John 15:1  I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

The Great Vine in the Hampton Court Palace Garden outside of London is the oldest and largest grapevine in the world. More than 250 years old, it measures 12 feet around its base, and its longest branch is 120 feet long. Every year, the Great Vine produces about 600 pounds of grapes. Christ is the true vine.

How do we - the branches- connect to Christ our Vine? I mean, a branch doesn't just walk up to a vine, strike up a conversation, and ask, "Do you mind if I connect to you?" Of course, that doesn't happen. That's the whole point of these words: "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide" (John 15:16). When you were baptized, Christ chose you. You are now connected to the Vine.

Connected to the Vine, we abide in the Vine. "Abide" appears often in this section of John 15:1-16. Do you think Jesus is trying to make a point? How do we abide in Christ? "If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples" (John 8:31). Christ's Word shows us that apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:5). How Word all the more shows that through His suffering and death He does everything for us and for our salvation.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 14:27  Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.

We can easily be overwhelmed with fear. We think about work and we're afraid either we won't get the job we want or we will lose the job we have. We think about marriage, and we're afraid either we won't find the right person or the whole thing will go up in flames. We think about retirement, and we're afraid either we won't have enough money or we'll grow feeble - or both will happen at the same time!

The media doesn't help. "Coming up, after this commercial break, the frightening truth about sitting in traffic." "Up next, what you may not know about the water that you drink." Do you know why they say that? Fear sells. A sociologist named Frank Furedi counted the number of times the phrase "at risk" appeared on the air. In 1994, "at risk" appeared just over two thousand times. By 2019, "at risk" appeared more than eighteen thousand time. Everything from dreaming to going to Dairy Queen now puts you at "at risk." TV news should begin with these words: "This news report is best viewed from an underground bunker in rural New Zealand."

Christ's perfect peace takes away fear. His perfect peace forgives your past. No need to fear that. His perfect peace directs us today. No need to fear that. His perfect peace has secured your future. No need to fear death. The Savior's shed blood and Easter victory have secured eternal peace - for you!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 14:26  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

They called Hetty Green "the Witch of Wall Street." She died in 1916, leaving an estate valued at well over $2 billion dollars (as valued today). Yet, every morning, Hetty ate cold oatmeal because she didn't want to pay money to heat it. Her son had his leg amputated because she didn;t want to pay money to treat him. Hetty Green was rich, but if you saw her, you'd swear she was dirt poor.

How often do we say, "Poor me"? "Poor me, I don't have the resources to deal with this." "Poor me, I don't have the wisdom to solve this." "Poor me, I don;t have the power to conquer this." In John 14, Jesus speaks to the disciples about His departure. Their response? "Poor me!"

Jesus says that His going away is necessary. Only then will His Father send the Helper - the Holy Spirit, who teaches us to remember everything Jesus has said.

We are incredibly rich! God the Holy Spirit helps us see our sin and need for the Savior. Even more so, He shows us the great riches we have in Christ Jesus.

Why do we live as though we are dirt poor? As if we don't have hope or a prayer? Do the math. Add up everything Jesus has done, is doing, and will do for us. What do you get? We are rich! Exceedingly and forever rich!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 12:26  If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me.

Jesus doesn't say, "Follow your feelings. Follow your dreams. Follow your heart." Jesus doesn't say. "Follow the crowd. Follow the clique. Follow the culture." No. Jesus says, "If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me." Why follow Jesus?

Only Jesus says, "My blood is greater than your guilt. My forgiveness is greater than your sin. My fullness is greater than your emptiness. My death saves you! My resurrection restores you!"

Remember Yogi Berra? He was known for his work of wisdom, affectionately called Yogi-isms. One of these was "When you come to a fork in the road, take it!"

That's not what the poet Robert Frost said. "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." Jesus took the road less traveled, to the cross and resurrection victory for us. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we will follow Him - all our days.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 12:21  So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."

We all suffer from some kind of blindness. Just because we witness a rainbow a thousand times doesn't mean we really see its beauty. We can plant a garden and fail to see the splendor of its flower. We can attend church, sing hymns, feel faithful and festive, and still never see Him. Hum? That would be Jesus.

The Greeks who come to Philip at the Passover don't want to glance at Jesus or just get a glimpse. They don't want someone to describe Jesus for them. These Greeks want to focus and fix their eyes on Jesus.

One of John's themes in his Gospel is seeing Jesus. Philip invites Nathanael to Jesus with these words, "Come and see" (John 1:46). The Samaritan woman says, "Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did" (John 4:29). About Palm Sunday, John writes, "Your king is coming" (John 12:15). On Easter morning, Mary is beside herself when she says, "I have seen the Lord" (John 20:18). The man born blind says it best: "Though I was blind, now I see" (John 9:25).

Jesus, the Word made flesh, who spoke with such thunderous authority and loved with such childlike humility. Jesus, the One who claimed to be older than time and greater than death. Jesus, who forgives sin, heals brokenness, raises the dead. "We wish to see Jesus!"
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 11:25  Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live."

"Tell me my part again." "Just trust me." It was the summer of 2007. He was rappelling off rocks in northwest Arkansas. Some people love rock rappelling - that is, taking a blind, backward leap off a hundred foot cliff, connected only by a belay harness. Not him. He had traveled to Arkansas to spend time with his son, Jonathan. He didn't come to do a half gainer off a cliff!

There's another cliff. It's called death. Eventually - just like Lazarus in John 11 - our heart will feel a final pulse. Our lungs will empty a final sigh, Our eyes will close for the last time. Barring the return of Christ, I will die, and so will you. In our world, two people die every second; more than six thousand die every hour; 155,000 die every day; and about 57 million people in our world die every year. None of us escapes death.

We can trust Jesus. He is risen to redeem us from sin and to resurrect our bodies. On Easter, the women and the disciples didn't see a phantom or experience a ghost. They saw Jesus in the flesh - with a body!

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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 10:27  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

An anniversary card depicts a husband and wife in their golden years, sitting on a park bench. The wife snuggles up to her husband and says, "It's so nice to have you near." To which the husband responds, "Why, yes, I'd like another beer!"

Sometimes it's hard to listen - especially to Jesus, especially when you're a sheep. Sheep are easily distracted - especially by nasal flies, botflies, and warble flies. When tormented by these pests, it's impossible for sheep to lie down and rest. Instead, they're up and on their feet, stamping their legs and shaking their heads. Even a jackrabbit, suddenly bounding from behind a bush, can cause an entire flock to stampede.
 

When the Good Shepherd speaks, what do you do? Maybe you don't listen because the TV is on. Or maybe you're distracted by your Facebook account. Then again, maybe all you listen to is your own voice of doom and gloom, chaos and confusion.

On Easter, Mary Magdalene shows a better way. "Jesus said to her, 'Mary.' She turned and said to Him in Aramaic, 'Rabboni!' (which means Teacher)" (John 20:16). Mary heard the voice of the Good Shepherd. The voice is unmistakable. No one had ever said her name with such tenderness. "Mary!" She looks up and, in sudden recognition, knows that it's Jesus. It's Jesus! He is not dead. He is risen from the grave. Let's listen to Jesus all our days!

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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,