Paul Anand – Page 3 – Renewed Hope Community — Church in Kamothe, Church in Khandeshwar, Church in Khanda Colony, Church in Panvel, Church in New Panvel,Church in Karanjade

BEING FRUITFUL – MAKING AN IMPACT

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ²He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes^[^a^] so that it will be even more fruitful. ³You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

⁵“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

⁹“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹²My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷This is my command: Love each other. John 15: 1 – 17

Abiding in Christ to bear fruit

I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. John 15:5

Last week we heard the sermon on how we need to abide in Christ through the word.

Through prayer we abide

Genuine fellowship

Through discipleship

Embracing the truth

Pruning to bear fruit

Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. John 15:2

Pruning is a process in which the tree in growing well but we cut of a part of the branch, sometimes this cutting off can be with fruit or without fruit on it. It looks senseless, that why did we cut the part which has borne good fruit or it’s green but this pruning is long term betterment for the plant. It will not remain stagnant. Also it will bear double fold.

Cutting off if not bearing fruit

If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned. John 15:6

It’s very clear that if we do not work in the given field of God, some one else will take our place. There’s only regret and remorse on how should have taken a step of faith. Many times because of our decisions, we can harm the family and drag them into not bearing fruit for the kingdom of God. We need to work with each other towards the Kingdom.

Grafting

But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.”

Romans 11:17 – 24

Graft, the joining together of plant parts by means of tissue regeneration. The act of grafting, a union will be formed, and the partners will continue to grow. Grafting is done to repair injured trees, to produce dwarf trees and shrubs, to strengthen plants’ resistance to certain disease.

Grafting happens in the community. Wild means, people who have encountered the truth but are hanging alone, with no one to guide them or help them. We help them grow within the community and bear fruit. However, this we should always remember that we have been grafted into the family of God and we can never take pride of ourselves, we were thrown and without any roots or support but God grafted us in. We are grafted

Being Intentional in Being Fruitful

Illustration of weeds

As the pastor, I’ve always wanted to have a garden, but somehow most springs I do not find the time to till the soil and get one planted, so out in back of the parsonage is a plot of ground of wonderfully fertile soil, which is growing nothing but a nice crop of weeds.

I used this garden to teach my son an important lesson. The conversation went something like this. “Son, is my garden growing a crop?”

“No Dad, nothing got planted in the garden again this year.”

“You’re right, but look again. Is the garden growing anything?”

“Well, yes,” came the reply, “It is growing weeds.”

“Exactly!” I said, “And, if good things are not intentionally planted in your life, by nature, you too will only grow a nice crop of weeds.”

This was such a great revelation that if we do not intentionally plant in others life and intentionally not be fruitful, we will be only growing weeds that is sin, hatred, deception, lies, and so on.

Bear Good Fruits

“For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. Luke 6: 43 – 45

So what kind of fruit are we bearing?

Consequence of not bearing fruit

And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’” Luke 13: 6 – 9

Take this as another chance given by God to us to work the ground given to us.

Result of bearing Fruit

²⁷Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”

²⁸Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, ²⁹“Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” ³⁰They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

³¹Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”

³²But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”

³³Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”

³⁴“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. ³⁵Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. ³⁶Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. ³⁷Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. ³⁸I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

³⁹Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. ⁴¹And because of his words many more became believers.

⁴²They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

John 4:27 – 42

The consequence was that many others were blessed by meeting the Messiah. The woman did not only keep it to herself but she went ahead and made bold statements

Bearing Fruit may not always be comfortable. We have to go out of the way and at times we need to become vulnerable. People may judge us. They may mock at us . We may be called names or we may become an outcast according to them.

It also involves my personal testimony and commitment.

If I am not involved, then I am not bearing fruit.

The woman went to fill water (Job). She left all that and went out of the way to proclaim / declare that she has seen the Messiah. There might be times when I will have to halt what I am doing and give the intended news to the person who needs it.

Just like we said last Sunday, if we have not encountered God personally, we will not be able to speak to others in that same conviction.

Ask yourself – Do I have a recent testimony or is it getting stale and it’s many years old. Have I experienced the presence of God in a recent situation.

Did I read the word of God and had a ‘wow’ moment or has it become a routine or guest appearance in my life? Does it excite me everyday and I look forward to what I am going to hear or see from God?

In what ways I can say that I have borne fruit? Did I pray with anyone other than my family? Did I encourage anyone other than my family? Did I volunteer in any of the activities in the church? Did I teach any one from the word, especially those who are struggling to understand the word? Is my life still revolving in myself? How am I being helpful. Do I still need to be followed up by the church members for various events that happens? There are a checklist of things that we need to ask ourself. We need to be fruitful intentionally or else, we will waste away. We will have weeds growing and not bearing fruits.

Jesus abides in the Father, we abide in Jesus Christ – I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15: 5

²⁸And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. Genesis 1: 28

¹⁸Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28: 18 – 20

Draw parallels. It is always God ‘s intention that we be fruitful, we obey Him. – BE FRUITFUL AND MAKE AN IMPACT

Sandra Francis worships at the Renewed Hope Community. The Renewed Hope Community is situated in the heart of the city between Old and New Panvel. We can confidently share that Renewed Hope Community is a Church in Kamothe, Church in Khandeshwar, Church in Khanda Colony, Church in Karanjade, Church in Panvel, Church in New Panvel, Church in Karanjade because we are centrally located and these places surround our church Venue.