“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. John 15:5-8 NKJ
At the end of yesterday’s devotion I asked you to write out what you believe would be God’s vision and mission statements for His company (body). How did you do? I asked my husband and son to do this exercise as well. Here is what my husband wrote for the mission statement. “My mission is to destroy the works of the devil and to deliver, save, heal, and restore My people to their original intended position of right standing, blessing, and dominion in the earth.” I love this! What an incredible word picture!
As for the vision statement John 15:5-8 is a great word picture of what God’s vision is for His people. A vision statement is unlike a mission statement because it is solely for the people within the company, not for the general public. It is a constant reminder to the people within the company of what you are wanting to accomplish and build. God’s desire is to build His church and in order to do it, the people within the church must have a clear understanding of how to execute His plan. And John 15:5-8 gives us that clear understanding. Abiding IN Christ and IN His word believing that Christ is constantly abiding IN us on a daily basis, is the key to successfully executing the vision and mission of God while we are on the earth.
Do you remember Jesus’ words to Peter in Matthew 16:18? He said, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Jesus said this to Peter knowing that within a few hours Peter would act out in an outrage of anger and cut off the soldier’s ear and then choose to deny knowing Him three times, before men. But none of that knowledge scared Jesus! He knew that if Peter understood His vision and mission and constantly reminded himself of it; he would eventually make the decision to actively participate in taking his rightful position as a disciple and execute God’s plan to build His church!
Unlike Judas, Peter didn’t quit just because he sinned against God and God never fired Peter just because he sinned! On the contrary, Peter reminded himself of what Jesus said when He said, “and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” and it empowered him to overcome the temptation to quit and reminded him that no matter what he did as an individual who acted out in his flesh; the gates of Hades could not prevail (triumph) over God or His plan to build His church!
If there had been a board meeting between God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and Peter after he sinned in his flesh; you would have seen Jesus reminding Peter of his appointed position as a disciple and reminding Him of his purpose in the company (body). You would have seen Peter asking what he could do to do his job better, and then you would have heard Jesus tell him to daily abide IN Him and allow His Word to abide IN him, so when the next temptation to sin came; he could stand up under it until it passed! You would have also seen Jesus introduce Peter to the Holy Spirit and tell Him He is a new member of his team who will be the One who teaches him how to fulfill his purpose in the company (body). You would not have seen a scolding session where they put Peter on a paid leave and made him enter a 12 step program until he was able to overcome his addiction to act out in his flesh! And you would have not heard Donald Trump’s famous phrase, “You’re Fired!
This is the key for all of us to understand if we want to become fruit bearing disciples of Jesus Christ and fulfill the vision and mission of God in our own lives! It is learning how to abide IN Christ daily and understanding that He is constantly abiding IN us no matter how we act out in our flesh! It is in reminding ourselves of the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives and allowing Him to teach us all things that pertain to life and godliness. Abiding IN Christ is the activity of remaining in a continuous union with Christ! It is in this continuous union that empowers us to submit ourselves to His will, which opens up our understanding of His vision and mission for our lives! When we come to understand His vision and mission in our lives then when we pray we are aligned with Him and we have an assurance that what we pray, He will perform; because it is no longer praying my will be done on earth as it is in heaven; it becomes thy will be done on the earth as it is in heaven! And God always answers that prayer because that is His will for our lives!
It is clear by the structure of the verses in John 15:5-8 that it is possible to make the choice not to abide IN Christ and not to have His words abide IN us. We have been appointed to the position of a chosen disciple IN Christ, but with that appointment comes the responsibility to continuously abide IN Him and allow His Word to abide IN us, so we know how to execute His vision and mission on earth! As we unfold the deeper meaning of being a fruit bearing disciple, I want to encourage you to spend time praising God for always abiding IN you and for appointing you as a chosen disciple IN Him! If like Peter you have sinned against God in any area of your life, remind yourself that your fleshly actions do NOT disqualify you from being IN God’s company (body) or from His purpose for your life, in building His church through you! Remind yourself like Peter did that the gates of Hades CANNOT prevail against God or His plan for your life and make the decision to fulfill His purpose by choosing to abide IN Him and IN His Word daily!
Prayer: I praise You for choosing me to be a fruit bearing disciple and I believe by faith that as I choose to abide IN You and allow Your Word to abide IN me, I will see that fruit begin to manifest on a daily basis! I praise You for always abiding IN me even when I sin against You and for never disqualifying me to fulfill the position You have appointed me to, just because I act out in my flesh. Help me to come to a deeper understanding of Your vision and mission for Your church so that I will understand the position that I have been chosen to fill in order accomplish it. Amen
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