We must Remain.
Planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, “The Lord is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.
Psalm 92:13-15
God’s house is a wonderful place to be. This goes beyond just a visit or holiday to the house of God but in the planting and establishing there is a flourishing.
John 15:1-17 speaks about remaining in God. Our planting in the house of the Lord has much more to do with our relationship with God than our church attendance.
The Greek word for “remain” in these verses is “meno” and translates “to remain, abide, stay, wait.”
Just like the branch that stays connected to the healthy vine will bear grapes fruit, in order to thrive and bear spiritual fruit we must remain closely connected to Jesus, the Vine, receiving the nutrients of His life-giving Spirit. We must fellowship with Him. We must remain in Him.
When we remain in God we draw life from Him.
As a branch draws life from the vine so too we draw our life from that which we are attached to.
So the question we need to ask and answer is what are we attached to? What is our source of comfort?
“Remain in me, as I also 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”.
John 1:4
To Remain we must be:
Intentional – Not by accident
Purposeful – Planning and not allowing our hearts to grow cold.
Faithful – Remain as He remains
Not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:25
When we give up on the gathering together then we, the church and the community miss a very important part of our reason for being. Our fruitfulness and therefore our usefulness is linked to our remaining. You are designed and purposed is to remain and bear fruit.
Result of our remaining
Hearts set on fire!
Luke 24:13-35 we can read about the disciples that meet Jesus on the road to Emmaus.
In verse 32 they state “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” When we remain there is a burning in our hearts because of His Word within us. When we refuse to remain in Him John 15:6 tells us that “If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.” The truth is there is a fire either way, the difference is found in our willingness to remain in Him.
Eternal Fruit.
“Remain in me, as I also 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”.
John 15:4
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23
Have you ever said… I wish I had more love, or joy, or peace, or forbearance which is (patient) or Kindness or goodness or faithfulness or gentleness or self control? Yes? then remain in Him
You have the attention of God.
If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
John 15:7
New Life in Jesus
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Empowered to Live out the purpose of God
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
Acts 4:13
To remain we must be:
Intentional – Not by accident
Purposeful – Planning and not allowing our hearts to grow cold.
Faithful – Remain as He remains
The Results:
Eternal Fruit.
You have the attention of God.
New Life in Jesus.
Empowered to Live out the purpose of God
