The Chosen - Part B

You can't pick and choose where you live your Christian life that yellow it's Sunday, so I smile and be a Christian tomorrow is Monday the dog eat dog world out there, barking loud and say that I'm to live my Christian life and my business but now my marriage or middle of my first wife, my marriage is all the Christian life, but it's definitely rewarding connect with Skip Heiser today as he shares about the special: God has given and how it gives you a great sense of purpose and joy.

Before we begin, we want to tell you about an exciting opportunity you have to encounter the roots of your faith in the land of the Bible is lifeline now taking a trip to Israel in 2022]. On the journey. Places like Nazareth, the Jordan River Dead Sea in Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount in the garden to and that's just a quick look at the trend. Find out more about the trip@inspirationchristus.com/CAP Q okay will be in John chapter 15 for today's so let's join Skip Heitzigs. When Jesus talks about joy and fullness of joy felt like a service motion of I'm kind of happy today.

Things are going my way. It's something much deeper and more profound than that. It's the kind of reality that permeate your life and controls your Outlook that's fullness of joy listen to it in the amplified Bible. I have told you these things, that my joy and delight may be in you and that your joy and gladness may be full measure complete and overflowing. Now here's what's amazing in the upper room discourse which is John chapter 13 1415 and 64 chapters, Jesus gets his disciples around a table in an upper room has the last supper and says these four chapters in that discourse. In that speech he gives over supper. He tells them the kind of news that is is breaking their hearts right now.

He told them I'm leaving you I'm leaving you and I'm going back to my father's house, and they were discouraged they would be despondent and he knew it. And yet there were three emotions that Jesus speaks about in this same speech that he said they could have. They should have in one day they will have three emotions. The first is peace, John chapter 14 is at peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you not as the world gives. I give to you. Peace number one number two love in these chapters, he says I love you. The father loves you.

We both love you together on to reveal my love to you love one another, so peace and love. And then now joy.

I speak these things to you that my joy might be with you and that your joy would be fall so peace love and joy. While he says I'm leaving and you're going to really be bummed out. You can and you will one day have peace and love and joy and last time I checked that's exactly what the world is craving today.

If you ask a person what you want in life or to give you the standard answer.

I just want to be happy what you want for your kids. I just want them to be happy you drill down on that answer, and what they really mean is if I could only find inner peace if I could only find true love.

And if I can only find lasting joy Jesus said I'm promising you all three of those things you are chosen for fullness to hold that thought for a minute. Sadly, throughout Christian history. Christianity has not been noticed, seen, regarded as a joyful experience. So much so I told you this a few weeks ago when I announced to my friends that I was following Jesus. Now a couple of Z, I'm so sorry to hear that because they figured that Jesus would take joy out of my life rather than inject joy into my life and think of how Christianity has been represented over the years. Clergymen traditionally throughout history wore black. That's like the color of morning black robes.

The music was largely sounded like funeral urges not really happy things the voices of many preachers ordered do and rode a guard. Should you. Whatever you do do not laugh really serious stuff. Oliver Wendell Holmes on if you know that name Oliver Wendell Holmes went on to become the associate Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America, so he will. He had a law profession at one time he was thinking about being a clergyman preacher, but he said this, I would've entered the ministry.

If the clergymen I know didn't look and act so much like undertakers who wrote those rules, certainly not Jesus. Certainly not the New Testament, it is time to overturn that by joyful Christianity. That's that.

Should Marcus fullness of joy.

It's my personal joy I am giving it to you and you can remain in it. You can remain in it. It can be your constant experience. I'm almost certain that you haven't heard this next name that I'm in a quote theologian by the name of Helmut helically.

You never ever do talk about the guy yesterday over a burger, probably not. Yeah so he's like a German theologian and and yet for a German theologian, listen to what he said. Archery rewrote. Should we not see that lines of laughter about the eyes are just as much marks of faith is lines of care and seriousness. Is it only earnestness that is baptized is laughter pagan churches in a bad way when it banishes laughter from the sanctuary and leaves it to the nightclub.

I like that quote. I agree with that quote you know Billy Sunday was a preacher.

I quoted and before Billy Sunday was a baseball player actually majorly professional baseball player became an evangelist and whenever he preached people said and there such joy in the sky have such enthusiasm and passion and joy whenever he would preach and one of the things that Billy Sunday used to say is this. Don't look as if your Christianity hurts you met good. I know people are less God who don't do that. Don't advertise. He said the trouble was so many is that they have just enough religion to make them miserable.

So Jesus says to his men. You are chosen for friendship. You are chosen for fullness. And here's 1/3 that I will close with.

We are chosen for following are chosen to be active disciples fruit bearing disciples. Look at verse 16.

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go.

Please mark that I've got an idea. I have a commission that your to go on a mission. You are to fulfill.

I have chosen you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit that your fruit should remain there, whatever you ask the father in my name he may give you, and because the fruit of the spirit.

Love is on top next verse. These things I command you, that you love one another to get the flow of this I didn't just choose you to be my friends.

I didn't just choose you to be joyful, I chosen you to be fruitful to be a fruitful growing disciple now fruit is this whole chapter is filled with that analogy of fruit right that's how chapter 15 of John begins.

I'm the vine, you are the branches. If you remain connected you to bear fruit in your bear more fruit you bear much fruit. He talks a lot about that. All throughout the chapter.

That's because fruit is a sign of growth and growth is a normal part of life when something is living, you expected to be growing and when growth doesn't happen. You're disappointed and shocked. So here's an example you can all relate to this. How many of you love babies brazier and you love babies. If you don't raise your hand, we should mark you so we love babies for a lot of reasons. We love the fact that their cute, their soft skin feet or so for coming. Just so cute so many ways. There little their little words they try to say I will look he said my name know you and you just taken a noise but I'm glad you enjoyed that, and here's one of the reasons is not buildable.

One of the reasons we love babies so much escape is because we know they're not gonna stay that way they're going to grow if we thought there were to stay that way when I can be as joyful but one of the reasons we tolerate their cries or their masses is because we know that they're going to grow. That's that's normal. Somebody once said a baby is just a digestive apparatus with a loud noise at one end and no responsibility at the other pretty good description, but that's okay were good with that. If, however, at 25 years of age. That son or daughter of yours comes and goes a long long long and and messes you're not okay with that.

That's problematic. So there has to be fruit. There has to be growth.

So Jesus uses the idea of fruit to depict the Christian life and there are some obvious things about fruit first about food is noticeable.

If you walk by an apple tree you know it's an apple tree if you're not a botanist, you know, it's an apple tree because it has apples.

They don't grow signs that say I am an apple tree. This is a great fine but you know it because you want quiet and you see the fruit. It's noticeable. I tell you I'm bringing that up because you really don't have to guess if a person is a believer or not. Look at the fruit pretty noticeable. So every now and then somebody will say is that it is a person a believer Christian well I think he is. I think deep down inside somewhere in the recesses of his heart he believes should be a whole lot simpler than that is very fruit. Is there any evidence of that event mean to be perfect Jesus at some bear 3060 hundredfold fruit we do in different stages different ways but there has to be some visible noticeable indication of will set them apart from just a false believer, Prof. of faith that has no fruit so it's noticeable. Also, fruit is nourishing. Grapevines have grapes apple trees of apples, fruit trees bear fruit. They don't consume their own product.

They do it to bless others. We get blessed by the fruit that comes from that tree. So likewise, if the life of God is in you than the life of God will flow through you. You will become a blessing to others.

You will exist, and find real pleasure in that fact. I will say, your life will take a turn for the better and and you will start getting really excited. When you begin not just to consume spiritual things, but nourish others and bless others with spiritual things where you get engaged and you get involved in. You give out heard a funny story about a man driving to Florida is reverently from Tampa to Miami and I he noticed that there are miles and miles and miles and miles and miles of orange groves everywhere. Orange trees are every millions of oranges run he stops at a little roadside restaurant orders, breakfast, bacon, eggs, and a glass of orange juice.

Why not I'm in Florida. Fresh squeezed orange juice.

He orders orange juice.

The waitress says and I kid you not. I'm sorry we don't have any orange juice.

What I'm you have the oranges she was no I'm sorry the machine broke machine I can go outside right now get to oranges and squeeze them into a cup. That's oranges is not that art we don't have an oranges. The machine broke. What is the problem they are dependent on the machine. I think we can become dependent on the machine. It's all about what I'm going to get out of my experience at church or might connect group or my women's group or my men's group listen.

Let your life be squeezed out to pour into the life of other people.

Bats.

When the excitement really begins.

Don't don't just be a I'm here to get something. I'm here to get that I might pour out and give to others. I love the description that Jacob had of his son Joseph. He said Joseph is a fruitful branch or fruitful vine whose branches go over the wall. He's such a blessing that he is fruitful not just here but out to others. He blesses other people's branches above the wall. I had a neighbor in Huntington Beach who had a lemon tree and I always pray for his lemon tree because his branches went over my side of the wall and the California say like you because many of those lemons are over my wall as exist, so I was having for eliminate all time live that kind of a life.

Your branches go over the wall so fruit is noticeable in fruit is nourishing.

Also, fruit is natural. It's just the only thing a branch has to do to produce an apple stay connected then have to struggle to have to work at it. The next think about it. You are just just hang in there. Hang in there and will produce fruit. Ever seen apple tree sweat ever walked by and heard us apples those hard no one its normal it happens naturally.

As the branch is connected to the stock or the vine naturally produces you.

Stay close to to Jesus as you walk with them as you talk to him gonna happen going to happen but therein is the warning because lack of food would indicate lack of life that make sense no fruit may be no life. Verse 14 want to look at. I know you've read it, but this should astonish you. Jesus said you are my friends if you do whatever I command you.

How unusual is that I mean think of it in another way, what or somebody walk up to you and said hey so-and-so you can be my friend but there's only one condition you have to do everything I tell you yet right that's reaction yeah right like what works one way while kind of in this case it does because here's Jesus hears God the created universe thing you can be my friend if you do whatever I command now let's look at it this way, we arty know Jesus is a pretty good friend us is a great friend us right then you just say greater love has no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend. What is he referring to the cross is death. I'm going to die on a cross for you to get to heaven so that's that's pretty good love.

That's pretty good friendship. So we've established the fact that Jesus is great, friend us. The question remaining is how good of a friend are you to him with Jesus is my friend cool great awesome how good of a friend are you to Jesus not looking for perfection here.

What is looking for is obedience, submission to his will desire to please him, you are my friends if you do whatever I command you notice the word what ever last time I checked, you know that means action means whatever means anything and everything so you can't pick and choose where you live your Christian life like yellow it's Sunday song to smile and be a Christian. Tomorrow is Monday.

The doggy dog world out there and I'm in a bark, loud you can't say that I'm in a live my Christian life and my business, but not my marriage Roman to live my Christian life and my marriage but not my business. He wants it all. If you do what ever I command you.

I want to close on part of that warning.

I want you to go back to chapters were in John 15 go to chapter 13 actually turned their John chapter 13 and look at verse 17 where he said if you know these things.

Blessed are you, better word is happy are you if you know these things you are happy if you do them. I do not speak concerning all of you.

I know whom I have chosen, but that the Scripture may be fulfilled. He who eats bread with me has lifted up his heel against me who to talk about their Judas Iscariot, one of his friends. One of the guys at dinner with him, who after he announces this in chapter 14 gets up goes out gets 30 pieces of silver and betrays Jesus is not speaking about all of you. I know whom I have chosen is not Judas, why did Jesus choose Judith is Judas didn't choose Jesus. God is all for knowledge.

He knows these things. I know whom I have chosen not 11 of his friends.

The rest of the disciples will remain will be obedient will bear fruit will go on to live vibrant Christian lives.

Now Jesus is called the friend of sinners. Question is, will you let him choose, you will you let him choose, you, because he wants you he loves you and he wants to choose you will. How do I know if he chose to make. You can find out pretty quickly here fact in the next five or 10 minutes some of your going to discover that some years ago, Rich and Patty white traveled to Third World country to adopt a young child and his you know who have adopted its very time-consuming and very costly or expensive to adopt a child shouldn't be, but it is there, which with the rural country went through years of paperwork spent the money.

Finally the day came when the trial was set. The judge was going to adjudicate on the case to give custody to them. The little girl's name that they wanted to adopt was named Alona Morgan. So the day came everybody's in the courtroom. The judge reads the official document in front of the people who were there prospective parents and the little girl now, the little girl had to hear these words, the judge said.

Inasmuch as Alona Morgan is orphaned and is unwanted by any family in this country, and inasmuch as no citizen of this country wishes to have Alona Morgan and the judge conferred custody to the couple as soon as that was done that couple walked over to the little girl got on their knees hug that little girl and said to her in that courtroom.

You will never have to hear the word unwanted spoken of you again. They took the little girl home to the United States and changed her name from Alona Morgan to hope white hope you are not unwanted. He wants you so much that the best friend you could ever have gave his life to make sure that you have a place in heaven shed his own blood felt the pain of Roman spikes in his hands because he knew it would be enough before a holy God to get you to be one of his friends and his family have a place with him for greater love has no one than this, will you choose the one who is choosing that reps of skiff heights its message is now history. Now we want to let you know about a resource that will help you hear God's voice more clearly by walking in his word, 20, 22, almost here now for your spiritual starting in January. This month their offerings that devotional containing strong times for each state the sample from January 1 Martin Luther 19 has it friends after reading stank stay and prepare for the greatest adventure of your life.

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