NOTES
How do you define
“What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and lose his own soul?” —MATTHEW 16:26
Have you ever wondered…
● How can I live my best life?
● How can I get disentangled from the drag of my past?
● How can I be freed in my soul to maximize my God-given potential?
● How can I live a life larger than merely myself?
● How can I leave a legacy of help and hope?
“I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener.” —JOHN 15:1
“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
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I remain in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
–JOHN 15:5
“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” —JOHN 15:8
“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit – fruit that will last – and so that whatever you ask in my name, the Father will give you.”
—JOHN 15:16
Q: What is the secret to a
A: Let Jesus’ Spirit life flow through your human life in every
Success is the fruit God bears in you wherever you go, whatever you do.
Q: How do we leave behind the destructive and non-productive deadwood of our lives?
A: God helps you be open to God’s cultivation and correction.
The Father Gardener “cuts off every branch that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” —JOHN 15:2
God’s
Q: How do we find energy, enthusiasm and power for the journey?
A: Jesus Christ is the Vine. We are the branches. His Spirit in us is our life source.
My
True Vine = true-to-fact, genuine source of authentic Spirit life, the real deal.
“Christ in you, your hope of glory.” —COLOSSIANS 1:27
“He who began a good work in you is faithful to complete it.”
—PHILIPPIANS 1:6
“It is God who works in you both to will and to do.”
—PHILIPPIANS 2:13
“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
—PHILIPPIANS 4:13
“Greater is he who is in me than he that is in the world.”
—1 JOHN 4:4
True Christianity is more than behavior management by keeping external rules. It’s
“…to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or even imagine according to his power at work within us…” —EPHESIANS 3:20
Q: How do I get free from addictions in my life?
A: You are not the vine. Christ is. You are not on the throne, Jesus is.
“I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Yet, not I, but Christ lives in me. And the life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” —GALATIANS 2:20
Q: How do I leave a legacy? Live a life larger than merely me?
A: Your life becomes an extension and expression of God’s life in and through you.
Q: What kind of fruit?
A: upward, inward, and outward.
“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
“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit!” —JOHN 15:8
The upward reach increases your
“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.” —JOHN 15:11
The inward surge increases your
“My command is this: love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this; to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” —JOHN 15:12-13
The outward flow increases the
In every endeavor prayer will lift you up, joy will keep you going, love will take you through.
“Vocation: The place God calls you is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”
—Frederick Buechner
God’s life branches out and bears fruit in the world through us as we remain in Christ.
Your
Jesus’ secret to success in life? Abide in Him.
To abide is to make your home in Christ and He makes His home in you.
God’s
By faith: enact your will to believe you belong, then behave in a way that shows it.
Q: What if I don’t feel it?
A: In the abiding life, feelings follow faith. Trust Jesus’ Word and He will make it real.
Q: How will I know I’m abiding in Christ?
A: You’re remaining connected in His Word and prayer, choosing joy, and staying in community with love.
Q: What about when it feels bad?
A: In pruning times, trust that God loves you and is working to bring you a greater harvest.
Ask the Lord to show you what you need to learn, what you need to let go of and release.
Q: What if I feel disconnected right now?
A: Seek Jesus, the True Vine. Believe you belong, then behave in a way that shows it.
Are you settling for less than God’s definition of success?
Why not let Christ show you the harvest you can have in Him? The difference He can make through you?
Are you in a season of testing?
Trust God to be at work and invite Him to meet you there.