Sermon Outline

Sermon Outline August 21, 2006

INTRODUCTION
Prayer is not a monologue, but always a response to God’s prior word, the second leg of a conversation. Faithful prayer speaks back to God as He has spoken to us; faithful prayer prays according to God’s will.

THE TEXT
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit . . . .” (John 15:1-16).


ACCORDING TO MY WILL
1 John 5:14 says, “If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” Christians are sometimes confused by this, assuming that John is referring to what theologians call the “secret” will of God. If we discern what God is planning to do, get a peek at the decree, then we can pray according to God’s will. That’s not what John means. Of course, we, like Jesus, surround our prayers with “Your will, not mine, be done” (Matthew 26:39), and this refers to God’s “secret” will. But John is referring to God’s revealed will. Praying according to God’s will means talking back to God in a way that conforms to the way God talks to us.

PROMISES TO PRAYER
God’s will for us and for the world is revealed in His promises. God is aware of our reluctance and weakness in prayer, and so He has given us many assurances that He answers prayer. Many of these assurances come from Jesus Himself. After teaching the disciples the Lord’s prayer, He told them that God gives to those who ask, is found by those who seek, and opens the door to those who knock (11:5-13). Within these few chapters of John, He repeatedly promises that His Father will give what the disciples ask: “Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do” (14:13); “Ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you” (15:7); “If you shall ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My name” (16:23).

But what has God promised? He has promised that all nations will be blessed in Abraham’s seed, that the world will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea, that His will will be done on earth as in heaven. He has promised to supply all our needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus; to provide food, clothing, and all necessities; to deliver us from evil and to give us strength in all temptations; as we saw last week, to fill the world with righteousness.

ABIDING IN CHRIST
The promise of John 15:7 and 16 should not be taken out of the context of John 15 as a whole. Jesus uses the image of the vine and branches to describe our relationship with Him. He is the vine, the true Israel, and in Him is all life and health. Branches are good for nothing when they are cut from the vine, and can bear fruit only if they stay in the vine. Jesus therefore urges His disciples to “abide in Me” because outside of Him, we are incapable of doing anything (v. 5). How do we abide in Jesus? We abide in Jesus when His word abides in us (v. 7), and we abide in Him by keeping Jesus’ commandments (v. 10), and particularly His commandment to love one another (v. 12). We can abide in Jesus only if we remain in communion with other disciples of Jesus, other members of His body, other branches in the vine. As the Word of Jesus abides in us, and as we keep His word, we become more and more attuned to His desires, purposes, and passion for the world and for us. As we abide in Jesus, our prayers are more a more specifically conformed to God’s will for us.

PRAYER OF FAITH
The Westminster Confession says that true faith responds to all God’s words appropriately, trusting His promises, obeying His commands, trembling at His threats. Prayer is the natural result of faith: God says, ask for this and I’ll give it, and if we have true faith, we ask.


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