1 00:00:03,269 --> 00:00:06,272 John 15:1–5 2 00:00:07,040 --> 00:00:10,460 I am the true vine, and my father is the vine dresser. 3 00:00:10,860 --> 00:00:14,280 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away, 4 00:00:14,581 --> 00:00:19,652 and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 5 00:00:20,186 --> 00:00:23,907 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 6 00:00:24,591 --> 00:00:27,594 Abide in me, and I in you. 7 00:00:28,011 --> 00:00:32,699 As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, 8 00:00:33,116 --> 00:00:36,386 neither can you unless you abide in me. 9 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:39,589 I am the vine. You are the branches. 10 00:00:39,589 --> 00:00:44,844 Whoever abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit. 11 00:00:45,078 --> 00:00:48,081 For apart from me you can do nothing. 12 00:00:51,985 --> 00:00:52,135 Well, 13 00:00:52,135 --> 00:00:56,122 good morning, and welcome to the weekend here at Christ Community Chapel. 14 00:00:56,156 --> 00:00:59,209 My name is Zach and one of the pastors here, and I'm so glad 15 00:00:59,209 --> 00:01:02,212 that we get to be part of your weekend. 16 00:01:02,395 --> 00:01:04,097 Let me start with this. 17 00:01:04,097 --> 00:01:07,917 For the last couple of years, I have been on a journey. 18 00:01:08,268 --> 00:01:11,971 You know, Ahab had his white whale, 19 00:01:11,971 --> 00:01:15,442 Don Quixote, maybe more appropriately, had his windmills. 20 00:01:15,542 --> 00:01:18,261 For me, it's been trying to learn how to play golf. 21 00:01:19,863 --> 00:01:21,865 Well, I did not grow up playing golf, 22 00:01:21,865 --> 00:01:25,468 but since I've moved, to this area, a lot of you play golf 23 00:01:25,468 --> 00:01:30,740 so I've tried to learn to spend time with you, and it has been a real struggle. 24 00:01:31,307 --> 00:01:35,862 I realize that that's probably because golf goes against my nature. 25 00:01:35,879 --> 00:01:36,179 Like, 26 00:01:36,179 --> 00:01:40,817 like I am a presser, you know, a doer, an achiever. 27 00:01:41,217 --> 00:01:44,237 If something doesn't work, I just try harder 28 00:01:44,387 --> 00:01:46,940 and harder and harder, which is great. 29 00:01:46,940 --> 00:01:48,441 When I was growing up playing sports. 30 00:01:48,441 --> 00:01:53,062 But the problem is, in golf, the harder you try, like the harder 31 00:01:53,062 --> 00:01:57,383 you grip the club, the harder you swing, the worse things get. 32 00:01:57,650 --> 00:02:00,320 Which is really put me in some tough positions. 33 00:02:00,320 --> 00:02:02,539 I can't tell you how many times I spent an hour 34 00:02:02,539 --> 00:02:05,842 at the driving range, like at the end, dripping in sweat. 35 00:02:06,359 --> 00:02:09,295 Sores on my hands. And I've gotten worse. 36 00:02:10,313 --> 00:02:11,431 And I'm muttering to 37 00:02:11,431 --> 00:02:14,818 myself saying, this is a stupid game, and anyone who likes this game is stupid. 38 00:02:14,818 --> 00:02:15,602 And I hate them all. 39 00:02:15,602 --> 00:02:18,655 And, you know, I get I get go to some pretty dark places, right? 40 00:02:18,655 --> 00:02:23,877 Just because just because I, I don't know if there are many feelings in life 41 00:02:23,877 --> 00:02:27,197 lonelier than to try so hard 42 00:02:27,197 --> 00:02:30,650 at something and and get no results. 43 00:02:30,650 --> 00:02:34,521 To try so hard and feel like you're getting worse, to be exhausted 44 00:02:34,821 --> 00:02:38,274 and to have nothing to show for it. 45 00:02:38,491 --> 00:02:41,161 That, by the way, is not just a golf feeling, right? 46 00:02:41,161 --> 00:02:43,847 That that feeling can exist in other areas. 47 00:02:43,847 --> 00:02:46,850 It's also a spiritual reality. 48 00:02:47,450 --> 00:02:51,171 I wonder if at times that's not how some of us feel like 49 00:02:51,237 --> 00:02:54,774 we're we're trying hard, you know, we're we're gripping the club. 50 00:02:55,458 --> 00:02:56,576 We're swinging hard. 51 00:02:56,576 --> 00:02:58,111 We're trying to change. 52 00:02:58,111 --> 00:02:59,579 We're trying to change our habits. 53 00:02:59,579 --> 00:03:01,047 We're trying to be obedient. 54 00:03:01,047 --> 00:03:05,151 We're trying to to live life on mission, to be what we think a Christian 55 00:03:05,335 --> 00:03:06,152 ought to be. 56 00:03:06,152 --> 00:03:10,290 We are giving it everything we got and we're getting nowhere. 57 00:03:11,541 --> 00:03:14,544 We're sweating, were exhausted, we're sore, 58 00:03:14,777 --> 00:03:16,379 and we don't feel any closer to God. 59 00:03:16,379 --> 00:03:17,747 We don't look any more like him. 60 00:03:17,747 --> 00:03:20,750 And I wonder if you've ever had that moment where you're muttering to yourself 61 00:03:20,850 --> 00:03:24,087 and you're saying, maybe I ought to just give this up. 62 00:03:25,772 --> 00:03:28,758 Maybe I ought to just stop. 63 00:03:29,459 --> 00:03:31,427 If you know that feeling, 64 00:03:31,427 --> 00:03:34,430 and especially if you're feeling it right now, 65 00:03:35,098 --> 00:03:37,367 I can't think of a better passage of scripture 66 00:03:37,367 --> 00:03:41,037 for us to spend time in than John chapter 15. 67 00:03:41,337 --> 00:03:44,190 So if you have a Bible, would you take it out and open it to John 68 00:03:44,190 --> 00:03:44,958 chapter 15? 69 00:03:44,958 --> 00:03:47,360 Of course, you don't have to. It'll be on the screen behind me. 70 00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:50,430 But if you want to hold a Bible in your hands in the back of the pew, 71 00:03:50,546 --> 00:03:53,549 in front of you, or in the back of East Hall, you'll find one of the Bibles 72 00:03:53,783 --> 00:03:54,751 that I'm using. 73 00:03:54,751 --> 00:03:59,522 And the great thing about that is I can tell you John 15 is on page 859. 74 00:03:59,522 --> 00:04:01,224 However you're going to get there, though, 75 00:04:01,224 --> 00:04:04,644 let me hold out to you the outline I'm going to use to guide our time together. 76 00:04:04,644 --> 00:04:06,079 Three points. Very simple. 77 00:04:06,079 --> 00:04:08,331 I want to show you healthy things, grow. 78 00:04:09,632 --> 00:04:10,233 Growth is 79 00:04:10,233 --> 00:04:13,436 not your job and this is your verb. 80 00:04:13,436 --> 00:04:16,172 Healthy things grow. Growth is not your job. 81 00:04:16,172 --> 00:04:18,441 And this is your verb. 82 00:04:18,441 --> 00:04:18,691 All right. 83 00:04:18,691 --> 00:04:19,892 Let's just start with this. 84 00:04:19,892 --> 00:04:22,679 Healthy things grow. 85 00:04:22,679 --> 00:04:24,864 That's a life principle, isn't it? 86 00:04:24,864 --> 00:04:26,733 Healthy things grow. 87 00:04:26,733 --> 00:04:30,270 That's how you know something's healthy is it's growing. 88 00:04:30,470 --> 00:04:35,091 That's true of a lot of things like let's just let's start with kids, healthy kids 89 00:04:35,658 --> 00:04:36,292 grow. 90 00:04:36,292 --> 00:04:39,362 Just this Friday, I took my oldest son 91 00:04:39,512 --> 00:04:42,715 to go visit the college that he's going to attend this fall. 92 00:04:42,832 --> 00:04:46,069 And when you think about your kids going to college, that's sad. 93 00:04:46,552 --> 00:04:48,388 But it's also good, right? 94 00:04:48,388 --> 00:04:49,555 Healthy things grow. 95 00:04:49,555 --> 00:04:52,075 It's good that he's going to be leaving the house. 96 00:04:52,075 --> 00:04:54,210 It's good that he's going to college. 97 00:04:54,210 --> 00:04:55,278 Even Friday. 98 00:04:55,278 --> 00:04:57,714 We got to the college at 830 in the morning. 99 00:04:57,714 --> 00:04:59,299 He connected with his friends 100 00:04:59,299 --> 00:05:02,302 and I didn't see him again until 2:00 in the afternoon. 101 00:05:02,402 --> 00:05:04,320 I spent the whole day my wife said, do you like the campus? 102 00:05:04,320 --> 00:05:06,272 I said, I spent the whole day working in the library. 103 00:05:07,407 --> 00:05:09,509 It was totally pointless for me to be there. 104 00:05:09,509 --> 00:05:10,860 But even that is good. 105 00:05:10,860 --> 00:05:12,862 It's good that he's connecting with his friends. 106 00:05:12,862 --> 00:05:17,450 It's good that he didn't need his dad like a security blanket hanging around. 107 00:05:17,450 --> 00:05:20,269 Healthy things grow. 108 00:05:20,269 --> 00:05:22,438 That's true of marriages, right? 109 00:05:22,438 --> 00:05:25,458 It should be that the longer you're married, the closer 110 00:05:25,458 --> 00:05:27,143 you get to friendships. 111 00:05:27,143 --> 00:05:30,480 The longer you've been friends, the better you understand each other. 112 00:05:30,480 --> 00:05:30,830 It's true. 113 00:05:30,830 --> 00:05:34,767 In business, if you start a company, you're working in a company. 114 00:05:34,767 --> 00:05:37,403 Over time, you want everything to be up and to the right. 115 00:05:37,403 --> 00:05:40,173 Healthy things grow. It's true of churches. 116 00:05:40,173 --> 00:05:41,541 Healthy churches grow. 117 00:05:41,541 --> 00:05:44,360 You know, this last weekend we had a record crowd here. 118 00:05:44,360 --> 00:05:47,213 But that's not even the coolest number. You know what the coolest number is? 119 00:05:47,213 --> 00:05:50,133 Upward City Church, one of our church plants in Ravenna. 120 00:05:50,133 --> 00:05:53,870 Pastor Chad Young, his wife Shanna, they when they launched, 121 00:05:53,870 --> 00:05:58,157 were averaging around 40 people a week, which is pretty normal for a church plant. 122 00:05:58,157 --> 00:06:00,710 On Easter, they had 165 people. 123 00:06:00,710 --> 00:06:03,713 They baptized nine nine on Easter Sunday. 124 00:06:07,133 --> 00:06:07,550 And that's 125 00:06:07,550 --> 00:06:10,686 not surprising to me because healthy things grow. 126 00:06:10,686 --> 00:06:12,021 We we know this. Well. 127 00:06:12,021 --> 00:06:16,759 Did you know that's a spiritual principle to healthy Christians grow. 128 00:06:17,276 --> 00:06:18,144 That's what Jesus says. 129 00:06:18,144 --> 00:06:20,396 John chapter 15, verses one through five. 130 00:06:20,396 --> 00:06:23,066 Let me read it to you. Notice the growth language. Here's what he says. 131 00:06:23,066 --> 00:06:27,053 I am the true vine and my father is the vine dresser. 132 00:06:27,687 --> 00:06:30,573 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, 133 00:06:30,573 --> 00:06:34,977 and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 134 00:06:35,361 --> 00:06:38,448 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 135 00:06:38,581 --> 00:06:40,700 Abide in me, and I in you. 136 00:06:40,700 --> 00:06:43,369 As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself 137 00:06:43,369 --> 00:06:47,223 unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 138 00:06:47,223 --> 00:06:49,675 I am the vine, you are the branches. 139 00:06:49,675 --> 00:06:53,696 Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit. 140 00:06:53,930 --> 00:06:56,883 For apart from me you can do nothing like that plant 141 00:06:56,883 --> 00:06:58,818 language of I'm the vine, you're the branch. 142 00:06:58,818 --> 00:07:00,987 Whoever is in me will bear fruit. 143 00:07:00,987 --> 00:07:02,789 How do you know a plant is healthy? 144 00:07:02,789 --> 00:07:05,391 It bears fruit, right? 145 00:07:05,391 --> 00:07:08,428 By the way, this concept of thinking about the Christian life 146 00:07:08,428 --> 00:07:11,581 like a healthy plant that just grows, it 147 00:07:11,581 --> 00:07:14,867 just bears fruit, is not unique to Jesus. 148 00:07:14,867 --> 00:07:16,619 The Bible does this all the time. 149 00:07:16,619 --> 00:07:21,324 Compares people who are following God to healthy plants. 150 00:07:21,324 --> 00:07:24,510 Listen to Psalm one, the very first psalm in the book of Psalms. 151 00:07:24,510 --> 00:07:28,397 Psalm one says this blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel 152 00:07:28,397 --> 00:07:32,118 of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers. 153 00:07:32,418 --> 00:07:37,790 His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. 154 00:07:37,940 --> 00:07:41,994 He is listen like a tree planted by streams of water 155 00:07:42,078 --> 00:07:45,681 that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf 156 00:07:45,681 --> 00:07:49,652 does not wither in all that he does, he prospers. 157 00:07:50,069 --> 00:07:54,707 Healthy things grow, healthy Christians grow. 158 00:07:54,707 --> 00:07:57,326 And you might be thinking, well, what does that mean? 159 00:07:57,326 --> 00:07:59,579 How do they grow? In what ways do they grow? 160 00:07:59,579 --> 00:08:00,630 Well, the Apostle 161 00:08:00,630 --> 00:08:04,350 Paul answers that question in Galatians chapter five when he says this, listen. 162 00:08:04,667 --> 00:08:06,269 But the fruit of the spirit 163 00:08:07,436 --> 00:08:09,622 is love, joy, peace, patience, 164 00:08:09,622 --> 00:08:13,493 kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. 165 00:08:13,643 --> 00:08:16,445 Against such things, there is no law here. 166 00:08:16,445 --> 00:08:17,697 Here's what the Bible is teaching us. 167 00:08:17,697 --> 00:08:20,216 What Jesus is saying is that healthy Christians grow. 168 00:08:20,216 --> 00:08:22,952 How do they grow? They grow in love. They grow in joy. 169 00:08:22,952 --> 00:08:26,689 They grow in peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control. 170 00:08:26,722 --> 00:08:28,441 How do you know a Christian is healthy? 171 00:08:28,441 --> 00:08:30,176 He or she is growing in these things? 172 00:08:30,176 --> 00:08:31,460 How do you know they're not healthy? 173 00:08:31,460 --> 00:08:32,762 They're not growing in these things. 174 00:08:32,762 --> 00:08:35,748 Healthy things grow. 175 00:08:36,749 --> 00:08:39,318 Now let's stop for a second. 176 00:08:39,318 --> 00:08:42,321 Here's what you just heard me say. 177 00:08:43,322 --> 00:08:46,309 Why aren't you doing better? 178 00:08:47,660 --> 00:08:50,663 You should be doing better. 179 00:08:51,080 --> 00:08:52,098 Why aren't you changing? 180 00:08:52,098 --> 00:08:53,366 Why aren't you growing? 181 00:08:53,366 --> 00:08:55,218 But that's not what I said. 182 00:08:55,218 --> 00:08:57,320 I just said healthy things grow. 183 00:08:57,320 --> 00:08:58,521 And to help you understand. 184 00:08:58,521 --> 00:09:00,840 That's not what I said. Here's my second point. You're ready. 185 00:09:00,840 --> 00:09:01,607 Healthy things grow. 186 00:09:01,607 --> 00:09:04,677 A second point. Growth is not your job. 187 00:09:06,896 --> 00:09:07,863 It's not your job. 188 00:09:07,863 --> 00:09:10,866 Do you think what I'm telling you to do is grip the club tighter, 189 00:09:11,334 --> 00:09:12,768 swing a little harder. 190 00:09:12,768 --> 00:09:15,471 But that's not what I'm saying. Like, let's just start this way. 191 00:09:15,471 --> 00:09:19,609 Did you notice when we read the passage how many times Jesus says 192 00:09:19,942 --> 00:09:22,461 you can't do anything? 193 00:09:22,461 --> 00:09:24,830 Like if he says at one time he says it five times. 194 00:09:24,830 --> 00:09:27,233 Frankly, it's a little insulting. 195 00:09:27,233 --> 00:09:29,719 I mean, he says over and over again, you can't do it. 196 00:09:29,719 --> 00:09:31,187 You're not going to get it done. 197 00:09:31,187 --> 00:09:34,557 You can't count on yourself apart from me. 198 00:09:34,590 --> 00:09:35,992 You can do nothing. 199 00:09:35,992 --> 00:09:39,595 He works really hard to make sure we understand. 200 00:09:39,929 --> 00:09:40,796 He's not telling us. 201 00:09:40,796 --> 00:09:44,567 Grip the club harder, swing harder, sweat a little more, try a little more. 202 00:09:44,567 --> 00:09:46,969 He's saying you can't do it. 203 00:09:46,969 --> 00:09:48,137 Healthy things grow. 204 00:09:48,137 --> 00:09:50,906 Growth is not your job. 205 00:09:50,906 --> 00:09:52,708 Even think about Psalm one and Psalm one. 206 00:09:52,708 --> 00:09:56,545 He says the righteous man is like a tree planted by streams of water. 207 00:09:56,545 --> 00:09:57,980 But who planted the tree? 208 00:09:58,981 --> 00:09:59,482 This is my point. 209 00:09:59,482 --> 00:10:00,716 The tree doesn't plant itself 210 00:10:00,716 --> 00:10:04,520 by streams of water and even a tree like I understand, plant people. 211 00:10:04,520 --> 00:10:06,289 It's your season, it's spring. 212 00:10:06,289 --> 00:10:07,940 You're probably feeling yourself a little bit. 213 00:10:07,940 --> 00:10:10,943 I don't know anything about plants that's going to come through okay. 214 00:10:11,093 --> 00:10:15,114 I understand when I stand next to a tree that is healthy, it's doing some things. 215 00:10:15,114 --> 00:10:16,315 Photosynthesis. 216 00:10:16,315 --> 00:10:19,318 That's the only word I know. But, 217 00:10:19,468 --> 00:10:22,021 but, but when you stand by a tree that's growing, 218 00:10:22,021 --> 00:10:24,624 it's not like the tree is sweating. Do you know what I mean? 219 00:10:24,624 --> 00:10:26,208 It's not efforting. 220 00:10:26,208 --> 00:10:28,127 It's not pushing. 221 00:10:28,127 --> 00:10:31,130 It just happens. Sun, water, rain. 222 00:10:31,130 --> 00:10:32,965 It just happens. Healthy things grow. 223 00:10:32,965 --> 00:10:36,569 Jesus isn't calling us to try more or to do more. 224 00:10:36,569 --> 00:10:39,538 In fact, he's teaching us two really important things. 225 00:10:39,538 --> 00:10:44,727 The first is that he's teaching us that that all that God is, 226 00:10:46,195 --> 00:10:48,230 is aimed at our growth. 227 00:10:48,230 --> 00:10:49,198 Now, here's what I mean by that. 228 00:10:49,198 --> 00:10:52,501 The Bible teaches a really important concept called the Trinity. 229 00:10:52,735 --> 00:10:57,473 The Bible teaches that God is one, one God, only one God, but he exists 230 00:10:57,473 --> 00:11:03,212 in three persons father, son, and spirit, three persons, but only one God. 231 00:11:03,379 --> 00:11:03,663 Okay. 232 00:11:03,663 --> 00:11:06,482 And if you think, well, that's crazy, what is that like? 233 00:11:06,482 --> 00:11:08,367 The answer is it's not like anything. 234 00:11:08,367 --> 00:11:09,502 It's not like anything. 235 00:11:09,502 --> 00:11:11,754 You can't make any metaphors, you can't explain it. 236 00:11:11,754 --> 00:11:13,773 And by the way, I'll just add this. 237 00:11:13,773 --> 00:11:17,460 If there is a God, that's what you should imagine would be true of him. 238 00:11:17,460 --> 00:11:19,278 He isn't like anything else. 239 00:11:19,278 --> 00:11:20,880 He isn't like anyone else. 240 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:22,732 One God in three persons. 241 00:11:22,732 --> 00:11:26,869 And what this passage is teaching us is that all of God, 242 00:11:26,869 --> 00:11:30,289 father, son and spirit is aimed at our growth. 243 00:11:30,322 --> 00:11:32,842 Look with me at John chapter 15, verse one. 244 00:11:32,842 --> 00:11:33,659 Here's what Jesus says 245 00:11:35,094 --> 00:11:38,030 I am the true vine 246 00:11:38,030 --> 00:11:41,033 and my father is the vine dresser. 247 00:11:41,150 --> 00:11:44,153 Jesus says, you're the branch, I'm the vine. 248 00:11:44,303 --> 00:11:47,123 What he's saying is that I, God, the Son, 249 00:11:47,123 --> 00:11:50,493 am the source of all that you'll need to grow. 250 00:11:50,509 --> 00:11:52,044 You're going to get it from me. 251 00:11:52,044 --> 00:11:55,398 The nutrients, the the, all the things that the branch needs 252 00:11:55,398 --> 00:11:56,515 come through the vine. 253 00:11:56,515 --> 00:11:59,452 Jesus says, I am the source of all that you'll need. 254 00:11:59,452 --> 00:12:02,838 And then he says, God the Father is the gardener. 255 00:12:03,506 --> 00:12:06,959 If you read the passage, it's God the Father who's who's pruning and, 256 00:12:07,109 --> 00:12:11,030 you know, checking for weeds and making sure that the process is going 257 00:12:11,030 --> 00:12:15,868 well, the Holy Spirit, if you remember, let's just read Galatians five again. 258 00:12:15,868 --> 00:12:16,852 Listen to this. 259 00:12:16,852 --> 00:12:21,323 But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, 260 00:12:21,507 --> 00:12:25,227 peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, generous self-control. 261 00:12:25,227 --> 00:12:25,911 So here you go. 262 00:12:25,911 --> 00:12:28,614 You got God the Father doing the gardening. 263 00:12:28,614 --> 00:12:30,649 God the son is the source. 264 00:12:30,649 --> 00:12:33,986 God the spirit is the one bearing the fruit. 265 00:12:34,103 --> 00:12:38,491 Father, Son and spirit, working on your growth. 266 00:12:38,491 --> 00:12:40,376 Now here's a question for you. 267 00:12:40,376 --> 00:12:46,048 If it's a group project, what do you bring to the table that they don't have? 268 00:12:48,451 --> 00:12:50,035 What deficiency 269 00:12:50,035 --> 00:12:53,539 in God do you fill? 270 00:12:53,873 --> 00:12:55,257 The answer, of course, is nothing. 271 00:12:55,257 --> 00:12:59,094 When the father, the son in the spirit collaborate together, 272 00:12:59,178 --> 00:13:00,379 pretty great things happen. 273 00:13:00,379 --> 00:13:02,364 Let me give you their resume, okay? 274 00:13:02,364 --> 00:13:04,433 Their first project. You might have heard of it. 275 00:13:04,433 --> 00:13:08,187 Their first project together was they created the universe. 276 00:13:09,438 --> 00:13:10,706 Father, son and spirit. 277 00:13:10,706 --> 00:13:13,142 Little Colab create the universe, right? 278 00:13:13,142 --> 00:13:14,426 Their second project. 279 00:13:14,426 --> 00:13:17,429 You're probably familiar with saving your soul. 280 00:13:18,330 --> 00:13:21,317 The father planning the son, executing the spirit, 281 00:13:21,383 --> 00:13:23,702 working it out into your heart and your mind. Here. 282 00:13:23,702 --> 00:13:24,653 Here's my point. 283 00:13:24,653 --> 00:13:28,591 When the father, the son in the spirit, work together 284 00:13:28,591 --> 00:13:32,995 in unison to accomplish something, they're pretty successful. 285 00:13:33,078 --> 00:13:36,482 Universes get created souls get saved. 286 00:13:36,599 --> 00:13:39,602 That same team 287 00:13:40,352 --> 00:13:43,339 is working for your growth. 288 00:13:43,405 --> 00:13:46,091 Now, the second thing I want you to see here is if you read this passage, 289 00:13:46,091 --> 00:13:46,826 you won't read it again. 290 00:13:46,826 --> 00:13:51,230 But if you read the passage, what you'll see is God's doing all the activity. 291 00:13:52,982 --> 00:13:54,233 He's doing it all. 292 00:13:54,233 --> 00:13:57,019 He is the one doing all the work. 293 00:13:57,019 --> 00:14:00,539 Jesus, in other words, isn't saying you should grow. 294 00:14:00,573 --> 00:14:04,009 He's saying, basically you should let growth happen. 295 00:14:04,560 --> 00:14:06,178 Healthy things grow. 296 00:14:06,178 --> 00:14:08,998 God does the growing. 297 00:14:08,998 --> 00:14:10,049 Let me let me put it to you this way. 298 00:14:10,049 --> 00:14:11,567 I put it this way. 299 00:14:11,567 --> 00:14:13,919 Have you ever seen someone 300 00:14:13,919 --> 00:14:16,922 who's really good at golf swing a club? 301 00:14:17,306 --> 00:14:19,942 It's obnoxious. 302 00:14:19,942 --> 00:14:22,578 We have a couple guys here on staff that are really good golfers, 303 00:14:22,578 --> 00:14:25,581 and unfortunately they're also friends of mine, 304 00:14:25,981 --> 00:14:28,217 which means sometimes we play golf together. 305 00:14:28,217 --> 00:14:29,668 And here's what I don't understand. 306 00:14:29,668 --> 00:14:33,806 I watch them swing and they don't swing as hard as I do. 307 00:14:34,023 --> 00:14:36,108 They don't try as hard as I do. 308 00:14:36,108 --> 00:14:39,028 Like they could just be talking to you, you know, like, oh, that's interesting. 309 00:14:39,028 --> 00:14:40,813 We don't grow. We don't know God does growth. 310 00:14:40,813 --> 00:14:44,183 And they're not even looking 300 yards down the fairway. 311 00:14:45,050 --> 00:14:45,417 Right. 312 00:14:45,417 --> 00:14:47,519 And when they turn their back to me I got to be honest. 313 00:14:47,519 --> 00:14:49,104 I say mean things to them 314 00:14:50,839 --> 00:14:51,357 when they're back. 315 00:14:51,357 --> 00:14:53,642 I mean, there's one guy on staff I'm good friends with. He's a really good golfer. 316 00:14:53,642 --> 00:14:54,510 I tell him all the time, it's good 317 00:14:54,510 --> 00:14:57,513 that you're nice, or it would be very easy for me to hate you. 318 00:14:58,380 --> 00:14:58,731 Okay. 319 00:14:58,731 --> 00:15:02,167 It looks if I could describe a great golf swing in one word, 320 00:15:02,184 --> 00:15:04,520 you know what word I would use? 321 00:15:04,520 --> 00:15:07,189 Effortless. 322 00:15:07,189 --> 00:15:08,457 Effortless. 323 00:15:08,457 --> 00:15:10,893 I know it's not effortless. It just looks effortless. 324 00:15:10,893 --> 00:15:15,080 That kind of effortless growth is what Jesus is talking about. 325 00:15:16,282 --> 00:15:17,283 Healthy things grow. 326 00:15:17,283 --> 00:15:18,651 God does the growing. 327 00:15:18,651 --> 00:15:20,703 By the way, if you're here and you're a Christian, 328 00:15:20,703 --> 00:15:22,404 I know at this point you're probably struggling. 329 00:15:22,404 --> 00:15:24,239 You're like, that just doesn't that doesn't seem right. 330 00:15:24,239 --> 00:15:25,941 You know, it seems like I gotta try harder. 331 00:15:25,941 --> 00:15:28,193 I gotta, I gotta grip the clubs, I gotta swing harder. 332 00:15:28,193 --> 00:15:29,912 But just consider this. 333 00:15:29,912 --> 00:15:31,764 When you became a Christian, 334 00:15:33,082 --> 00:15:36,085 who did that? 335 00:15:37,202 --> 00:15:37,736 Isn't 336 00:15:37,736 --> 00:15:40,739 the starting point of our faith to quote the hymn? 337 00:15:40,823 --> 00:15:44,576 Nothing in my hands I bring simply to thy cross I cling naked. 338 00:15:44,576 --> 00:15:46,228 Come to thee for dress helpless. 339 00:15:46,228 --> 00:15:48,030 Come to thee for grace foul II. 340 00:15:48,030 --> 00:15:49,398 To the fountain fly. 341 00:15:49,398 --> 00:15:52,584 Wash me, Savior, or I die. 342 00:15:53,402 --> 00:15:55,471 That's the beginning point of our faith, right? Okay. 343 00:15:55,471 --> 00:15:57,773 What's the ending point of our faith? It's heaven. Right? 344 00:15:57,773 --> 00:15:59,458 Did you build heaven? 345 00:15:59,458 --> 00:16:02,461 Was that you? 346 00:16:02,578 --> 00:16:03,629 Know he did that. 347 00:16:03,629 --> 00:16:05,514 So let me get this straight. 348 00:16:05,514 --> 00:16:08,634 The beginning point of our faith is we come with nothing 349 00:16:08,634 --> 00:16:09,501 and he does all the work. 350 00:16:09,501 --> 00:16:12,504 The ending point of our faith is we live in a kingdom forever 351 00:16:12,504 --> 00:16:14,873 that he built, that we didn't contribute to at all. 352 00:16:14,873 --> 00:16:18,961 But we're so convinced that the interlude between that starting point 353 00:16:18,961 --> 00:16:21,630 and that finish point is nothing but gripping the club hard, 354 00:16:21,630 --> 00:16:24,083 swinging harder and putting forth the effort. 355 00:16:24,083 --> 00:16:24,950 Does that make sense to you? 356 00:16:28,587 --> 00:16:29,421 And I know, I 357 00:16:29,421 --> 00:16:32,424 know you're going, but I gotta do something. 358 00:16:33,442 --> 00:16:36,111 The Bible's full of do something, Zach, isn't it? 359 00:16:36,111 --> 00:16:38,063 What do I do? I knew you were going to ask that. 360 00:16:38,063 --> 00:16:39,198 That's why my third point. 361 00:16:39,198 --> 00:16:42,151 You're ready is this is your verb? 362 00:16:42,151 --> 00:16:44,119 Yeah, I know you need a verb. You need a verb. 363 00:16:44,119 --> 00:16:44,970 I'm going to give you a verb. 364 00:16:44,970 --> 00:16:48,323 Now, you know, if it's been a long time, maybe for some of us, since English class. 365 00:16:48,557 --> 00:16:50,492 What makes a verb a verb is? 366 00:16:50,492 --> 00:16:51,827 It's an action word, right? 367 00:16:51,827 --> 00:16:53,612 It's a word that describes action. 368 00:16:53,612 --> 00:16:55,497 Jump is a verb. 369 00:16:55,497 --> 00:16:56,882 Run is a verb. 370 00:16:56,882 --> 00:16:59,868 God help me. Swing is a verb. 371 00:17:00,152 --> 00:17:01,887 Okay, so. So you need a verb. 372 00:17:01,887 --> 00:17:03,622 Jesus gives us a verb. Look at verse four. 373 00:17:03,622 --> 00:17:05,991 This is your verb. This is what he wants you to do. 374 00:17:05,991 --> 00:17:07,860 All right, here's what he says. Verse four. 375 00:17:07,860 --> 00:17:09,445 Abide in me 376 00:17:11,296 --> 00:17:13,382 and I in you. 377 00:17:13,382 --> 00:17:15,050 Abide. It's interesting. 378 00:17:15,050 --> 00:17:17,302 That's not an English word we use very often. Right. 379 00:17:17,302 --> 00:17:20,572 So the Greek word behind it is the verb mino. 380 00:17:21,957 --> 00:17:23,509 And what, what mino. 381 00:17:23,509 --> 00:17:27,146 It's an interesting it's an action word technically, but. 382 00:17:27,229 --> 00:17:31,133 But what it really means is, is to stay, 383 00:17:32,634 --> 00:17:35,220 to remain, 384 00:17:35,220 --> 00:17:37,239 to sit in. 385 00:17:37,239 --> 00:17:40,759 In other words, what Jesus is saying is that healthy things grow. 386 00:17:40,759 --> 00:17:42,778 God does the growth. You go, what do I do? What do I do? 387 00:17:42,778 --> 00:17:45,781 Jesus is literally saying, 388 00:17:46,381 --> 00:17:49,368 sit with me. 389 00:17:52,071 --> 00:17:54,056 Sit with me. 390 00:17:54,056 --> 00:17:57,259 You see, Jesus is telling us that Christians don't grow by gripping. 391 00:17:57,326 --> 00:18:00,329 Gripping the club harder or swinging harder 392 00:18:00,629 --> 00:18:04,967 by sweating, by clenching our teeth, by our effort. 393 00:18:05,250 --> 00:18:07,703 He's saying, this is how you grow. 394 00:18:07,703 --> 00:18:09,588 Just be in my presence 395 00:18:11,073 --> 00:18:14,059 to sit in my presence. 396 00:18:14,159 --> 00:18:16,378 Just remain with me. Do you? 397 00:18:16,378 --> 00:18:22,017 What Jesus is saying is, I'm so wonderful, so powerful, so capable, 398 00:18:22,017 --> 00:18:25,938 that if you just sit in my presence, you're going to change. 399 00:18:26,004 --> 00:18:28,307 After all, consider this the fruit of the spirit. 400 00:18:28,307 --> 00:18:31,944 Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control. 401 00:18:31,944 --> 00:18:34,163 Who do those attributes remind you of? 402 00:18:34,163 --> 00:18:36,799 Those are literally the attributes of Jesus. 403 00:18:36,799 --> 00:18:39,918 What Jesus is saying is just sit, just stay, 404 00:18:39,918 --> 00:18:42,921 just remain and let me work. 405 00:18:44,223 --> 00:18:47,209 Now you might say, that's it. 406 00:18:47,726 --> 00:18:50,729 It's not as easy as it sounds, right? 407 00:18:51,747 --> 00:18:54,750 In a world of distraction, in a world of anxiety, 408 00:18:54,917 --> 00:18:57,803 there's so many things that want to take me out of the presence 409 00:18:57,803 --> 00:19:00,806 of Jesus, including my own effort. 410 00:19:01,590 --> 00:19:03,408 Jesus is just sit with me. 411 00:19:03,408 --> 00:19:03,959 Listen, friends. 412 00:19:03,959 --> 00:19:09,181 This means if if the pathway to growth is to just be in relationship with Jesus. 413 00:19:09,181 --> 00:19:11,066 By the way, if you're not a Christian, this is why we say 414 00:19:11,066 --> 00:19:13,802 all the time it's not about religion, it's about a relationship. 415 00:19:13,802 --> 00:19:17,122 Because Christianity begins with us saying, I can't do anything. 416 00:19:17,156 --> 00:19:18,540 Jesus saying I can't. 417 00:19:18,540 --> 00:19:21,176 It ends with us saying we can't do anything. 418 00:19:21,176 --> 00:19:22,561 Jesus saying I can't. 419 00:19:22,561 --> 00:19:25,197 And in between that we say, I can't do anything. 420 00:19:25,197 --> 00:19:28,167 And Jesus says, I can't. We sit at his feet. 421 00:19:28,167 --> 00:19:29,785 He does the changing. 422 00:19:29,785 --> 00:19:33,355 But friends, if that's true, that means the most spiritually damaging 423 00:19:33,355 --> 00:19:36,441 thing in your life might just be your smartphone. 424 00:19:39,144 --> 00:19:42,147 Because is it not a constant just 425 00:19:42,631 --> 00:19:45,534 pull your way. 426 00:19:45,534 --> 00:19:46,018 Jesus. 427 00:19:46,018 --> 00:19:49,021 Sit in my presence. 428 00:19:49,438 --> 00:19:51,857 Your verb is to stay with me. 429 00:19:51,857 --> 00:19:55,377 Look at me, be in relationship with me, sit with me. 430 00:19:55,377 --> 00:19:58,197 And I know, I know, I know. If you're like me, you grew up in church is so hard. 431 00:19:58,197 --> 00:20:01,283 You like you, me, you got to do some stuff. 432 00:20:02,551 --> 00:20:03,952 What about prayer? 433 00:20:03,952 --> 00:20:05,070 What am I reading? The Bible. 434 00:20:05,070 --> 00:20:05,988 What about fasting? 435 00:20:05,988 --> 00:20:08,290 What about journaling? What about the spiritual disciplines? 436 00:20:08,290 --> 00:20:08,874 Zach. 437 00:20:08,874 --> 00:20:09,958 Great. Great point. 438 00:20:09,958 --> 00:20:12,144 Good job. Great question. 439 00:20:12,144 --> 00:20:13,345 Let me use a metaphor. 440 00:20:13,345 --> 00:20:16,682 I one of my favorite things to do is to go on a date night with my wife. 441 00:20:16,915 --> 00:20:19,618 I love we love to go to new restaurants. Okay, I love to eat. 442 00:20:19,618 --> 00:20:20,569 I love my wife. 443 00:20:20,569 --> 00:20:22,704 Put those things together. That's great. 444 00:20:22,704 --> 00:20:26,792 Okay, now we have a rule that we've adopted over time 445 00:20:26,792 --> 00:20:30,145 that when we go on a date, Zack's phone goes in Amy's purse. 446 00:20:30,896 --> 00:20:33,048 That's because I also like to work. 447 00:20:33,048 --> 00:20:33,632 So it goes in. 448 00:20:33,632 --> 00:20:35,701 The purse has to go in her purse. Right? 449 00:20:35,701 --> 00:20:38,704 Let me just free marriage advice. Men. 450 00:20:38,787 --> 00:20:40,672 Let me understand. Let me help you out with something. 451 00:20:40,672 --> 00:20:41,840 I contact 452 00:20:43,308 --> 00:20:46,311 leads to other contact 453 00:20:46,378 --> 00:20:48,063 free marriage advice. 454 00:20:48,063 --> 00:20:50,899 Be present. 455 00:20:50,899 --> 00:20:52,918 So? So my wife says, look, we're on a date. 456 00:20:52,918 --> 00:20:54,319 I want I want you with me. 457 00:20:54,319 --> 00:20:54,987 You're here with me. 458 00:20:54,987 --> 00:20:57,055 Don't check your email. Don't take your phone. Beer with me. 459 00:20:57,055 --> 00:21:00,626 But ever since we adopted that rule, when we go to dinner, I look around. 460 00:21:00,626 --> 00:21:04,263 I'm telling you, at least half the couples there are on their phone. 461 00:21:07,132 --> 00:21:08,600 And many. 462 00:21:08,600 --> 00:21:10,469 Again, it's not a marriage sermon. 463 00:21:10,469 --> 00:21:13,472 You lead, put your phone away. 464 00:21:14,489 --> 00:21:15,407 But listen. 465 00:21:15,407 --> 00:21:18,110 Technically, listen, technically, 466 00:21:18,110 --> 00:21:21,113 we're all engaging in the same activity, right? 467 00:21:21,563 --> 00:21:24,116 We're all on a date night with our spouse. 468 00:21:24,116 --> 00:21:27,469 Technically, we will show up to work on Monday and say, how is your weekend? 469 00:21:27,469 --> 00:21:29,071 We will both say, I was good. 470 00:21:29,071 --> 00:21:30,656 I went to dinner with my wife. 471 00:21:30,656 --> 00:21:32,457 Do you think we're both growing in our marriage? 472 00:21:34,493 --> 00:21:36,928 You see, my point? 473 00:21:36,928 --> 00:21:39,181 You see prayer, 474 00:21:39,181 --> 00:21:42,684 Bible reading, journaling, fasting. 475 00:21:42,801 --> 00:21:45,804 They're not the point. 476 00:21:46,188 --> 00:21:48,256 What Jesus is saying when he says 477 00:21:48,256 --> 00:21:52,127 Menno Abide is he's saying, listen, this is why I want you to pray. 478 00:21:52,344 --> 00:21:55,547 I want you to sit in my presence and pour out your heart to me. 479 00:21:57,349 --> 00:22:01,169 I want you to sit in my presence and believe that I want good for you. 480 00:22:01,169 --> 00:22:02,454 I have good for you. 481 00:22:02,454 --> 00:22:04,106 This is why I want you to read the scriptures, 482 00:22:04,106 --> 00:22:05,807 because I want you to sit in my presence, 483 00:22:05,807 --> 00:22:07,909 and I want to pour out my wisdom into you. 484 00:22:07,909 --> 00:22:09,528 This is why I want you to fast. 485 00:22:09,528 --> 00:22:13,432 Because in fasting, you're going to be reminded that I'm all you need. 486 00:22:13,432 --> 00:22:15,050 This is why I want you to journal. 487 00:22:15,050 --> 00:22:18,587 Because when you journal, you'll look back on a year and go look at all 488 00:22:18,587 --> 00:22:22,224 the growth God has produced in me. 489 00:22:22,257 --> 00:22:26,611 You see, those things are not the point abiding, 490 00:22:26,611 --> 00:22:30,499 staying, remaining, sitting with Jesus. 491 00:22:30,499 --> 00:22:31,583 That's the point. 492 00:22:33,118 --> 00:22:36,088 That's how we grow. 493 00:22:36,088 --> 00:22:40,108 You can do those things and be on a date night on your phone and Miss 494 00:22:40,459 --> 00:22:43,462 Jesus entirely. 495 00:22:44,479 --> 00:22:46,398 Look, if you doubt this, consider this 496 00:22:46,398 --> 00:22:49,735 I bet just 20 years of pastoral experience. 497 00:22:49,735 --> 00:22:50,152 Let me guess. 498 00:22:50,152 --> 00:22:51,803 It's something that the period 499 00:22:51,803 --> 00:22:54,990 of greatest growth in your relationship with Jesus was the beginning. 500 00:22:56,608 --> 00:22:57,325 Do you know why? 501 00:22:57,325 --> 00:22:58,977 Do you know why that is? 502 00:22:58,977 --> 00:22:59,361 Think about it. 503 00:22:59,361 --> 00:23:02,364 What did you know then? 504 00:23:02,447 --> 00:23:03,382 What did you know to do? 505 00:23:03,382 --> 00:23:05,967 How good of you were you at prayer? 506 00:23:05,967 --> 00:23:07,652 Reading the Bible, right? 507 00:23:07,652 --> 00:23:10,622 You knew nothing except for this. 508 00:23:10,622 --> 00:23:13,608 You wanted to be with him. 509 00:23:15,410 --> 00:23:17,546 That's it. 510 00:23:17,546 --> 00:23:19,464 You wanted to be with him. 511 00:23:19,464 --> 00:23:21,566 That period of growth that you experienced, 512 00:23:21,566 --> 00:23:24,753 the beginning of your faith, is the life you're meant to know. 513 00:23:25,921 --> 00:23:26,571 But somewhere 514 00:23:26,571 --> 00:23:29,574 along the way, someone got in your ear and said, 515 00:23:29,691 --> 00:23:32,694 grip the grip the club a little tighter. 516 00:23:33,662 --> 00:23:36,081 Keep your head down, 517 00:23:36,081 --> 00:23:39,084 swing a little harder. 518 00:23:40,852 --> 00:23:43,855 And that's why we're so tired. 519 00:23:45,474 --> 00:23:47,642 Healthy things grow. 520 00:23:47,642 --> 00:23:49,194 You're meant to grow. 521 00:23:49,194 --> 00:23:51,213 Growth is not your job. 522 00:23:51,213 --> 00:23:54,349 Your job is to sit at the feet 523 00:23:56,101 --> 00:23:59,988 of the Son of God, who is your source of God the Father, 524 00:23:59,988 --> 00:24:05,360 who's your gardener of God, the spirit who will produce fruit in your life. 525 00:24:05,360 --> 00:24:09,798 Let me pray for you, father God, thank you so much for meadow. 526 00:24:09,798 --> 00:24:11,633 What a verb. 527 00:24:11,633 --> 00:24:13,702 What a verb. 528 00:24:13,702 --> 00:24:15,020 God, we want to earn. 529 00:24:15,020 --> 00:24:18,023 We want to achieve some of us. 530 00:24:18,356 --> 00:24:20,192 And this is the hardest thing you could say to us. 531 00:24:20,192 --> 00:24:22,494 You could ask us to do anything and we would do it. 532 00:24:22,494 --> 00:24:25,680 But to ask us to stop doing us so hard. 533 00:24:25,997 --> 00:24:27,682 Others of us, we're so tired. 534 00:24:27,682 --> 00:24:28,650 We're so exhausted. 535 00:24:28,650 --> 00:24:30,719 We're like, they're like me at the driving range. 536 00:24:30,719 --> 00:24:33,054 They're sweating. Their their hands are hurting. 537 00:24:33,054 --> 00:24:35,724 They just want to give this stupid thing up. 538 00:24:35,724 --> 00:24:38,693 Wherever we find ourselves on that continuum. 539 00:24:38,693 --> 00:24:41,613 Holy spirit, would you show us the beauty of Jesus? 540 00:24:41,613 --> 00:24:45,233 Would you root in our hearts the truth of the old hymn which said, 541 00:24:45,317 --> 00:24:50,639 turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, 542 00:24:50,839 --> 00:24:54,809 and the things of this earth will grow strangely dim, 543 00:24:55,610 --> 00:24:58,947 and the light of his glory and grace. 544 00:24:59,731 --> 00:25:01,967 In Jesus name we pray. Amen.