Easter
6
10 May 2015
John 15:9-17
Goal:
That we may abide in Jesus love
Malady: We do not always keep the
commandments
Means: Jesus appoints us to bear fruit
that will abide
Father,
giver of all that is good, help us to think of those things that are right and
by Jesus’ mercy guide us to accomplish them;
So, what would be your last and final
words? If these were to be the last words you would ever speak to another
person what would they be? Choose your words and choose wisely!
How many times have we said to ourselves,
“If only I had one more opportunity to speak?
If only had one more time to say what I really meant to express what I
really feel!”
How many times have we possibly faced regret?
Asking ourselves or saying to ourselves, “If only I had not said those words,
or said them in another way, or had the opportunity to explain myself.”
Having known everything. Having seen
everything. Having experienced everything that that would be experienced what
would you say?
These
words of Jesus are important. They are His last discourse. They are His last
will and testament. Jesus will speak these last words to His friends this side
of eternity.
Today we experience the Father’s love as
we read and hear and listen to Jesus’ last will and testament. This is His
final word to you.
1.
Abide
in My love.
A.
This is a new commandment.
1.
Expressing Jesus’ greatest desire for His
people, His Church, His family.
2.
That we love one another.
a.
That we love (see Greek term for this word)
b.
This is what was said of the 1st Century
Christians, “see how they love one another.”
B.
As the Father loved, you so also love one
another.
Transition: This is the Savior’s
desire for His children. Of course, we can often disappoint as wayward children
often do.
2.
Keep
My commands. This is simple. Direct. Straightforward. It is also Law!
A.
Can we really keep the commandments perfectly?
1.
No! Our condition of sin has its own story
throughout the pages of the Scriptures. St. Paul explains sins’ power when he
reminds us, “and when has fully conceived…”
2.
Played out by our first parents Adam and Eve in
Genesis w. When the woman say that the fruit was pleasing to the eyes…
3.
This condition has not changed since the time of
Noah “Then the Lord smelled the soothing aroma and said, “
B.
And don’t think for a moment that there is any
good in you to make you right with God. To the contrary, our vain attempts at
keeping the Law can lead only to frustration. For while none of us can meet the
perfect standard of God, free from error and without the stain and blot of sin.
“If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in
us.”
Transition: But God who is
faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleans us from all unrighteousness.
3.
The
Father’s desire is that we bear much fruit.
A.
When it comes to bearing fruit, Christ is the
vine and you are the branches.
1.
I chose you and appointed you to bear much
fruit. He speaks these words to you, “that My joy may be in you and your joy
may be full.”
2.
You bear fruit because of Jesus’ great sacrifice
for you on the cruel cross of Calvary. ”Greater love has no one than this that
someone lay down His life for His friends…And you are My friends.
3.
You bear fruit that will abide. It will abide,
for Jesus has spoken His clear word, “As the Father has loved me I love you.
Abide in my love.
B.
Your fruit will abide.
1.
It abides because you are grafted into Him. “No
longer do I call you a servant. A servant does not know what His master is
doing.
2.
Your fruit abides because your words, your
actions, your work is rooted in Him. Thus, they are no longer your works, your
words, your actions, but His and His alone. “Not the labors of my hands could
fulfill Thy law’s demands” In Christ these are works of charity and love.
Another growing season is upon us once
again. The dormancy of winter gives way to the possibilities of spring. To be
sure, there will be plenty of pitfalls along the way. They happen every growing
season. Harvest has its own set of challenges and circumstances.
However with the Savior and in His Father’s
vineyard you will always bear fruit and the Savior‘s love will always abide. No
longer are you servants and laborers. Now you are friends. As friends, you have a place in the Kingdom.
Words –797
Passive Sentences – 3%
Readability –82.5%
Reading Level –4.4
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