To Live is Christ
Scripture: Philippians 1:21Devotional Series: The Spirit of Truth
Teaching: The Spirit Of Truth pt. 4 (SUN_AM 2021-09-19) by Pastor Star R Scott
Turn over to John 15 for just a moment and that passage that we’re all very familiar with. Just let your eyes rest upon it for just a moment and see what this example that the Lord Himself is setting forth is saying to each one of us. So powerful. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that bringeth not fruit he taketh away…” (verse 1-2) Let’s just pause there for just a moment. What a powerful statement. As we read on, of course we know that to produce any kind of fruit, you have to be drawing the life from the vine; amen? You have to be intimate. You have to become one with—see, the fact that fruit isn’t predominant in our lives means that we’re not one with Christ. We’re not in Him and Him in us. We read about Him, we talk about Him, but He doesn’t have our hearts and our minds. “For me to live is Christ” (Philippians 1:21). Paul had some personal ambitions, didn’t he? Paul was accomplished; Paul was successful. And Paul saw Jesus and fell in love and died to himself. Because you don’t love someone in the purest sense if ever you choose self and love yourself.
Love, by definition, is the emptying of ourselves because of our affection, because of our choice to pour all that we are out for the object of our love and seek at all times their total wellbeing. That’s love. That’s agapē. Oh, there are other versions of love. There is erotic love, there can be lustful—all of this Hollywood—and tragically, what so many people grow up on thinking that this is love, hearts are twitterpating or other things, lusts rise up in us, and “I’ve got to have that individual.” Then tragically when there is that appetite and it’s finally pursued and obtained, then the Scripture tells us that “he hated that young lady with the same power, and greater power, than he loved her once he had obtained it.” “They make me feel good.” “They make me laugh.” “They make me…” “I love them because they love Jesus more than me.” “I love them because I see in them a servant’s heart.” “I see in them a longing for humility and a desire to become more for Jesus.” “I love them because every time I’m around them, the Word of God is coming out of their mouth.” That servant’s heart, whenever there is an opportunity, “Who will go for Me?” Theirs is the first hand up, “Here am I, send me,” praise God.
So, we see that He is admonishing this fact that we’re to have that desire to see these individuals who are abiding in that vine to bring forth more fruit to use you and me as pruning agents. Sometimes you are a pruning agent and you don’t even know it, because you’re just a pain in the neck, and God is using you to work on me. Now, “I know that I’m never a pain in the neck. I’m God’s blessing to the body.” “Oh, dear fellowship,” we say, “aren’t you so thankful that I am here?” Well, we knew you were here because you’re always making noise about yourself, or you are always complaining, or you’re always offended about something. Well, the Scripture says this: If we will yield ourselves and chose to abide in the vine—listen, if you abide in Me, the choice is yours to abide, to remain. Once these trials start coming, once the reproofs and rebukes and the purification, the pruning begins to come, many of us cut and run. Some do it physically and others do it internally. “Well, I’m just not going to listen.” “I don’t care what they say, and I don’t care who they are.” “I already know what God said to me. It’s me and Jesus.” So, we deal with this character trait: Patience. Love is patient, longsuffering; amen?
Love, by definition, is the emptying of ourselves because of our affection, because of our choice to pour all that we are out for the object of our love and seek at all times their total wellbeing. That’s love. That’s agapē. Oh, there are other versions of love. There is erotic love, there can be lustful—all of this Hollywood—and tragically, what so many people grow up on thinking that this is love, hearts are twitterpating or other things, lusts rise up in us, and “I’ve got to have that individual.” Then tragically when there is that appetite and it’s finally pursued and obtained, then the Scripture tells us that “he hated that young lady with the same power, and greater power, than he loved her once he had obtained it.” “They make me feel good.” “They make me laugh.” “They make me…” “I love them because they love Jesus more than me.” “I love them because I see in them a servant’s heart.” “I see in them a longing for humility and a desire to become more for Jesus.” “I love them because every time I’m around them, the Word of God is coming out of their mouth.” That servant’s heart, whenever there is an opportunity, “Who will go for Me?” Theirs is the first hand up, “Here am I, send me,” praise God.
So, we see that He is admonishing this fact that we’re to have that desire to see these individuals who are abiding in that vine to bring forth more fruit to use you and me as pruning agents. Sometimes you are a pruning agent and you don’t even know it, because you’re just a pain in the neck, and God is using you to work on me. Now, “I know that I’m never a pain in the neck. I’m God’s blessing to the body.” “Oh, dear fellowship,” we say, “aren’t you so thankful that I am here?” Well, we knew you were here because you’re always making noise about yourself, or you are always complaining, or you’re always offended about something. Well, the Scripture says this: If we will yield ourselves and chose to abide in the vine—listen, if you abide in Me, the choice is yours to abide, to remain. Once these trials start coming, once the reproofs and rebukes and the purification, the pruning begins to come, many of us cut and run. Some do it physically and others do it internally. “Well, I’m just not going to listen.” “I don’t care what they say, and I don’t care who they are.” “I already know what God said to me. It’s me and Jesus.” So, we deal with this character trait: Patience. Love is patient, longsuffering; amen?