- in John 15, 16, and 17, Jesus talks more about joy than anywhere else in the gospels/we’ll be
looking at these passages over the next few weeks.
- Eric Tissenbaum: prof who told the class that they didn’t have to take notes on everything in his
class/when he was going to say something that was going to be on the test, he’d stomp his foot
twice and they were to write down whatever he said next/that was what would be on the test.
- v. 11 - this has a “Hey-pay-attention-to-this-because-it’s-important” quality to it.
- v. 11 indicates the conclusion, but where does it begin?
THE ROADMAP:
1. God wants us to be fruitful.
- vv. 2, 4, 5, 8.
- this is very important to God.
- it is not enough to be “faithful”/this passage gives the clear indication that God expects fruit
from our lives.
- fruit can be inward (fruit of the Spirit) or outward (touching lives, seeing people saved).
2. How do I bear fruit? Answer: By abiding.
- vv. 4, 5.
3. How do I abide? Answer: By keeping Jesus’ commandments.
- v. 10.
- we want a shortcut, but this is the pathway.
SUMMARY STATEMENT:
“Obey” leads to “Abide” leads to “Abound”
- i.e. keeping Jesus’ commandments leads to abiding leads to bearing much fruit.
WHAT’S THE RESULT OF LIVING LIKE THIS?
1. We live fruitful lives.
- v. 5.
2. We become powerhouses of prayer.
- v. 7.
- also, Luke 16:24.
3. We receive our heart’s desires.
- v. 7.
4. We bring glory to God.
- v. 8.
WHY IS JESUS TELLING US THIS?
***Because this is the pathway to a life of deep joy.
- v. 11.
- the wording indicates this is the summary statement for all that came before.
- note two things about the joy: one is that it is Jesus’ joy (“My joy”) and also that He wants our
joy to be full.
