We can do BETTER!
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We can do BETTER!
We can do BETTER!
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower.
He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit.
You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you.
Abide in me as I abide in you. Just 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. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.
Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.
You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.
Intro:
Sometimes everybody can be clapping....
everyone around us will be applauding us......
(slight pause)
But God is saying.......
“You can do better!”
(pause and expound)
And.......
I started to wonder if.....
there are some areas of our lives that we have become satisfied with....
......but we should really be saying,
“I need to be better, right here in this area that i’m comfortable!”
And.....
I started wondering if.....
there are some areas of our lives that we have settled for......
......but we should really be saying,
“I need to be better, right here in this area of my life!”
(pause)
Because.....
If we are measuring ourselves against incorrect applause.....
it feels good......
......but it doesn’t match our Production DNA
(pause and expound)
Look at it now.....
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower.
John’s Gospel describes these words of Jesus to prove his dependability
.....because the text says,
“I am the TRUE VINE”
(pause)
And the significance here is that Jesus wants the disciples to be focused on the dependability of what Christ brings to the relationship between Christ and the Church.
(pause)
He is God’s appointed way of approaching God!
And all I can hear Jesus saying in my spiritual imagination is,
“I keep my promises!”
I’m the real thing that you can depend on.........
(pause and expound)
Jesus goes on to say that.....
…his father is the gardner, or the vine grower
…and as the gardner, his father takes care of the vine to make sure it is growing the way that it should.
(pause)
And.....
He describes one of the ways the vine is taken care of in verse 2 by saying.....
He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit.
This fruit that God is looking for on the branch is...
holiness in the life of the disciples
their continuing service of Jesus
(pause)
And.....
any of the branches that were not producing this fruit would be cut off.
And....
any of the branches that were producing this fruit would be pruned in order to make them even more fruitful.
(pause)
The difference between being Cut, and being Pruned is this......
Pruning leads to a promotion while Cutting leads to a Demotion
Pruning enhances destiny while Cutting gets rid of uselessness.
(pause)
And so the good news is that if we have not been cut off...
.....we can look forward to Pruning
And even though that may not imply walking down easy street
It does prove that after we go through this season of pruning.....
......Our destiny to Produce just got greater!
(pause)
Look at it now.....
You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you.
Jesus says,
By me teaching you the Word you are already cleaned.....
and so what I hear Jesus saying in the text is....
Your pruning process has already prepared you for this fruit bearing.
I have taken you through this cleansing, pruning process
And now all you got to do next is “Abide in me”
......it’s right there in verse 4 and 5
(pause)
Abide in me as I abide in you. Just 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. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.
Barrel: Show them the cucumber vine......
(pause)
Jesus is proving the need to be connected to him!
....and just like the branch becoming disconnected from the vine
...... whenever we are disconnected from Jesus we do not benefit from what gives our lives what it needs to grow
.....and whenever we are not connected to a dependable vine, our fruit production is undependable.
(pause)
And all Jesus is telling the disciples to do is to,
“Remember where your help comes from!”
And in my spiritual imagination I hear Jesus saying,
I can’t do that for you.....
I’m not going to make you do that.....
.....that’s your part!
(slight pause)
It’s your responsibility to........
“Remain in me”
(pause)
And then in verse 5 Jesus says to the disciples,
I promise you that if you do your part......
Not only will you produce....
.....but you will produce greatly!
(slight pause)
And the only way you could ever show up empty handed........
........is if you try to do this without me!
(pause)
Now watch this.....
.....because their is a progression in the text that I need you to see.
In verse 2 the bible says,
“bear more (gk - pleiona) fruit!”
And in verse 5 the bible says,
“bear much (gk - polyn) fruit!”
(pause)
And so we are being challenged to move from more fruit to much fruit!
And this is where I hear God pushing us to say...
“We can do BETTER!”
Because watch this....
More says that there is some comparison to what I had before.....
And....
Much says nothing in comparison to something else, but deals with this seperate new described quantity if you will
(pause)
And so...
If you’re producing MORE FRUIT.........
that’s good
....but you can do BETTER
Because verse 5 says,
That there is this progression that suggests, for that life that is producing MORE fruit than it was before......
...........should get to a place of producing MUCH fruit which is this new described quantity.....
And the reason this is expected is...
.......because of who we are CONNECTED to!
And so....
Your hook up is why God is expecting so much fruit from you.....
(pause and expound)
And so our goal is not to look at the 9 fruits of the spirit in Galatians 5.22-23, and stop when we are producing 2 or 3 of them.....
......but if I am knocking out,
Love, joy, and peace as my More
My Much looks like......
patience, kindness, and goodness on top of my Love, joy, and peace
(pause)
And if my More looks like faithfulness........
Then I cultivate my More into Much fruit by maturing to a level of......
not just witnessing Christ to the people in my circle
but witnessing Christ to the people in my city
(pause and expound)
Look at it now because verse 6 points to the consequences of uselessness, but verse 7 and 8 points again to the rewards of the promise...
If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.
In other words.....
There is no level of production that will be denied to the disciples as long as they remain connected to Jesus
Because......
....their production gives God the honor
And so.....
.......the more fruit they produce
.......the better God looks!
(pause)
And that’s why God intends for us to bear MUCH FRUIT!
Because the BETTER we DO......
.......the MORE GLORY God receives!
(pause)
And whenever we watch Jesus walking out his assignment....
If we look closely we would agree that the only thing Jesus desired to do was to....
.....bring His Father Glory!
(pause)
And if these disciples are going to be anything like Jesus........
.......they are going to have to follow his lead
........and strive to glorify God
(pause)
And Freedom family.....
.....that means that if we are going to bear fruit that looks like Jesus
.....we have to make up in our minds
that we are PRODUCING
....so that GOD might be GLORIFIED!
(pause)
And if this don’t motivate us to want to do better......
In the words of my Grandmother......
“We aint worth the salt in our bread!”
(pause)
Because I just believe that.......
Something has to be able to push a person.....
To do BETTER
And I also believe.......
That if nothing can push you......
To do BETTER
(pause)
There has got to be a DISCONNECTION........
Because only a DEAD thing refuses to respond to Stimulation
(pause and expound)
And this is why I believe Jesus says,
“If you abide in me, and I in you, you shall bear MUCH fruit!”
Because Jesus knows who he is......
And Jesus knows who His father is!
(pause)
And the fact that there is too much LIFE and PRODUCTION in HIS ESSENCE for us to be IN HIM and not DO BETTER!
(pause and expound)
Whatever God talks to........
LIVES and PRODUCES...........
Dirt FORMED into Adam
Lazarus got up
Bones shook in a valley
Whatever God touches........
LIVES and PRODUCES.......
The widows son got out of a coffin
The leper’s body was restored
(pause)
And so......
In my spiritual imagination,
there is no way that a person can make up in their mind to be CONNECTED to a God like this....
.........and not PRODUCE the way GOD intended for us to PRODUCE
(pause)
And if the Production level doesn’t meet God’s expectations.....
Say it with me.......
“We got to DO BETTER!” (Repeat)
(slight pause)
And so Pastor......
What is God’s expectations of me......
......that drives me to want to do better.
(pause)
Watch this...
......because right here in verse 16 God says,
You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.
And in my spiritual imagination I hear God saying....
I DECIDED............(repeat)
.........that you was the one I wanted!
(pause)
And once I decided that you was the one I wanted......
I gave you an assignment.....
And your assignment is.....
“To GO and BEAR FRUIT!”
(pause)
And here’s the last PROGRESSION in the text that shares God’s expectation in my spiritual imagination.....
(slight pause)
Because the text says......
.......I don’t just want you to PRODUCE More fruit.....
But I need you to do better than that...
.....and I don’t just want you to Produce Much fruit.....
But I need you to do better than that.....
(pause)
Because my expectation of you is that......
You will bear Fruit that will LAST!!!
Fruit that will Endure.......
Fruit that won’t go bad!!
(pause)
And I don’t know about you........
But Freedom for me that made me declare and desire to say..........
......you know what,
“WE got to DO BETTER!”
Because.....
We are connected to a God that expects the BEST of us!
