean for Christ to abide in us?

First of all we need to remind ourselves of a familiar illustration:

John 15.1

Jesus is the true vine, and the Father is the vine-dresser or tenant farmer.

There are two operations that the Father performs.

One is to prune every fruitful branch so that it may produce even more fruit.

The second is to take away those branches that bear no fruit.

Whatever that means, we can see that both involve cutting, both processes are painful- and fruit is the primary focus.

The disciples currently have no need of pruning- they are clean and ready to bear fruit because of the words of Jesus Himself.

Yet, in order to be continuously fruitful, Jesus gives them a illustration- They are to abide in Christ, and Christ is to abide in them- just like the branch and the vine.

In order to be fruitful the branch must abide in the vine, otherwise, fruitfulness is impossible.

Again, two requirements for fruitful Christianity are presented.

Christ is like the vine, the disciples are like the branches and in order for there to be much fruit, the disciples must abide in Christ and Christ must abide in the disciples.

And if either one of these is overlooked the end result is “without me you can do nothing.”

To overlook what Jesus is talking about here results in a dry, destitute, dead, fruitless Christian experience.

John

In other words abiding in Christ and Christ abiding in you is the only key to successful Christian living.

If you do not participate in this kind of relationship with Christ, then no matter how successful you think your Christian life is- Jesus says this, that one’s life amounts to nothing better than a dried out, withered branch, that kind of branch is only good for being gathered and burned.

Perhaps this is talking about earthly chastisement (), or perhaps it is talking about a loss of reward in the kingdom.

In either case participating in an abiding relationship with Jesus Christ is extremely important.

So what exactly does that mean?

What does it mean for Christ to abide in us?

I think we begin to see the answer in v. 7

I think that whatever it means for Christ to abide in us- this idea is connected to the WORDS of Christ abiding in us.

John 15.8

Herein (in this way- in this abiding relationship) the Father is glorified- and we are able as believers to bear much fruit.

V. 9 is key to our understanding of what it means for Christ to abide in us.

Just as the Father has loved Me- or in the exact same what that the Father has loved me, so have I also loved you.

Whatever it means for Christ to abide in us I think is connected to this concept.

In other words we discover more clearly what it means for Christ to abide in us as we think about the loving relationship of the Godhead.

As we think about how the Father loved the Son, and thus how the Son loves us- we discover what it means for Christ to abide in us because this abiding relationship mirrors the abiding relationship within the Trinity.

So how does the Father love the Son?

This is a theme that is developed throughout John’s gospel.

John 3.

V. 32- Jesus testifies to what he has seen and heard- and it is heavenly in origin and content, he is testifying about the things of the Father.

The problem is no one receives Jesus’ testimony.

V. 33- But those that do receive the testimony of Jesus set their seal, their mark of approval to this fact- that God is true.

Think about that statement.

If one believes the testimony of Jesus to be true it is identical to saying that God the Father is true.

Why?

V. 34- For he who God has sent speaks the Words of God.

In other words when Jesus speaks, every word that comes out of His mouth, are the exact words of the Father.

So to say that Jesus’ words are true is to say what?

That the Father’s words are true?

How do we know that?

End of v. 34- For the Father gives the Spirit without measure.

V. 35- The Father loves the Son! How?

And has given all things into His hand.

In other words the reason the Son’s words are the identical words of the Father is that there is a fully loving transparency between the Father and the Son.

Everything that the Father knows- the Son knows.

Why?

Because the Father gives the Son the Spirit without measure and the Father gives all things into the Son’s hand.

And this is exactly what it means for the Father to love the Son.

The Father holds nothing back from the Son- there is full transparency between the Father and the Son.

Everything that the Father knows the Son knows- and this fully transparent relationship is the love that exists between the Father and the Son.

Several weeks ago I took a trip to Canada to do some fishing.

One of the consequences of going that far North is that I don’t get good cell phone coverage.

As a result I basically go a week without talking to my wife in any form.

The moment I get back into the States I start to communicate with her.

I send her texts and call her.

Then when I finally make it home and I am in her presence I usually spend a good deal of time talking to her about my trip.

I try to tell here everything I can.

I want her to know about my week, about me personally.

There is not another person on earth that I have revealed more about me than my wife.

But even if I tried I could never tell here everything that goes on inside of my head.

And that is probably a good thing- I am a weird dude.

There is some strange stuff that goes on in there.

John

Not only does the Son speak the exact WORDS of the Father, but the Son only does the exact WORKS of the Father as well.

The Son can do nothing of Himself, He only does what He sees the Father doing.

And what does the Father show the Son?

V. 20- The Father loves the Son and shows Him ALL THINGS that He Himself is doing.

This is an incredible statement.