At the Table: The Why

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.

Introduction:

Today’s message is actually part two of what we discussed last week when we talked about Discipling which we referred to as the table element in the how of how we make disciples.

Not looking for simply numerical growth but looking for spiritual growth. Last week I laid out some of the marks of a biblical disciple.

Recap last week’s main points.

Not two classes of Christians.

III. Why disciple?

A. For your joy.

Philippians 1:3–5 ESV

3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

Philippians 2:1–2 ESV

1 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Philippians 4:1 ESV

1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.

Not only did he find them to be his joy but he longed for them.

Romans 16:19 ESV

19 For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil.

2 Corinthians 7:4 ESV

4 I am acting with great boldness toward you; I have great pride in you; I am filled with comfort. In all our affliction, I am overflowing with joy.

CSB - I am very frank with you.

2 Corinthians 7:13–16 ESV

13 Therefore we are comforted. And besides our own comfort, we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. 14 For whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as everything we said to you was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true. 15 And his affection for you is even greater, as he remembers the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. 16 I rejoice, because I have complete confidence in you.

1 Thessalonians 2:19–20 ESV

19 For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? 20 For you are our glory and joy.

Paul had been boasting before Titus of their faithfulness.

Paul saw those whom he discipled as a joy. Not a burden, mission, or project, but a joy. Sometimes, you work with someone for a long time and then they have a huge set back and we tend to want to push the eject button. Paul saw those he discipled as his joy. Oh, they had problems. I Corinthians is a letter Paul wrote addressing problems going on in the church at Corinth.

The world looks pretty dark but we have a living hope in Jesus. We beat back lostness by making disciples.

I will never understand people standing around, complaining about the lack of Christians and how people in the world don’t live like Christians when they themselves are not active in making more Christians. Making disciples.

D.L. Moody getting criticized about evangelical methods by a lady. I like my way of doing it more than your way of not doing it.

D and E are not separate.

Teaching them to observe everything the Lord has commanded us. There is joy in obeying Jesus and there is joy in teaching others to obey Jesus.

The person you are discipling won’t be the only one who grows in the process.

2 John 4 ESV

4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.

# B. For God’s glory.

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.

Point to verse 8.

Disciples glorify God by making more disciples. When we bear fruit we prove to be Jesus’s disciples.

John 15:9–17 ESV

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. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 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. 16 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. 17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

God is sovereign. God ordained that people come to Christ because people pray and share Jesus with them. That’s how God designed it. (Piper: hammer and nail illustration)

When we do not operate in the way God ordained this to operate we are operating in opposition to God.

Sins of commission vs sins of omission

Everything we do is to be done for the glory of God.

Nothing in our lives should be done if it is not done for the glory of God.

Can you imagine a world where all of your decisions were based on what brought glory to God instead of what made us comfortable or what we want or don’t want to do.

C. Jesus laid down His life for us and calls us to do the same for others.

The biggest reason why we should be disicpling.

John 15:13 ESV

13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

GOSPEL HERE

There is a sacrificial element to discipling someone.

What was he accomplishing for those he had chosen by laying down His life?

Responses

Atonement Substitution Justification Righteousness Adoption Forgiveness Indwelling Eternity Reconciliation

– To bring us to Father.

- So that the we may share in the joy that Christ enjoys with the Father

- So that we can bear fruit

- So that our joy will be complete

- So that our enmity toward God would be replaced by a loving relationship.

So it should be with us!

# D. Jesus made known to us all that He had learned from His Father

So we too, should make known to others what we have learned from the Father.

Insinuates that you are learning from the Father yourselves.

Quit playing around with this stuff like it’s your own private kingdom. You surrender your rights. This is serious business. Quit playing church and get serious about making disciples.

Great Chinese famine illustration

One of the incidents of the great Chinese famine of 1906-1907, was a visit a man made to the refugee camp outside the walls of Chinkiang. Mrs. Paxton was taking simple medicine to the suffers; and as we made the rounds of the miserable straw mat shelters, within which the starving people hungered on the cold ground, she turned to the man with a startled expression and said, "Do you know what most of them are saying? They complain of lack of appetite." These famine victims were not hungry—because they were starving. They had passed the stage of desire for food. That picture portrays many a soul's state. It has lost interest in or longing for spiritual satisfactions because it is starving.

Christan Herald.

We need to hunger for growth in our lives and then spend our lives doing spiritual good to others so that they become more like Christ.