FOCUS 2
“The Believer’s Security”
John 15:5-8 NIV
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
IF – Used here it is a conjunction, meaning that you must work with someone else. (on condition that)
There is a condition to remaining secure; you must work alongside the Lord (the vine).
The branch does not determine the destination of the vine, but it works with the vine and bears fruit.
There are some who say that once we receive Christ, we are eternally secure, regardless of our actions, but that is not what the word of God teaches.
I am not hear to disprove their belief, but to establish the security of the believer based on the word of God, teaching you what we believe and why we believe it.
Jude 20-24 NIV
But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. 21 Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear-hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh. 24 To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy- 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
Our security is not based on our actions, but it is based on His actions.
Let me explain what I mean, Christ is the vine, we are the branches.
He decides the direction of the vine, we decide as a branch to remain with the vine. We will produce fruit either way, the difference is the profitability of the fruit.
There are two very distinctive things found in this passage that I want to look at this morning.
• “Unto Him who is able to keep you from falling.”
• “He is able to present you faultless to himself.”
1. He is able to keep you from falling.
1 Corinthians 10:13 NIV
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
• No temptation has seized you except what is common to man.
Some say, I am just not good with all this temptation stuff.
Temptation is merely an examination of your true character.
• He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.
This is just too much.
• He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
When Joseph was tempted to sleep with Potiphar’s wife, God provided a way out.
His security was discovered when he told his brothers, “you meant it for my harm, but God meant it for my good.”
God got him our of Potiphar’s house.
Joseph was better off in prison, than continuing to be tempted.
Had he given in to temptation, he would have willingly entered into sin.
His security in Christ was to flee, to run from sin.
Someone said, “Why is it that opportunity only knocks on your door once, but temptation will beat it down?”
What can we do to remain secure?
a. Building up yourselves on your most holy faith.
Romans 10:17 KJV
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of
God.
2 Timothy 1:6-7 KJV
Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the
gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power,
and of love, and of a sound mind.
We build up our faith by hearing the word of God and then by fanning the flame of the fire of God within us.
In the Old Testament, one of the jobs of the priests was to be a protector of the fire on the altar.
It was to never go out.
They would put on special garments and remove the ashes and place new wood on the altar.
How do we build up our most Holy Faith?
b. Praying in the spirit.
Ephesians 6:18 NIV
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Romans 8:26-27 NIV
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.
c. Hate sin.
Hebrews 10:26 NIV
For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins.
1 John 3:8, tells us that he that commits sin is of the devil.
1 John 2:1 KJV
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
Our security in the Lord comes with the knowledge that we do not live as people of the world live.
Calvary was not and exemption for sin, but the cleansing atonement for sin.
I am glad that God can keep us from falling, but also that…
2. He can present us faultless to himself.
Ephesians 5:25-27 NIV
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
In the Old Testament, there was careful care given to the cleansing of the instruments and the priests to purify them for use.
In the same manner, believers must be cleansed and purified to enter into heaven.
No sin will pass the gates into heaven.
There was only one sinless lamb who took on the sin of man to purify man that he might be pure before the Father.
What can wash away my sin, nothing but the blood of Jesus?
Hebrews 7:25 NIV
Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
