getting ready to close 2025, time flies. Now, when you're young, it doesn't seem to fly that much, but as you get older, we're rushing toward Judgment Day and eternity. Lord willing, this Wednesday night, we'll have a New Year service, observe the Lord's table together, and the Kesses have invited everybody over to their house afterwards, so I'm looking forward to that.

I usually hesitate to say this, but I feel like the Lord has impressed me to bring a certain message. We'll find out when preachers say, I've got a message for you. Well, maybe. I hope I do. We'll find out. But would you turn back to John chapter 15? I've entitled this message, Abide in Me.

Now, if I said to you, abide in me, you'd say, what? What do you mean by that? The only one to whom this has meaning, if he says it, is the Lord Jesus Christ. Abide in me. Not merely abide with me, but abide in me. May God give me and you the grace to abide in him.

It was night. Perhaps they walked by the temple with the big golden grapevine on it. It was huge, I read. Perhaps they were walking through a vineyard on their way to Gethsemane where the Lord was going to have that cup pass before him. And he said to his disciples,

I am the true vine. Now this is one of those great I ams of the Lord Jesus Christ found in the book of John. I am. That's God's name. The self-existent one.

Now this is something that it seems like I'd love to think of more than ever. His self-existence. He has no needs, he has life in himself. You and I are so needy. He has no needs. All of his attributes come out of that. He has no needs. He said, I am the bread. I'm the true bread. He said, I am the door. I am the good shepherd. I am the resurrection and the life. Remember the resurrection is not an event. He himself is the resurrection. He's the life. I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the father, but by me. When the woman at the well said, I know that Christ cometh, and when he's come, he'll tell us all things. He said, I am that speak unto thee. You're not 50 years old. Have you seen Abraham? Before Abraham was, I am. If you believe not that I am, you'll die in your sins. I am. The great I am that I am. Don't you love it? When they came to arrest him, whom seek ye? Jesus of Nazareth, I am. They fell backwards. I am the true vine. And my father is the husband. Verse two. 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. I am the vine. Every branch in me that bears not fruit, he takes it away. Every branch that bears fruit, he purchases it.

In a grapevine, you have branches. The same stem that is in the vine goes through the branches. There's no connecting point. Now picture this in your mind. You have the grapevine. with the stems going through it. And the same stem that is in the vine is in the branches. This speaks of our union with the Lord Jesus Christ. Both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one. Now this is something we believe. We don't understand, but we believe. Every believer is one with Jesus Christ, just as the same stem that's in the vine is in the branches with no connecting point. This speaks of the union that the believer has with the Lord Jesus Christ. The same sap that flows through the stem flows through the branches and all of its leaves, blossoms, Bud and fruit, there is no connecting point. One with Christ. Not real close, but one. The same stem in the vine is in the branches. Now he says every branch in me that bears not fruit. What was the difference between the good groundheres and the wayside thorn-choked and stony groundheres? Fruit. Fruit. The fruit of God the Holy Spirit.

Every branch in me that bears not fruit, he takes away. Some have thought that he kills fruitless Christians. There's no such thing as a fruitless Christian. Doesn't mean that. Some think, well, a true believer, if he doesn't bear fruit, can fall away and end up not being a true believer. Doesn't mean that either. That's not the teaching of the scripture.

We know from what he goes on to say in this passage, and from the light of other scriptures, the branch that does not bear fruit is described in verse six. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered, and men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. That is his end, and the reason he bears no fruit is he does not truly abide in the vine. If he does not abide in the vine, here's the reason, he's not really in the vine.

Now, more in a moment about what it means to abide in the vine. Now, he says, every branch that bears fruit, which is every believer, he purges it, he prunes it, that it may bear more fruit. Verse three, now, right now, present tense, Not yesterday and not tomorrow, but right now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. You, he says this to every believer without exception, now you are clean. I don't care how dirty you may feel. You are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

Turn back to John chapter 13, verse six. This is when he's washing the disciples' feet. Then cometh he to Simon Peter. I love to imagine the stunned silence at this time while he's washing the disciples' feet. What is he doing? Then cometh he to Simon Peter, and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part. What does it take to have a part with Christ? I want that, don't you? He's gotta wash you. That's it. He washes you, you're clean.

David said, purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean. Wash me. And I shall be whiter than the snow. Believer, when he had by himself purged, made purification for, put away, made not to be our sins. Now, if you have no sins, guess what? You're clean. Clean before God. without sin. Now are you clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. The gospel message.

Back to our text in John 15. Well let me, I didn't finish reading. John 13 verse 9. Peter saith unto him, Lord not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to them, he that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every wit. Now you get your feet dirty every day, don't you? You know that. Walking in this world, you need to have your feet cleansed every day with the gospel. But that doesn't change the fact that you are clean every wit. Perfectly clean and pure before God. Clean.

Back to our text. Verse three, now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Verse four, abide in me. Now in Christ is a place. He's a person. He's a place. That's what he's referring to when he says abide. remain, dwell, stay, continue in me. I love the scripture in Ephesians 1, 3, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. All of God's blessing, all of God's salvation, is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is a place all of God's favor is in Christ. And that's why Paul said, Oh, that I might be found in him.

Now that is a conscious desire for all God to see when he sees me is he sees his son and me in him. That's a conscious desire. You want to only be seen in Christ. I don't want God to see me in my preaching, or in my praying, or my witnessing, or my zeal, or my sin. I don't want Him to see any of that. I want Him to see me in His Son so that all He sees is Jesus Christ. Do you have that desire? Is that what you want to? That's what Paul wanted.

Oh, that I may win Christ and be found in him and if I abide in him it's because he abides in me. Verse four, abide in me and I in you as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine no more can you except you abide in Me, cut off a branch from the grapevine, can it bear fruit? No. All it's gonna do is wither up and die. It can only bear fruit as it abides in the grapevine. The only way we can bear fruit is as we abide in Christ. And the fruit he's speaking of is the fruit of the Holy Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. The only way I can bear the fruit of God the Holy Spirit is as I abide in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now what does that look like? I said this to the Sunday school class this morning. As soon as we hear of Fruit, we start being introspective. What kind of fruit do I have? It's the wrong thing to do. You don't look for a ground of assurance of fruit. You look to Christ. And only in looking to Christ do you bear fruit. Do you hear that? It's only as you abide in Christ and look nowhere but Him that you bear fruit. Looking to Him alone. Not looking at my feet. Not looking at my walk. How am I doing? Not looking at others' walks. Comparing myself to them. Not looking behind me to see if my experience was real. To see if I give evidence of being saved. Looking unto Jesus. Now that's what it means to abide in Christ. You look only to Him. In Christ, Christ is all. He's all I have. If I leave that, I no longer am abiding in Christ. Fruit is the necessary consequence of abiding in Christ. If you look to Him only, you won't be found anywhere else. You'll bear fruit. You try to come up with the fruit, you'll have none.

Verse five. I am the vine, you are the branches. He that abideth in me, what? Bringeth forth. I am the vine, you are the branches. He that abideth in me and I in him, you can't separate the two. The same bringeth forth much fruit for without me, I love this statement. Without me, you can do nothing. No thing. Severed from Christ, all I can do is wither up and die. I certainly can't bring forth fruit. Without him, I can't come to him. You know, coming to Christ is the spiritual move of faith. It's so mysterious, so glorious. We actually come to Him. All that the Father giveth me shall come unto me, come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. Now, I can't do that except as I am in Him. If I'm severed from Him, I can't believe. I cannot repent. I cannot love. I cannot, what did he say? He didn't say, without me, there's not much you can do. He didn't say, without me, there's hardly anything you can do. He said, without me, you can do nothing.

Verse six. If a man abide not in me, He's cast forth as a branch and is withered and men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned. Now, this is the end of those who do not abide in Christ. Now, does this speak of hell? I believe it does. I believe it does. It's talking about the wrath of God. And, you know, every time I think of the wrath of God, and when I think of hell, it starts making me feel uncomfortable. I can't think of that without some sense of interpretation. But I want us to remember God's just, hell is just. And let me remind you, if there was a human judge that just, well, you're forgiven, even after they've committed a crime, would say he's an unjust judge. God is just, he must punish sin. If he does not punish sin, he's no longer God. He would lose his Godhead. He's God, he must punish sin. Outside of Christ, all there is is the just punishment of my sin. But in Christ, I'm clean.

Verse 7, if you abide in me, you stay only in me. You don't want to be seen outside of me. You don't want to go outside of me. You have a conscious desire to only be found in me. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, all your hope When you abide in Christ, it's found in what he said. When he said, it is finished, that's his word. My salvation was accomplished. When he said, I am the way, the truth, the life, that's his word that abides in me. He's the way to God. He's the very truth of God. His life is the only life that God accepts. No man comes to the Father but by Him, bringing me into the Father's presence. Oh, His words, if I abide in Him, here's the evidence, His word abides in me. I find all my hope in His word.

If you abide in me and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you. Now, here's what you'll be asking. This is what you will. You'll be asking for Him to do something for you, in you, and unto you. For you, Lord, do something for me. In you, Lord, do something in me. Unto you, Lord, do something unto me. Lord, save me! Save me, and all that includes. You're gonna be asking what you will, and that's what you will. Lord, do something for me. Do something in me. Do something unto me, and you're gonna have it. He that asks, receives. He that seeks, finds. He that knocks, it shall be opened unto him.

Verse eight, herein. Is my father glorified that you bear much fruit? How do you bear fruit? By abiding in the vine. I'm not giving you a list of things to do in order to bear fruit. That would be foolish. As soon as you do that, no good's gonna come out of that. Abide in the vine. Abide in Christ. Look to Him only. This is not some kind of formula. Look to Him only. Oh, that's the hardest thing to do. And yet it's the easiest thing to do. You don't have anything else you can do. Look to Him only and you shall bear much fruit.

Bearing fruit is a necessary consequence of abiding in the vine. And who gets the glory for this? Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit. Now, seven times in verses four through seven, we have the word abide. Abide in me. Abide in the vine. What does that mean? To abide in Christ. The only way I'll bear fruit The only way you'll bear fruit is as we abide in Christ. What does it mean to abide in Christ? Well, I've already mentioned this. In Christ is a place, isn't it? Yes, He's a person, but He's a place. 1 Corinthians 1.30 says, of Him are you in Christ Jesus. In Christ is a place. Who of God. is made unto us wisdom and righteousness, sanctification and redemption. What a glorious place this is. If I'm in Him, that means I have wisdom. God has fellowship with me. He doesn't have fellowship with fools, only wise men in Christ Jesus. I have righteousness, perfect righteousness in Him. I have holiness in Him. I'm fully redeemed. What a place to be.

in Christ as a place, baptized, immersed into Christ. Now, the ark in the days of Noah was a place, wasn't it? Somebody says, how did all the animals get in the ark? I don't know. They did, though. That's impossible. Well, with God, all things are impossible. I don't know how to explain that, and I don't wanna get into the ark and all the, how'd all the animals get in there? The ark was a place, and if you were in the ark, you were safe, weren't you? What about outside of the ark? You'd be drowned. There was no survival for anyone outside of the ark.

The house with the blood over the door was a place, wasn't it? In that place, in that house, with the blood over the door, God said, when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No one was condemned who was in one of those houses. I don't care who they are or what they did. If they were in the house, they were safe. They were outside of the house. They were condemned. The firstborn was slain.

The city of refuge was a place. If you were in the city, you were safe. If you walked outside of that city wall, the avenger of blood could kill you immediately. The only place you were safe was in the city of refuge.

In Christ is a place all of God's salvation. All of God's favor, all of God's love, all of God's blessing, all of God's provision, all of God's pleasure, all of God's purpose, all of God's person is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Outside of him. There is nothing but His just wrath. All I want to do is abide in Him and be found in Him. I don't want to be outside of Him in any way.

Now, would you turn with me to 1 John chapter 2? Verse 28, And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He shall appear, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. How is it that I'm going to have confidence when Christ comes back and not be ashamed? One way, by abiding in Him. Look in chapter three, verse four, whosoever committed sin transgresseth also the law, for sin is the transgression of the law. And you know that he was manifested to take away our sins. And in him is no sin. And do you hear that? If you're in him, you have no sin.

Sin. Verse six, whosoever abideth in him. What? What? Sineth not. But I sin. Whoso abideth in him. Sinneth not. I've heard people say, well, that means they don't practice sin. That's not what it says. It says they don't sin, period. In him. Whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. Now I want to be in him and I want to abide in him. Absolute salvation, absolute safety, Absolute security, absolute prosperity, all spiritual blessings are in Him.

Now, what's it mean to abide in Him? Now, I wanna give you, in closing, the different words that are used in the New Testament that come from this Greek word meno, which means to abide, to abide in Him. Well, it's sometimes translated to remain in him. To remain is what's there after everything else is gone. I would like for my good works to be seen, at least. I'm not real sure if I can tell my good works from bad works. Matter of fact, I know I can't. I just want to be found in him. That's all that remains in him.

It's translated to dwell. Where you dwell is where you live. It's your home. It's your home. Now, one of the things I love about my house, it's all open to me. I can open any drawer I want and I'm not intruding. I can open any closet, I'm at home. I'm not, you ever been in somebody else's home and looked in somewhere where you knew you shouldn't look and somebody said, I've never done that. Yeah, I wouldn't really believe that. But you feel uncomfortable. You know you shouldn't be there. You don't have the liberty to do this. But in your own home, you have liberty and freedom.

Oh, the freedom of dwelling in Christ. That's the only place I feel at home. That's the only place I feel safe. That's the only place I felt liberty in Christ, my dwelling place. It means to continue. You continue abiding in him only. This is all the time. It means it's translated to tarry. You know, when you tarry somewhere, because you like being there, you don't want to leave. You're comfortable there. You're enjoying it. You're having a good time there. You don't want to leave. You tarry in Christ because you don't want to leave. This is where you love being. This is where you enjoy being. This is where you like to be.

It's translated endure. He that endures to the end shall be saved. That means endures looking to Christ only. You endure abiding in Christ only. It's translated to stand. Here's my standing. in Christ. It means to be present. Here's where I want to be present, in Him. Abide in me. Being anywhere else is bondage, is fear. Being in is perfect liberty.

May the Lord give us all grace to abide in the vine. And remember this, that same stem that's in the vine is in the branch. And if you're in him, you're one with him.

Let's pray. Lord, how we thank you that your son is the true vine and every one of your people are the branches. Lord, we ask that you would enable us to abide in your son, to look to him only, and Lord, we realize that fruit bearing only comes from abiding in the vine, not from our anything, but only abiding in the vine. Lord, please teach us what that means and how we thank you for the Lord Jesus and the salvation that's in him. Enable us to abide in the vine, in his name we pray, amen.