Series: Signs & Glory
Title: How do I live as a disciple of Jesus today?
Subtitle: Part 1
Scripture: John 15:1-6 NIV, Isaiah 5, Psalm 80
Bottom Line: A disciple of Jesus today is growing to be and do like Jesus, while abiding in him, and leading others to do the same.
INTRODUCTION
CONTEXT
SERMON OUTLINE
CONCLUSION
NOTES
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
MAIN REFERENCES USED
Opening prayer: Lord God, help us grow to be and do like Jesus, while abiding in him and leading others to do the same.
INTRODUCTION
"(Jesus said from the cross), 'Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.' That young man—I forgive him. I forgive him, because it is what Christ did, and it is what Charlie would do." Erika Kirk
Cf. Members of Mother Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston forgave the murderer of their family members (Dylan Roof). (2015)
Cf. Tim Allen forgiving his father after hearing Erika Kirk forgiving the young man who assassinated her husband Charlie.
Jesus loved and forgave his enemies as they were executing him.
What does a disciple of Jesus look like today? Well, these examples are a good place to start. They loved their enemies and forgave them.
Bottom Line: A disciple of Jesus today is growing to be and do like Jesus, while abiding in him, and leading others to do the same.
Draw the matrix showing that high or Christlike character and high competency results in spiritual fruitfulness forever.
CONTEXT
Jesus's disciples are deeply troubled because they have just heard 3 things:
One of them will betray Jesus,
Jesus is about to leave them and go where they cannot go, and
Peter will deny Jesus 3 times that night.
He's taught them again to love each other as he has loved them
He's told them his spirit will come and empower them to do all that he's taught them to do
He's coming back (resurrected, as his spirit, second coming)
They leave the upper room where they've had their feet washed, heard all of this, and now they're heading to the garden of gethsamene to pray and be arrested.
OUTLINE (w/ help from Matt Carter & ChatGPT)
Bottom Line: A disciple of Jesus today is growing to be and do like Jesus, while abiding in him, and leading others to do the same.
Transition: This passage breaks down into 2 sections: 1) True disciples bear fruit, and 2) What that fruit looks like. We'll follow that with how we bear this spiritual fruit that lasts.
I. True Disciples of Jesus Today Bear Spiritual Fruit that will last. (15:-1-6)
7th of 7 "I am" statements
I am the bread of life
I am the light of the world
I am the gate
I am the good shepherd
I am the resurrection and the life
I am the way, the truth and the life
I am the true vine
Not "a" but "the"
"True vine" implies that there are "false vines"
While the vineyard was a picture of Israel (Isaiah 5, Psalm 80), Jesus says it's a false vine because they produced "sour, inedible grapes". Jesus is the True Vine.
Jesus is also the true Israel or God and man in fellowship through Jesus Christ. -Johnston
Fruitfulness = Living to our God-given potential out of the overflow of our relationship with Jesus.
God calls Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply. (Genesis 1:28) "The fruitfulness that was lost thorugh the Fall, is recovered through Christ and his redemption." -Johnston
"The recovery of true fruitfulness in life is bound up in the recovery of fellowship with God through Jesus Christ." -Johnston
Jesus connects fruitfulness to fellowship.
We are Grace Christian FELLOWSHIP. That is we are a people connected in fellowship to one another through our fellowship with Jesus Christ.
The Point: "The path to God doesn't go through the nation of Israel; it goes through Jesus." -Carter
It's about union with Jesus. (Connection to the true vine)
Jesus is the True Vine, Father is the Vinedresser, we are the branches.
2 types of disciples:
Living and (alive in Christ)
Dead (never exercised saving faith; Ex. Judas Iscariot); "They hang around Jesus without a genuine, life-giving relationship with him." False disciples will be cut off and burned in judgment.
If you are alive in Christ, God will do his part to insure you are fruitful--pruning is key:
Dead wood
Good wood that will decrease fruitfulness if not removed
God's commitment to your fruit-bearing > Your commitment to comfort
"God will do whatever it takes for you to bear fruit. John Newton, the great eighteenth-century English pastor and songwriter, began a letter this way:
'At length, and without further apology for my silence, I sit down to ask you how you fare. Afflictions I hear have been your lot; and if I had not heard so, I should have taken it for granted: for I believe the Lord loves you, and as many as He loves He chastens.
I think you can say, afflictions have been good for you, and I doubt not but you have found strength according to your day; so that, though you may have been sharply tried, you have not been overpowered.'" -Newton, Amazing Works, 156-57
True disciples abide or remain connected to Jesus. Ex. Like a branch drawing life-giving sap from the vine is essential to life and fruit-bearing.
“Here Jesus introduced that rich word abide, which has to do with remaining close to Him. Jesus declared that our productivity, our fruitfulness, is directly linked to our abiding in Him. As Christians, we will bear fruit, but it will vary in degree. The closer we stay to Christ, the more fruit we will bear. The more we wander out from the center and neglect the means of grace that He has given to us, the less fruit we will produce” -RC Sproul
"People who claim to be Christians but do not show evidence of his life flowing through them will be cut off, gathered up nd burned." V. 6
"A fruitless disciple is not a disciple at all."- Carter
How does God cause us to bear spiritual fruit? Through his word.
II. Spiritual Fruit in a Disciple of Jesus today looks like this: (15:7-17)
A. Answered prayer--this happens because of the union with Jesus. The "sap" is the back and forth communication. "My words remain in you" (7)
Jesus speaks through his word. God prunes and cleans through his word (3).
We respond in prayer. Where there is prayer, there are answers. God listens to his people.
It looks like breathing. "When the Holy Spirit is pulsing through you, you pray without thinking. You just talk to God." -Carter
Prayer is as important to the soul as breathing to the body.
B. Obedient love--we obey because we love.
Our love flows from our obedience. Obedience is the evidence of love.
A persistently, willfully, disobedient person is not a Christian.
What's cool here is that even though Jesus is our King and has every right to demand our obedience, he doesn't treat us like slaves. He sees us as friends. Slaves are given commands without explanation. Jesus invites us into his inner circle. He shares his friendship and explains what he's doing. Not always as much as we'd like but he tells us what the Father says to him. (14-15)
C. Inexhaustible joy--Jesus, who fills our Dixie cup/cone cup with joy, immerses our Dixie cup of joy into his ocean of joy.
Happiness is dependent on your circumstances. Joy transcends your circumstances.
Examples
Paul in Prison (Philippians 1:12–21; 4:4)
Happiness: No one would be happy about being chained up, falsely accused, and awaiting trial. His circumstances were bleak.
Joy: Paul still wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). His joy was rooted in Christ being proclaimed and in knowing that “to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” His joy transcended his imprisonment.
The Apostles Beaten (Acts 5:40–42)
Happiness: After being flogged by the Sanhedrin, they weren’t happy about the pain or humiliation.
Joy: They “rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.” Joy came from sharing in Christ’s sufferings and being faithful witnesses.
Jesus on the Cross (Hebrews 12:2)
Happiness: The cross was excruciating, shameful, and horrific—nothing about it was happy.
Joy: Yet Hebrews says Jesus endured it “for the joy set before him”—the joy of redeeming us, glorifying the Father, and sitting down at His right hand.
Job Loss
Happiness: Losing your job doesn’t make you happy. The stress, loss of income, and uncertainty feel heavy.
Joy: A believer can still have joy by trusting God’s provision, remembering His past faithfulness, and resting in His promises. Joy looks like saying, “This is hard, but I know God is still with me and will provide,” even while updating your résumé.
It's no coincidence that Jesus follows, "If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love" (10) with, "I have told you this so that my joy may be in your and that your joy may be complete." (11) "Joy comes through obedience." -Carter
👉 In short: Happiness is when circumstances go your way. Joy is when your heart goes God’s way—even when circumstances don’t.
D. Sacrificial love--how is this demonstrated? Well, in a way that costs us.
Jesus loved his Father as demonstrated in his perfect obedience to go and die on the cross for the sins of the world.
Jesus calls us to love one another in this way--as he has loved us.
An apple tree bears apples.
An orange tree bears oranges.
A follower of Jesus Christ bears loves, prays and obeys Jesus.
E. Friendship with Jesus. No longer slaves.
F. Desire to bear fruit that will last forever.
III. How do we bear spiritual fruit that will last?
We train to remain (abide) in Jesus Christ by:
Leaning into his pruning (2)
Remembering he picked me!
Obeying his word
Hear it regularly
Read it daily
Study it (reading with a pencil/pen or highlighter)
Memorize it (Ps 119:11)
Meditate on it (focused thinking)
Loving Jesus obediently
Loving Jesus sacrificially
Praying with confidence that he hears and answers our prayers
Bottom Line: A disciple of Jesus today is growing to be and do like Jesus, while abiding in him, and leading others to do the same.
Conclusion
As I said before one fruit of the spirit is answered prayer. And God answers specific prayer specifically. Try him on this. Ask for specific prayers to be answered this week in accordance with his Will with a heart that is bent towards his desires. Watching him work!
God's Benefit Package by Nicky Gumbel
I rediscovered one of my prayer diaries in which I recorded some of my early experiences of answered prayer.
On 26 September 1976, I wrote about a prayer for my mother: ‘Prayed for the Lord to heal her insomnia.’ (I did not tell her I was praying for her.)
Exactly three months later, on 26 December 1976, I wrote that my mother ‘says she has slept better in the last few weeks than for four years and it is no longer a problem’.
Of course, it is not possible to prove Christianity on the basis of answers to prayer, because cynics can always explain them away as coincidence.
But as former Archbishop of Canterbury William Temple said, ‘When I pray, coincidences happen; when I don’t, they don’t.’
The cumulative effect of answered prayer is to reinforce our faith in God.
Over the last thirty years, I have written by the New Testament passage for today some of my prayers for the year ahead. It is amazing to think back and remember the ways in which God has answered so many of these prayers. I find it very easy to forget all the answers to prayer. It is so easy to forget blessings. David reminds himself in the psalm for today *not to forget* ‘*all his benefits*’ (Psalm 103:2). Many are conscious of the ‘benefits’ they receive associated with their employment, or from the state. But what about the ‘benefits’ that we receive from our loving heavenly Father?
INVITATION
What about you?
Peter puts it all in perspective in his first sermon:
““Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”” Acts 2:36-39 NIV
How do we respond? Answer 2 questions:
Take out a card or piece of paper right now. Write down the answer to these questions:
What is God saying to me right now?
What am I going to do about it? Write this down on a sheet of paper.
What I hear you saying, Lord, is ___________________.
[my name] is going to believe/do __________________________________________________ as a result.
Finally, share this with your Home or Mission group this week when you gather as a testimony about what God is doing in your life. You don’t have to get too specific to give him praise.
Lord's Supper, 1 Cor 11:23-26 is good passage.
Also, say something like, "Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again." (past, present, and future)
Pray
NOTES
“I’m sure that everyone reading this book has been touched by the death of a loved one. I have; by the mercy of God, both of my parents died at home in bed. My mother slipped away at night when I was asleep, but I was next to the bed, more than fifty years ago, when my father breathed his last. I watched death in front of my eyes, and in that moment I lost the person who meant more to me than any person on the face of the earth. When it happened, something stabbed my soul, causing me to say: “This is insane. This can’t be real. He must merely be sleeping. O God, will he live again?”
R.C. Sproul
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
What do I want them to know?
Why do I want them to know it?
What do I want them to do?
Why do I want them to do it?
How do they do this?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Discovery Bible Study process: https://www.dbsguide.org/
Read the passage together.
Retell the story in your own words.
Discovery the story
What does this story tell me about God?
What does this story tell me about people?
If this is really true, what should I do?
What is God saying to you right now? (Write this down)
What are you going to do about it? (Write this down)
Who am I going to tell about this?
Find our sermons, podcasts, discussion questions and notes at https://www.gracetoday.net/podcast
Alternate Discussion Questions (by Jeff Vanderstelt): Based on this passage:
Who is God?
What has he done/is he doing/is he going to do?
Who am I? (In light of 1 & 2)
What do I do? (In light of who I am)
How do I do it?
Final Questions (Write this down)
What is God saying to you right now?
What are you going to do about it?
MAIN REFERENCES USED
“John,” by R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word Commentary, Edited by Kent Hughes
Exalting Jesus in John, by Matt Carter & Josh Wredberg
The Gospels & Epistles of John, FF Bruce
John, RC Sproul
John, Köstenberger
The Gospel According to John, DA Carson
Let's Study John, Mark Johnston
The Light Has Come, Leslie Newbigin (TLHC)
The Visual Word, Patrick Schreiner (TVW)
“Look at the Book” by John Piper (LATB)
“The Bible Knowledge Commentary” by Walvoord, Zuck (BKC)
“The Bible Exposition Commentary” by Warren Wiersbe (BEC)
Thru The Bible with J. Vernon McGee (TTB)
Outline Bible, D Willmington (OB)
NIV Study Bible (NIVSB) https://www.biblica.com/resources/scholar-notes/niv-study-bible/
Chronological Life Application Study Bible (NLT)
ESV Study Bible (ESVSB) https://www.esv.org
The Bible Project https://bibleproject.com
Nicky Gumbel bible reading plan app or via YouVersion
ChatGPT AI
Grok AI
Google Gemini AI
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