Sermonette: March 26, 2018

By Rev. Kevin Libby

Bethel Assembly of God

One of my favorite passages in scripture comes from the first several verses of the John 15. In chapter 12, we see the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. He then begins to teach his followers several things, knowing that he is about face death on the cross. He has told them of his death and betrayal, and is about to tell them that because the world has hated him, they will also hate his followers. In chapter 15, Jesus wants to remind his followers of the importance of remaining connected to the source of their faith.

John 15:4-5 says, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

The passage is titled in the NIV Bible as “The Vine and the Branches” and is a powerful illustration of the need to stay connected to the source of our faith, Jesus. I think we understand the reality that if we cut a branch off of a tree that it will die because it has lost its source of nutrition, its source of life. The same thing happens when we are cut off from the source of our faith.

So how do we stay connected? How do we remain in him? Here are a few thoughts I wrote down years ago. I find that they help me through the years to remain in Christ.

First I am learning to set aside the kind of time that is necessary to build a relationship. My wife and I will celebrate 13 years of marriage in May, not very long honestly, but we have made it this far by spending time together. In order to build a deep quality relationship with someone you have to make time for him or her. The same goes with our relationship with Jesus. It takes time. It doesn’t just magically happen.

What does that time look like? I spend time in the Bible, in prayer and in worship. Now there are other things that are important like serving others and sharing our faith. But I believe that as we spend time with Jesus, we will begin to grow in the rest of our faith.

Colossians 3:16a (NLT) says “Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives.” The words of the Bible are filled with life and faith, and we need to fill our lives with the richness of those words. In reading the Bible, let us remember to not read for information, but to read in order to meet with Jesus.

When I mention prayer and worship I’m not just talking about reciting well-known prayers or songs, although that can definitely be a part of our time. The latter part of Romans 12:12 says “be constant in prayer.” In prayer we should find a place of talking and listening, a place of honesty, a place of relationship. I am finding more and more that worship is everything that I do. Our entire lives can be seen as acts of worship. May we see our entire day as times of seeking God and times of worship.