JESUS IS THE TRUE VINE (23 OF 32)
Scripture: John 15:1-17
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Jesus Is the True Vine (23 of 32)
Series: John
Patrick Edwards
John 15:1-17
Introduction: So much of our life, from childhood well into adulthood, is spent, it seems, just trying to belong. You see, while we are, each, independent creatures, we inherently drift toward the crowd, toward some sort of community. I don't say that judgmentally. It's good. It's part of our very constitution as human beings. When God created man and woman in His image, part of that image was relational. As God Himself exists as one God in three Persons and is, thus, inherently in relationship with Himself, as those in His image we too exist for relationship, for community. We yearn to belong to something.
As kids we just try to fit in. Make sure we're wearing the right clothes, listening to the right music, having the most up to date technology. Right, the idea is that by having the right stuff then I'll fit in and belong and will have friends and people around me who care. Nothing changes into adulthood. While there may be multiple motivations involved, our quest for the right home and right furniture and right clothes and right social media persona is all built around fitting in and belonging. Even that person, whether teenager or adult, who purposefully wears odd clothing or acts an odd way is still trying to belong to something by showing that they don't belong, right?
Of course, it's not just our belongings. I can remember a few years ago when Teresa joined a running group on FaceBook and this group quickly became this full out community and almost family. The people of this group were constantly posting messages and personal stories on it to the point that as an outside observer it seemed like people were now living out their lives in this group. This happens often with anything, a running group, a quilting club, any sort of hobby or routine or association. We find something where we can connect with other people, feel like we've got something in common, but more so f ...
Series: John
Patrick Edwards
John 15:1-17
Introduction: So much of our life, from childhood well into adulthood, is spent, it seems, just trying to belong. You see, while we are, each, independent creatures, we inherently drift toward the crowd, toward some sort of community. I don't say that judgmentally. It's good. It's part of our very constitution as human beings. When God created man and woman in His image, part of that image was relational. As God Himself exists as one God in three Persons and is, thus, inherently in relationship with Himself, as those in His image we too exist for relationship, for community. We yearn to belong to something.
As kids we just try to fit in. Make sure we're wearing the right clothes, listening to the right music, having the most up to date technology. Right, the idea is that by having the right stuff then I'll fit in and belong and will have friends and people around me who care. Nothing changes into adulthood. While there may be multiple motivations involved, our quest for the right home and right furniture and right clothes and right social media persona is all built around fitting in and belonging. Even that person, whether teenager or adult, who purposefully wears odd clothing or acts an odd way is still trying to belong to something by showing that they don't belong, right?
Of course, it's not just our belongings. I can remember a few years ago when Teresa joined a running group on FaceBook and this group quickly became this full out community and almost family. The people of this group were constantly posting messages and personal stories on it to the point that as an outside observer it seemed like people were now living out their lives in this group. This happens often with anything, a running group, a quilting club, any sort of hobby or routine or association. We find something where we can connect with other people, feel like we've got something in common, but more so f ...
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