Intro: Have you ever imagined yourself as
someone else ?
A)Sports Joe Montana throwing the winning Touch down
Pass
Emmit
Smith making a great Run
B)
Magic Johnson / Michael Jordan winning Basket
1)
Clock the count down Miss He was fouled
A)Horse Running on the Beach pelican
soaring across the waves
Eagle
Soaring High { CAR THING W/ THE HAND
B)
Dolphin riding a Wave { Most of us have a time
or two imagined ourselves being something else
C)
Tonight I want you to do just that I want you to imagine yourself as being
something else A SEED
Beginning Series on the Upper room Discourse Begin
in Jn 12 passage that really sets up
what we will look at in the coming weeks
A)Scene
: Final week of Jesus life prior to His Crucifixion / He is w/ His disciples in
Jerusalem for the feast of Passover read
V.20-22
B)
Greeks who came to worship at the feast / say we wish to see Jesus ! Come to worship God & desire to see
Jesus / True worship is about !
C) Talk to Philip who goes to Andrew / together
they go to Jesus / notice His response V. 23-28
Now this is
the 1st time Jesus has ever said the hour has come that the Son of man should be glorified
A) He proceeds to talk to them
about His death / about discipleship & fruit bearing by using an illustration from nature !!
B) Jesus used the image of a seed to
illustrate great spiritual truth - no fruit w/out death/ no victory w/out
surrender
1)
For Jesus this meant the cross / He was the 1st seed to die / as He
fell to the ground / leaving the glory of Heaven / became a servant / &
Savoir !
C)
He was Buried in the tomb but ROSE AGAIN
bringing forth much Fruit
1)
By
using this illustration Jesus was giving us a Key insight into Bearing fruit
D)
As believers our main objective is to bear Fruit !!!!
John 15: 8By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit;
When we talk
about Abiding in Christ & Walking in the Spirit the objective is that Fruit would proceed from our lives
A)Fruit in our Friendships / Fruit in at our places of employment / fruit in our families / fruit in our ministries /Fruit in the mist of Trials
/
B) In that the Father is
glorified meaning He is Blessed / He is Pleased & He is EXALTED when we
Bring forth FRUIT !!!
C) Now in the book of Gal.- we are told
what that Fruit looks like
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness,
self-control. Against such there is no law.
1) A love that has many Characteristics
A)Goodness is Loves Virtue / Faithfulness is loves Dependability
Gentleness is Loves Meekness / Self-Control Loves Discipline
B) That is what the H.S. is seeking to do in our lives
Make us into people
that love unconditional / people who give Sacrificially
1)
Those
whos Lives are marked by Joy / Stability / Patience & Grace/ Virtue &
Dependability / Meekness & Self-Control
C)
That happens when we learn How to walk in the Spirit & when we are
abiding in Christ
But what we are told here in Jn.
12 I believe is the door way into that Abiding kind of life of Walking &
being led by the Spirit
A)This
is where it all begins- We need to be like that Seed
B) 1st
How we are like SEEDS
1)
A Seed is small &
insignificant but there is life in it/
That seed has the potential of becoming a tree / flower
C) You
& I are small & insignificant but we have life in us Gods Life
D) Now if the life that is in
the seed is going to be manifested it has to be buried / planted symbol of
death
E) The same thing holds true
for us if the Life of the Lord is going to be manifested in our lives We
need to be Planted / buried /
1)
There is a death that needs to take place Death of self / My plan/ My
ambition/ My desires / and aligning myself w/ His Plan
Now think about if
that seed could talk - I dont like it down here It is Dark/ Cold
/ Dirty / Worms bugs / Water is Cold
A)But in
order for the life in the seed to come forth all of that is Necessary
B)
Diamond becoming Coal Pressed
C)
God has put His life into you HS / but in order for him to get his
life out of You / You need to be buried
D) Note the contrast: loneliness or fruitfulness,
losing your life or keeping
your
life: serving self or serving
Christ
1) Pleasing self or receiving God's honor
A)Self
Will disposition to want our own way !!!! Phrases I want, I will I need,
B) Self Seeking:
We seek after Adulation & Admiration { Marked by that craving to be
the center of attention / focus attraction
1)
It Parades its achievements & accomplishments
C) Self
Indulgence : Self is motivated by desire & not Principle { It wants
to be gratified no matter what the Cost
D) Self
Pity: Self loves to excite pity & draw out sympathy
Constantly is complaining about circumstances or relationships
1)
It is always feeling sorrow for itself & looking
for listening ears/ shoulders to cry upon
F)
Self
Consciousness: Self
can never forget itself not even for a moment
I am always on my mind Crippled
by always wondering others thinking
G) Self Love : Self finds that the
supreme object of affection is itself
1) Pride Person thinks
they have it all together
F) Self Confidence : I can do it I can make it
happen / I can fix this mess
..
Now
everyone single one of us has the potential for any or all of those things to
be evident in our lives
A)Our biggest struggle is w/
ourselves And the only way for the Life of the Lord to be manifested in our
lives is for us to be Buried / Self dies
B) Hard our flesh rebels against it Hard for Jesus
v. 27
27 "Now My soul is troubled, and
what shall I say? 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came
to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your name." Then a voice came from
heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."
C) Jesus made a Choice Seek the Fathers glory &
the Fathers will above his own Comfort
1)
Choice
that every man has to make Love myself , glorify myself or Love God &
Glorify God { Cant have it both ways
So if our desire is to Glorify God Like the
seed we need to be planted! But Where?
A)the soil we are to be buried
in is Christ Himself / water we are to
receive
is the water of His word !
B) Our desire needs to be like that of John the B. when
he said I must decrease that He might increase !
1)
John the
Man 1st Prophet in 400yrs pointed his disciples to JESUS
Now
When the seed is buried in the ground
it is covered / no longer seen
A)Covered
by the dirt / watered & receives nutrients from the dirt & the
combination of the watering & the dirt causes the seed to sprout roots
B) After some more watering stem comes
out / later grows into a tree / later bears fruit / now here is what is really intriguing to me
1) The seed is never
seen again /
only the fruit which resulted in the
seed being planted in the ground !
C) That is the work
that God is seeking to do in each one of us as He seeks to conform us into the
image of His own Son ! Rom. 8:29
1) that any good that comes
forth from my life / any love / any compassion/ isnt because I am a great
person
D) But because Jesus is living
in me / I died / buried in Him / watered by his word / get
into word / word gets into me
1) The result
will be fruit that reflects Him!
Difficult
marriage
? He wants to be Glorified in your Trial
B)
Realize that the Lord is seeking to do something in
& Thru your life right now that He couldnt do if You were married
C)That
is the place that He has You planted in presently
D)Are
You sick ? Wants to be glorified in your Sickness / Show His Grace is
Sufficient Power perfected in weakness
1)
Me
3 services Kills to stand