The Secret of Fruitfulness
Pastor Fernando Cabrera
newlifebronx.com for free audio sermons
Our calling is to bear fruit – John 15:16 “You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that you should go and bring forth fruit”
Are you in spiritual fatigue or spiritual fruitfulness?
The secret of bearing fruit with souls, family, finances, character,
1. Presence of his holiness
a. Goal of being in his presence: is to become like Jesus
i. Have the likeness of Jesus in our lives
1. The more you abide in him, the more you become like him, and the more you become like him the more you will bear fruit like him
a. V.2 “bear fruit”, v. 2 “more fruit” v. 5 “much fruit,
ii. The reason why some people do not bear fruit like Jesus is because they have not become like Jesus
1. because the more you become like Jesus, the great the progression of bearing fruit, more fruit and much fruit
iii. The person who is becoming more like Jesus needs very little motivation because he is just living who he or she is
1. When you become more like Jesus, you will witness and win souls more like Jesus
2. When you become more like Jesus, you will make disciples like Jesus
3. When you become more like Jesus, you will pray like Jesus
4. When you become more like Jesus, you will talk more like Jesus
5. When you become more like Jesus, you will treat people more like Jesus
a. That is why the disciples were soul winner and disciple makers, because Jesus was a soul winner and disciple maker
i. God the Father had only one Son, and he was a soul winner
b. How do I enter into his presence? PRAYER Brings the PRESENCE
i. When you break into the presence of God, you can breakout in the supernatural
2. Power of his Word
a. Why do we need to abide in his word to bear fruit?
i. Because we experience a renewing of the mind when we accept God’s word
1. The Word renews what we believe
a. what you believe determines what you do
b. what you do determines how you will feel
2. The renewing of your mind changes your identity
a. Your identity will determine your destiny and lifestyle
b. It is from your identity that you derive your image
i. If you think you are a thug, you will carry an image of a thug,
ii. If you think you are a papichulo, the you will carry an image of a papichulo,
iii. If you think you are ugly, you will carry an image of being ugly
iv. If you think you are lazy, you will carry an image of being lazy
v. However, if you think what God thinks about you, you will act like Jesus act
vi. If you start believing you are special, you will carry an image that you are special,
vii. If you start believing you a disciple of Jesus, you will start living like disciple of Jesus
viii. If you start believing in God’s word, you start living God’s word
c. The word restore mistaken and identity theft
i. It breaks and destroys low self esteem, because you come to know who you really are
b. When you Know, you will grow, and it will show (repeat)
c. V.7 says that when you abide in his word, you will be able to pray and it will be done for you. Why is that?
i. Because when you have God’s word in you, it will take root in your heart and it will produce a faith to believe his promise
d. Every week I am calling the church to read TOGETHER a book in the bible…this week is the book of James
3. Passion of his Love (v.9)
a. Love is born in your heart when you abide in him
i. Three main areas
1. family
a. Malachi 2:12-15
i. Does your wife, husband, children able to say that you love them with a genuine love of Christ?
ii. Are you growing more patient, kind, unselfish with your spouse, your children?
iii. Sometimes people blame the ministry, instead of looking at their marriage
1. out of your marriage shall come forth ministry
b. Singles
i. Fellow believers, roommates, and those closest to your heart
c. All I have done is in vain if my family keep a secret pain due to my poor testimony at home
i. What does your family say about you? Greedy or full of Goodness; Rude or real; loving or loud with pride; longsuffering or do you make them suffer long?
d. Set your house in order by prioritizing
2. Fellowship
a. John 17:21 “that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent me”
i. When we become one the glory falls
1. spirit of division drives people away
3. Friends and foes
a. Sharing the love of Christ to those who don’t have salvation
i. Some will quickly attack that when a pastor or church want to see people get saved, that they are only interested in numbers
1. First, let me say that I am interested in whatever Jesus is interested in
a. There is a book in the bible called numbers
b. Acts 2:41 tell us exactly how many got saved
c. Acts 1:15 tells us there were 120 disciples
d. Shepherd counted 100 and one was missing
2. Illustration: Would you say that it would have been wrong to set a goal to save as many Jews as possible in the concentration camps?
3. Illustration: Would you say that it is wrong for us to count how many soldiers we have and that we want them all to come home safely?
a. Is the salvation and eternal destiny of souls any less important?
b. Love draws people like a powerful magnet, and a lack of love drives people away
i. The most overlooked key to growing a church: We must love unbelievers the way Jesus did.
1. the biggest advertisement this church will ever have is your changed life.
2. Jesus was called a “friend of sinners” (Luke 7:34)
a. Jesus accepted, without having to approve their sinful behavior
3. without a loving passion for the lost, we will never be willing to make the sacrifices necessary to reach them.
a. Some churches are good at loving each other, but not loving newcomers (why? – FEAR)
i. You can start by being nice
b. They are good at loving those who are already there
4. The reason why some churches don’t want a larger crowd is because they don’t want one – it will disturb their comfortable routine
c. Jesus love people by meeting their needs
i. Jesus did not say, “Clean up your act and then I’ll save you.”
1. He loved you even before you changed
a. Sanctification comes after salvation
ii. What are people’s biggest need today in New York city? RELATIONSHIPS
d. But what do we do when our love gets cold?
i. Remember the cross and begin to abide in his presence, power of the word and his penetrating love.
