Lately I've been asking God to make His direction for my life crystal clear. I've been seeking bold instruction so that I am sure and confident that I am following Him and not my own ideas or plans. Today the Holy spirit brought something to me that I needed to hear and commit to my heart. I pray that this can bless some of you as well.
I watched a sermon on YouTube about overcoming temptation. The pastor speaking made a point that as believers we need to be "remaining in the Word". He talked about the Temptation of Christ. The Enemy quoted scripture in order to make a case for Christ to give in to temptation. Albeit, he twisted the scripture in the process. One of the important things to remember about this passage is that Christ quoted scripture back in opposition to the Devil's ploy to get Him to submit. Christ didn't just know the Word, He had the Word living inside of Him.
Another point that was brought up during the sermon was that Christ learned obedience through the Word of God. We don't usually think of Christ having to learn anything, but instead as a teacher. He is called 'Rabbi' (teacher) many times, and while He was a teacher, He had to learn just like the rest of us. Why? Simple. Christ came down and took the form of man. He had to learn to crawl and walk as a baby, He learned to build by becoming a carpenter, and He learned and studied the Word as well:
Luke 2:41-46
41 Every year His parents traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival.
42 When He was 12 years old, they went up according to the custom of the festival.
43 After those days were over, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but His parents did not know it.
44 Assuming He was in the traveling party, they went a day’s journey. Then they began looking for Him among their relatives and friends.
45 When they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for Him.
46 After three days, they found Him in the temple complex sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
47 And all those who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers.
So Jesus Himself was an avid student of the Word of God. He abided in the Word. He remained in the Word. But he didn't just remain in the Word by reading and studying. He LIVED the Word. He obeyed the will and commands of the Father.
After watching the sermon on YouTube I visited the website of the church to pursue some of the material they advertised at the end of the video. I couldn't find the course that was advertised, but what I did find was, front and center of the website, a video labeled in big bold letters:
"STAY IN THE WORD"
(There's that word again, "stay", "abide", "remain"). I kind of chuckled to myself and said "Okay Holy Spirit. I guess the word of the day is 'stay'". At that moment my plans for the day were altered according to God's will.
Originally I was going to watch the sermon and then play guitar for a while afterward. I clicked on the video and attempted to watch it. It was on a live stream either just beginning or just ending because I scrolled through the video and all that would play was a B-roll screensaver of promotional content for the church. Here's the funny thing, initially as I had first read "Stay in the Word" my spirit immediately knew that I should turn off the computer and go straight to my bible. Instead I told myself I'd watch this other sermon and then begin reading. But, that wasn't part of the plan. I scrolled back and forth several times on the video but the sermon was unavailable. On top of that the sound wasn't working. I conceded and in my heart listened to what the Holy Spirit was saying. He gave me all the instruction I needed at that moment with just the title of the video. So I grabbed my phone and opened up my bible app and began reading.
I had currently been reading the book of John after my store manager had given me a ride home from work one night and we began talking about God and the Word. He was telling me that his favorite book of the Gospels was John, because of John's close proximity and intimate relationship with Christ. He really was passionate about the book and even gave me a study guide on John that I could use. Again, the Holy Spirit making God's will bold and crystal clear: "READ JOHN".
So I was in the book of John for a few days, reading and meditating. I even watched the movie 'The Gospel of John' just to engross myself even further.
I had left off on John 12:37 and began reading there after receiving this message of "abide in the Word", "Stay in the Word". From this point I simply thought that this was a general command from God. It wasn't until chapter 14, that the scripture was illuminated and the a bigger picture began to form.
I read "Stay in the Word" as "Be diligent in reading the bible everyday". The message that God was about to reveal was much larger than that.
John 14:15 says:
“If you love Me, you will keep My commands.
This seemingly simply verse jumped off of the page at me and became the introduction to what God meant by "Stay in the Word".
I continued reading up to John 14:21, which says:
21 The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him.”
Now this passage jumped off of the page as well, not only because it echoes verse 15, but also because of the phrase "loved by God".
My name is Jedediah. It means "a friend of God" and "beloved of God". From time to time the Lord will remind me of the name I have been given and minister to me. This was one of those times, but in an especially deep way.
If my name means "loved by God" then according to John 14:21 it also means that I love Jesus Christ. And if I love Jesus Christ then according to verse 21 I am to KEEP THE COMMANDS OF CHRIST. Whoa... I never thought about my name in that context. My name is not only a reminder of God's love, but also a reminder to remain obedient. By the definition given in verse 21 I am also loved by Christ and can expect Him to reveal Himself to me. Whew! Mind. Blown.
So I meditated on this for a while and just communed with the Holy Spirit and then continued reading on. John 14:23-24 echoes the teaching in verse 21:
23 “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
24 The one who doesn’t love Me will not keep My words. The word that you hear is not Mine but is from the Father who sent Me.
Again we are told 'If' we love Christ we will keep His word. The Father will also love us and They will make Their home with us. But if we don't love Christ we will not keep His word. What are the implications of this passage? Well first and foremost loving Christ and the Father isn't just something that we profess with our mouths.
Mark 7:6-9 says:
6 He answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written:
These people honor Me with their lips,
but their heart is far from Me.
7 They worship Me in vain,
teaching as doctrines the commands of men.
teaching as doctrines the commands of men.
8 Disregarding the command of God, you keep the tradition of men.”
9 He also said to them, “You completely invalidate God’s command in order to maintain your tradition!
John 14:21, and 23-24 make the points that we love God through keeping His commands. Mark 7 shows the Pharisees in complete opposition to that doctrine:
- "These people honor me with their lips but their heart is far from me."
- "Disregarding the command of God,"
- "You completely invalidate God's command"
So even though they professed to be Godly and to love God, they were made liars because they did not obey the commands of God, but instead followed the traditions of men.
John 14:24 clearly states that:
24 The one who doesn’t love Me will not keep My words. The word that you hear is not Mine but is from the Father who sent Me.
In the case of the Pharisees they rejected the Word of Christ in an effort to cling to the Word of God, thinking in their own minds that Jesus was not of God. But as Christ says in verse 24, the word isn't His own but is from the Father who sent Him. If you reject the Son you reject the Father.
Jesus taught that our love for Him and the Father is directly connected to our obedience to His commands and teachings. Not simply professing the Word (as we noted in the Temptation of Jesus, even the Devil can profess the Word) but by living the Word, in other words, obeying it.
Verse 26 of John 14 let's us know that God sends the Holy Spirit in the name of Christ to remind us of the things Jesus taught. The Holy Spirit can help us and counsel us in obeying and living out the Word of God. Just like Christ only taught what the Father gave to Him, likewise the Holy Spirit counsels us and reminds us of the same things.
The next verse that reinforces this teaching is verse 31 (John 14):
31 On the contrary, I am going away so that the world may know that I love the Father. Just as the Father commanded Me, so I do.
There's that doctrine again. Christ loves the Father because what the Father commands Christ does. Love and obedience are intimately intertwined in the relationship between man and God.
And just to be clear, in the passage, Christ kind of downplays what's really about to happen and accepts it humbly. He says that He is "going away" so that the world may know He loves the Father. That phrase "going away" can be equated to the most brutal torture and crucifixion that you could imagine. He layed down His life for us in complete obedience to God. That's how we know Jesus, the man, loved the Father.
Moving forward to John 15:1-8 we are given an illustration by Christ of a vineyard keeper, a vine, and a branch. Keep in mind, the Holy Spirit was leading me with the words "abide", "stay" , "remain". Again, I originally thought, "Oh yeah, remain in the Word", as in, reading my bible.That's definitely part of it, but listen to this illustration that Christ gives:
1 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vineyard keeper.
2 Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, and He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit.
3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
4 Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.
6 If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you.
8 My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be My disciples.
The word "remain" is used seven times in this passage. At this point the Holy Spirit was really putting the pieces together for me. He gave me this note:
Remaining in the Word doesn't only mean to read the Word and meditate on it. Remaining in the Word also means that we are DOING what God's Word says. We are LIVING the Word out in our lives.
Verse 2 says that every branch that does not produce fruit He (the Father, the Vineyard Keeper) removes. How is it possible that we don't produce fruit if we are in Christ? Isn't He the 'true vine'? Yes He is, but like most of our problems, the blame isn't on God, it's on us.
Verse 4 gives us the answer:
4 Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me.
The problem isn't that we are in Christ. The problem is that we are not remaining in Him. When we have long seasons of backsliding and develop or redevelop lifestyles that are self-serving we are not remaining. We are not abiding in Him. We may still believe in Him. We may still be convicted and feel the chastening of the Holy Spirit, but we are not remaining in Him. Living in such a state makes it impossible for us to produce fruit.
Verse 5:
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.
Let Verse 6 be a sobering reality for you:
6 If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
If we do not remain in the Lord we are thrown aside, but not only that, we wither. We lose all life and vitality spiritually. Then we are gathered up and thrown into the fire.
You know who else is gathered up and thrown into the fire? The tares, in the parable of the wheat and the tares. In the parable we are told that the tares are the children of the wicked one or the evil one. It stands to reason that if we are not in Christ and He is not in us then we are following the way of the Devil. Not only can we not serve two masters, we HAVE to serve one or the other. There is no middle ground. A lot of people (Christians included) would claim that they don't serve the Devil, but if you aren't serving God then by default you're serving the Enemy.
2 Timothy 2:24-26:
24 The Lord’s slave must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient,
25 instructing his opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth.
26 Then they may come to their senses and escape the Devil’s trap, having been captured by him to do his will.
We are either carrying out the will of God or the will of the Devil.
John 15:7 says:
7 If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you.
This time verse 7 puts a different, perspective on what Jesus has been teaching. First it was "If you remain in Me, and I in you...", now it's "If you remain in me and My words remain in you...".
Remember what John 14:23 said?:
23 “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word.
The word 'keep' is tērēo in Greek. It means 'to observe', 'to hold', or 'to fulfill a command'. If we observe and hold on to God's Word by fulfilling His commands we will remain in Him and He in us. When we do this it becomes proof of our love for God and His son. Likewise our lives will produce much fruit which verse 8 (John 15) says 'gives glory to God'.
If you haven't got the full picture yet, Jesus goes on to reinforce His teaching again in verses 9 and 10 of John 15:
9 “As the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you. Remain in My love.
10 If you keep My commands you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commands and remain in His love.
Verse 9, once again, gives us the directive: "Remain in My love."
And verse 10 gives us the instruction on how to complete that directive: "If you keep my commands you will remain in My love."
These two verses continue to illustrate that the love between man and God is predicated on keeping His Word/His commands.
Verse 10 ends with:
10 just as I have kept My Father’s commands and remain in His love.
Like so many other lessons that Christ taught, He has set the example and we are to follow His lead.
Looking at verses 12-14 of John 15, we see a continuation of the concept of Christ's love:
12 This is My command: Love one another as I have loved you.
13 No one has greater love than this, that someone would lay down his life for his friends.
14 You are My friends if you do what I command you.
This passage brings the revelation of my name (Jedediah) full circle. As I stated before, Jedediah means "a friend of God" and "beloved of God". Earlier I showed how according to scripture I am loved by God when I keep His commands. John 15:13-14 fulfills the same requirement of obedience in regards to being a friend of God. Verse 13 says that there is no greater love than someone laying down his life for his friends, which is exactly what Christ did for me and for all who believe. Verse 14 is the caveat: "You are my friends if you DO WHAT I COMMAND YOU."
So both definitions of the name Jedediah (being loved by God and being a friend of God) hinge on the stipulation that I am obedient to God. This requirement of obedience is extended to all who seek to be connected to 'the true vine', Jesus Christ. I just find it fascinating that the Holy Spirit has broken this down in a way that reflects the name I was given! So cool!
So do you love God?
Before you answer yes, ask yourself, are you obeying His commands?
Are you staying in His Word? Not just the reading of it or knowing of it, but the carrying out of His Word in your life.
Are you remaining in Jesus?
Are you observing, holding on to, and fulfilling His commands?
If there is sin in your life then the answer is no.
I don't mean stumbling. I mean continuous, intentional sin that has dominion over you. Sin that holds a higher value to you than God does. If that's you then you are not remaining in 'the true vine' and you will cease from producing fruit. The fruit that would otherwise be bringing glory to the Father. You will be thrown aside and cast into the fire.
Whatever sin you have in your life you need to confess it before God and ask for forgiveness. Ask for God's mercy and grace to be granted to you, and call on Jesus to wash you in His redeeming blood. Then as Christ said, "Go, and sin no more".
We were meant to love God and love one another. This is only accomplished by reading and being filled with the Word, committing It to our hearts and minds, and LIVING THE WORD.
We are only friends of the Father and friends of Jesus Christ if we are obedient. We do not want to be the sons of disobedience, to whom is appointed the wrath of God (Colossians 3:6), but instead the sons of obedience.
Repent.
Seek God.
Spread the Gospel.
Love one another.
Amen.
