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As you can see on the screen, the title of my message today is “R.E.M.A.I.N. in Christ”. I have been thinking a lot lately how it is important for us to remain firmly connected to Christ.
In our first passage that we just heard read, John 15:1-5 Jesus talks about our spiritual connection and says it is like vines and branches. It stresses the importance a close connection and staying connected.
This passage has lots of good stuff I could speak about today. It talks about God being the gardener who trims us and prunes us. Jesus talks about us being pruned and purified by His message. It talks about producing much fruit. But the part I want to focus on today is the words of Jesus, “Remain in Me and I will remain in you”.
Today I want to share six keys using the letters of the word remain to help us remember. These are my heart, the things I want to live out.
R- Rest in the finished work of Christ
John 19:28-30 – Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
The Bible tells us that Jesus paid the price for our sin on the cross. He died to take our punishment. Just before He died He said, “It is finished”. The work of salvation is done. Now we don’t have to strive or strain any more. We just have to trust Jesus as our Lord and our Saviour.
Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”
Church if you have confessed Jesus as your Lord and Saviour it is finished.
Not only can we rest in His work, we can rest that we are safely held in His hands.
Romans 8:38-39 tells us that nothing can separate us from Him. It says, “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below–indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
To remain in Christ, rest in the finished work of Christ.
E – Evangelise: share your faith with others
Matthew 28:18-20 – Jesus came and told His disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
I call this passage the “All Consuming Call of Jesus”. In this passage it talks about how Jesus has ALL authority, it talks about how Jesus told us to make disciples of ALL nations, it talks about how ALL the Trinity is involved, it talks about how Jesus told us to teach the new disciples to obey ALL His commands and it finishes with Jesus promising to be with us ALL-ways.
Right from the moment I was first saved back in July of 1989 I have had a desire to tell other people about Jesus. I knew what my life was like before I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Saviour and I knew how my life changed. I had no real hope, purpose or direction. I bounced from one thing to another. That all changed when Jesus entered my world. I had a new hope for the this life and the next to come, I had a new purpose of sharing my faith with others, I had a new direction to learn and grow in my faith, so I could be a light to those around me.
I believe there is something that happens to us when we share our faith with others. We become more alive and more aligned with God eternal plans of salvation. And nothing is more encouraging than people coming to Jesus, people being baptised, people committing to come to church, people truly deciding to be a lifelong follower of Jesus.
If you want to remain in Christ, evangelise others.
M – Maintain a close walk with the Lord
John 15:4 – Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.
In John 15 Jesus stresses the importance of being connected to Him. Our connection to Him is where we get our spiritual life.
Anyone who has ever trimmed trees would have noticed that if the trimmed parts are left in the sun, they quickly wither and die. While the branches still connected, thrive. They can still produce flowers or fruit. They can still do the things they were created to do. We are like those branches, if we stay connected, we can produce the things we were created to produce.
As Christians we know that we keep connected through prayer, worship, serving, Bible reading and church fellowship. Connection via these things are keys to remaining Christ. They keep us strong and our connection strong.
The Greek word used in the text for remain is men’-o. It means to stay. Other words that can be used to describe it are – abide, continue, dwell, endure, be present, stand. These all give us a sense of staying steadfast in one place. This is what Christ wants is to do.
One of the best things I ever did to keep connected to Christ was start a prayer journal. This is my prayer journal from the year 2000. I can look back and see what I prayed for on a given day, what Bible passages I read, that I did a devotion from Our Daily Bread and most importantly I can reflect on how God answered my prayers. Having a prayer journal has kept me firmly anchored to Christ no matter how big the storms of life have been.
To remain in Christ, maintain a close walk with the Lord.
A – Aim to be a vehicle of blessing
2 Corinthians 9:8,11 – And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
A great theme of the Bible is God wants to use us to bless others. In our second reading Paul talks about God blessing us, so we can bless others. It talks about God providing enough for us and leftovers to pass on to others.
As Christians we need to see ourselves as vehicles of blessings. We need to think of ways to bless, support, uphold and encourage others. Allow God to move through you each day. Serving God keeps daily keeps us in Christ.
When I was a new Christian a friend of mine had a goal to do one thing a day for others. She had become very self centred and to change her habits she became intentional in her efforts. It might be a nice phone call, a card, helping with gardening, delivering a food parcel. Her goal was to do 7 things in 7 days each week. She would tick it off on the calendar and write down what she did. Before long, her lifestyle changed to one of blessing. After about a year, she no longer had to record it any more as she had changed so much. She became a vehicle of blessing. This story inspired me so much that it has become my goal too.
To remain in Christ, aim to be a vehicle of blessing.
I – Imagine eternity with Christ
John 14:2-3 – My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
Jesus said He is preparing a place for us in eternity. He also said He is coming back for us one day. A great truth of the Bible is we will spend way more time in eternity than we will in this life. It makes sense to think about our eternal home. The Bible says we are citizens of heaven in Philippians 3:20 and Colossians 3:1-2 says that we should set our hearts of minds on things above.
When I think of heaven I think of no more death (Isaiah 25:8). When I think of heaven I think of new heavenly bodies that will never wear out (2 Corinthians 5:2). When I think of heaven I think of no more sadness, suffering and pain (Revelations 21:4). When I think of heaven I think of streets paved with gold and gates made of pearl (Revelation 21:21). When I think of heaven I think of a place that needs no sun or moon as God’s glory will be its light (Revelations 21:23). When I think of heaven I think of a place where we will not need a Temple as God will the Temple (Revelation 21:23). When I think of heaven I think of a place where we will be His people and He will be our God (Revelation 21:3).
Focusing on our eternal home helps and inspires us to walk closely with Christ and Remain in Him. When I imagine our eternal home and that Jesus may come back today, it helps me to keep focused.
To remain in Christ, imagine eternity with Christ.
N – Never allow yourself to be overcome by the world
John 16:33 – I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
Jesus told us in John 16:33 that in this life we will have many trials and sorrows. Unfortunately, this is part of living in a fallen world that is marred by sin. But Jesus also said in this verse to not lose heart, because He has overcome the world.
Jesus, the author and perfecter of our life and faith, has overcome this world. We are on His team and He is for us. A key to remaining in Christ is to not let the world overcome us.
It can be so easy when we hear bad news in the media to lose heart. But I have learned that when I hear of bad things in the media to use it as a call to prayer, rather than an opportunity to be discouraged.
The Greek word for overcome used in this passage is nik-ah’-o. It means to subdue: – conquer, overcome, prevail, get the victory. It gives us a sense of something that is full and complete. Much like when Jesus said, “It is finished”.
Galatians 6:9 reminds us to “not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” The simple fact that Galatians 6:9 tells is not to become weary in doing good, tells us that we can get weary. The world can press in and overcome us. When this happens we need to – Stand firm. Stand strong. Focus on Christ. Keep serving and know that He has overcome.
To remain in Christ, never allow yourself to be overcome by the world.
Closing
Today we have looked at a great passage from John 15. It likens our relationship with Jesus and being like vines and branches. Jesus told us that to produce much fruit we ween to be connected to the Vine.
The title of my message today is “Five reminders from the Apostle Paul”. We are going to mainly look at the first 10 verses from Ephesians chapter 2 and briefly touch on our second passage from Romans 8.
In chapter one of Ephesians we see that Paul really set the scene of who they are in Christ. He tells them they are chosen by God, redeemed by Jesus and sealed by the Holy Spirit. Then he gives thanks to God for them and prays a wonderful prayer for them that talks about knowing who they are in Christ and having spiritual insight and wisdom.
In chapter 2:1-10 Paul gives the church five reminders for the Ephesians that I think can encourage us today. They will come up on the screen as we go.
Message Points
1. Paul reminds us of our old way of life
Verses 1-2 says – Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. 2 You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil–the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God.
These two verses tell us of our condition without Christ. We were dead because of our sin and we followed the ways of the world or as some translations put it, the ways of the devil.
Paul wanted to remind the church that now as Christians we are alive in Christ. We have a new life in Christ, and we are a part of a new Kingdom. However, he doesn’t want them to forget where they came from. Remembering where they came from was very important to Paul.
As Christians today we need to remember where we have come from and what Christ has saved us from – eternity without God. Romans 3:23 tells us we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and Romans 6:23 tells us the wages of sin is death. Before Christ we followed the ways of the world, not the ways of the Kingdom.
So, Paul reminds us of our old way of life.
2. Paul reminds us of God’s intervention
Verses 4-5 – But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)
We were sinners, but God intervened because of His rich mercy and His great love.
I believe two of the greatest words in the Bible are “but God”. I did a search on my Bible software for the phrase ‘but God”. It appeared 64 times. It says things like…
• but God heard their prayer,
• but God did not let them get harmed,
• they meant it for harm, but God meant it for good,
• but God knew what would happen,
• but God formed the earth by His power,
• but God raised Him from the dead (about Christ)
As Christians we can never forget who we are and where we have come from. We can never forget that for salvation to take place there are three things – a need, a provision and a response. We need to be saved because we can’t save ourselves from our sin; we have a provision of Christ’s death on the cross for us; and we need to respond in faith – we need to believe in Jesus and accept what He has done for us.
Paul wanted to remind the Ephesians church and by extension us today, that we were alone and utterly helpless, but God intervened and brought us salvation in Christ. We can never forget this.
3. Paul reminds us of our new seating in Christ
Verse 6 – For He raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus.
The Bible tells us that when Jesus returned to heaven He was seated at the right hand of the Father. That is the highest place of honour in the whole universe. There is no greater place than being seated next to the Father.
The good news today is, if you are in Christ Jesus (that means walking in relationship with Him, trusting Him for your salvation, and have received Him as your King) then you are spiritually seated with Christ in the heavenly realms! You are spiritually seated with Him in the highest place in the universe! I will just let you soak that in a bit!
Because of this great news you no longer have to walk around with your face pointing to the ground or your shoulders hunched over. You and I no longer have to feel unworthy. We have high standing and high honour with the King and Creator of the universe! You and I are seated with Christ.
Paul wanted to remind the Ephesians where they were seated. Today I want to remind you.
4. Paul reminds us of God’s grace
Verses 8-9 – God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can\’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.
In one of my Bible dictionaries it describes Grace as the unmerited or undeserving favor of God to those who are under condemnation. But one of the best descriptions of grace is the G.R.A.C.E. acronym – God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.
To dig a little deeper in to the definition of God\’s grace, it helps to understand the original Hebrew and Greek words behind this term. A prominent Old Testament word describing God\’s grace is Chesed. This word speaks of deliverance from enemies, affliction, or adversity. It also denotes enablement, daily guidance, forgiveness, and preservation. The New Testament word is Charis. It focuses on the provision of salvation through God\’s grace and Christ\’s work on the cross.
We know that we were utterly helpless to save ourselves and God intervened. We also saw in my first point about our old way of life. But God’s grace saved us and God’s grace also keeps us in the palm of His hand. In our second reading from Romans we saw things like “If God is for us, who can can be against us?”, that Christ is seated next to the Father interceding for us, and it also tells us that nothing can separate us from God’s love. This is both sides of God’s grace in action. By His grace He saved us and by His grace He keeps us in the palm of His hand.
Paul wanted the Ephesians and us to remember God’s grace.
5. Paul reminds us of our new purpose
Verse 10 – For we are God\’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.
In Ephesians 2:10 it tells us two great truths. You are God’s masterpiece. God didn’t just slap you together quickly. You are His masterpiece. Like the world considers the Statue of David and the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel a masterpiece, God considers you a masterpiece that He knit together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 119:13). You are a masterpiece!
The second great truth is that God made you with a purpose. Ephesians 2:10 says God made you a masterpiece, He created you anew in Christ Jesus, and He has a wonderful purpose He planned for you long ago.
Imagine with me for a moment, God having you on His mind before the foundation of the world. You are not here by chance. You are here with a good purpose to make an amazing difference in this world. Each one of us here is called, gifted and sent out to make a difference. We do this by our prayers, our encouragement of others, by living faithfully to God and doing what we can do today. Church I want to say to you that you are good, and your purpose is good. Because both you and your purpose were created by God. We are God’s masterpieces for God’s master works.
In chapter 1 of Ephesians Paul talks about God choosing us before the foundation of the world. In chapter 2 it says God chose us before the foundation of the world for good works. We are chosen for salvation and chosen for good works.
Paul wanted to remind us of our new purposes today.
Closing summary
Today we looked at Ephesians 2:1-10. We looked at five things the Apostle Paul wanted them and us to remember. They were…
1. Paul reminds us of our old way of life
2. Paul reminds us of God’s intervention
3. Paul reminds us of our new seating in Christ
4. Paul reminds us of God’s grace
5. Paul reminds us of our new purpose
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