Sermon Tone Analysis

Announcements

Bible Study & Prayer at 7pm on Wednesday.

Join us as we continue our series in the book of Psalms.

On January 21st at 7pm, we’ll be screening American Gospel: Christ Alone in the auditorium.

This is completely free for anyone who cares to join us, we’ll also have free drinks and popcorn available as well.

On January 29th at 10:30am, we’ll have a group doing door-to-door outreach in Chester Hill.

We could use some help, it isn’t hard—we’re essentially going door-to-door, explaining who we are, offering to pray with them, and then giving them a flyer for the church.

If you want to help, please reach out to Natalie as soon as possible for the details.

As you all know, there was a severe weather alert for our area this morning concerning ice.

I’ve mentioned this before, but since this is our first instance of severe weather on a Sunday, I wanted to say it again:

We don’t cancel services for weather alone—so, even if there’s a blizzard, we’ll still have church.

That has always been our policy and the reasoning for that is three-fold: (1) there is vital importance in the church gathering whenever possible and some of our people live more locally and can still make it even if the weather is bad; (2) we live-stream every service and we keep the recording indefinitely, so anyone can watch from home; and (3) I think you guys are smart enough to determine if it’s safe or unsafe for you to drive.

So, on days like today, the decision is completely yours—if you feel safe driving, then please feel free to join us in person; if you don’t feel safe driving, then feel free to join us online.

There is no judgment either way—just be safe.

Now, you’ll notice that I said that we don’t cancel services for weather alone—all that means is this, on occasion when there’s something else significant happening, we might cancel services, but that’s a rarity—it would be situations like the heat not working or the power being down; and there’s simply no way for us to work around it, but in those rare situations, we will be quick to inform you.

Let me remind you to continue worshiping the LORD through your giving.

Some of you have been unable to be with us for a few weeks due to illness and now the weather, so let me encourage you to take advantage of our digital giving platform.

In order to help you with your giving, we have three ways for you to give (1) you can give in-person at the offering box in the front of the room.

If you write a check, please write it to Grace & Peace, if you give cash and you’d like a receipt, please place it in an envelope with your name on it.

Digital giving can be done either by (2) texting 84321 with your $[amount] and following the text prompts or (3) by visiting us online a gapb.church and selecting giving in the menu bar.

Everything you give goes to the building up of our church and the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Call to Worship (Psalm 39)

Our Call to Worship this morning is Psalm 39, it is a psalm of David that acknowledge the brevity of life.

David essentially says, “life is short” thus, I need to hope in God.

It’s notable that at the beginning of Psalm 39, David speaks of discipline from God concerning his own sinful behavior; and he actually makes it clear that he was hiding his sins from God, but because he realizes that life is short, he needs to repent and praise God.

Please stand and read Psalm 39 with me, I’ll read the odd numbered verses, please join me in reading the even numbered verses.

Congregational Singing

10,000 Reasons

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

Scripture Reading (Deuteronomy 6:1-9)

I’ve asked Natalie to read our Scripture reading this morning, which is found in Deuteronomy 6:1-9.

It is a shorter passage, but it should be somewhat familiar because it includes the Hebrew shema and its actually utilized by Jesus when the Pharisees ask him what the greatest Law is.

Deuteronomy 6 gives us the greatest law and then it teaches us how seriously we ought to take this law.

Natalie please read Deuteronomy 6:1-9.

Sermon

Introduction

This morning, we’re continuing in our series on the Gospel according to John.

We’re in John 15, which I’m thinking is probably fairly well-known for most people in the room and watching online.

It’s a passage of Scripture that most Christians have heard and listened to.

It’s familiar because it’s something that many Christians have heard preached and taught in various contexts, but let me encourage you not to think that you already know exactly what this passage says and thus, don’t think that you should just tune this all out.

In fact, I’m fairly confident that even though you’ve probably heard this passage several times throughout your life, you probably don’t have a comprehensive idea of what the full passage says.

Rather, you know what parts of the passage says, you know that Jesus says he’s the true vine, you know that Jesus calls you his branches.

And then you know that Jesus has a command to love one another, but you’ve never quite connected the dots and you’ve never quite seen how Jesus’ command to love one another and the concept of Jesus being the true vine connect.

Or in other words, you’ve gotten bits and pieces of this text, but you’ve never quite seen how everything that Jesus says in vss.

1-17 weave together to form one unified idea.

And because you’ve never really seen the interconnectivity of vss.

1-17, you haven’t really seen how John 14 connects to John 13 and really to the subsequent chapters all the way through chapter 17.

Hopefully, we can fix some of that this morning.

Let’s read together John 15:1-17.

As we study John 15:1-17 together, we’re going to break it into two parts: (1) vs. 1-11, The Vine and the Branches, involves Jesus’ statement that he is the true vine and that his Father is the vinedresser.

We’ll explore what exactly that means and we’ll discuss the implications of the metaphoric illustration that Jesus uses.

(2) Vs.

12-17, is Jesus’ Command, which will be familiar because its the same command that he’s iterated and reiterated multiple times, that his disciples are to love one another like he has loved them.

Both sections are potent in and of themselves, but together, they drive at a singular idea—that if you truly love God, you’re going to show fruit and the primary fruit that he has in mind in John 15 is love for one another.

Or put differently, if you love one another, you exhibit fruit that shows that you love God, but for those that don’t, it reveals a lack of genuine belief.

This message should cause us to reflect on our own hearts, to question whether we genuinely love one another and if we realize that we don’t, is should cause us to reflect on our spiritual state.

Prayer for Illumination

The Vine and the Branches (1-11)

Jesus continues this conversation with the disciples by making the statement that “[he is] the true vine, and [his] Father is the vinedresser.”

This is clearly metaphoric in nature, Jesus is not literally saying that he is a vine and that his Father’s career is that of a farmer.

It’s figurative language meant to cause the disciples to reflect on the meaning at hand and to conjure up an image of what he means:

In this scenario, Jesus is making the statement that he is a vine and the Father is the vinedresser, but he doesn’t end with that because it’s clear that he’s not finished making his metaphor—in vs. 5, he makes it abundantly clear that his disciples “are the branches.”

This gives us an image of being a part of Jesus in a unique sense, but let me make it abundantly clear that this is a metaphor, it doesn’t literally mean that we’re part of Jesus—we are not God, we are not Jesus, we are not little gods, to say so is heresy.

What John 15 is teaching is that we’re part of a unique relationship with Jesus in which much like a vine, he provides life to us and he nourishes us, but we’ll get back to that unique relationship in a few minutes.

Jesus says that he is the true vine, and his father is the vinedresser and in vss.

2-4, he starts describing what exactly he means.

“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.

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.”

In this metaphor, Jesus clearly states that there are specific roles at play here, that Jesus himself provides life to those that are branches and that through the life that’s given by Jesus, he enables the branches to make fruit or bear fruit.

Only those branches that are in him bear fruit, but all other branches don’t bear fruit; and what Jesus says is the vinedresser, his Father, takes away those that don’t bear fruit and in fact, vs. 6 tells us that all who don’t bear fruit will be gathered together, thrown into the fire, and burned.

But those who are in him, he doesn’t take away, he prunes.

Now, of course, we can tell he’s keeping with the farming or gardening metaphor here, but it’s clear that there’s something much greater going on here because from vs. 5, again, we see that the branches are indeed, people.

With that in mind, it’s clear that what Jesus is teaching the disciples is that each person is either in him or not—those who are in him will bear fruit and will be pruned by the Father, those who don’t bear fruit, will be gathered together and thrown into the fire and burned.

In the case of the remaining disciples (remember that Judas Iscariot had already left), Jesus says that they’re already clean because of the word that he spoke to them; or in other words, they’re already fruit-bearing branches because they’re already in him.

They are as vs. 4 says “[abiding] in [him]” and they bear fruit because they abide in him.

Because they already abide in him and they bear fruit, there’s no risk or concern for them of being gathered up and thrown in the fire.

But for those who don’t abide in him, who don’t bear fruit, there is a great risk of being gathered up and burnt, in fact, it’s not even just a risk, it’s a certainty, because Jesus himself says unless you abide in him, you can’t bear fruit, because apart from him, you can do nothing.

Now, before you say, “woah, this sounds harsh,” remember that Jesus has already shown all mankind a significant amount of grace and mercy.

Consider Romans 1:18-23 “18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.

20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.

So they are without excuse.

21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”

And consider Psalm 14:1-3 “1 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”

They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.

2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. 3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.”

Romans 1 and Psalm 14 make it abundantly clear that through God’s creation he has already revealed himself to all people.

Romans 1 emphasizes that the moral standards of God are manifest to mankind because he himself is clearly perceived, but people are refusing to believe.

Rather than believing in God they make idols of creation (including man) and they worship the creation rather than the Creator.

Psalm 14 makes it clear that God is looking down from heaven to see if anyone genuinely seeks after God, but they’ve all become corrupt, there is no righteous, not even one.

Or put differently, God has revealed himself through his creation, which ought to prompt man to seek more information; and through the Word of God he reveals his Gospel, but man is refusing to believe; and since God is the Creator, who is only ever good, who is holy—it is right for him to gather up those who refuse to genuinely believe and bear fruit and cast them into the fire.

Jesus is making it clear in his illustration, that only those who are in him bear fruit and only those who bear fruit aren’t cast into the fire.

That alone ought to be sobering and thought-provoking, but there’s something else sort of wedged into these statements that you might miss if you’re reading through it too quickly.

It’s found in the second half of vs. 2, “every branch that does bear fruit [the Father] prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”

Now, when it comes to plants, we know what it means for a plant to be pruned.

A gardener or farmer will go through and he’ll pull off the dead or dying parts of the plant so that the plant can direct its resources to encouraging further growth.

The question is, what does this look like for a person?