Sermon

The Apostle Paul knew quite a bit about the Christians in the city of Phillipi. From what he knows, he makes a diagnosis in which he has great confidence. They are doing great, and in and through them, God is going to do even more.

He is confident that they will fulfill God's plans for them.

What symptoms of health do our lives and faith exhibit? In what ways is God working in and through us?

It's amazing, isn't it?

But before you go asking for everything under the sun, let's talk about something even better than material possessions. God has something incredible in store for us that goes beyond things that fade away. He lovingly prunes us to help us focus on bearing more fruit and removes distractions from His love and mercy. God prunes sin and junk from our lives to focus us on bearing even more fruit. We have all prayed for answers to both big and small problems, but how often have we prayed, “God, take from me anything that keeps me from you and your will for my life?”

The problem is not that we ask too much from God, but that we expect too little!

In Jesus, God reaches across the gulf between a fallen creation and himself. Instead of leaving us where and how we are, God draws us to himself and each other. Rather than wooing us with the junk food of life, God gives us himself the giver of life.

As we abide in Christ, as his word abides in us, as we begin to live as Jesus commands, the very things we ask become indistinguishable from the heart of God.

Instead of expecting too little from God, we should ask to be closer to His will. In Jesus, God draws us to Himself and gives us the gift of life. As we abide in Christ and live as Jesus commands, the things we ask for become aligned with the heart of God.

A promotion can allow us to make a bigger difference, earn more, and be recognized for our achievements.

Jesus announces quite a promotion - We are friends and no longer servants.

Being a friend means having mutual affection and a relationship, acting out of love rather than duty. True love gives, even at great cost.

Jesus calls us to love one another as he loves us.

This is a life-changing truth. If Jesus laid down his life for us when we didn't deserve it, we are compelled to love others, even when they don't deserve it and are difficult to love.

We might not be nailed to a cross, but every day we are faced with the question of whether or not we'll abide in Jesus' love.

Our great hope is to be true friends with Jesus and each other.

As the old children's song goes, "Oh, how I love Jesus, Oh how I love Jesus, Oh how I love Jesus, because he first loved me."

This language may seem a little out of place in a world with so many great needs. How can an apple or a bunch of grapes help?

But, we need to remember that Jesus frequently uses images and situations that we are familiar with to reveal portions of the kingdom of God that might be unfamiliar to us. In this case, he uses fruit as an illustration of a part of God's purpose for us.

In the world around us, fruit has two purposes: to nourish and to reproduce.

Our world hungers for this kind of fruit. In a world filled with illusionary hope, true nourishment, and life satisfy our appetite like nothing else. Since the need is great, in Jesus, we are called and equipped not only to lead people to true meaning and worth but also to equip them to do the same for others.

This influenced and shaped churches. It affected the way we taught and prepared our members. Rather than the labor-intensive handcrafting of Christian growth, maturity, faith, and life, we turned to the efficiency and reliability of standardized prepared curricula, classes, and programs. We lifted up uniformity in Christian practices, proclamation, theology, and ministry. To a certain degree, this contributes to the increasing number of young people finding the Christian faith irrelevant.

Our oneness in Christ is a core element of our faith and salvation. But God's intention is for us to develop and become a unique part of the body of Christ.

Through the Holy Spirit, God brings amazing uniqueness - not uniformity. Being one in Christ brings wonderfully different expressions of call and ability - not based on what we can do, but what God can do. Not upon our limited understanding, but on God’s eternal purposes and calling. Not just for ourselves, but for all of God’s people and the world. Not so we can boast, but for the glory of God and bringing people to him in the grace and love of Jesus.

The Apostle Paul opens his second letter to Timothy by celebrating the impact of Timothy's mother and grandmother on his life and faith. Growing up with their love and example shaped Timothy and equipped him to be a teacher and minister of the gospel, preparing him to share with others what his mother and grandmother shared with him.

There is a difference between visiting and moving in. You may deeply enjoy being there when you visit, but knowing you will eventually leave flavors everything. The difference between things that are temporary and those that are permanent is immense.

Jesus invites us to "Abide in him as He abides in us."

Abiding in him is very different from visiting him. It is living in Jesus' footsteps, living with him, not just talking about him. Abiding in Christ isn't going to church like we would a museum, appreciating what we see and experience, only to go home.
Abiding with Jesus is living with him and for him.

Jesus' resurrection profoundly transforms not only our relationship with God but also our relationships with others, including those who have sinned against us.

If God loves us enough to send his Son into the world so that we might live and Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, that immense love leads us to love others as we have been loved.

This maybe hard. People do terrible things to each other, and we may have wounds that remain with us. But the immense mercy of God's love leads us toward healing and forgiveness—not just for ourselves but also for our forgiving others.