Be who you Are in Christ Understanding What it Means to Abide in Jesus

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1 Be who you Are in Christ Understanding What it Means to Abide in Jesus

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3 He sits at his dining room table, head in his hands, fighting back tears of frustration and guilt. I didn t know it would be this hard, he says to himself as he replays the last several weeks of repeated failure, pride, and less-than-joyous attitude. Joe had begun to follow Jesus just a few months before, but now the weight and pressure of following Him had stifled the joy he so faintly remembers. Similarly, Jessica is found at the Church anytime the doors are opened. She is a Life Group guide, enrolled in multiple Study Groups, two volunteer teams, invests deeply into her children (as well as two younger moms), and tries to love and serve those in her life that do not know Jesus. On the outside, she appears to have it all together, but inwardly she feels inadequate, overwhelmed, and secretly feels as if she can never do enough for God to love and accept her. She also may feel overworked, exhausted, under-appreciated, and her relationship with God may be deteriorating because her life is so full. These stories (and many others like them) sadly make up reality for most, if not all, of us in the Church. If we were truly honest with one another, we struggle with what it means to follow Jesus. We all walk the tight rope of the tension between wanting to change and failing miserably, and fighting to keep the desire to keep trying. Why doesn t God just grant us the supernatural power to reverse our sins, shortcomings, and bad habits overnight? The result? An unhealthy mixture of pride, despair, burn out, and destructive behavior. We all either resolve to do more and try harder or we throw in the towel out of frustration or doubt, or become numb to continued sin in our lives. Can we truly change? Where is the abundant life of which Jesus spoke? What does it look like to overcome sin, to consistently obey, and to truly have joy? How can we really change?

4 I am the true vine I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father s commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.12 This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another. -John 15:1-17 ESV In John 15 God gives us a clear picture of what it means to live all of life that is victorious and honors Him. Jesus uses a common metaphor in that day of a vineyard to illustrate a glorious, life-changing reality for those who are believers: what it means to be united with Christ. Jesus explains this illustration as God the Father being the vinedresser (or gardener), Jesus as the Vine, and his followers as the branches. He makes a startling statement about the importance of this union: apart from me you can do nothing. (v. 5) Nothing. Not some things, not the small things nothing. Apart from this union in Christ, apart from this abiding relationship Jesus is telling us about, we can do nothing of eternal value. Apart from abiding in Christ, we can be busy with a lot of things, involved in a lot of Jesus things, but ultimately produce nothing of value nothing that is truly life changing. Could this be the cause of our seemingly lifeless Christianity? If we want to change, perhaps we ought to learn from Jesus how He has designed that to happen. Let s look together at 5 principles of abiding in Jesus from John 15.

5 To Abide is to be in Jesus Abide is a word that sums up salvation. The Greek word for abide is meno and literally means to remain, to stay. Jesus tells us to abide in me, and I in you (v. 4) To abide is to make your home in something. One might call their house their abode because that is the place in which they dwell- where they live their lives. Jesus is telling us we are meant to make our home in Him just as Jesus has made his home in us. We are to live in Jesus as Jesus lives His life in and through us. For the Christian, this is a reality. In the midst of the struggles, doubts, and being caught up on the performance treadmill, Jesus tells us we are in Him and He is in us. How, then, do we abide in our everyday lives? There are two primary ways: remaining in Christ in position and in pursuit. Abide in Position Understanding Union with Christ Gospel Truth Abiding in Christ begins with understanding that God s acceptance of us is given to us freely in Christ. Abiding is primarily not as much about what we are to do for Jesus, but rather resting (abiding) in what Jesus has done for us. To abide in Jesus is just one way to describe what it means to be saved. One is either in Adam (dead in their sin as a result of their disobedience) or in Christ (alive in righteousness as a result of their faith in Him). There is no such thing as good people and bad people; there is only bad people and Jesus. We tend to judge ourselves by standards we feel as if we keep comparing ourselves to others, defining goodness in our own terms, or assuming God will grade on the curve. When we see our rebellion against God for what it is a heart that rebels against God by worshipping anything and everything other than Him we see the indictment in Romans 3: there is none righteous, no not one. The wages of sin is death Rom. 6:23. What we deserve because of our rebellious idolatry is death- eternal separation from God. Sin does not make you bad; sin makes you dead. We cannot fix this by mere behavior modification or religious activity. How, then, can we know God? Romans 3 continues, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. We can neither earn it nor never deserve it it s a gift. Jesus lived the life we could not live. Jesus died the death we deserved to die. Jesus rose again defeating sin, Satan, and death for all those who turn from their sin and self and trust in Jesus alone as Savior and Lord. Titus 3:5 tells us He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. Salvation is according to God and His mercy, not us and our merit. This is good news! We can be restored to a relationship with God even when we deserve judgment. Even while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. This is what it means to be in Christ and not in your sin. Abiding understands that because of what God has done in Christ, we can have access to God. Gospel Implications Abiding is rooted in who Jesus is and what Jesus has done. To remain in Jesus is first about being united in Him positionally. God does not offer us good advice; He offers good news. Daily abiding in Jesus is first rooted in the objective realities of what Jesus has done and who we are as a result.

6 Justified On the cross, Jesus paid the penalty for our sin and absorbed the wrath of God against our sin, completely fulfilling the just demands of a holy God. Jesus died as a substitute for us in our place. He died instead of us. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, He (God the Father) made him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be made sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Our sin was placed on Jesus and Jesus righteousness was placed on us. So now, when God looks at us, He sees us as being in Christ. We are now justified, or declared righteous (Romans 5:1). Philippians 3:9 says and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ- the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. So, to be in Christ is to be declared righteous. Adopted We have not only been forgiven of our sin and given the righteousness of Christ, but we have been adopted into the very family of God. Romans 8:15-17 describes this glorious reality: For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, Abba! Father! 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. We were once spiritual orphans, but God, in His grace, has made us His sons and daughters. Now, we do not relate to God as slaves would to a taskmaster, but rather as children would to a Father. Our position in Christ means we are fellow heirs with Christ- everything that Jesus has is ours. Made New Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3 that in order to be saved he must be born again. Sin brings spiritual death; therefore, salvation is obtaining new life in Christ. Romans 5 tells us We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. God raises us to new life by the work of the Holy Spirit at the moment one turns from sin and self and trusts in the finished work of Jesus. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17) Abiding in Christ means you have become a new creation. To be connected to the vine is to have a new identity. God is not interested in making a better version of you He makes you new. Sanctified The purpose of abiding is to become like Jesus. Colossians 3:9-10 explains this process of practically becoming who you already are in Christ as you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. We are each created in the image of God to glorify Him by reflecting Him to the world, but our sin has broken and marred that image. We do not properly image God as we were intended. Jesus, who is the perfect image of God, has accomplished everything necessary for us to be restored back to that image. To be in Christ means to become more like him, to be conformed to His image. We are saved by grace, through faith, as a gift (Ephesians 2:8-9), but the purpose of this salvation is for us to be made holy, both positionally and practically. Verse 10 says For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. We abide in Jesus for the purpose of walking in good works.

7 Glorified The salvation provided for us by God through the Gospel is complete. The same God who saves you also keeps you. Romans 8:30 describes this total salvation this way: And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. When one is, by position, in Christ, there is a promise of future salvation. Paul writes to the Church at Philippi, And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6) In one sense, our new self has already begun the moment we begin trusting Christ alone for salvation. At the same time, we will be resurrected as our glorified selves at Christ s return. There is an already, but not yet aspect to our redemption. We are already new, but not yet fully new as we will be when He comes. 1 John 3:2 says, Beloved, we are God s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. Connected to the Vine For Christ to be in you and for you to be in Christ is essential what it means to abide. Just as a branch cannot do anything apart from its connectivity to the source of life, the vine, neither can we know life apart from being in Christ. Let these realities sink in you as you remember who you are in Christ (borrowed from Neil Anderson s Victory Over the Darkness): Since I am in Christ, by the grace of God...

8 Since I am in Christ, by the grace of God... I have been justified completely forgiven and made righteous (Rom. 5:1). I died with Christ and died to the power of sin s rule over my life (Rom. 6:1 6). I am free forever from condemnation (Rom. 8:1). I have been placed into Christ by God s doing (1 Cor. 1:30). I have received the Spirit of God into my life that I might know the things freely given to me by God (1 Cor. 2:12). I have been given the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16). I have been bought with a price; I am not my own; I belong to God (1 Cor. 6:19, 20). I have been established, anointed and sealed by God in Christ, and I have been given the Holy Spirit as a pledge guaranteeing my inheritance to come (2 Cor. 1:21; Eph. 1:13, 14). Since I have died, I no longer live for myself, but for Christ (2 Cor. 5:14, 15). I have been made righteous (2 Cor. 5:21). I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. The life I am now living is Christ s life (Gal. 2:20). I have been blessed with every spiritual blessing (Eph. 1:3). I was chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and am without blame before Him (Eph. 1:4). I was predestined determined by God to be adopted as God s son (Eph. 1:5). I have been redeemed and forgiven, and I am a recipient of His lavish grace. I have been made alive together with Christ (Eph. 2:5). I have been raised up and seated with Christ in heaven (Eph. 2:6). I have direct access to God through the Spirit (Eph. 2:18). I may approach God with boldness, freedom and confidence (Eph. 3:12). I have been rescued from the domain of Satan s rule and transferred to the kingdom of Christ (Col. 1:13). I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins. The debt against me has been canceled (Col. 1:14). Christ Himself is in me (Col. 1:27). I am firmly rooted in Christ and am now being built in Him (Col. 2:7). I have been spiritually circumcised... (Col. 2:11). I have been made complete in Christ (Col. 2:10). I have been buried, raised and made alive with Christ (Col. 2:12, 13). I died with Christ and I have been raised up with Christ. My life is now hidden with Christ in God. Christ is now my life (Col. 3:1 4). I have been given a spirit of power, love and self-discipline (2 Tim. 1:7). I have been saved and set apart according to God s doing (2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 3:5). Because I am sanctified and am one with the Sanctifier, He is not ashamed to call me brother (Heb. 2:11). I have the right to come boldly before the throne of God to find mercy and grace in time of need (Heb. 4:16). I have been given exceedingly great and precious promises by God by which I am a partaker of God s divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4).

9 The Result of Abiding: Producing Fruit In John 15:5, Jesus tells us the purpose of our abiding in Him: Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit. The natural outcome of our being in Christ positionally is that we will produce fruit. Those who do not produce fruit are cut off, thrown away, and burned. There is no such thing as someone who is an authentic follower of Jesus who does not show evidence of this reality in the context of his or her everyday lives. When one is in Jesus fruit will be present. What, then, does Jesus mean when he says we will produce fruit? In the New Testament spiritual fruit is portrayed as the result of the presence and work of the Holy Spirit in one s life. God the Father is committed to making us holy through the finished work of Jesus and by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit s role is to convict of sin, illuminate truth, and point to Jesus. Paul instructs the Church at Galatia concerning what it means to live life in step with the Holy Spirit as opposed to following the desires of the flesh (or one s sin nature). In Galatians 5, Paul writes, But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. There are two ways to live: according to one s sinful desires or to submit to God s revealed will through the power of the Spirit. When one daily walks in the power provided by God the Holy Spirit certain evidences will be apparent. Paul describes this fruit in Galatians 5: the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Notice the connection again to producing fruit and belonging to (or abiding in) Jesus here. The natural overflow of being in Christ is a life that is consistent with the Holy Spirit. Paul says if we are alive by the Spirit (or connected to the vine, Jesus) we ought also to keep in step with the Spirit. This means we will begin to live every aspect of our lives in a way that honors and glorifies God. Jesus said the same thing in John 15:8: By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. When we live lives that reflect His character to the world, He is glorified. The aim of our abiding in Jesus is to glorify God by becoming like Jesus. This reality is so much more than an isolated aspect of our lives. Jesus is saying that if we are connected to him, everything changes. To be transformed by the Gospel is to be totally transformed: there is not one aspect of person s being that is not changed and being changed by Jesus. Jesus summarized the entire law and declared that what is most important is for one to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12). In other words, there is to be no corner of who we are that is not filled, satisfied, and delighted in God as the greatest Treasure of our lives. Abiding in Pursuit: Grace-driven Effort Again, abiding in Jesus has two components: position and pursuit. The way we become connected to Jesus is through the Gospel: we are in Christ because of what He has done for us and in us. We have a new identity. It is out of this union with Christ that we become like Christ. But how does this happen? What is left for us to do? How do we practically, everyday live this out? Abiding in Jesus is literally to make your home in Him. Every moment of every day is meant to be lived in Jesus- for His life to be pressed out in your life. Walking with Jesus is to have all the power and freedom of our position in Him to be experienced in our daily rhythms. This remaining is not passive; it requires active discipline and an intentional, dedicated pursuit of Him. It is crucial to remember; however, that as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. We cannot produce spiritual change on our own. So, our disciplines and pursuits are ways of staying connected to our source of life, Jesus.

10 What Spiritual Change Is True change is the life of Jesus coming into you. The fundamental problem with our sin is not merely behavior; it is desire. We want to rebel. All of our sinful behavior ultimately flows out of our sinful hearts. We all have believed the lie that something else will satisfy us other than God Himself. If sin is an issue of desire, then no amount of attempting to alter behavior will be sufficient. We need our desires to change. The only change in our lives that will truly last is a change of desire. How, then, can our hearts be changed? How Spiritual Change Happens Real change begins not with you being told what you are to do for God, but believing what God has already done for you. Believing rightly precedes behaving rightly. The Gospel does for us what no amount of religious effort can do it changes our desires. In the Gospel are all the resources needed for spiritual growth. We truly change when we daily remember the Gospel. There are two ways to attempt to change: mechanical growth (change from the outside) versus organic growth (change from within). There are many motivations why people attempt to change their behavior: fear, guilt, pride, desire for comfort or security, and on and on the list goes. The only issue with this is it does not deal with the cause of the effects they are seeking to change. The result of mechanical growth is either pride or despair. Pride will happen when one thinks they have modified their behavior better than others. Despair will occur when one feels as if they can never do enough to live up to their standard. Effort that is devoid of heart transformation a change of desire is much like attempting to produce fruit without being connected to the vine. A rose will wilt if it is not connected to the branch. Even if one tries to cover up the lack of life by stapling roses onto the bush, they too, will soon die because there is no source of life- it is merely external. You will either break under the pressure or you will tirelessly work to keep up an appearance of being changed without actually being changed. How does one change from within? Jesus in John 15 gives us three ways we are to do this: remain in His love (15:9), remain in his joy (15:11), and remain in His Word (15:7). Remain in His Love As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. The way we change is by remaining in the love of God for us. When you grow in the awareness of the love of God for you, the love of God begins to grow in you. Abiding in Jesus is about having your heart restructured so you desire to be with and become like Jesus. Notice how this plays out in 1 John 4:13-19: 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 19 We love because he first loved us. Our hearts are changed to love God when we come to know and believe the love that God has for us. How do we know the love of God? Romans 5:5b, 8a tell us: God s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. When, through the work of the Holy Spirit, we remember the love of God shown to us through the Gospel, our hearts are changed to love Him back.

11 Remain in His Joy These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full (John 15:11) Abiding in Jesus is to experience the joy of Jesus as our own joy. When we stay connected to Jesus we begin to enjoy God with the same eternally full joy with which Jesus enjoys intimacy with the Father. Peter describes our union with Christ as being partakers of the divine nature. (1 Peter 1:4) We have the power to experience the joy of Jesus in our everyday lives. Peter describes this as Christians having been granted all things that pertain to life and godliness. (1 Peter 1:3) Everything we need to live the godly life (or, to produce fruit) is found in our being participates into the nature of Jesus as our own. Remain in His Word If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father s commandments and abide in his love. (John 15:7, 10) Jesus has told us how change truly takes place We are to be who we already are in Christ. Abiding is a daily pursuit of focusing on the root so we may produce fruit. Jesus says the way you remain in his love is by keeping his commandments. We are not accepted by our keeping God s commandments, but rather we obey because we are accepted. This is a crucial reality. Our pursuit of God is the way we stay connected to the vine. Obedience to Jesus commands in His Word serves two purposes: Obedience to Jesus commands is the response of someone who has been changed by the Gospel Obedience to Jesus commands is how we stay connected to the Gospel. When we obey what God has commanded from our position as loved, accepted children rather than for our position, we begin to truly change and produce fruit. Focusing on the pursuit without understanding one s position will result in stifling legalism; however, focusing on one s position without actively pursuing God is to presume upon grace, ultimately revealing one is not truly connected to Jesus. When viewed as a response of grace, obedience to Jesus commands flow from a heart of love, not fear or guilt; from delight, not just duty. Jesus commands and our daily pursuit of obedience becomes the way by which we experience our position: we become who we are. All of the things required of those who are in Christ do not create intimacy with God; they make room for it. Staying Connected to the Vine What if you viewed all the commands of God as ways to stay connected to God rather than a way to get God? What if everything you are to do or not do are ways God has given you to truly and fully experience His love? The goal is to experience what we already have in our position in Christ. Nearly everyone today owns a phone. A smartphone can serve many purposes in everyday life; they truly are powerful tools. However, all of the useful potential of a phone is pointless if the battery does not remain charged. Almost every night we plug in our devices into the outlets to recharge them so they can continue to do what they were intended to do. The power supplied in that outlet must continually be transferred to the device. It is likely none of us give much thought to the necessity and importance of the cord that connects our phones to the source of power, but without them all the potential of our phones would not be enjoyed. This is just a modern example of Jesus illustration of the vine and branches. Jesus reminds us that we (the branches) can do nothing apart from remaining in Him (the vine). How do we stay connected to Jesus, ensuring we produce fruit? What if the commands of Jesus are much like the power cord we use for our phones? There is no power in the cord- it just serves as a conduit from the source of power to the device. All the Spiritual disciplines and every aspect of our daily pursuit are ways to remain connected to Jesus. They make all the glorious realities of who we already fleshed out in our lives.

12 What s Next? What are the wires that help you remain in Jesus? There are many practical ways you can build into your life as you pursue to be who you are in position. Bible Study Prayer Meditation Fasting Confession and Repentance Godly Character Gathering to Worship Connecting in Community Using Spiritual Gifts to Serve the Body Generosity and Stewardship Evangelism and Mission Making Disciples Personal Assessment Marriage

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