Does it glorify God? That's the
litmus test by which to test all doctrine, all preaching,
all teaching. Does it glorify God? That's the litmus test by which
to judge all action. Does it glorify God? All the
heresies that have arisen in the history of the church, all
of them, no exceptions. All the heresies that have arisen
in the past and all the heresies of the present have a decided
tendency to dishonor God and flatter man. All heresy, has
a decided tendency to abase God and exalt man. To make much of
man's will, man's work, and man's worth, and little or nothing
of God's will, God's worth, and God's work. All heresy has decided
tendency to make little of God and much of man. So I again stress,
if you would judge the truthfulness of any doctrine, judge it by
this. Does it glorify God or not? Does it abase man and exalt the
Savior? All true doctrine, all true preaching
is determined to make little of man and to make men understand
they are nothing but sinful creatures, rebels before God. I want every
time I preach to you or to any other people to make everyone
who hears my voice understand, according to this book, there's
nothing in you but sin. Nothing done by you, but iniquity. That's what we are. We're sinners,
rebels, ruined, vile, lost, dead in trespasses and in sins by
nature. That's what man is. And I want
at the same time to exalt the glory of the triune God so that
men behold God high and lifted up. sitting upon his throne in
the undisturbed and undisturbable majesty of absolute sovereignty. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
always having his way so that God's will men know reigns supreme. Christ's blood is effectual sin
atoning blood by which sinners are saved. God's spirit in the
mighty operations of his grace are those operations of grace
that bring dead sinners to life and preserve and keep us in life
and grace unto everlasting glory. Test everything then by this. Everything I preach and everything
you hear anyone else preach. Everything I write, everything
you read, test it by this. Does it glorify God? By that
test, you may judge and judge infallibly whether or not something
is true. Does it glorify God? If there's
any question about that, Larry, this is the infallible fact.
It's not true. That's infallible judgment. If
it exalts God, the triune God, makes Him great and glorious
in your eyes, that's God's truth. I promise you. Find me any exception. Find me any exception. The Word
of God constantly demonstrates this. My subject tonight, or
this morning, this afternoon, get it right in a minute. My
subject is self-sufficiency slaying. Turn with me, if you will, to
John chapter 15. John the 15th chapter. Because Christ is the true vine,
in whom is all life and grace and strength. And we are but
branches drawing life and grace and strength from him. We have
no sufficiency in ourselves to do anything. And the master says
without me, ye can do nothing. Now you take that statement and
apply it just as broadly as your mind's imagination will allow,
with regard to all things spiritual. Without me, you can do nothing,
let alone physical things. You don't breathe without him.
You don't think without him. You know nothing without him.
But the text is talking about spiritual things and spiritual
things only. John chapter 15, verse 1. Now
when you get to John 14, Judas is gone. Judas is no longer in
the picture. He'll show up in a little while
to betray the master with a kiss. Everything the Lord Jesus says
from the time that Judas walked out in John 13, in this marvelous
discourse, chapters 13, 14, 15, and 16, everything he says, he
says to his disciples alone. These are the master's words
to you and me, to you who believe, to you who are gods. These are
words specifically addressed to believing men and women and
only to believing men and women. Now, I stress that because you
will not rightly understand the things written in this book,
particularly in this chapter, if you don't understand to whom
it's written. This chapter we're about to read,
these eight verses of John 15, are specifically talking to James
A. Jordan. Specifically. Specifically talking to you who
believe. The Lord Jesus says, I am the
true vine, and my father is the husbandman. Every branch in me
that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. And every branch that beareth
fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now
ye are clean through the word which I spoken unto you. Abide
in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit
of itself except it abide in the vine, no more can ye except
ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches.
He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth
much fruit. For without me, you can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he's
cast forth as a branch and is withered. And men gathered them
and cast them into the fire and they are burned. If you abide
in me and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will and
it shall be done unto you. Herein is my father glorified
that you may bear much fruit. So shall you be my disciples. First, the master says, I am
the true vine. The Lord Jesus compares himself
to many things by which he condescends to teach us who he is, what he
has done, and what he is doing for us by which he condescends
to show us his person and work and to show us our use of him. Our Lord uses many very familiar,
simple, simple pictures, things that you just see in ordinary
everyday life that you use all the time. And so that's me. I
am the door. I am the door. I was looking
over this again this morning and last night after I finished
preparing the message, praying, Lord Jesus, will you graciously
by your spirit remind me every time I go in a door that you're
the door. I am the door. I am the door. He says I'm the door so that
every time you go through a door, you think of him. I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he
shall be saved. There's no other door. I am the
bread from heaven, he said. Lord, every time I put a piece
of bread in my mouth, will you remind me that you're the one
bread I must have? I'm the water of life. A man
drinks of this water, he'll never thirst again. I have no idea
how many times I take a drink of water through the day. And
Bill never think of him. God forgive me. He's the only
one I've got to have. He says, I am the way, the truth,
and the life. Everything God has for sinners
is in Christ. All things spiritual, all things
eternal, all things blessed, all things necessary are in Christ,
by Christ, through Christ, and only in, by, and through Christ. The Father loveth the Son, and
hath given all things into his hand. The Lord here says, I'm
the vine. What a marvelous picture. What
a marvelous condescension on his part, the vine. He is described as a root out
of dry ground in whom there's no comeliness, no beauty that
we should desire him. What can you picture in the field
that's uglier than a vine in the wintertime. If you go over
to the house, pause on the deck and look out at the grapevine,
you'll see what I'm talking about. It's ugly. There's nothing about
it that's appealing. When the sap of life is sunk
down into the roots and it's dry, there's nothing there that's
the least bit appealing. The Lord Jesus says, I am divine. As if to show us his meekness,
his lowliness, as our God-man mediator. I am divine. I brought myself low that I might
lift you high. He emptied himself. What a word. He thought it not
robbery to be equal with God. He is God. but he made himself
of no reputation. The word is he emptied himself. Our Lord Jesus coming into this
world empties himself. He who was rich for your sakes
became poor that you through his poverty might be made rich.
And yet by this comparison when our Savior says, I am the vine,
he also assures us of his own superabounding infinite fullness
and fruitfulness as our mediator, the God-man, our Savior. What
can be more useful than the vine to the branches? The branches
draw all their life, all their strength, all their sustenance
out of the vine. And the fruit that hangs in clusters
on those branches comes from the vine. The fruit, everything
in that branch comes from the vine, so that our Lord Jesus
speaks of himself as the vine, describing his fullness for us
as our mediator. He's described in Genesis 49
as our great Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough
by a whale, which branches run over the wall. The fruit of this
vine is like the wine of Lebanon. The scent of it fills the air
with sweetness, with a sweet fragrance. Its fruit is exhilarating,
refreshing, like the wine of Lebanon. This is that plant of
renown the Lord made for himself. Turn over to Ezekiel 34. Ezekiel
chapter 34. I am the vine, the Savior says.
The prophet Ezekiel spoke of this plant of renown, this lowly
vine that spreads everywhere, this lowly vine that is the picture
of weakness that has to have something to prop it up, something
to lean on all the time. Yet this is a plant of renown
full of life for us. Ezekiel 34 verse 29, the Lord
God says, I will raise up for them a plant of renown. And they
shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear
the shame of the heathen anymore. Thus shall they know that I,
the Lord their God, am with them, and that they, even the house
of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord God. And ye, my flock,
the flock of my pastor, are men, and I am your God, saith the
Lord. All right, back here in our text.
The master says, I am the vine and my father is the husbandman,
the vine dresser. With those words, the Savior
is giving us another word of sweet assurance. Remember, he's
talking to you who are his people. His specified purpose, he tells
us in verse 11, is that his joy might remain in us and that our
joy might be full. So when you read this chapter
and this picture, particularly we're looking at this afternoon,
Christ, the vine, us, the branches and the folks get the idea somehow
they're warnings here. There are. Warnings here of some
danger. Oh, no. No, his intention is
that his joy abide in us and our joy be full. He said, my
father's the husband now. Watch out. God's going to get
you. Oh, no. My father takes care of this
fight. My father constantly tends this
fight. My father constantly feeds and
watches over and provides everything for this vine and all the vows
of it. He planted the vine in his own
purpose from eternity. He put the vine here on this
earth in the incarnation. He filled the vine with his spirit,
upheld the vine and supported it all the days he walked on
this earth. We read it in psalm 80, he made
him strong for himself. The father made Christ our vine
and made us the branches in the vine Putting everything in him
trusting everything to him putting everything in his hands for the
praise of his glory for the honor of his name and Then he takes
infinite delight in this vine this plant of renown he says
that This is his pleasant plant in the fifth chapter of Isaiah.
This is his pleasant plant. See Christ, the crucified Redeemer? Seated yonder on the throne of
glory in whom all the fullness of the Godhead is in whom you're
complete in whom is all blessing and grace forgiveness acceptance
salvation everything in him you see him the Lord God says This
is my pleasant plant. This is what gives me delight
all the time Look at verse 2 John 15 Every branch in me that beareth
not fruit." Uh-oh. Uh-oh. Now, if you don't bear fruit, if you don't bear fruit, then
you've fallen from the vine and you're lost. That's not what
this text is talking about. He's talking to believers, Frank.
He's not talking to folks who might possibly fall away. Robert
Hawker suggested, and I think he's right, that this opening
statement might be better translated this way, every branch that beareth
not fruit in me. You see, the fact is, there are
many who profess faith in Christ, who profess to be in the vine,
who think they are in the vine, who are not. You remember a man
named Judas? A man named Demas? A man named
Diotrephes? A man named Simon Magus? You
remember those names? They all had an intimate association
with the vine. They were all numbered among
the disciples of our Lord. They all had a name that they
were alive, but they were dead. They had a religious profession. They performed religious duties.
They went about their religious ceremonies. They had religious
feelings. They had religious knowledge.
But they weren't in the vine. They didn't grow out of the vine.
They were just hanging on the vine. Our Lord then speaks like
this about these. Every branch in me that beareth
not fruit. Every branch that beareth not
fruit in me, my Father, the husbandman, taketh away. He taketh away. And every branch that beareth
fruit, those who really are branches in the vine, he purgeth it, that
it may bring forth more fruit. Carnal professors, lost religious
people, place high value on what they call fruit. Now, if you've
been around religious folks much, especially preachers, they will
tell you, now, I can't judge, but I'm a fruit inspector. I'm
a fruit inspector, and I can inspect your life, and I can
tell you whether or not you're bearing fruit. Turn to Luke 16. I'll show you what to think about
their fruit that they inspect and they like. I'm a fruit inspector. Let's see now. You ladies, your
skirt's not quite below your knee. You and me and your hair's just
a little too long. How many ballgames did you watch
last week? And how much time did you spend
reading your Bible? I'm a fruit inspector. I'm here to judge
whether or not you Maybe I'll be a little concerned that you're
not bearing the right kind of fruit. Now, you know, you got
to quit doing this and you got to start doing that. And it always
varies according to where you live. I was raised in Winston-Salem,
North Carolina. That's the home of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Wonderful
city. On a hot July day, you could
walk down the streets, breathe in the air, and spit out the
amber. You didn't ever have to buy any chewing tobacco. I mean,
it just filled the air. Wonderful city. And do you know
what folks didn't talk much about from the pulpits around Winston-Salem,
North Carolina? They didn't say much about tobacco. That's all right. Now, it's changed
now. RGR moved to Switzerland. When
I grew up, oh, you ought not do that. We won't talk too much
about that. That's not too bad. But they were death on you having
a glass of wine. I mean, buddy, beer or wine or
alcohol, oh, that'll get you. That'll take care of you. We
weren't allowed, folks in church weren't allowed to go mixed bathing.
That doesn't mean taking a public bath like they do over in Japan.
That means boys and girls swimming together. That's terrible. That's
terrible. That's terrible. Just don't do
that. Don't do that. Not in the South. Not in the
South. That's contrary to religion. That's contrary to Southern sanctification. But I got to meeting folks from
up north. And you know, those folks were tough on tobacco.
I mean, the religious fellows everywhere I go, if they had
a Yankee accent, they'd cuss tobacco. But now they didn't
say too much about a little glass of wine, not too much about that,
or mixed bathing. Those things are all right. That
regional sanctification, that regional holiness is men cherishing
things they wish to cherish, pointing to things they consider
good works, they consider spiritual fruit in themselves. and saying,
look here, boy, I am sure enough bearing fruit to God now because
I don't smoke and I don't drink and I don't cuss and I don't
chew and I don't go with the folks who do. Look at Luke chapter
16. The Lord Jesus said unto them,
ye are they which justify yourselves before men. And this is true
of everybody who justifies himself before men. Everybody who wants
men to see how godly he is. Everybody who wants to show men
that he's really sure enough on his way to heaven. God knows
your hearts. For that which is highly esteemed
among men is an abomination in the sight of God. But what's the exception? I don't
see any. Do you, Mark? If men highly esteem
it, our Lord says an abomination to God. If men point at it and
said, now there, that's what I can do to be godly. That's
what you can do to be godly. That's it. That's an abomination
to God. Oh, did you? Please, I haven't
heard any of y'all use this kind of language. Please don't start.
Oh, he said such a pretty prayer. I don't say prayers. I try to
pray. There's a huge difference. There's
a huge difference. Oh, I never heard a man pray
like that before. Most likely that's cause he intended
you to hear it. Most likely. That which is highly
esteemed, that which men look at and men honor and men call
godly, God says is an abomination. God says it's an abomination.
There are myriads of professing Christians in this world whose
union with Christ is only an outward formal union. There's
some in every local church. I'm certain there's some sitting
right here this afternoon, small as this group is. You're a member
of the church. You've been baptized. You read
your Bible. You go to church. You attend church regularly.
Here you are on the middle of the afternoon, on Sunday afternoon,
snow on the ground, ice under the road, on top of the roads,
and you're here sitting in church on Sunday afternoon. Oh, that's
got to count for something. No, no. Oh, no. I don't count
for anything. I don't count for anything. You
see, life in Christ is not just being associated with religious
things. It's life in Christ. It's Christ in you and you in
Christ. The true branches. Those who
are savingly rooted in and joined to and one with Christ by the
Father's will, by His work, by His grace, always bring forth
fruit. Our Lord is not here saying,
now, now you be sure you bring forth fruit. If you don't, God's
going to get rid of you. Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no. Those
who are truly in the vine always bring forth fruit. Always. The
fruit of the Spirit called love, joy, peace, soul, faith, meekness,
temperance. If those things are found in
you, that's the fruit of the Spirit. Oh, but Brother Don,
who can see that? That's just the point. You see, religious activity,
what men call godliness, anybody can do. Anybody can do. Grace, you can't imitate. Faith, You can't muster it. You can't point to it and say,
oh, look at his faith. You can't see my faith. You can't
see my faith, neither the strength of it, nor the weakness of it.
Only God does. Only God does. Oh, I watched
Brother Don, he'd been through some difficult times. He never
wavers. Well, let me tell you something.
Larry, Chris, I don't want you to ever see me waver. This is my grandson back yonder.
I don't ever want to, I don't ever want him to see me waver. I hope there's something in there
for God's glory, but I'm a proud man. I don't want him to ever see
me shake. I've made it my business as a
man in this world to see to it me and don't see fear in my eyes.
That doesn't mean there's not any. I'm just not going to let
you sit. Not if I can help it. Not if
I can help it. And as a believer, as a pastor, I want to lead you
in faith and I want never for you to see the least instability. But oh my God. What you look at in me and call
faith. You can't see that. Only God
does. And I cry, oh my God, give me
faith. Increase our faith. Teach me
to believe. The fruit of the spirit is not
something you produce. It's not something men can see.
The fruit of the spirit is not something any man is competent
to discern. The one who purges these branches
that bear no fruit, or the one that cast these branches off,
is the husbandman, our father. Our father. You can't do it. It's wrong for you to try. Well,
I can tell who saved who now. I once had a preacher's wife
tell me one time. Somebody walked through that door five minutes
after we went out there to save. And I said, would you tell me what
they look like? What's a saved man look like? Well, I can just
tell. No, you can't. No, you can't. Because you only
see what's outward. You can't see what's inward.
Dead, withered, fruitless branches, those that are just hanging on
the vine, in mere profession of faith, the vine dresser will
take away and burn forever. those living branches, savingly
united to the vine, one with the vine, he purges and graciously,
effectually causes them to bring forth much fruit. Our Lord says in verse 16, I
chose you for that purpose, that you'd bring forth much fruit,
didn't it? That your fruit would remain. I reckon his purpose
is going to succeed. He redeemed us as a kind of firstfruits
of His grace. We're called by the Holy Spirit
as the firstfruits of His grace. He saved us that we should bring
forth much fruit. And He sees to it, according
to His purpose, that every branch in the vine brings forth the
fruit He has purposed. You can't muster it. You can't
produce it. You can't increase it. He brings
it forth. Hosea 14, from me, he says in
verse eight, is thy fruit found, from me. Fruit, not your produce,
your fruit. From me is your fruit found. Every portion of life and fruitfulness
comes from him. Grace in the beginning, grace
in the experience, grace in the life, grace that carries us through
life is not a self working principle. Grace is a continual gift. Now look at verse three. Now,
are you clean? through the word which I spoken
unto you. I've got to hurry. Turn to Titus
chapter two. Titus chapter two. You remember in chapter 13 when
Judas was still present, the Lord said, you're clean, but
not all. You're clean, but not all of you. And he wasn't talking
about you're clean a little bit here and there, but you still
got some dirt on you. No, he's saying you're clean,
but there's one among you that's not clean. Now Judas is gone, and
he says you're clean. No exception. Clean. Clean by
the word that I've spoken to you. Here in Titus chapter 3,
we're those that have purified our hearts by faith. There's a fountain open for sin,
for uncleanness, and we wash in that fountain. We're washed
in the blood and we are bought with the blood. Both blood bought
and blood bathed. But the bathing and the experience
of it comes by the application of God's Spirit, sprinkling our
hearts with the blood, purging our consciences by the word,
by the gospel preached. Look in Titus chapter 2, verse,
chapter 3 rather, verse 4. But after that, the kindness
and love of God our Savior toward man appeared not by works of
righteousness, which we have done, but according to his mercy,
he saved us. Now watch this. By the washing
of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost, which he shed
on us abundantly through Jesus Christ, that being justified
by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of
eternal life the lord jesus comes by the preaching of the gospel
by the word of his grace as the spirit of god applies the word
and he makes us clean clean in our consciences clean before
god giving us a new nature purifying our hearts giving us faith in
himself now look at verse four The Savior said back in John
15 verse 4, Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot
bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine, no more can
ye except ye abide in me. Now I remind you again, this
is a promise of grace, not a precept of law. The Lord is speaking
that His joy might be in you. that your joy might be full. Now, how on this earth are you
going to interpret this so that the Lord's giving us a warning
and he's telling us, now, boy, if you don't abide, if you don't
stick with it, if you don't hang on and hold out, persevere, so
don't you believe folks ought to persevere? I know that. You've
got to. I know that. I know that. But here he's saying
you're going to. That's a big difference. He's
not saying now, if you do, he says you surely shall. He's abiding
me. Otherwise, you won't bring forth
fruit. Abide in me. This is the promise. You shall
abide in me. This is my work. Our Lord speaks
plainly and says, I've given to them eternal life, and they
shall never perish. People ask, do you believe in
once saved, always saved? Isn't that a good question? Well, it's a pretty good question.
Who does the saving? Who does the saving? If it's
God who does the saving, I know that whatsoever God doeth, He
doeth it forever. That's what it said in Ecclesiastes
3.14. So salvation is altogether God's work? Oh yeah, I sure do
believe once saved, always saved. I sure do. I believe that once
was from eternity, when God said the works were finished. That
once is at Calvary, when we were redeemed. That once is in the
experience of grace, called by His Spirit in the new birth.
Once saved, always saved. God does it. God does it. But
now if some part of it somehow maybe depends on Donald Ranere. If the Lord God takes you right
from the very jaws of hell, to the gate of glory and gets both
hands inside the doorway and your right foot in, all you got
to do is drag the left and over, you're going to hell. Now, if
you've got something to do with it, oh, no, that's another story. That's another story. But you
don't have anything to do with this thing called salvation.
This is God's work. It's done forever. And this is
what he says about us abiding in him. Come back to Jeremiah,
Jeremiah 32. We read in chapter 34, having
our Lord Jesus, this vine is the plant of renown. That's God's
pleasant plant. That's a covenant promise in
Ezekiel 34. Here is another covenant promise.
The same everlasting covenant, which Christ comes to fulfill.
Jeremiah chapter 32 verse 38. The Lord God says they shall
be my people and I will be their God and I will give them one
heart. and one way that they may fear me." How long? I thought I heard somebody
say it. Forever? That they may worship
me forever? Did God say that? Is that what
He said? I'll give them one heart and
one way. That heart is that new man, Christ in you. That way
is Christ the Lord. They'll fear me forever. Read
on. for the good of them and of their children after them.
And I will make an everlasting covenant with them. And I will
not turn away from them to do them good. But I'll put my fear
in their hearts. Watch it. Do you see that? That they shall
not depart from me. They shall not turn from me.
I won't turn away from them. And I won't let them turn away
from me. You would if you could. One of the most loyal men I've
met in my life, Lindsey Campbell. If you could forsake him, you
would. I promise you. I promise you. But if he is,
you can't. Peter says, I'm going fishing.
And before he ever said, I'm going back to fishing, the Lord
said, oh, no. And his angel told the women
at the tomb, said, you'd be sure to tell Peter. who's gone back
to fishing. I'll meet him in Galilee, just
like I said I would. You should tell him. They'll
not depart from me. Brother Don, the way you're preaching
that, it looks like salvations of the Lord and folks who are
saved by him are saved no matter what. Do you know what? That's
not the way I'm preaching it, Emmett. That's the way I'm reading
it. That's the way I'm reading it. Just open your Bible and
read it. Yea, I will rejoice over them
to do them good and I will plant them in this land assuredly with
my whole heart and with my whole soul. Verse 5. Verse 5. I am the vine, you're the branches. He that abideth in me and I in
him The same bringeth forth much fruit. Without me, ye can do
nothing. Our Lord's parable is intended
to slay every thought of self-sufficiency. When you read the parables, remember,
a parable is a earthly picture of a heavenly reality. It is
an earthly example of a spiritual truth and the parables each parable
while it may have many things that You look at and and you
see this that other thing in it this lesson with that in and
that's all right. That's all right I'm not saying you you
shouldn't do that, but the parable is intended to teach one thing
one thing I intend if I have time to use an illustration that
will illustrate Without me, you can do nothing. Now, there are
many things that might be said from the illustration. But when
I get to the illustration, you'll understand my intent is just
one thing. And whenever you read the parables,
whenever we studied the parables in scripture, don't make more
of them than is intended. Each parable has one specific
lesson to convey. One lesson. Here's the lesson
of this parable. Without me, you can do nothing. Larry Brown, how many times you
come in here, want to worship, try to worship, beg to worship,
and can't worship unless he enables you to worship. Lord, let me hear something from
you today. And you come in and leave and hear nothing. Oh God, enable me to believe
you. Without me, you can do nothing. Well, but what about man's responsibility?
You've got lots of responsibility and I do too. We're responsible
for everything we do and everything we ought to do, everything. You
are and I am. It's my responsibility, Bob Duff,
to believe God. But I can't. It's my responsibility to walk
uprightly. But I can't. It's my responsibility
to worship God. But I can't. I can't. I'm a pastor. And being a pastor, I recognize
that you Watch me. And you watch for things in me.
And while you're not looking for it, every one of you will
spot immediately any weakness. You might not look for it. You
spot it immediately. And I try my best to show no
weakness. I had a preacher say to me some time back, didn't
preach because he just didn't feel like he could preach. I
said, that's not your option. Well, I just, my heart was so
cold. Not your option. It's your responsibility to be
ready and preach when the time comes. The fact is you can't
preach anytime unless God enables you. Have responsibilities. Do what you can to meet them.
But you can't do anything without him. You can't endure temptation. You can't resist the wiles of
the devil. You can't overcome your trials. You can't overcome sin within
you or performed by you. You can't do it. You can't do
it. Well, I'm a strong Christian.
I can take care of that. Oh, no, you can't. Oh, no, you
can't. Give you one example. Before the rooster crows twice,
you're going to deny me three times. Before the sun rises tomorrow,
you're going to deny me. Not me, Lord. Not me. I wouldn't
do that. I wouldn't do that before the
sun rises tomorrow. And Peter's denied the Lord and
denied him again. And that rooster crows. Same way I can see that man who
just a few hours earlier is willing to take on a band of Roman soldiers
single-handedly, shaking like jelly in his shoes. I can't believe that. I wouldn't
do that. I can't believe that. Now, I'm not going to do it again.
I'm not going to do it again. I'm not going to, I won't do
that again. And the first trial, he takes
up cussing like a blaspheming sailor and said, I don't know
that man. You can't stop yourself on any
downward spiral to evil, except God by omnipotent mercy may hold
of you and keep you from what If that doesn't take the starch
out of your backbone, I don't know what will. I don't know
what will break our self-righteousness, but that's the reality. Without
me, you can do nothing. But blessed be God. He said, I'll never leave you.
There shall no temptation Take you except that which is common
to man and god will with the temptation make a way to escape
That you may be able to bear it And so he does Neither the
judgments of god nor the mercies of god neither great blessings
nor great trials Will change the heart of a man Those words
are true with regard to believers without me you can do nothing
and they're true with regard to you who believe not. You take a man who's had every conceivable blessing,
I mean just every conceivable blessing, heart just as hard,
unbelieving, and his neighbor, maybe his brother out of the
same house, Everything about him turned upside down. His life,
constant sickness and pain and sorrow, constant bereavement,
constant, constant impoverishment, and nothing changes them. Neither
the blessing nor the judgment to turn them. How come? Without me, you can do nothing. God leaves you alone, you're
going to hell. It's the goodness of God that
leads me into repentance. It factually leads me into repentance. Read on. Look at verse six. The master says, without me,
ye can do nothing. And then he speaks concerning
the fruitless professor. If a man abide not in me, he's
cast forth as a branch and withered. and men gather them and cast
them into the fire and they're burned. Soon your refuge of lies,
he will sweep away and you'll find your beds too
short and your covenant with death was of no benefit. Your religious profession will
do you no good. Then in verse seven, The Lord
assures us that because we are one with Him, ever abiding in
Him, inseparable from Him, if you abide in Me and My words
abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done
to you. What does that mean? What does that mean? What does that mean? Anything you want, just ask God.
He'll get it for you. Not a wise father. Not a good
father. Oh no. Oh no. That's not a promise that God
will honor and reward covetousness. If you abide in me, my words
abide in you. Because you're one with me, you
can ask what you will, and it's done. What is it that you want? What is it that you want? Really, what is it that you want?
You who are born of God, who are one with Christ, Your dear husband, my dear friend. Ask God to heal him. I haven't yet. Joyous. Take away your cancer. I can't ask that. I can't ask
that. Not for me, not for you, not
for anybody, unless God teaches me to do so. I can't do that.
What can you do? What is it you want? You want
them healed, don't you? I want more than that for you. You want to keep them here, don't
you? I want something more than that. I want God's name to be
honored. I want God's kingdom to grow. I want God's will to be done. I want. That's how the master
taught us to pray. I want what's needed today, my
daily bread. I want the forgiveness of sin. And you know what I pray for?
Incessantly. When I take Mother Tommy Robbins
to God's throne, and I take you to God's throne, I want God's
name to be honored. And I want God's will to be done
on earth, just like it is in heaven. And I want what's best
for God's kingdom. I want what we need day by day. I want forgiveness. And that's how I pray. And do
you know what I have? Have everything I want Everything everything look at
verse 8 I'll wrap it up Herein is my father glorified I'm divine you're the branches
My father's the husbandman. He's going to see to it that
you bear much fruit and he's glorified and you bear much fruit. He's glorified in us by what
he's doing in us. He's glorified in giving us what
we will because he makes our will his will. Herein is my father glorified,
and you shall be my disciples. My disciples. Back in the days
of the Welsh Revival in Wales, I'm told that God's grace had
such profound effect upon those miners. They used to keep their
donkeys down in the mine with them, never brought them out.
And the miners used to and go down and cuss those donkeys.
The donkeys had a tough time understanding them when they
quit cussing them. And God did a work. And not the donkeys,
the miners. But there was one of them, a
big man, called him Big Jake. And some of his friends got to
poking fun at him. Jake was a rounder. He liked
to scrap, could be it. And he'd go to work, and day
after day they'd ribbon, try to rouse him, try to get him
angry so he'd hit one of them just so they'd laugh. This man
who claimed to God saved him. And one day they caught him just
at the right time and they pressed just the right buttons and Jake
stepped out of the coal mine and took his shovel and swung
it back and then he paused and tears came to his eyes and cold
soot washed away just white streaks. Stood there with that shovel
in his hand and he's saying, I need thee every hour. Oh, I need thee every hour. Without me, you can do nothing. I wonder if we can sing that.
Number 318.