How incredible would it have been to be face to face with Jesus and hear Him teach all these things?
In my last post I brought up my study on John 13-17, the Upper Room Discourse. It's been icredible. I love to study the Bible, any part of it really. But there is just something about reading and studying the words of Jesus that makes my heart want to leap from my chest. A joy that rises within me that is hard to explain! My heart is overwhelmed just at the thought of seeing Him someday so I can barely imagine what it would be like to be in His presence here on earth.
Back to John, and what pruning has to do with churches and cliques and trying to make friends and persecution in the church and being an outsider and all those glorious things that Christians are unfortunately known for.
It is sad to say, but if you can be honest with yourself, we all know people that have been hurt by the church and have seen this type of thing first hand. Maybe we are even those people that have been hurt by a church. Why do we insist on creating barriers in the church? Why do we insist on making cliques and staying in our comfort zones? Why do we talk the talk of "come as you are" and "all are accepted" but then walk the walk of "no thanks our group is full" and "we don't accept people like you?"
Because we are flawed and we are sinners and we are prideful and we don't follow Jesus' example in the Bible. In John 17 Jesus prayed for His disciples before the chaos of His death began. He prayed a beautiful pray that included praising the Father, asking for protection for the disciples, and then Jesus even prays for you and me.
In verse 20, Jesus prays "My prayer is not for them (the disciples) alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message." We are who He is praying for! He is praying for those who will believe in Him through the gospel that is spread down through the generations from the mouths of the disciples. That's you and me! Jesus was thinking about you and me at the Last Supper and praying for us. Isn't that just incredible!
Want to know what He prayed for us? That all believers would be ONE. That just like He and the Father are ONE we as believers would be ONE. Why? His prayer says in verse 23 "Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." So Jesus wants all believers to be united as one so that the world will know that God sent Him and that God loves the world just as much as He loves Jesus....
Do you think we are doing a good job of being ONE? I can only speak for my church. And I do not think we are doing that great of a job. Our Pastor has no problem calling us out on the disfunction of the church. Things like the lack of community, the lack of joy, the lack of carrying one another's burdens...but there are so many times when I pray with all my being that it isn't falling on deaf ears as he preaches it.
If it was a godless church I wouldn't be there. If it was a worldly church God wouldn't be in. It is none of those things and I believe the majority of the people WANT to do God's will but wanting and doing are completely different. So what will it take to tear these barriers down? How long before these generational cliques are broken? When will the focus simply be to become one united family in Christ?
Thats where the pruning comes in from John 15. I mentioned this is Part 1 here.
We talked about the branches that are cut away because they are dead and are only harming the vine. These are the hard hearted non believers. The ones that no longer have the hope of salvation. Harsh? Maybe, but maybe not. By the time your heart has become hard you've exercised your freewill to reject God to the point that there is no more grace and that's your fault and your fault alone.
Then there are the branches that need to be trimmed but not completely removed. These branches must be pruned because they have areas that are not producing fruit. This is like the sanctification process of believers. We have junk from our past and sins that rear their ugly heads and what must be done when that happens? We cut it off! The quicker the better am I right? When we have an area in our life that keeps us from producing fruit we know the best thing to do is remove it and then the new growth comes and we can begin to produce the fruit we were meant to.
Finally, we have the process in which the caretaker of the vine chooses not to remove or prune the branch but to simply lift up the branch and get it into the light. Why would the caretaker decide to do this? Somehow, these branches have gotten into area of dirt or darkness and are beginning to wither. They need to be lifted up and restored to the sun so they can thrive and begin to grow again. Sound like anything familiar?
As Christians we should be doing this with one another! If we are fullfilling Jesus's prayer for us and becoming ONE in the body of Christ then doesn't it make sense that a typical response for our brothers and sisters in Christ would be to lift one another up? When we see someone down or in trouble or in need of help shouldn't that be the first response? Not even just hard times but good times as well? When a success happens we also should be the first to celebrate with them!
How often does this happen in your church? I pray a lot! I pray your church is hitting the mark that Jesus has set before us. It starts with us as individuals right? And that's what I have learned. As part of this stripping away process, God has shown me that I can't control others obedience I can only control mine.
I would love to say that persecution doesn't happen in the church or that as Christians we don't fail each other or let each other down. But that wouldn't be fair and that wouldn't be realistic. We are not perfect and we are going to hurt each other. Remember that if you are the one hurt. And then also remember that Jesus prayed and asked God that we would be united as ONE as He and the Father are One. And that we would be ONE so that the world would see Him and know His love.
"Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord." Hebrews 12:14
Work at living in peace with everyone. Period. NOPE! It says AND work at living a holy life. Peace with everyone and a holy life. They work together. We must do both. Follow in obedience and be at peace with everyone. You can't have one without the other!
I look forward to sharing more lessons God is teaching me this year as He strips away layer by layer and reveals how He wants my life to reflect His character! I am praying for you all. Xoxox
