In the past three weeks at Alive Church, we’ve discussed different ways we can fulfill Jesus’ mission for our lives, which is to go and make disciples. Connecting with others, sharing our stories and serving those around us are three ways we can show God’s light and love to others.
Engaging in these three actions can lead your life in amazing directions, but they also take time and significant effort. In fact, they take so much out of us that we can’t even do these things on our own. We need God’s power to help us grow.
In John 15:1-17, Jesus told his disciples to remain in Him, even as He was leaving them. Within this message, there are three main guidelines for us to experience growth with and through Him:
- Stay Connected– There are plenty of things we can be connected to, but real growth only happens when we are consistently connected to Jesus (see John 15:5c). Think of your cell phone when it goes dead. If you connect it to the right charger, you’ll have power. If you connect it to anything else, it remains dead.
- Redefine Success– What comes to mind when you think of success? It’s easy to think of success as measured by wealth or prestige. But success lies in obedience to God, not in what we’ve earned, what we own or what our circumstances are. Through obedience, we remain in Him (see John 15:9-10).
- Safeguard “Fruit” Productivity– In John 15:16, Jesus tells His disciples that He has “appointed [them] to go and produce lasting fruit.” What is “lasting” fruit? Scholars have debated the true meaning of this verbiage, but it basically means making a lasting impact in His name to those around you. This can be by embodying the Fruits of the Spiritor by consistently sharing His transformative love with those who don’t know Him.
What can you do today to grow and to remain in Him? Know that I’m praying for you as you contemplate the answer.
In Christ,
Jeff