1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:06,600 Welcome to Harbor West. My name is Tyler. Today's our last Sunday in our sermon series that we've been. 2 00:00:06,600 --> 00:00:14,720 It's called What You're Looking For. And so for the past five Sundays now, we've been going through the I Am statements of Jesus in John. 3 00:00:16,040 --> 00:00:22,780 And it's been said, He's the bread of life. He's the light of the world. He's the door. He's the good shepherd. 4 00:00:23,320 --> 00:00:25,540 He's the way, the truth, and the life. 5 00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:31,680 And this morning, we're going to be looking at the very last I am statement of Jesus in the book of John. 6 00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:35,600 So if you have a Bible, go ahead and turn to John 15. 7 00:00:36,380 --> 00:00:39,320 If you're using one of the Bibles underneath the chair in front of you, 8 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:42,780 John 15 is going to be on page 958. 9 00:00:44,860 --> 00:00:45,160 All right. 10 00:00:46,220 --> 00:00:49,060 Before we get into today's text, I have a question. 11 00:00:50,460 --> 00:00:53,300 Who's ready for winter in Hawaii? 12 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:54,780 Who's ready for winter? 13 00:00:55,140 --> 00:00:55,680 By show of hands. 14 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:05,940 all right if you're if you're expectantly waiting for for winter uh just like me maybe you're a 15 00:01:06,100 --> 00:01:10,720 surfer i don't know or maybe you're just you just like being hot i i don't know whatever the case is 16 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:19,120 but um it's actually uh this season with it being at the the end of august and about to be in 17 00:01:19,420 --> 00:01:23,859 september uh it's put me in this weird funk because i know holidays are right around the corner 18 00:01:24,380 --> 00:01:25,520 like Christmas is so close 19 00:01:26,580 --> 00:01:27,840 but it's still a little too early 20 00:01:28,120 --> 00:01:29,280 to break out the tree 21 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:33,280 and I think 22 00:01:33,860 --> 00:01:35,840 I think part of the reason why I've been feeling 23 00:01:36,120 --> 00:01:37,220 just okay 24 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:39,880 like I'm not, nothing's wrong 25 00:01:40,920 --> 00:01:42,040 but nothing has been that 26 00:01:42,300 --> 00:01:43,900 great either and I think the 27 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:45,440 reason why I'm feeling that way is because 28 00:01:45,840 --> 00:01:47,760 I'm ready to experience the joy 29 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:49,160 of the holiday seasons 30 00:01:50,119 --> 00:01:51,740 and some of you might know 31 00:01:51,980 --> 00:01:53,279 exactly what that feels like 32 00:01:53,620 --> 00:01:56,380 catching little moments of joy here and there, 33 00:01:56,540 --> 00:01:59,760 almost like a little snack that you munch on, 34 00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:02,140 but it doesn't really fully satisfy you 35 00:02:02,720 --> 00:02:05,860 like a good steak and potato meal normally does. 36 00:02:07,020 --> 00:02:12,840 And I wonder if maybe the reason why we're not feeling that joy 37 00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:15,580 a lot of the times is because we're convinced 38 00:02:15,740 --> 00:02:16,840 that there's something better. 39 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:21,479 If you're honest, feeling Jesus kind of feels more like a duty 40 00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:24,400 and an obligation than your delight. 41 00:02:25,580 --> 00:02:28,220 Maybe it's something your parents did, you did now, 42 00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:30,420 but now you're just coasting, 43 00:02:31,519 --> 00:02:34,740 waiting to experience that type of joy. 44 00:02:37,220 --> 00:02:38,100 Maybe you do believe it. 45 00:02:39,100 --> 00:02:42,560 Maybe you're just tired of waiting for that joy to show up. 46 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:44,920 You're tired of hearing about this joy, 47 00:02:45,010 --> 00:02:46,100 but not feeling it. 48 00:02:46,100 --> 00:02:49,420 And so in the meantime, you've decided to just coast. 49 00:02:50,640 --> 00:02:56,220 You decided to chase other things that give you results right now, 50 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:00,040 even if they only last for a moment. 51 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:06,740 But what if following Jesus and making him our delight 52 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:15,100 is how we experience humongous, large amounts of joy 53 00:03:16,160 --> 00:03:21,140 and to pursue anything or anyone else apart from Jesus 54 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:28,200 is how we deny ourselves the opportunity to experience the most joyful life possible. 55 00:03:30,240 --> 00:03:31,280 That's how Jesus sees it. 56 00:03:32,180 --> 00:03:35,880 If you look at verse 11 of the text that we're reading today, 57 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:41,580 Jesus finishes giving all of us all of these I am statements. 58 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:46,960 He gives all of the I am statements and then he finishes off with, 59 00:03:48,090 --> 00:03:55,840 I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. 60 00:03:56,840 --> 00:04:00,280 And so that is what Jesus is offering you this morning. 61 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:03,460 The most joyful life possible. 62 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:07,360 The type of joy that you don't have to wait on until Christmas. 63 00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:11,920 The type of joy that you can experience this morning. 64 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:15,020 and so I'm going to pray that this would be true for us. 65 00:04:17,400 --> 00:04:20,299 Father, we thank you that you don't keep it a secret 66 00:04:21,060 --> 00:04:23,640 how to experience joy in this life. 67 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,740 But Lord, we know that if we don't find our joy through you 68 00:04:29,500 --> 00:04:32,180 and we try to find our joy through other things, 69 00:04:33,840 --> 00:04:39,319 that we are never going to experience the full abundant amount of joy 70 00:04:39,880 --> 00:04:41,940 that we were always meant to experience. 71 00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:46,080 And so Lord, would you open our eyes 72 00:04:46,820 --> 00:04:48,400 and our hearts this morning 73 00:04:49,210 --> 00:04:51,680 so that we would be able to see you clearly 74 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:55,720 and so that we could be filled with your joy. 75 00:04:56,980 --> 00:04:58,780 We ask all of this in Jesus' name. 76 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:00,280 Amen. 77 00:05:03,140 --> 00:05:06,180 All right, here's the last I am statement in John. 78 00:05:07,180 --> 00:05:10,040 Again, we're looking at John 15, verse one. 79 00:05:10,950 --> 00:05:12,160 So let's read together. 80 00:05:13,580 --> 00:05:17,960 I am the true vine and my father is the gardener. 81 00:05:19,040 --> 00:05:23,000 Now, remember, Jesus is saying all of these things. 82 00:05:23,180 --> 00:05:24,180 I am the bread of life. 83 00:05:24,460 --> 00:05:25,240 I'm the good shepherd. 84 00:05:25,420 --> 00:05:26,920 I'm the way, the truth, and the life. 85 00:05:27,520 --> 00:05:31,800 I am the true vine because he wants his joy to be in us. 86 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:34,500 He wants our joy to be complete. 87 00:05:35,620 --> 00:05:37,880 And that's why he wants us to know that he's the true vine, 88 00:05:38,380 --> 00:05:43,600 because that's how we receive large amounts, unlimited amounts of joy. 89 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:50,100 But the question is, what does Jesus actually mean by this? 90 00:05:51,160 --> 00:05:56,500 Now, a lot of us might be quick to assume that he's talking about his relationship with us, 91 00:05:56,700 --> 00:05:59,480 the type of relationship that Jesus has with his followers. 92 00:06:00,960 --> 00:06:02,340 And that's certainly part of it. 93 00:06:03,080 --> 00:06:07,240 But to properly understand and appreciate what Jesus is saying, 94 00:06:07,930 --> 00:06:12,100 we have to have a solid understanding of the Old Testament scriptures. 95 00:06:13,940 --> 00:06:18,720 The symbol of a vine is deeply rooted in the Old Testament. 96 00:06:19,500 --> 00:06:23,620 It's used to represent God's people, Israel. 97 00:06:25,140 --> 00:06:30,480 Whenever you read through Psalm 80, you see that God calls Israel the vine. 98 00:06:30,680 --> 00:06:33,240 It says that he brought a vine out of Egypt. 99 00:06:34,800 --> 00:06:36,500 That's how Israel came into being. 100 00:06:36,840 --> 00:06:40,300 Out of a harsh and desolate, hostile environment, 101 00:06:40,660 --> 00:06:42,500 God establishes life. 102 00:06:43,540 --> 00:06:45,080 He establishes his vine. 103 00:06:47,980 --> 00:06:49,100 That's what he did, right? 104 00:06:49,620 --> 00:06:50,520 He rescued them. 105 00:06:51,120 --> 00:06:52,340 He redeemed them from slavery. 106 00:06:53,060 --> 00:06:54,500 He led them through the wilderness. 107 00:06:55,760 --> 00:06:58,400 He gave them a land to call their own. 108 00:06:59,520 --> 00:07:02,920 Out of nothing, God planted a vine. 109 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:04,660 He planted an entire nation of people. 110 00:07:05,840 --> 00:07:06,740 But here's the catch. 111 00:07:07,780 --> 00:07:11,480 Every single time God calls Israel the vine, 112 00:07:12,180 --> 00:07:13,700 it's always a rebuke. 113 00:07:15,680 --> 00:07:17,000 Israel was supposed to be a vine. 114 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:17,800 He told them multiple times. 115 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:23,480 He told them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 116 00:07:25,580 --> 00:07:26,880 But they failed to be that blessing. 117 00:07:28,260 --> 00:07:29,140 They worshiped idols. 118 00:07:29,260 --> 00:07:32,900 and failed to be the life-given source, 119 00:07:33,330 --> 00:07:35,960 the source of life that they were created to be. 120 00:07:37,180 --> 00:07:39,260 And in Jeremiah, God rebukes them. 121 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:45,400 He calls them, he calls his entire nation of people wild and corrupt vines. 122 00:07:45,930 --> 00:07:49,180 And so this language of the vine continues all throughout the Bible, 123 00:07:50,300 --> 00:07:53,840 but it's always used in a negative sense. 124 00:07:54,660 --> 00:07:59,500 It's always used to highlight the worthlessness of his people. 125 00:08:01,180 --> 00:08:06,920 And so now in John 15, Jesus picks up using the same language and the same metaphor, 126 00:08:07,440 --> 00:08:11,560 only now the symbol that was previously used to rebuke his people, 127 00:08:13,060 --> 00:08:16,680 he's using to represent his nature, who he is. 128 00:08:18,300 --> 00:08:20,940 He's saying that life is found through me now. 129 00:08:21,560 --> 00:08:24,300 It was supposed to be you, it was supposed to be Israel, 130 00:08:26,660 --> 00:08:29,420 but you can't bring life to yourself. 131 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:32,300 And so look no further. 132 00:08:33,159 --> 00:08:33,599 I'm here. 133 00:08:35,060 --> 00:08:35,979 I'm the true vine. 134 00:08:37,039 --> 00:08:38,000 I'm the source of life. 135 00:08:39,840 --> 00:08:43,000 If you come to me and find life through me, 136 00:08:43,560 --> 00:08:45,820 you're going to find everything that you're looking for. 137 00:08:46,240 --> 00:08:50,620 But if you try to find life through anything or anyone else, 138 00:08:51,740 --> 00:08:52,820 you're going to wither away. 139 00:08:55,260 --> 00:09:00,080 And Jesus, he says that to them, but he's also saying that to all of us here. 140 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:02,640 Life is found through Jesus. 141 00:09:03,060 --> 00:09:05,500 Joy, complete joy is found through Jesus. 142 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:15,500 But by calling himself the true vine, he's also telling us something extremely practical about who he is. 143 00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:21,740 He's telling us that if you stay connected to me, 144 00:09:23,520 --> 00:09:26,760 you're gonna experience the most abundant joy. 145 00:09:27,190 --> 00:09:30,260 And it's not just a metaphor that we can think about. 146 00:09:30,480 --> 00:09:33,240 He actually gives us practical instructions 147 00:09:33,370 --> 00:09:34,600 on how to live this out 148 00:09:35,620 --> 00:09:38,880 so that we can continue to stay connected to Jesus 149 00:09:39,830 --> 00:09:42,380 in a way that's actually life-giving. 150 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:46,460 You can be connected to Jesus. 151 00:09:47,520 --> 00:09:50,740 in a way that actually doesn't bring you life, 152 00:09:52,660 --> 00:09:58,440 doesn't bring you joy or happiness or love or patience or kindness. 153 00:10:00,760 --> 00:10:05,540 And so to stay connected to Jesus in a way that actually brings us life, 154 00:10:05,780 --> 00:10:10,380 he gives us the instructions right in front of us in the text of how to actually do this. 155 00:10:10,940 --> 00:10:15,800 And so the first way that we stay connected to Jesus is through dependent. 156 00:10:16,720 --> 00:10:16,980 on Jesus. 157 00:10:26,780 --> 00:10:28,040 He's showing us something 158 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:30,480 really important. 159 00:10:31,800 --> 00:10:33,460 He's showing us the type of relationship 160 00:10:33,680 --> 00:10:34,760 that we should be having with him. 161 00:10:35,340 --> 00:10:37,340 A relationship of complete 162 00:10:37,860 --> 00:10:38,080 dependence. 163 00:10:39,660 --> 00:10:41,300 He wants us to depend 164 00:10:41,580 --> 00:10:43,280 on him and depend on his 165 00:10:43,600 --> 00:10:45,480 resources every single day. 166 00:10:46,940 --> 00:10:47,960 not just when we need him, 167 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:51,880 not just when we call out and cry out for his help. 168 00:10:53,460 --> 00:10:57,220 And so that can be hard for a lot of us to accept 169 00:10:57,420 --> 00:11:00,780 because we live in a country where independence is valued, 170 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:06,160 but admitting that you need help is viewed as weakness. 171 00:11:08,080 --> 00:11:09,260 That's not how Jesus sees it. 172 00:11:10,000 --> 00:11:11,959 He's actually telling us to depend on him 173 00:11:11,960 --> 00:11:16,940 because he's the only one that can actually supply us with what we need. 174 00:11:17,320 --> 00:11:21,420 And so dependent on Jesus and his resources, it's not weakness. 175 00:11:22,980 --> 00:11:23,440 It's wisdom. 176 00:11:26,140 --> 00:11:29,940 Because our tendency is to do the exact opposite. 177 00:11:30,820 --> 00:11:35,900 We like to attach ourselves to weaker and lesser vines 178 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:41,100 instead of attaching ourselves fully to Jesus. 179 00:11:41,900 --> 00:11:52,980 We attach ourselves to money and the bank account, to our relationships, our reputation, and we turn to God as a last-ditch effort. 180 00:11:55,740 --> 00:11:59,460 That type of connection to Jesus isn't actually life-giving. 181 00:12:00,780 --> 00:12:06,420 We need to be connected to Jesus in a way that gives us life. 182 00:12:07,400 --> 00:12:15,340 in a real practical and tangible way that we can experience love, patience, joy, kindness, 183 00:12:16,440 --> 00:12:21,660 all the fruits of the Spirit. He's saying that if you attach yourself to me, that can be yours too. 184 00:12:23,740 --> 00:12:30,280 And so that's why Jesus talks a lot about money and he talks about possessions and not loving your 185 00:12:30,620 --> 00:12:35,640 family more than you love him. It's not because any of those things are bad, but it's that 186 00:12:35,620 --> 00:12:45,100 sometimes we depend on those things more than we depend on Jesus. We depend on Jesus maybe here and 187 00:12:45,200 --> 00:12:54,060 there, but not on some things. We rather place our trust in other vines instead of dependent on him. 188 00:12:54,240 --> 00:13:03,140 And what Jesus is saying, depend on me always. And God actually warns us that any other vine that 189 00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:08,220 we attach ourselves, whether that's money, whether it's our marriages or our jobs or our careers, 190 00:13:09,340 --> 00:13:14,900 anything that it may be that we attach ourselves to, and it does not produce fruit because it's 191 00:13:15,240 --> 00:13:20,140 coming apart from Jesus, he's saying that those things will be removed from our lives. 192 00:13:21,780 --> 00:13:27,700 He's saying that we're going to get cut. That's what verse 2 says. Jesus says, 193 00:13:39,860 --> 00:13:45,160 See, gardeners sometimes have to remove damaged and diseased branches 194 00:13:46,300 --> 00:13:50,320 so that their plants, their crop can be healthy. 195 00:13:51,780 --> 00:13:52,900 That's what pruning is. 196 00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:56,040 And God sometimes does that for us too. 197 00:13:57,080 --> 00:13:58,220 And it's extremely painful. 198 00:14:00,240 --> 00:14:06,300 he removes things out of our life he cuts them out like bad habits 199 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:16,040 excessive comfort things that we idolize and attach ourselves to and that we place more trust 200 00:14:16,040 --> 00:14:24,099 and stock in them instead of placing our trust and dependence in him that hurts sometimes but 201 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:30,900 he removes those things so that we can trust him more, so that we can depend on him more 202 00:14:31,260 --> 00:14:34,340 and grow us more into the image of Christ. 203 00:14:37,460 --> 00:14:43,120 Does that because he loves you and he knows what's best for you. Because when all you have 204 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:52,619 is him to depend on, you're positioning yourself to receive the resources that only an all-powerful 205 00:14:52,640 --> 00:15:04,780 God can give. He wants you to ask for them. Look at verse 7. If you remain in me, my words remain 206 00:15:04,950 --> 00:15:15,060 in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. And so family, Jesus's resources are 207 00:15:15,420 --> 00:15:20,860 infinitely better than anything that the rest of the world can give you because when he tells us 208 00:15:20,760 --> 00:15:29,820 to ask him for anything, he's given us the full green light to the resources that only he can give. 209 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:38,520 Think about all the amazing things we can ask Jesus for. His strength, the same strength 210 00:15:39,250 --> 00:15:48,079 that allowed him to carry our sin and our brokenness. He carried that all the way to the cross 211 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:49,380 Because he was strong. 212 00:15:50,250 --> 00:15:54,500 And so he's inviting us to be able to experience that same type of strength. 213 00:15:54,770 --> 00:15:56,880 Think about his resurrection power. 214 00:15:57,320 --> 00:16:02,780 The same power that allowed him to perform miracles and defeat death. 215 00:16:04,580 --> 00:16:06,000 He invites us into that too. 216 00:16:07,580 --> 00:16:14,020 Jesus was the happiest person, the most joyful person to live on this earth. 217 00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:22,440 And what he's saying, if you look back at verse 11, he's saying, that's yours too, if you ask for it. 218 00:16:23,820 --> 00:16:25,780 And so that's the condition. 219 00:16:26,470 --> 00:16:30,200 We have to continue to pray and to continue asking. 220 00:16:30,920 --> 00:16:37,180 Because we don't have access to any of these things if we don't ask and we don't remain in Jesus. 221 00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:43,160 And so we have to continue dependent on him for everything through prayer. 222 00:16:44,340 --> 00:16:51,640 That is how you experience a true connection, a real authentic connection to Jesus. 223 00:16:52,790 --> 00:16:56,680 One of my favorite authors, Paul David Tripp, he says this about prayer. 224 00:16:58,500 --> 00:17:03,160 Prayer is surrender to the reality that you need help. 225 00:17:05,360 --> 00:17:09,560 Prayer is surrender to the reality that you need help. 226 00:17:11,339 --> 00:17:16,860 When you pray, you're trusting in God and his ability 227 00:17:17,760 --> 00:17:19,600 more than you're trusting in your ability 228 00:17:20,180 --> 00:17:23,699 and other weaker vines to provide you what only he can provide. 229 00:17:25,199 --> 00:17:28,880 And so that's how we stay connected to him in a life-given way. 230 00:17:29,980 --> 00:17:33,600 And so the second way that we stay connected is actually quite simple. 231 00:17:34,780 --> 00:17:37,260 We stay connected by remaining. 232 00:17:39,760 --> 00:17:42,620 We stay connected by remaining in Jesus. 233 00:17:44,460 --> 00:17:46,660 Look at the first three words of verse four. 234 00:17:48,400 --> 00:17:50,680 Remain in me. 235 00:17:51,920 --> 00:17:54,660 If you translate this from the original Greek, 236 00:17:54,820 --> 00:17:58,500 the instructions that were given by Jesus is actually quite simple. 237 00:17:58,550 --> 00:17:59,120 It's clear. 238 00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:01,420 He's saying, continue with me. 239 00:18:01,820 --> 00:18:03,040 Remain in me. 240 00:18:04,360 --> 00:18:06,500 And it's so simple, but it's so important 241 00:18:06,650 --> 00:18:08,440 because that's what we forget. 242 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:09,300 Right? 243 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:15,920 Jesus literally in this short amount of words in this passage, 244 00:18:16,010 --> 00:18:18,000 he says the word remain 10 times. 245 00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:26,700 10 times he says, remain in me, depend on me, trust in me, continue with me. 246 00:18:28,560 --> 00:18:33,040 And so he's trying to show us that that's the most important part of following Jesus, 247 00:18:34,140 --> 00:18:35,280 remaining in Jesus. 248 00:18:36,360 --> 00:18:39,680 Being able to receive the life-given gifts from Jesus 249 00:18:40,240 --> 00:18:43,560 is completely dependent on us staying attached to him. 250 00:18:45,260 --> 00:18:45,840 Look at verse five. 251 00:18:48,780 --> 00:18:52,160 I am the vine, you are the branches. 252 00:18:53,780 --> 00:18:56,780 The one who remains in me and I in him 253 00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:02,800 produces much fruit because you can do nothing without me. 254 00:19:05,160 --> 00:19:13,400 If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. 255 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:19,680 They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 256 00:19:23,200 --> 00:19:29,020 Family, remaining in Jesus is how we continue to stay healthy. 257 00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:33,040 It's how we continue to thrive. 258 00:19:33,560 --> 00:19:37,620 If you're disconnected from Jesus this morning, that's an emergency. 259 00:19:38,880 --> 00:19:44,920 Because being connected to him is the only way that you can actually receive life and joy. 260 00:19:47,860 --> 00:19:50,900 How many of you are good at keeping plants alive by show of hands? 261 00:19:53,600 --> 00:19:55,100 Yeah, I know, Amy, you're really good at it. 262 00:19:55,900 --> 00:19:56,420 Yeah, a handful. 263 00:19:56,780 --> 00:19:57,620 All right, so I'm not alone. 264 00:19:58,380 --> 00:20:02,420 There's people out there that have no problems murdering their plants, right? 265 00:20:03,740 --> 00:20:04,540 thank God for my wife. 266 00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:07,420 She's the only one that actually remembers to water them. 267 00:20:07,730 --> 00:20:10,840 And so if it was up to me, they'd be completely dead. 268 00:20:12,980 --> 00:20:17,600 But the point is, not once have I seen my wife 269 00:20:17,790 --> 00:20:20,560 go up to one of the plants and say, 270 00:20:20,740 --> 00:20:22,300 hey, don't go anywhere. 271 00:20:25,340 --> 00:20:25,560 Why? 272 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:29,480 Because plants don't have a problem 273 00:20:29,740 --> 00:20:31,840 with remaining attached to the plant. 274 00:20:32,620 --> 00:20:36,020 branches, sorry, don't have a problem remaining attached to the plant. 275 00:20:37,320 --> 00:20:38,100 But that's not us. 276 00:20:39,020 --> 00:20:41,800 We're a special kind of branch. 277 00:20:42,600 --> 00:20:48,720 We're the kind of branch that moves around and likes to go for a walk and wander off. 278 00:20:50,380 --> 00:20:51,200 And that's the issue. 279 00:20:52,920 --> 00:20:58,880 We wander away from Jesus and we forget that we can't live without the vine. 280 00:21:00,740 --> 00:21:03,500 That's why he uses the word remain 10 times. 281 00:21:04,910 --> 00:21:07,260 And that's a daily reminder for all of us. 282 00:21:08,820 --> 00:21:10,200 Remaining attached to Jesus 283 00:21:10,440 --> 00:21:12,960 is not something that just happens passively. 284 00:21:14,300 --> 00:21:16,500 You have to fight for it every single day. 285 00:21:20,040 --> 00:21:23,400 And so there are two things that we can do 286 00:21:23,950 --> 00:21:26,480 to fight to remain in Jesus. 287 00:21:27,240 --> 00:21:28,180 And the first is this, 288 00:21:28,620 --> 00:21:31,520 We have to remain in his word. 289 00:21:33,420 --> 00:21:34,000 Look at verse seven. 290 00:21:34,460 --> 00:21:37,400 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, 291 00:21:37,620 --> 00:21:38,520 ask whatever you want. 292 00:21:38,860 --> 00:21:40,800 And what Jesus is saying here is that 293 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:46,200 this goes way beyond just simply flipping through your Bible. 294 00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:53,220 He wants his words to live inside of you. 295 00:21:55,720 --> 00:21:56,420 But here's the challenge. 296 00:21:58,539 --> 00:22:03,420 A lot of people open their Bible just to study it like a textbook, 297 00:22:04,440 --> 00:22:08,260 to gain more academic knowledge and know more things about God, 298 00:22:09,120 --> 00:22:13,340 or maybe open their Bibles to seek inspiration and motivation, 299 00:22:14,390 --> 00:22:21,900 but never really give God's word the space to take root in their hearts, 300 00:22:22,400 --> 00:22:25,920 to make a room, to make a home within their hearts. 301 00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:27,540 And that's what Jesus wants. 302 00:22:27,550 --> 00:22:30,960 He wants his words to actually live inside of you 303 00:22:31,860 --> 00:22:34,080 and become a part of who you are. 304 00:22:35,200 --> 00:22:39,020 That's how you stay connected to Jesus in a life-given way. 305 00:22:40,500 --> 00:22:42,980 You stay connected by remaining in his words 306 00:22:43,200 --> 00:22:46,840 and allowing them to become a part of who you are. 307 00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:51,280 And so that's how we stay attached. 308 00:22:51,480 --> 00:22:54,540 In Psalm 119, the reason why David was able to say, 309 00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:58,460 the law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces, 310 00:22:58,720 --> 00:23:00,540 because that was true for him. 311 00:23:02,680 --> 00:23:04,820 God's words lived inside of him. 312 00:23:06,880 --> 00:23:11,340 And so we stay truly connected to Jesus when his words remain in us 313 00:23:11,720 --> 00:23:14,420 and his words go deeper than just the surface level. 314 00:23:16,620 --> 00:23:21,960 And the second way that we remain in Jesus is by remaining in his love. 315 00:23:24,660 --> 00:23:30,060 As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. 316 00:23:31,600 --> 00:23:32,920 Remain in my love. 317 00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:36,760 It's amazing. 318 00:23:38,440 --> 00:23:41,500 The perfect love that the Father has for Jesus 319 00:23:42,320 --> 00:23:45,160 is the type of love that Jesus has for you. 320 00:23:46,900 --> 00:23:48,120 Just think about that. 321 00:23:49,600 --> 00:23:53,600 Jesus has every reason to receive the Father's love. 322 00:23:55,300 --> 00:24:03,200 he left this perfect relationship with his father and the holy spirit to come down into our mess 323 00:24:04,420 --> 00:24:10,520 he obeyed his his all of his father's wishes he lived this perfect life he spent all of his free 324 00:24:10,700 --> 00:24:18,040 time serving getting down on his knees and loving the people around him knowing that some of them 325 00:24:18,140 --> 00:24:22,940 we're going to betray him, abandon him, and deny knowing him. 326 00:24:26,300 --> 00:24:28,580 That's how Jesus loves us. 327 00:24:30,280 --> 00:24:38,380 It's not the type of love that we show to our spouse or our children or our friends. 328 00:24:39,360 --> 00:24:45,320 It's the type of love that is so sacrificial, so passionate, so deep, 329 00:24:45,700 --> 00:24:48,680 that the only way Jesus could describe this type of love 330 00:24:48,750 --> 00:24:51,380 is by describing it as a type of love 331 00:24:51,470 --> 00:24:53,240 that the Father has for him. 332 00:24:56,900 --> 00:25:01,060 We are all invited to remain in that same love. 333 00:25:05,280 --> 00:25:06,660 And so now there's one more thing 334 00:25:08,320 --> 00:25:09,480 that we can see in the text 335 00:25:10,150 --> 00:25:12,260 that ties all of this together. 336 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:19,460 The third way we remain connected to the vine is through obeying Jesus. 337 00:25:22,220 --> 00:25:23,540 We obey Jesus. 338 00:25:25,740 --> 00:25:31,220 Jesus experienced perfect love from his father because he obeyed the father. 339 00:25:32,200 --> 00:25:36,780 True connection to Jesus also involves obeying his words. 340 00:25:39,840 --> 00:25:40,840 Jesus says in verse 10, 341 00:25:51,200 --> 00:25:56,380 But notice how Jesus doesn't start with telling us to obey his commands. 342 00:25:58,180 --> 00:26:00,760 Jesus says, remain in my love. 343 00:26:01,860 --> 00:26:02,880 Remain in my love first. 344 00:26:06,120 --> 00:26:11,300 And he does that because his love should be the motivating factor 345 00:26:11,320 --> 00:26:13,480 for our obedience. 346 00:26:14,880 --> 00:26:17,680 We should want to make him our delight 347 00:26:17,880 --> 00:26:20,500 and to do the things in our lives 348 00:26:21,440 --> 00:26:23,360 for his glory and his honor, 349 00:26:23,960 --> 00:26:25,160 to make him happy. 350 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:31,260 But there's also something really important 351 00:26:31,540 --> 00:26:33,080 that Jesus is trying to get at here. 352 00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:35,520 Love and obedience go hand in hand. 353 00:26:37,340 --> 00:26:40,380 Jesus doesn't just tell us to love his words. 354 00:26:40,940 --> 00:26:43,800 He doesn't just tell us to listen to his words. 355 00:26:44,780 --> 00:26:47,320 He tells us to obey his words. 356 00:26:49,060 --> 00:26:52,680 Obeying his words and his commands is how we remain connected to Jesus. 357 00:26:53,520 --> 00:26:58,740 Even the ones that we don't fully understand or even agree with. 358 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:07,060 For those of you that are parents, you know full and well that there are a lot of things that you tell your children 359 00:27:08,140 --> 00:27:09,440 that might not make sense to them. 360 00:27:11,460 --> 00:27:12,660 but they still have to obey you 361 00:27:14,679 --> 00:27:16,500 because what you're telling them, 362 00:27:16,710 --> 00:27:18,100 the instructions that you're giving them 363 00:27:18,420 --> 00:27:19,620 is for their benefit, 364 00:27:20,120 --> 00:27:21,220 is so that they can thrive 365 00:27:21,450 --> 00:27:23,340 and remain healthy and safe. 366 00:27:25,280 --> 00:27:27,620 And so it's the same thing with God. 367 00:27:27,700 --> 00:27:29,520 We obey Jesus and his words 368 00:27:29,990 --> 00:27:32,780 simply because he knows better than us 369 00:27:33,730 --> 00:27:34,780 and because he loves us 370 00:27:34,870 --> 00:27:35,920 and because he's trustworthy. 371 00:27:38,060 --> 00:27:42,740 One of my favorite things that I've gotten to do since coming on staff at Harbor 372 00:27:42,740 --> 00:27:46,300 is being able to witness one of my youth kids obey Jesus, 373 00:27:47,380 --> 00:27:49,840 even though he might not have fully understood the why. 374 00:27:51,120 --> 00:27:54,400 I got to witness this young man get baptized 375 00:27:55,000 --> 00:27:59,520 and declare to the rest of the world that he loves Jesus 376 00:28:00,220 --> 00:28:02,920 and that he might not fully understand Jesus, 377 00:28:04,779 --> 00:28:08,160 but he's going to obey him anyway because he loves him. 378 00:28:09,320 --> 00:28:10,760 And so that was just so beautiful. 379 00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:15,940 I got to hug him and it was so powerful seeing someone his age show his love for the Lord 380 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:18,100 through one simple act of obedience. 381 00:28:19,340 --> 00:28:25,180 And I love being able to witness baptisms because there's always so much joy and love. 382 00:28:25,620 --> 00:28:31,040 And the message that everyone sees at the beach is that there's joy in obedience. 383 00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:35,180 there's joy with being attached to the Lord. 384 00:28:38,420 --> 00:28:41,400 And I am just so encouraged that so many of you 385 00:28:41,720 --> 00:28:44,520 are fighting to remain in God's love 386 00:28:45,560 --> 00:28:46,720 through obeying Jesus, 387 00:28:47,780 --> 00:28:48,520 through your obedience, 388 00:28:48,720 --> 00:28:50,720 through loving his church and sacrificing 389 00:28:51,140 --> 00:28:52,420 not only your time, 390 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:54,400 but your energy and your resources 391 00:28:55,160 --> 00:28:58,920 so that Jesus would be made known in Kapolei, 392 00:28:59,160 --> 00:28:59,840 in West Oahu. 393 00:29:00,760 --> 00:29:03,360 And so that more people could experience his love. 394 00:29:04,720 --> 00:29:10,180 And so all of us today can remain connected to Jesus by making a choice. 395 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:16,340 Whatever that looks like for you, in whatever way he's calling you to obey, 396 00:29:19,060 --> 00:29:24,400 you can show that you can remain in his love and depend on him 397 00:29:27,930 --> 00:29:30,480 by making the choice to trust him. 398 00:29:31,620 --> 00:29:32,100 simply put. 399 00:29:34,060 --> 00:29:36,360 And so I want to leave you all with this. 400 00:29:38,160 --> 00:29:39,800 Even while I was writing this message, 401 00:29:41,240 --> 00:29:43,380 I struggled to do all of these things. 402 00:29:44,780 --> 00:29:46,480 I struggled to remain. 403 00:29:47,060 --> 00:29:49,160 I struggled to depend on Jesus. 404 00:29:49,600 --> 00:29:52,080 I struggled to remain in Jesus, 405 00:29:52,180 --> 00:29:54,340 to remain in his word and in his love 406 00:29:54,340 --> 00:29:55,520 and to obey Jesus. 407 00:29:57,520 --> 00:29:59,039 All of these things that 408 00:30:00,980 --> 00:30:03,620 all of these practical ways that we can remain in Jesus, 409 00:30:05,090 --> 00:30:06,200 they're certainly true. 410 00:30:08,540 --> 00:30:10,360 But there's something so beautiful 411 00:30:11,960 --> 00:30:14,120 about the Lord that we follow 412 00:30:14,790 --> 00:30:16,440 is that even when we wander away, 413 00:30:19,380 --> 00:30:21,220 even when we struggle to remain, 414 00:30:22,450 --> 00:30:23,600 his love remains. 415 00:30:25,940 --> 00:30:27,120 And maybe that's you this morning. 416 00:30:28,480 --> 00:30:34,380 Maybe this morning you just feel defeated by the struggles of this week. 417 00:30:35,580 --> 00:30:38,020 Maybe it's some sort of strain in your marriage. 418 00:30:39,060 --> 00:30:40,660 Maybe you just don't feel that joy. 419 00:30:42,100 --> 00:30:46,060 Maybe it's deteriorating health, whatever it may be. 420 00:30:49,919 --> 00:30:52,160 Everything might slip away from us. 421 00:30:53,960 --> 00:30:57,440 But Jesus promises us that his words and his love remain. 422 00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:01,600 and so I want you to take comfort in that 423 00:31:02,600 --> 00:31:04,440 because even when you don't remain, 424 00:31:06,080 --> 00:31:06,640 he remains. 425 00:31:08,420 --> 00:31:11,760 So I just want us to keep pressing forward together 426 00:31:12,980 --> 00:31:15,860 to relentlessly pursue and love Jesus 427 00:31:17,180 --> 00:31:18,000 so that all of us, 428 00:31:18,120 --> 00:31:19,880 that this, we could have our own story 429 00:31:21,220 --> 00:31:23,860 and so that all of us could experience 430 00:31:24,540 --> 00:31:26,559 the type of joy that he wants us to experience 431 00:31:26,580 --> 00:31:29,280 so that we can have the most joyful life possible. 432 00:31:31,100 --> 00:31:31,600 So let's pray together.