Relationships Come With Responsibilities

 

John 15:1-17

¹"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ²He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes^[1] so that it will be even more fruitful. ³You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
⁵"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. ⁸This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
⁹"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. ¹¹I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹²My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. ¹⁷This is my command: Love each other.

 

• Involvement with people is always a very delicate thing.  It requires real maturity to become involved and not get messed up.

 

• Relationships come with responsibilities.

 

• Jesus paints a picture for every believer.  It is the picture of a branch.

 

An Explanation of the elements:

1)      The Vine- Jesus

2)      The Branches- believers in Christ

3)      The Gardener- God

 

The Benefits of Being a Branch:

1)      Fruitfulness

-         The Conditions

·        Cleansing away sin (pruning)

1.      Ways This is Accomplished

a.       Salvation

b.      Daily Confession

c.       The Way

2)      Obedience

-         John 15:9-10

-         Colossians 1:10 (one motive)

-         Psalm 113 (believers have a responsibility to praise God)

3)      Kinds of Fruit

-         Romans 15:28 (Giving)

-         Hebrews 13:15 (Praise)

-         Colossians 1:10 (Good Works)

 

Some Key Points to Keep in Mind:

1)      To abide in Christ, you must confess Christ

2)      Are you concerned when your prayers are not answered? (1 John 5:14-15)

3)      We are saved on God’s terms, not our own

 

·        This is my challenge for you: do not become a useless Christian.  Dedicate your entire life to God’s service.  Share Christ’s love with others.