 Our sermon title this morning is Christ my joy Christ my joy And this is part two as we are working through John chapter 15 verses 9 through 17 and This text a glorious text that we see Both from our perspective and God's perspective even in this one text God's redemptive purposes in Christ toward us and The joy that he intends in the Christian life that joy Planted deeply within the heart of man. It's something that we're Programmed with so to speak it's a part of your Christian DNA when you come to Christ the Christian life is to be a life of joy joy unspeakable joy Fulness of joy joy overflowing That's the joy that is the need for that the want for that right Planted woven into the fabric of every single person outside of Christ with our natures being corrupted by the fall Our natures being corrupted by sin We try to pursue that joy in a host of means that have nothing to do with Christ and in that all we find is emptiness It leads to nothing leads to temporal happiness But surely that happiness and this life comes to an end when you die and face God in judgment There are a host of ways in which sinful man seeks joy and all those ways are bound to be ultimately unsatisfying Christ is our joy Christ is our joy And we may find temporary happiness and temporary pleasures temporary comfort temporary leisure temporary entertainment's temporary pursuits, but all that is unstable at best fleeting Here one moment gone the next But joy in Christ is a settled established fact and reality of the Christian life We miss the fullness of that joy When we fail to obey the Lord we miss the fullness of that joy when we don't put our trust and faith in Christ alone When we don't walk in the path that he has laid out for us As we come to John chapter 15 verses 9 through 17 We're to find our soul's satisfaction. We're to find our joy in Christ alone So he says in verse 11 These things I have spoken to you for the purpose that My joy may remain in you and that your joy may be full praise God What a gracious gift of God a man the Christian life is not a begrudging burdensome trudging gritting out in your own strength Labor for a set of rules and regulations. It's not that There is joy in keeping the commands of God There is joy in following Christ and our joy in that can be full It's his joy his joy in remaining obedient to the father his joy in obedience to the father becomes our joy in obedience to him He's speaking of joy here In a similar way to giving his peace back in John 14 verse 27. He says in John 14 27 My peace I give to you with joy in the Christian life like peace is something that he gives He imparts to believers who put their faith in him. He imparts his joy That joy comes through the means of our abiding in him abiding in his word Keeping his commandments trusting in him following him and our joy in that becomes full Now what leads to that soul? Satisfying joy in the Christian life one in verse nine his love for us What leads to that soul satisfying joy the knowledge and understanding of his love for you if you're in Christ as The father loved me verse nine. I also have loved you in Christ. You are loved like Christ That's an amazing thought. I mean amazing thought we looked at that last week your love Or your joy in his love is a transcendent joy Because his love for you if you're in Christ is a transcendent love His love a transcendent love leading to your joy, which is a transcendent joy. It's not based in how lovely you are It's not based in how lovable you are It's based entirely and only in how lovely and how lovable christ is And he is supremely and always and ultimately lovable and lovely In fact when he chose to pour out Our his redeeming love on us We were unlovely God demonstrates his own love toward us in that while we were still sinners christ died for us So ground your joy verse nine in his immutable and immeasurable love for you Your joy should be grounded in his love his love My joy now he concludes verse nine again with the command to abide In that love jude says keep yourselves in the love of god Stay in the place where you can experience the constant joy of knowing that love How do you do that? How do you abide in his love verse 10? Keep my commandments. You obey him You abide in the love of god toward you the love of christ for you You abide in that love by keeping his commandments Now once again here The lord communicates the importance and the necessity of obedience in the christian life paul told titus listen remind them Constantly that those who have believed in god believed in the lord jesus christ should be faithful should be careful to maintain Good works why? Because we abide in his love we abide in his joy through keeping his commandments obedience He says here is a necessary fruit of genuine saving faith obedience unnecessary Means by which you abide in the true vine and bear fruit to the glory of god and here in verse 10 Obedience is a means by which you abide in his love and experience full joy in the christian life Where to obey keep his commandments and we rushed through this point a little bit last week for lack of time And so i want to unpack this a little more this morning To make his point regarding the necessity of our obedience He presents to us in verse 10 the only appropriate and the only ultimate standard of that obedience and that standard is the lord jesus christ himself look at verse 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 Jesus says here verse 10 you keep my commandments and abide in my love In the same way that i keep my father's commandments and abide in his love and jesus said back in john chapter 8 verse 29 I always do those things which please him The lord jesus christ we know perfectly sinless And abiding in the love of the father was never in question the lord jesus christ is perfectly sinless always doing those things which please him But the love of the father this is important to understand That love of the father toward him was constantly experienced through his ongoing obedience The means by which god Showered lavished upon christ the trinitarian love that god the father has for love god the son Was through the means of the son's constant and perfect obedience to god the father When was The one time during the lord's earthly ministry Where he experienced the sense of being forsaken by god at the cross at the cross When he took our sin On the cross and became paul says sin for us My god my god, why have you forsaken me right? It was the was the second person of the trinity Unloved by the father during that time No No But jesus on the cross sensed the abandonment Sensed the despair that accompanies sin if you think about it with a um Mom or a dad and their child right is it possible for mom to be at one time thinking of us now in this relationship to god the father so Righteously indignant over the activities of that child But at the same time love them like their own body their own flesh Yes, you can love and the same time be displeased because of what they're doing We experience our relationship with god the father in much the same way If you think about the lord jesus christ on the cross that only time where he sensed the the abandonment the forsakenness On the cross was during that time when he took our sin and bore our sin In himself on the tree what was lost During that time What was lost was the abiding experience of the love of god Of god's love for the lord jesus christ The experience of an abiding love relationship that god the father was replaced for a time By an experience of god's wrath being poured out on him as he bore our sin That was what was lost during that time For us When we live when we live in unrepentant disobedience We experience his fatherly displeasure If you're in christ Nothing will actually separate you from the love of god and him that's romans eight What will separate us from the love of god nothing But you will certainly in your disobedience lose the experience of that love for a time The experience of abiding then and that love is undermined undermined It's supplanted for a time by a guilty accusing conscience It's undermined or supplanted for a time by the pain of chastening enduring the fatherly displeasure of god And so in verses nine through eleven and john 15 the lord is saying listen stay Remain in the joy producing experience of the love of god like me By always doing those things which please him His love is my joy and we abide on that love by keeping his commandments now second point on your notes His delight then leads to my joy He delights in our obedience samuel asked the question Has the lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying The voice of the lord and that statement made by the prophet samuel in first samuel chapter 15 And i want you to turn there with me first samuel chapter 15 That comes right before second samuel First samuel chapter 15 And look with me beginning at verse one second first samuel first samuel chapter 15 Beginning in verse one We want to see an example here in the life of sol Now here is what is commanded right? We abide in his love by keeping his commandments In first samuel chapter 15 verse one. Here's what's commanded right verse one Samuel Also said to sol The lord sent me to anoint you king over his people over israel Now therefore heed the voice of the words of the lord Thus says the lord of hosts I will punish amalek for what he did to israel How he ambushed him on the way when he came up from egypt Now go and attack amalek and utterly destroy all that they have and do not spare them But kill both man and woman infant and nursing child ox and sheep camel and donkey Wow, you say that sounds pretty serious. Listen this sin Very serious in the eyes of god when israel came up out of egypt in exodus chapter 17 If you remember the story the amalekites Attacked israel at the rear of their ranks where the Weary or where the weak or They caught if you will The stragglers those who were having a difficult time the weak of the children of israel who were lagging behind And they attacked them at israel's rear The back of their ranks so to speak and so god incensed over the the wickedness of amalek the amalekites In deuteronomy 25 God promises in judgment to blot out the name of amalek from under heaven forever God is going to completely wipe them out and he planned to use israel as the instrument of his judgment against them So in first samuel 15 here The time for judgment has come Saul is commanded To wipe them out completely. We're going to wipe The amalekites off the face of the earth. But now here is what sol did. That's what's commanded by god Righteously and justly commanded by god And now here's what sol did in verse nine drop down to verse nine first samuel 15 verse nine But sol and the people Spared agag agag was the leader of the amalekites here He spared agag and the best of the sheep The oxen the fatlings the lambs and all that was good in their eyes, right and were unwilling Despite the command of god, they were unwilling to utterly destroy them But everything despised and worthless That they utterly destroyed Do you see the sin? Look at verse 10 now the word of the lord came to samuel saying As a response to this this is god I greatly regret that i have set up sol as king For he has turned back from following me and has not Performed my commandments and it grieved samuel and he cried out to the lord all night now notice in verse 11 The fruit Of samuel's grief Over god's displeasure god's anger at this sin This rejection of the commandments of the lord sol did not obey Did not obey and samuel grieved by that grieved over god's displeasure The fruit of that and the fruit of his night of prayer in response to that grief Is a holy zeal now to obey god Notice the contrast between samuel here and sol Samuel grieved by sin Grieved by god's displeasure after having prayed all night now has a holy zeal to obey god sol Willy nilly disobeys god Look at verse 12 so verse 12 Samuel he didn't waste any time right he rose up early in the morning Samuel rose up early in the morning to meet sol it was told samuel saying sol went to carmel and indeed he has set up Set up a monument for himself Wow Right you see sol's sin just sin upon sin upon sin. That's the problem pride Self value not valuing god not fearing god He went to carmel. He set up a monument for himself and he has gone on around pass by and gone down to gill gal Then samuel Went to sol in verse 13 and sol said to him as he sees samuel coming right it's like the um The child who's been told to go and clean their room They know they've only half done it and so they meet they see mom turning the corner to go down the hall And they see the look on mom's face right blessed. Are you among women? This was sol's sol's response to the look on samuel's face when he saw samuel coming Blessed are you of the lord? I have performed the i've cleaned my room, right? I have performed the commandment of the lord No verse 14 But samuel said What then is this bleeding of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the oxen which I hear Now sol said in verse 15 blaming on the people Blaming it on the people they right these people you've given me like that wife you gave me right These people you've given me they have brought them from the amalekites For the people spared the best of the sheep the oxen to sacrifice to sacrifice It's for a good cause samuel to sacrifice the lord your god and the rest the rest we have utterly destroyed Partial obedience is Total disobedience Partial obedience is total disobedience is disobedience verse 16 Samuel said to sol be quiet And I will tell you what the lord said to me last night And so sol said to him speak on So samuel said verse 17 when you were little in your own eyes Were you not Head of the tribes of israel And did not the lord anoint you king over israel? Look at all that god has done for you right look at the ways it's miraculous It's miraculous look at the ways in which god blessed sol God has blessed sol look at all that god has done for sol verse 18 now The lord sent you on a mission Sent you on a mission and he said go Utterly destroy the sinners the amalekites and fight against them until they are consumed Why then verse 19? Why then did you not obey the voice of the lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoils like a vulture right the sort of the picture Of vulture swooping in on the soil to consume it on his own lust Why did you swoop down on the spoil to do evil in the sight of the lord? This is evil in the sight of god So sol trying to Justify himself sol said to samuel But i've obeyed the voice of the lord And i've gone on the mission on which the lord sent me and brought back agag king of amalek And i have utterly destroyed the amalekites but Again blaming on the people But the people took of the plunder sheep and oxen the best things which should have been utterly destroyed To sacrifice to the lord your god and gilgale well the people Did that but who's standing next to sol agag Now make the application You say But i go to church I go to church almost every sunday I'm participating in group. You know i witnessed once a month on saturday I've obeyed the command of the lord I feel like i love the brothers The partial obedience is disobedience So samuel said verse 22 Putting his finger right on it samuel said Has the lord as great delight in religious trappings without heart obedience. Do you see Has the lord as great delight in religious ceremonies without heart obedience Has the lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in Obeying the voice of the lord and the answer to that question is an emphatic no And samuel says behold To obey Is better than sacrifice and to heed than the fat of rams. Why why samuel verse 23 because Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry Because because you have rejected the word of the lord. He also has rejected you from being king Let me make a few points a few observations from this The first one is this why does god delight in obedience? Why does god delight in our heart obedience obedience from the heart? Because disobedience is as the sin of witchcraft Disobedience is as the sin of a witchcraft now witchcraft is essentially Rejecting the word of god And taking the word of a demon Witchcraft is essentially Heeding the words Of a witch Heeding the words of a demon heating the words of this heating anyone else's words, but god's words rebellion Rebellion is essentially Rejecting the word of god and heating your own words. Do you see? Rebellion against the commands of god is as the sin of witchcraft and stubbornness is as iniquity And idolatry second point. Why does god delight in obedience? Because disobedience is idolatry Disobedience is idolatry when god says one thing and we do another We put ourselves in the place of god When we stubbornly refuse to heed his word We rob god of the glory do his name because we put ourselves in the place of god making us idolaters Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry to Saul In first Samuel 15 finally owns up to his guilt finally in verse 24 look at verse 24 Then Saul said to Samuel Saul said I have sinned I have sinned for I have transgressed the commandment of the lord and your words. Why because I feared the people And I obeyed their voice Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft right Stubbornness is as idolatry. He feared the people. He obeyed their voice instead of the voice of god It says here that Saul did that because he feared the people rather than fearing god So let me give you a third point Why does god delight in obedience? Because disobedience demonstrates a lack of regard and reverence for god God delights in our obedience because disobedience Demonstrates a lack of regard for the holiness and reverence of god Obeying god Obeying god if you think about it now obeying god shows a proper regard for god's holiness for god's character For god's right to rule since he is the creator of all things God is the one who created you god is the one who provides god is the one who can kill both body and soul in hell God is infinitely more worthy of honor than those people Infinitely more worthy of honor than anyone else's voice or anyone else's word. He alone is lord and we're to fear him Now in all this Samuel our Saul Transgressed he failed to keep the commandments of god. He rejected the commandments of god and Out of the desires of his own heart did his own thing did what was right in his own eyes By contrast now Samuel Samuel demonstrates a zeal for keeping the commands commandments of god in verse 32 Samuel carries out The command that had been given we get verse 32 Then Samuel said Bring agag king of the amalekites here to me Samuel zealous to obey the lord so agag came to him cautiously Rightfully so Samuel was not to be trifled with here Agag said surely the bitterness of death is past But Samuel again with a holy zeal to see god's word obeyed Samuel said as your sword has made women childless So shall your mother be childless among women and Samuel hacked agag in pieces before the lord in gilgale There's a stark contrast here. Isn't there in first Samuel 15 a stark contrast between the rebellious disobedience of sol and the zealous obedience of samuel and what god is saying is that That obedience is what i delight in God delights in the zealous obedience of his people Now it's also a certainly stark contrast Between sol and the king that would come after him The king that would come after him is described in scripture as a man after god's own heart A man after god's own heart. Look with me quickly at acts chapter 13. Why? Why was david described as a man after god's own heart A one indication of that given to us in acts 13 in the preaching of paul Acts 13 at paul preaching And in his sermon He says this beginning in verse 20 After that acts 13 20 after that he gave them judges for about 450 years until Samuel the prophet And afterward they asked for a king and so god gave them sol The son of kish a man of the tribe of benjamin for 40 years And when he had removed him he raised up for them david as king To whom he also gave testimony and said i have found david the son of jesse A man after my own heart. Why was he called that? Because he will do all my will. Do you see that in verse 22? He's a man after my own heart who will do all my will You know what became of sol? Back in first samuel What became of sol? The commands of god seemed to him a burdensome chore The kingdom Was eventually torn from him if you remember that story Saul was plagued by an evil spirit. He was plagued by jealousy greed Hatred murder sol suffered from bouts of madness bouts of depression He suffered defeat at the hands of the philistines The people around him became alienated from god and eventually in a final act of shame Final act of disobedience sol committed suicide And look how god had blessed sol God had blessed sol and yet sol persisted in disobedience Disobedience at its essence Is a defiance of the person and character and blessing and grace of god That's why he delights in obedience. It's why he delights in obedience And why obedience is the path to abiding in his love go back to john chapter 15 with me now john chapter 15 And look at verse 10 now from the text John chapter 15 And in verse 10 I experienced fullness of joy And I abide in his delighting love when I keep his commandments. Okay when I keep his commandments And that's Given to us in three components so to speak from this text. This is not an exhaustive list, but it's representative found in this text We abide in his delighting love When I keep his commandments by one Obeying like him when we obey like him verse 10 When I rejoice like him with his joy in verse 11 And when I love like him in verses 12 and 13 We talked about these briefly last week I abide in the love of god when I keep his commandments And his commandments comprise in this text of obeying like the lord jesus christ Rejoicing in that obedience like the lord jesus christ and loving like the lord jesus christ And verse 10 when I obey like him I abide in the love of god by keeping his commandments when I obey like him verse 10 If you keep his commandments you will abide in my love in the same way that I have kept my father's commandments and abide in his love God the father delights in the obedience of the son And the son rejoices to always do those things which delight the father and so the son then abides in the delighting love And experiences the joy of the lord by always doing those things which please the father. Do you see Now in the same way verse 10 in the same way God the father god the son god the holy spirit delight in our obedience And it is the joy Of every genuine christian to do those things which please him if you're a christian It's the joy of your heart to please the lord You understand that's not a that's a that's a foundational issue in the christian life If you're a christian you delight you love to do those things which please him And so thinking about it now making the connection between us and christ We abide in his delighting love and we experience the joy of the lord Through our obedience to his commandments. You want to be joyful in your christian life obey the lord you want to be despairing joyless in your christian life disobey the lord right two When I obey like him number one two when I rejoice like him I abide In the love of the father. I abide in the love of the lord jesus christ when I keep his commandments and that When I rejoice like him in verse 11 These things I've spoken to you That my joy may remain in you and that your joy may be full The very purpose of his commands now you think about this the commandments of god for his glory And for our good When god commands it is for our good that he commands And so those commandments can be our joy john would later write This is the love of god that we keep his commandments saying the same thing right? This is the love of god. How do we know we love god when we keep his commandments? This is the love of god that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not burdensome his commandments are our joy the son Rejoices to do those things which please the father And his joy in that becomes our joy When we abide in his love by keeping his commandments We share his joy As we share his obedience. Do you see? We share his joy as we obey Thirdly when I love like him When I obey like him when I rejoice like him when I love like him verse 12 This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you Greater love has no one than this than to lay down one's life for his friends In that abiding love and in that abiding joy if that's Experienced through obedience Then that obedience is evidenced by our love for one another That obedience is evidenced by our love for one another. How can you say say that you love god whom you don't see? When you don't love your brother whom you do see See the connection that's being made Verse 13 explains that the extent of that love means dying for one another As he has died for you dying to self. This is self Sacrificing love That's a high calling, isn't it? It's a high calling Can't make apologies for that. Yes, it's a high calling and yes, we're to live that way Don't make excuses because it's a high calling It's a high calling for all those that follow him and we should love like he loves Striving to live up to that standard which the lord gives us here Now you think about it It's just a few short hours. They're on their way as they're having this conversation in john 15. They're on their way to the garden Garden of Gethsemane the lord's gonna pray Judas and the troops are going to come In just a few short hours the lord would be arrested. He would be tried and he'd be crucified in the place of his own And so he takes the statement that he just made in verse 13 And He references The sacrificial death that he would soon die for his own disciples for us if you're in christ in verse 14 He says You are my friends the word is philos there. It literally means loved ones. You are my loved ones if you do Whatever i command you But back to obedience, right Now note It's not that that obedience makes them friends of god, right Friends of jesus obedience doesn't make them friends obedience Marks them as friends You don't earn the love of god By your obedience you abide in the experience of god's love through your obedience That isn't that a cause for joy in our obedience to him To cause for joy in the christian life joy in in our obedience Second main point on your notes his delight his delight is my joy and he delights in us when we obey like him He delights in us when we rejoice like him and he delights in us when we love like he loves Third main point on your notes. His word is my joy. His word is my joy. Look at verse 15 No longer Do I call you servants the word there is doulas it means slave No longer. Do I call you slaves? Why not? Why not? for because A servant a slave Does not know what his master is doing But I have called you friends there it is again philos loved ones. I have called you friends. Why? Because all things that I heard from my father I have made known to you Now notice here first in verse 15 The distinction between a slave and a friend Is not the distinction between obeying and not obeying. That's what the world might expect to hear, right? It's not the distinction between obeying and not obeying. You just said in verse 14. You are my friends if what? If you keep my commandments, right? This is not the distinction between slave and friend It's not the distinction between obeying and disobeying right the distinction Here in verse 15 is between knowing and not knowing Knowing his word Knowing all things that I heard from my father and not knowing his word in other words the distinction is based on revelation On the revelation that the lord jesus christ has given the revelation that god has given in christ A slave A slave is obligated to obey whether he understands what he's doing or not Whether he knows the plans and purposes and desires of his master or not a slave is obligated to obey But if you are a disciple of christ You have the blessing Of that kind of intimate knowledge that is denied to a slave You have the blessing of knowing god's heart God's purposes god's plan you have the blessing of the mystery revealed in christ You have the blessing of that revelation that is denied To a slave and he says beginning of verse 15. He says no longer, right? No longer are you mere slaves? You do not understand these things But now this is a transition to a a new period in salvific history a new period in redemptive history because now christ has come Right no longer are you mere slaves? You don't understand But now jesus says i've called you friends because i've made known to you god in me christ in his person christ in his work revealing god to them god's redemptive purposes god's redemptive plans The no longer in verse 15 points to something new and that new should be a cause for joy for us Should produce joy in your heart we live on this side of the cross We live with the the fullness of god's revelation in christ now up to this point There were two people in the old testament referred to as friends of god Two people abraham and moses Both referred to as friends on the basis of their relationship To him as god revealed himself to them turn with me quickly to exodus chapter 33 Let me give you one example of this in the life of moses exodus chapter 33 We can get there exodus 33 And then drop down to verse 11 just one example And i want you to make the connection here Really between us and moses or us and abraham In the sense that he referred to us as friends of god look at exodus 33 drop down to verse 7 moses took his tent and pitched it outside the camp far from the camp and called it the tabernacle of meeting And it came to pass that everyone who sought the lord went out to the tabernacle of meeting which was outside the camp So it was whenever moses went out to the tabernacle That all the people rose and each man stood at his tent door and watched moses until he had gone into the tabernacle And it came to pass when moses entered the tabernacle that the pillar of cloud descended And stood at the door of the tabernacle and the lord talked with moses. That's pretty awesome thought, right? All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door And all the people rose and worshiped each man in his tent door And so verse 11 the lord spoke to moses Face to face as a man speaks to his friend That's a beautiful description, right spoke with moses face to face and describes it as a man who speaks to his friend That's a beautiful picture of the relationship that moses had with god and moses implied by the text here Is a friend a friend of god And he would return to the camp but his servant joshua the son of a nun the son of none A young man did not depart from the tabernacle If you think about this now make the connection in jesus christ In jesus christ god Has spoken to us Face to face As a man speaks to his friend Now does that not cause joy in your heart? The revelation of god to us in jesus christ his son Now listen He's still curious He's still lord And you and i we are still douloi. We're slaves We're slaves who obey But we Live on this side of the cross This time in redemptive history Where god's supreme Revelation of himself has walked among us And now we behold him in the word of god face to face God has spoken at various times and in various ways to the father by the prophets, but now But now In these last days. He has spoken to us by his son In him in the lord jesus christ in his person in his teaching in his work In his example in the cross in his word We have the full Sweeping scope of god's intended revelation to man We don't have merely the law of god. We have christ And we see god's redemptive purposes Fulfilled in him. We see every promise of god. Yes, and amen in him And we still see in a mirror dimly right, but the day is coming When faith becomes sight and we shall see him as he is But i have this revelation now You have this revelation now And it's a glorious revelation his word is my joy Amen, his word your joy if you're a christian his word is your delight his word is your joy Jeremiah said old testament Jeremiah said your words were found and i ate them your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart For i am called by your name. Oh lord god of hosts Now i have to warn you warn myself That we can't be presumptuous or irreverent with this blessing. Abraham never called god his friend All right, and that's not because god is unfriendly moses Never referred to god as his friend God is The divine potentate And his right to rule his worthiness to be feared His worthiness to be worshiped Is in no way diminished by his grace in communicating with worms And i was a apart Incidentally, it's when the lord saved me In spite of the church that i was at the lord saved me i was a part of an awful a terrible church right terrible church packed full of lost people And that church loved to sing a song entitled i am the friend of god They sang that song When the church was chalk full of people who didn't value the revelation of god who didn't know their bibles No abiding interest in actually obeying god And in that sing in hypocrisy It's a blessing To be called a friend of god we Experience that love relationship with god the father as we abide in his word as we abide in the true vine As we abide and keep his commandments Fourth on your notes His mission his mission is my joy His mission leads to my joy verse 16 Verse 16 Lord says you did not choose me But i chose you And appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain That whatever you ask the father in my name he may give you After explaining that glorious blessing in verses 14 and 15 Calling them friends The lord wants to ensure them That it's not because of how smart they are How lovable they are How worthy they are the blessings Including the blessing of their own salvation is by the grace of god alone And it is two undeserving sinners This is true of the disciples then and it is true of you and i now You follow christ not because you are smarter than the people that don't You follow christ not because you're smarter you follow christ Not because you're holier than all the people that don't follow christ You follow christ verse 16 because he chose you Not because you chose him if you did choose him right then you have something about which you can boast But salvation is purely the gift of god not of works lest anyone should boast Psalm 65 verse 4 Blessed is the man you choose and cause to approach you that he may dwell in your courts Matthew chapter 20 verse 16 many are called but few are Chosen john chapter 1 verse 12 believers are born again not of blood Nor the will of the flesh nor the will of man, but they're born of god acts chapter 13 verse 48 When Gentiles heard the word of the lord as many as had been appointed to eternal life Believed roman's chapter 9 verse 16 salvation is not of him who wills Nor is it is it of him who runs, but it's of god who shows mercy Ephesians chapter 1 verse 4 he shows us in him when Before the foundation of the world Ephesians chapter 1 verse 5 He has predestined us to adoption as sons by jesus christ to himself according to their works According to their lovableness No, according to the good pleasure of his own will roman's chapter 8 verse 30 Moreover those whom he predestined these he also called he justified and he glorified first peter chapter 1 verse 2 We are elect according to the foreknowledge of god second Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 13 We are bound to give thanks to god always for you brethren be loved by the lord because god From the beginning chose you for salvation. Now that is just a small sampling, right? There was a hymn. It was popular back in the 50s the 1950s right 1950s usually like good hymns are gonna be 1750s 1650s right It's a hymn in the 1950s Called it an oldie, but it's not an oldie. It's a newie Um, it's written by c austin myles and the title of the hymn was a new name in glory A new name in glory and the way the hymn goes you look at him up. It's like god is busy Writing down the names of people in the lambs book of life as they come to salvation According to revelation 17 8 When were their names written in the book of life if they're in christ, yeah from before the foundation of the world God's choice God's electing god's choosing for salvation comes with three components Described in john chapter 15 verse 16 It comes with his appointment It comes with his purpose and it comes with his promise Quickly his appointment You did not choose me jesus says but i chose you and appointed you in other words He didn't merely choose you He set you apart from the world to himself and he gave you a mission You were appointed To a mission he gave you a work to do he appointed you to a purpose second timothy chapter 1 verse 9 God has saved us And called us with a holy calling not according to your works But according to his own Purpose he appointed you to a purpose right according to his own purpose and grace which was given to us in christ jesus when before time began Knowing that we've been saved from the wrath of god knowing that we've been forgiven of our sin is awesome But knowing that in doing that god has given us a purpose that purpose If you understand that that purpose should become the priority of your life That purpose God's purpose in saving you god's purpose Should become your life's priority He appointed us second. He appointed us to a purpose He says you did not choose me, but i chose you and appointed you That here's his purpose that you should go and bear fruit And that your fruit should remain and we spent time In verses 1 through 8 discussing what fruit he's referring to right the fruit of christian character The fruit of christian conduct fruit in the great commission oftentimes in scripture These fruits are lumped together or described as good works ephesians chapter 2 verse 10 We are his workmanship created in christ jesus for the purpose of good works Which god prepared beforehand that we should walk in them Titus chapter 2 verse 14 jesus gave himself for us So that he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for himself his own special people zealous for good works Titus chapter 3 verse 8 This is a faithful saying and these things i want you to affirm Constantly that those who have believed in god should be careful to maintain good works Peter comes along and says that if we want to make our calling and election sure We're going to be diligent to do these things. He says in chapter 1 verse 10 therefore brethren Be even more diligent to make your call and election sure how peter how by doing these things If you do these things in other words if you fulfill the purposes of god for you Peter says you will never stumble for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom Of our lord and savior jesus christ now specifically specifically in john chapter 15 verse 16 The fruit being referred here To the disciples and to us Is fruit in evangelism It is fruit in the mission that we've been called to We're going to preach tonight on the mission of the church. We've been called to a mission He's referring here specifically to fruit in evangelism Blessed by god Blessed by god in all the ways that we are we should be out laboring to bear fruit that remains the fruit that remains our souls for christ D. A. Carson said that a focus on evangelism and mission Is truly central to the lord's thought here You know, there are many Who don't study the bible? And so when I say something out of the bible, they want to argue that with their head in their heads, right? So I'll you know, I explain something that the bible says but like I you know, I'm a nobody so the Big propensity for somebody's and I don't believe that guy So every once in a while I have to use a name like d. A. Carson To substantiate what we're talking about here D. A. Carson said okay, if you don't believe me, believe d. A. Carson If you don't believe me, believe john mccarland. You don't believe me godly men who know the bible, right? Listen, there's no way around it believe the bible Evangelism this mission that we've been called to is central to the lord's thoughts here in john chapter 15 verse 16 We should be pursuing fruit in evangelism And if you abide in the love of god by keeping his commandments then keep his command to evangelize To share the gospel to bring disciples into the church to disciple them to make disciples obey that and experience the joy of the lord He says that now though with a promise His appointment his purpose and his promise You did not choose me I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain That whatever you ask the father in my name, he may give you Whatever you ask the father in my name, what a beautiful promise, right? We've seen this promise before John chapter 14 verse 13 whatever you ask in my name that I will do That the father may be glorified in the sun We're going to see it again in john chapter 16 verse 24 ask And you will receive that your joy may be full first john Chapter 3 verse 22 whatever we ask we receive from him Because we keep his commandments and do those things that are pleasing in his sight Now we're commanded to abide and bear fruit We saw that in john chapter 15 verses 1 through 4 commanded to abide in the vine and bear fruit If you don't abide in the vine and bear fruit You are cast out as a branch and withered they gather them together and they throw them into the fire. That's hell Right You're commanded to abide in the vine and bear fruit We also know from john 15 5 that apart from him you can do nothing Apart from him you can do nothing that means that every good work that we do Right whenever you go and share the gospel every good work that you do in order to please him Everything must be done by faith in christ because apart from him we can do nothing Romans chapter 14 verse 23 whatever is not from faith is sin Hebrews chapter 11 verse 6 without faith it is impossible to please him for he who comes to god Must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. It's like Going to the doctor, right? I let's say i'm diagnosed with terminal cancer And I go to the doctor and the doctor checks me out and says mark I can cure you I can cure now. Let's say he's a really really really trustworthy doctor So I say doc I trust you Is that the end of the treatment If I trust him I'm going to do What he tells me to do listen take this medicine three times a day. I'm going to take it one time a day partial obedience is Deadly disobedience. No, I'm going to take it three times a day. He tells me to take it three times a day Right, I'm going to come in for my treatments and I'm not going to miss one I'm going to come at why because I trust the doctor the doctor said he could cure me and I believe him So I do what the doctor says to do if I say I trust him and I don't do anything the doctor tells me to do I don't trust him. I don't believe I don't believe him Pretty simple, right prayer Is an expression or a demonstration of that faith in christ that faith in god Prayer is a demonstration of it an expression of it How can you in your christian life keep yourselves from doing things in your own power? How can you keep yourselves from doing works in your own strength according to your own will? Prayer prayer you pray You pray to god you pray to god to help you in the work You pray to god to empower the work you pray for the spirit of god to enable you in the work You pray to god for fruitfulness in the work You pray for god as you to god as you labor And if you pray to god with your mind focused on his purposes his plans his mission His heart his desires his kingdom then as you pray you're not doing the work in your own power You're depending upon god to do that work in you and through you. Do you see? Don't do works in self effort apart from christ. You can do nothing So lean on the spirit of god depend upon christ you pray Now what does it mean here to pray in jesus's name? Does it mean that when you pray Whatever you're praying for That by tacking on at the end in jesus's name means you get whatever you want No That's not a formula. It's not a ritual not a mantra. You know I want that new Cadillac. I want that new house. I want that new boat And at the end in jesus name No, that's not in jesus. That's in your name that you're praying those things His name is the lord jesus christ That name the lord jesus christ encompasses all of his purposes all of his intents all of his plans It encompasses his person who he is his desires his will and encompasses his kingdom his glory So when you pray in jesus name, you're considering all those things what he wants what his intentions are His purposes his plans his kingdom his glory Now if you are truly abiding in the vine When you abide in the vine by abiding in his word by keeping his commandments by Abiding in him when you are truly abiding in the vine then your desires your plans your purposes your Intents are going to line up with his desires and his plans and his purposes and his intents Your love for him your desires your heart will line up with divine purposes You know often as we pray we don't even know how to pray as we ought But we have the spirit of god interceding for us the spirit of god spirit comes and Intercedes for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. It's not a spirit language It's a spirit of god interceding with god on our behalf We have christ as our advocate mediating on our behalf In all of that right if you're praying that way in his name Then that's the kind of prayer that james describes As the faithful prayer of a righteous man and what does he say about that prayer? It's effective. It's effective It's effective It's by the means of that righteous prayer that god intends to produce fruit through you It's an expression of our faith our dependence upon him all of that so that god gets the glory You don't I don't god gets the glory If you're not praying you're gonna be fruitless Why? Because you're not going to get the glory You're not going to get the glory for those things god is going to get the glory Pray when you go out evangelizing pray that god would convert that sinner. You know what god converts sinners Ain't nobody does that through his word the preaching of the gospel. So preach the gospel and pray And god will get the glory and it'll be for your good He wraps up in verse 17 with a book end These things I command you that you love one another You know, it's interesting as we close There's one that's missing out on all this. This is glorious glorious truth, right? I just I love this text I love all the promises of god Um, just it's this focus on who jesus is and his joy and our joy in him and his love for us It's just it's glorious and it's beautiful But who's missing out on all this? It's judas judas is missing out on this Judas at the end of the supper Slinks off into the dark on his wicked errand And in doing that he rejects all of this He rejects it It's like a worthless thing to him a common thing to him. He rejects the love of god Meditate on that from the love of god verse nine He rejects the promises of god He rejects all the blessings of god He rejects salvation certainly Right. He rejects communion with god his creator in prayer He rejects joy fullness of joy lasting settled determined joy He rejects heaven Ultimately, he rejects the darling of heaven. He rejects jesus christ himself What will you do? What will you do? There's no in between here you With all your heart soul mind and strength you embrace the reality of these truths You turn from your sin you turn from the wreck that you've made of your own life And you cast yourself upon his mercy You cast yourself upon his grace, right? And you live heart soul mind and strength by faith in the son of god who died and gave himself for you You do that and you get all of this blessing You live for him and in living for him. There is joy unspeakable Fulness of joy pleasures at his right hand forever more Or you'll leave this room today. You'll you'll march out the front doors of this church like Judas You go out into the dark Rejecting all of that. What for your own? Will your own desires your own wicked sin Temporary fleeting joy that will disappear the moment you close your eyes in this life and open them in hell That is what? absurd foolishness Turn to christ Put your faith in him put your trust in him cast yourself upon him cling to his cross by faith Clean to him by faith live for him and experience that that's the christian life That is what is offered to you and it's offered to you by the pure grace and favor of a merciful god Who desires that all men are saved and they come to a knowledge of the truth He doesn't have to do that But he does he makes provision for your sin if you'll turn to him amen Let's pray Father in heaven what we worship you we praise you we thank you You are so gracious to us God i pray that we would meditate on these truths you would take them By your spirit and you would plunge them into the depths of our heart so that they take Firm root in our heart and bear fruit for your glory God help us to live for you help us lord by the strength that your spirit supplies To live out the mission that you've given us to live to preach the gospel to lost people to see Disciples made to disciple them lord teaching them to observe all things that you've commanded us For your glory for your name For your fame for your eternal and everlasting praise and worship Help us to do this and help us to to abide in you Enjoy in doing those things help us lord not to see obedience to you as some heartless burden But to see obedience to you as our joy as our desire lord as our blessing as grace from you We love you lord. We love you and We still contend with this flesh god help us Help us strengthen us by your spirit. We know that apart from you we can do nothing So help us to do all things by faith In him who died and gave himself for us in jesus name. We pray amen