Apply Within

Bob Davis: The world sees the change. The world proves to the world that Jesus Christ is our Lord. They may say I don't believe in that, I don't believe he rose from the dead, but there's something about us that they see. It actually brings God glory and it's a witness. You can witness to people without ever opening your mouth.

Announcer (Male): Welcome to Apply Within, a verse-by-verse study of the word of God with Pastor Bob Davis of North Country Chapel. We invite you to join with us as we, by the power of God's Holy Spirit, apply His word within our own hearts as we study line upon line, precept upon preference, verse by verse through the Bible.

We see what it means to abide in Jesus as our study of John continues in chapter 15, verse 6. Here is Pastor Bob.

Bob Davis: "I am the vine, you are the branches. The one that abides in me and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit. For without me, you can do nothing." Until we believe it, we're going to do nothing. Guaranteed, until we believe that. So that's where we take off now in chapter 15. We go to verse six.

"If a man," an individual, man or woman, "abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch and is withered, and men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned." That sounds bad. I don't know how you interpret this, I don't know how you read it, but it just sounds bad. It sounds like, "Okay, Bob, that's not what you want, really."

You're probably thinking the same thing, right? I don't want to be cast aside and burned. It doesn't even sound nice. There are three main teachings on this verse. Let me give you all three. Probably everyone that hears my voice falls into one of these three categories. There are some that are very odd, but you guys aren't odd, so probably one of these three categories.

Number one, people say the burned branches are Christians who have lost their salvation. I don't think that personally. I'm one of these three, but I'm not number one. The reason I don't think it is it contradicts too many verses in Scripture, and God doesn't do that. He doesn't say here you can lose your salvation and other places it's impossible to lose it.

If this is for you, I still love you, but you could look up John 3:16 if you've never heard of that one. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." Everlasting, He doesn't mean everlasting until you get brittle and fall off, but everlasting. You can look up John 3:36, John 5:24, John 10:28-29, Romans 8.

Just understand that's one of the main teachings of this verse, that a Christian can lose their salvation. I think it contradicts too much of the word of God, so I don't go with number one. Number two, they say the burned branches represent Christians who will lose their rewards but not their salvation at the judgment seat of Christ.

We're all going to stand before the judgment seat. Do you think that some of us will lose rewards because they were not gold and silver and precious stones, but they were instead wood, hay, stubble? Do you believe we will? Yes, that's true, that's scriptural, but I don't believe that number two is a solid teaching either.

Because Jesus, specifically speaking about it in this verse, verse six, says that these branches here are dead. So it can't be Christians that are alive that lose some rewards because some of their works weren't that good. It can't be. He wouldn't call them dead branches.

So I go with number three, and we've already seen it in the first five verses. I showed you that last time we got together. You need to study for yourself. The burned branches refer to professing Christians who, like Judas, are not truly saved. Judas, Jesus even said it. I've had people tell me grace is irresistible.

And Jesus says, "I chose you 12, didn't I? Yes, and one of you is a demon." One of you has chosen to not believe. A professing Christian, yeah, Judas was. Walked with Jesus three and a half years. I do believe that's what's being spoken of here, as we saw in the first five verses.

But I wanted to give you all three because it's only fair. Those are three of the mainline teachings that we teach, but I do believe that's what Jesus is saying. He already said it about Judas. He taught us that. Just go back to chapter 12, go 12, 13, and 14 and read through.

Let's go to verse seven. "If you," now who's "you"? He's looking right at you and me and the other 11, the 11 that are left. "If you abide in me and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will and it shall be done unto you. In this or herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit."

Remember: fruit, more fruit, much fruit. God continues to work in your heart and mine. If you belong to Jesus, He trims us back sometimes, He straightens us out. I'm not a gardener and I confess that, but I watch the people there in California in the vineyard areas.

You watch them and they'll sometimes, as they're walking around, they're just checking the grapes or the plants and they'll move some of the branches around so the grapes can get a little bit more sunlight. They're tending their garden. Who is the gardener? Remember from last time? God.

I'll read it to you, verse one. "I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener, the vinedresser, the keeper." So God works in your heart and in your life. Doesn't He move you around a little bit sometimes? Doesn't He say, "Hold on there, attitude's not good here," and He begins to just move you back where a little bit more sunlight's getting to you?

He puts you in a position where it can flow a little more powerfully through you, draws you kind of close. You're acting like, "Not me." And the verse says, allowing His word to abide in us. In other words, abide, meno, to stay with, to walk with, to remain in. Jesus says, abide in me. Stay with, walk with, remain in me.

He's not saying, "I gave you salvation, now hang on to that thing and don't get behind." That's not the language. The language is this, it's yours. Now, because it's yours, because you're really truly born again, walk, stay with me, follow me. Abiding in Jesus and allowing His word to abide in me and you, our hearts are changed, not just our minds.

Our hearts are changed. There's a change in you. If people have known you a long time, maybe they see it. If they've known you a short time, maybe they don't, but there's a change in you. There was the day that you received Jesus, there was a change. Maybe not a huge change, but there was a change and people saw it.

It may not be big enough for your wife or your husband to see. They're still going, "God, fix him, just fix the man." But it's happening, God is doing it. You're spending time in the word. This is not some kind of magic talisman. You see, the word of God is living, but if you took this away from me, I'd still have the word of God.

I could run down and Gideons would give me a free one. I could always get another Bible, but if you took this and they banned Bibles in our country, you've still got the word of God in your heart. They can't take it from you. The word of God is abiding right now in your heart.

Abiding changes our hearts and our minds are changed. I'm telling you, it's the secret to effective prayer. Jesus just said your prayers change. Have you caught yourself at all saying, "Lord, I know what I want, I'm not sure even what I'm feeling, but I'd like to ask for this, but Lord, I don't really know if that's the right thing to ask"?

"So, here's my prayer request, but not my will. Lord, do what you want to do." Have you asked Him that? "Let your will be done." That's what Jesus is saying. Our prayers become more conformed to God's will than they used to be. We're changing, and God's doing it.

When you pray in accordance with God's will, the results are sure. Isn't that what Jesus just said? If you abide in me and my word abides in you, if we're walking with Him by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, it's not like we're really doing well this week so all my prayers are good. It doesn't work that way.

Here's what it says, "You abide in me, my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will and it shall be done unto you." Meaning, your prayers are changing as you grow up, as you mature. There's a key to effective prayer. It's to do what? Walk with Jesus, walk in Jesus, abide.

As the Christian becomes more and more like Jesus Christ the Son of God, what does he tell you? "Then you're my disciples." Let me read again, "Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, so shall you be my disciples." Are we His disciples now? Yes. But do we have a long way to go? Yes.

Put it all together, this is so cool. As a Christian becomes more and more like Jesus, the guy and the girl, you, Christian ladies, Christian men, as we become more Christlike, and it sure is slow, isn't it? As we become more Christlike, more like the Son of God, the world sees the change and God is glorified.

Are you His disciple? Yeah. But has the world mentioned it to you? Watch, they'll say, "There's something different about you. What is it with you? I notice that we're all doing this, you don't do it. Are you antisocial? What are you? What is it about you that's something?"

Has anyone ever asked you that? And you say, "I'm the same as you, I'm just a dope, but I do belong to Jesus." They go, "Oh, don't want to hear it. Oh, Bible thumper." Well, you asked me. Isn't that what Jesus is saying? As a Christian becomes more and more Christlike, as we grow, the world begins to see the change.

They may like it, they may hate it, but they begin to see the change and the Father is glorified. The progression is what? Fruit, more fruit, much fruit. It brings glory through Jesus Christ to the Father. Jesus allows us to be a part of that and it brings glory to God as well.

So what Jesus is basically saying is, of course you're my disciples, but as you walk, as you live by God's grace in accordance with God's will in His word, the world sees the change. It proves to the world that Jesus Christ is our Lord. They may say I don't believe in that, I don't believe he rose from the dead, but there's something about us that they see.

It actually brings God glory and it's a witness. You can witness to people without ever, ever opening your mouth, no matter where you're at. A powerful witness is just to show some kindness because it freaks people out. They figure you want something. It proves to the world we are Jesus' disciples when we abide in Him.

Others can see that. Of course, some don't like it. You've probably experienced that as well. Some just don't like this Jesus stuff. We're becoming more like Jesus. We all pray that it would go more quickly. And then Jesus amazes us once again.

"The love that I have for you," Jesus says, "is the very same love the Father has for me." He loves you as much as the Father loves Him in the exact same way, He says. "As the Father has loved me, so I've loved you. Continue in that, abide, continue walking, stay here, stay close."

"If you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in His love." The love that I have for you, Jesus says, is the very same love the Father has for me. He loves you as much as the Father loves Him in the exact same way.

"These things I have spoken unto you that my joy might remain in you and that your joy might be full." He wants me and you to be full of joy. Are you, or should I say, what are you full of? "I'm frustrated. I don't like them people anymore. My job is just dragging me down into the ditch. As a matter of fact, I'm starting to hate breathing."

But you're saved, right? "Yep, love the Lord, oh yeah." They just don't work, they don't go together. Of course you do, but you're not walking in it. So I'll read it again, "These things I have spoken to you that my joy might remain in you." It's got to be there all the time. "And that your joy might be full. This is my commandment. Let me tell you what I want you to do: that you love one another as I have loved you."

That is so easy to understand. Jesus had great joy, he said, doing the Father's will, didn't he? "But for the joy that was set before him." The more that joy was us, the church. For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross. That was my Father's will and for that joy that it blessed His Father, it gave Him joy in His heart.

We were the joy He was also looking for. For the joy that was set before Him and the joy that He already had, He went to the cross willingly. Jesus lived a fruitful life. Fruit, more fruit, and much fruit. He's still producing fruit, isn't He?

He's teaching every one of us these things so that our lives would be an abundant life filled with joy. So how come everybody's walking around looking like a lemon taster? We may not be abiding. We may be trying to go that way and God is saying go straight, and we want to fight and we want to kick, kind of like a toddler.

You ever try to walk with them when they want to keep going that way and you need to go across the street? You can handle them, just try not to rip their arms off, right? God can handle us, but He's trying to lovingly lead us on.

He's teaching all of us these things we just read so our lives would be abundant lives filled with joy. Jesus wants His joy to be my joy. How joyful was He? He was filled with joy His entire earthly ministry, even going to the cross for the joy that was set before Him.

There was in His heart that joy, that peace, knowing, "I'm going to rise from the dead. My Father promised me, I'm going to rise from the dead." Jesus wants His joy to be your joy. Do you have the joy of Jesus?

The world's idea of joy is to get whatever you want, get all you can get, be all that you can be, grab for all the gusto, to copy a beer commercial. Grab for anything you can get out of this life. But have you ever noticed that the people that do that are just as miserable? It doesn't really bring anybody joy, ever.

What do you need? What did Mr. Howard Hughes say, one of the richest men on the planet at the time? "How much is enough?" He just said, "A little more, just a little more and a little bit more." There's never enough. He got kind of weird, he was a recluse. He could do anything he wanted, but he was a miserable individual.

The only way to have true joy is to be a part of God, to be born again and belong to Jesus Christ. So we leave God out of the picture, there is no joy. It's only miserable. You're seeing the suicide rate climb in our nation like we have never seen it climb before, ever.

How do you fix this? Jesus says, "Follow me, walk with me, obey me." And there will be joy, abundant joy. Your joy will remain and your joy will be full. You can be heartbroken and weeping and there could still be joy in your heart. You understand that, right?

You lose a loved one or something very tragic that you see and it just breaks your heart, yet there's a joy. There's still a joy. We've got Jesus Christ and He'll never leave and He'll never forsake us, so we never give up.

You know, the people had forgotten the word of God way back in Nehemiah's day. They had forgotten the word of God, they had been disobedient. They didn't even realize how disobedient they were. But they took out the word of God once they had the walls built, and they read it out loud to the people and helped the people understand it.

What did the people do once they heard it? They started to weep and wail. "This is so sad. We've gone so far. We've strayed so far." They're heartbroken realizing how far we have strayed from the word of God. But Nehemiah encourages the people.

He goes, "Today's not a day to be sad. The wall is finished, man. God has just blessed us out of our socks. So don't weep." It's good that your heart has been touched, that's good, but understand that today is a day of rejoicing.

Nehemiah 8:10: "Then he said to them, 'Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet and send portions to them for whom nothing is prepared. Give some to the poor, make sure everybody celebrates. For this day is holy unto the Lord. Neither be sorry, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.'"

We don't have the joy, there is no strength there. Our faith fails, we collapse, we crumble. There needs to be the joy that's there, knowing God has this. Even when we see no way out, knowing God is still good. It's the word of God.

When God's people get away from loving Him and from reading and obeying His word, they lose the joy. And the joy of the Lord is our strength. If you didn't have that joy, this world would be driving you insane. It is, really, causing a lot of people to use all kinds of drugs trying to get out of reality.

You lose your inner joy, you're still just as born again, but you've gotten your eyes off of God. You've also kind of pushed the word of God out and the devil's kind of beating you up. Jesus sets the standard for love here. The standard isn't, "Well, I'm doing pretty good with most people right now."

No. He said, "I want you to love them the way that I love you. You love everybody the way that I love you. You love others exactly as I love you." That's a command He's given us. How did He love me? How did He love you? Selflessly.

Jesus held nothing back from me and from you and from anybody out there who would surrender and say, "Take me, Lord." He holds nothing back. He gives you everything He's promised and He never takes it back. Of course, we're busy giving it up and forgetting where we laid it.

Now we're not full of joy, we're full of bitterness and frustration and "I'm mad at God." Then you're miserable, and it's a miserable existence. He doesn't want that for you. He wants the joy of the Lord to be your solidness, your strength, your stability. We need to have a walk with Jesus. We need to have hearts abiding and let the word of God abide in us.

Announcer (Male): Thank you for listening to Apply Within with Pastor Bob Davis. Apply Within is a radio outreach ministry of North Country Chapel. Our Sunday morning Bible studies are at 9:00 and 11:00 AM. We also have a Friday evening Bible study at 7:00 PM and a Monday evening Bible study at 7:00 PM.

You can download today's message in its entirety at NorthCountryChapel.com/studies. If you would like a copy of today's message, write to us and ask for the message with today's date. The address is Apply Within, 2281 West Seltice, Post Falls, Idaho, 83854, or call us at 1-800-572-8851.

Our mobile app is available for iPhone and Android. Download it to listen to full-length studies, watch the livestream of our services, or to find out more about church events. If you have been blessed by the teaching or have prayer requests that you would like to share with us, write, email, or call us as well. Please join with us every Monday through Friday as we study together verse by verse on Apply Within, sponsored by North Country Chapel. God bless you.