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This afternoon, I'd like us to camp out

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in the Gospel of John, Chapter 15, for

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it is rich with treasure just waiting to

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be dug up.

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I have preached out of this chapter numerous

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times and have called this chapter various names

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such as the Abiding Chapter, the Pruning Chapter,

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and the Fruit-Bearing Chapter, for one can

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see those applications throughout the 15th chapter of

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John.

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The abiding element of staying in a close

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walk with God, and apart from Him, you

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can do nothing.

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We can do much in the name of

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religion, with money and manpower.

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That seems to be the way most Baptists

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like to operate.

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But listen, friends, nothing can be accomplished for

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God of any eternal worth unless we are

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so connected and yielded to the divine that

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Jesus can work through us in remarkable ways

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that impact eternity.

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And this chapter can also be viewed as

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the pruning chapter, where God strips us, prunes

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us of things which hinder the work of

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God through our lives, where the master pruner

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takes out his pruning knife on me and

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strips away everything and anything displeasing to Him,

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useless to Him, so I can be a

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more abundant fruit-bearing vessel.

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So this chapter can also be called the

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Fruit-Bearing Chapter.

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And every time I have preached through John

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15 in the past, I have approached it

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from the viewpoint of me and my relationship

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with God, how I need to dwell and

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abide with Him more in a close walk

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with Him.

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The very word abide in the Greek is

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the word meno, which means to continue to

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dwell in a certain place, to endure, to

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remain, to stand, to tarry.

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So I have always, in past times, preached

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out of John chapter 15 and how it

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relates to me and how I can be

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a more productive Christian for God.

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But I believe the message I'm going to

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bring you this afternoon is much more than

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that, much more deeper than that, because what

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I am to glean from John chapter 15

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is not about me, nor about you, but

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about God and His glory.

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You see, friends, John chapter 15, when properly

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viewed, is a God-honoring, God-glorifying portion

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of Scripture.

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It is God who gets the glory from

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our lives of fruitful service.

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Jesus declares in verse 8, Herein is my

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Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit, so

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shall ye be my disciples.

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And that is the approach I want us

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to pursue this afternoon as we study John

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chapter 15.

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I want us to see how God is

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the great object of this chapter, God and

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His glory.

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The title of my message today is A

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Life Lived for His Glory.

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I want to begin by reading you this

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important passage of Scripture, so please turn in

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your Bibles to the Gospel of John chapter

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15.

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We're going to be in verses 1 through

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8.

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I would like you to focus on this

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passage and the rich truth it contains, for

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I know it's easy to have your thoughts

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drift away and wonder when a familiar passage

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of Scripture is being read, because you feel

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you already know its contents, and therefore you

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don't have to pay attention as closely.

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But friends, you will only cheat yourself by

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your lack of concentration.

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Let us begin.

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Here now is the word of God, I

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am the true vine, and my Father is

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the husbandman.

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Every branch in me that beareth not fruit

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he taketh away, and every branch that beareth

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fruit he purgeth it, that it may bring

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forth more fruit.

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Now ye are clean through the word which

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I have spoken unto you.

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Abide in me, and I in you, as

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the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except

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it abide in the vine.

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No more can ye except ye abide in

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me.

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I am the vine, ye are the branches.

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He that abideth in me, and I in

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him, the same bringeth forth much fruit, for

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without me ye can do nothing.

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If a man abide not in me, he

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is cast forth as a branch, and is

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withered, and men gather them, and cast them

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into the fire, and they are burned.

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If ye abide in me, and my words

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abide in you, ye shall ask what ye

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shall ask, and ye will, and it shall

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be done unto you.

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Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear

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much fruit, so shall ye be my disciples.

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As the Father hath loved me, so I

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have loved you.

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Continue ye in my love.

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If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide

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in my love, even as I have kept

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my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

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These things have I spoken unto you, that

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my joy might remain in you, and that

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your joy might be full.

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We will stop there, and now examine this

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striking passage of the word of God.

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This scene of this narrative has been the

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subject of much debate by scholars.

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Now where this discourse by Jesus occurred is

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a matter of conjecture.

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Some suppose that after the words arise, let

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us go hence, that the disciples still lingered

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at the table in the upper room, for

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it was at this mealtime hour that Jesus

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had begun to prepare his disciples for his

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departure.

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John is the narrator, and it was he

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who rested his head on his master's bosom

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as they reclined at the table, so he

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was privy to hearing every word that fell

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from the lips of Jesus.

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Jesus was the master illustrator.

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Often he would use common everyday objects to

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illustrate his message.

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In this case it is the vine.

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Now those scholars who believe the discourse was

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given while the men were still in the

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upper room state that the vine was suggested

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by some external object like the cup of

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wine which they had recently partaken, or a

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vine whose tendrils had crept into the room

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through the open window, or perhaps the reference

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was to the view of the vineyards outside

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below in the light of the moon.

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Other Bible commentators take the words arise, let

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us go hence to mean that they had

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all left the upper room and were making

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their way to Gethsemane, so the discourse about

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the vine and the branches was spoken, as

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Jesus often would do, walking and talking, and

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teaching them along the way as they went,

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in this case as they made their way

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to the Garden of Gethsemane.

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Those Bible scholars who believe that the discourse

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took place on the way to the Mount

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of Olives and Gethsemane visualize the walk down

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to the Kidron for we find in John

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chapter 18 and verse 1 these words, when

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Jesus had spoken these words he went forth

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with his disciples over the brook Kidron where

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there was a garden into the which he

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entered and his disciples.

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So some scholars suppose that along the way

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to the brook Kidron they encountered vineyards which

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they walked through and Jesus drew the figure

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from the vineyards and the fires burning along

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the sides of the Kidron Valley in order

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to consume the vine cuttings.

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That is striking imagery isn't it?

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Whatever the circumstances or surroundings were we see

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a vivid picture of the vine and the

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branches.

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Now the wording in the Greek of verse

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1 reads something like this, I in contradistinction

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to anyone else am the genuine vine and

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my father is the tiller of the soil.

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This in itself speaks of the uniqueness of

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Jesus Christ and the sovereignty of God.

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There is no one like Jesus and God

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is the creator of all things and he

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takes an active interest in what he has

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created by being the tiller of the soil,

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the keeper of all things.

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So with these things in mind let us

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approach John chapter 15 from the viewpoint that

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it is about God and his glory.

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God is the tiller of the soil.

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A vineyard called for harder and more regular

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work than any other form of agriculture.

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Constant pruning of the vine is necessary for

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the grapes to grow to full maturity.

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God's purpose and activity in our lives is

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played out through our own lives as we

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serve him.

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His plans are carried out through our surrendered

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lives.

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When we yield to his divine pruning knife

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upon us we do so to be less

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like ourselves and more like Jesus.

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When God takes out his pruning knife on

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a backslider it's to bring him back into

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sweet fellowship with him, more usefulness for him.

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And when we suffer for Christ it brings

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God glory.

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Listen friends, the focus of John chapter 15

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is not ourselves but God himself, our chief

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end in life is the glory of God.

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We today with our brand of Christianity which

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is man-centered takes all the focus off

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of God and puts it on ourselves.

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We selfishly read our Bibles to find an

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encouraging word.

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We selfishly serve God to bring attention and

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acknowledgement to ourselves for our achievements.

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We do so and so so we can

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be in charge and tell others what to

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do.

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But here we err miserably for the whole

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purpose of being a Christian is to bring

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glory to God.

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There is no other matter on earth of

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any importance rather than a life lived for

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his glory.

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Even our soul winning activities are not so

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we can brag about how many people we've

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led to the Lord but to be humbled

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in that God would even deem to use

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such a worm as myself to be a

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witness for him, a life lived for his

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glory.

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That should be our theme and constant object.

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So this passage from John chapter 15 in

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verses 1-8 is about our being part

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of God's redemptive plan for mankind and that

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God demands that we obey him and be

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fruitful for him and that is how he

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receives glory from us.

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Herein is my Father glorified that ye bear

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much fruit so shall ye be my disciples.

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That little word be is a mistranslation it

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should read become so shall ye become my

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disciples.

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The life of discipleship is an ongoing process

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that never ceases until we get to glory.

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In the meantime we must abide in Christ

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through a life of surrender and obedience.

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We must keep his commandments for he orders

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us to do so.

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We are objects of God's mercy and salvation

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for Christ says in verse 16 ye have

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not chosen me but I have chosen you

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that ye should go and bring forth fruit

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and that your fruit should remain.

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Our life of yieldedness to God will result

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in a life of usefulness to him and

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keep this in mind friends we do not

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produce the fruit spoken of here in chapter

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15 it is God who brings forth fruit

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through us for anything of any eternal worth

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is from him and not from us.

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Listen friends I had to learn this very

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hard lesson in my Christian life.

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My Christian life is not about serving God

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and doing all I can for him and

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wearing myself out for him and his service.

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Rather it is staying connected to Jesus my

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vine in such a life of utter surrender

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that the result is a close walk with

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God and a life God can use to

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bring him glory by working through me.

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The more God uses me the more glory

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he receives from me.

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A life lived for his glory is the

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only life to live.

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It is not the amount of our activity

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in the name of God but our obedience

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to him in keeping his commands and being

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doers of the word for when God moves

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through our faithfulness and obedience to him he

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receives glory.

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The fruitful Christian is the one who has

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met the conditions of abiding me and the

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essence of abiding in the vine is a

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life of fellowship with Jesus and usefulness to

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God.

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The great object of John chapter 15 is

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verse 1 I am the true vine and

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my father is the husbandman.

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The ongoing activity of the life of the

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believer found in John chapter 15 is our

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yielded life to Christ by honoring him with

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our lives and the purpose of John chapter

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15 is to bring God glory through a

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surrendered life in Christ.

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Do you see that my friends?

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Do you believe that?

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I hope you do.

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Let us pray.

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Lord Jesus you are the genuine vine for

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there is no one like you.

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You are altogether different from any other.

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You are the source of our life for

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apart from thee we can do nothing absolutely

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nothing nothing of any eternal worth.

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Take out your pruning knife Lord God and

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have mercy upon us.

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Strip us of anything and everything that is

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offensive to thee.

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Make us more useful to thee.

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Grant us the grace to be more faithful

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to thee.

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Lord if there was someone here who was

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out of fellowship with thee I pray right

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now that you will extend a grace of

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repentance to them so their joy can once

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again be full.

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Use each one of us Lord Jesus in

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a greater capacity for thee.

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Work through us great God and produce your

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fruit through us to bring you glory.

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May we never forget that a life lived

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for your glory is the greatest privilege on

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earth.

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Give us great grace to bring you glory.

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Amen.