Prove It

Introduction

Eight different airport stops, including six different airports, and slept in five different beds. Preached seven different sermons. And so between the funeral and the gospel meeting, it is certainly good for us to be home. And so if I fall asleep during the sermon, y’all just carry on. But it is certainly good for us to be home, to be back with you, and to be able to worship God together. I want to begin by asking you two questions this morning. Just two questions. The first one I’m going to ask for a show of hands. And that is at the beginning of this year, just four months ago, how many of us took a New Year’s resolutions? Anybody? Anybody have New Year’s resolution? There’s a few there, not many, but a few.

Now, this next question I won’t ask for a show of hands because it’s potentially embarrassing. And that is, those of you who did a New Year’s resolution, how are you doing? Have you kept that resolution? Tomorrow’s May the 1st, and it’s kind of a good time to reassess and to see how you are doing. And by the way, if you do New Year’s resolutions, it’s not too late to start over and try again. If you don’t do New Year’s resolutions, maybe we’ll start a new tradition and we’ll have May the 1st resolutions, and you can decide tomorrow to start doing something. Overwhelmingly, the majority of you did not raise your hands when I ask about New Year’s resolutions. Now I don’t know why you didn’t do a New Year’s resolution, but can I guess?

It may be because in times past you’ve done them. And by May the 1st, you’d failed. Or maybe by February the 1st you had failed. And so you just gave up. Why do that if I’m just setting myself up for failure? Or maybe you’ve never done a New Year’s resolution, and the reason being I don’t want to do them, I don’t know that I’ll keep them. Because you know, it’s it’s easy to say you’re going to do something. It’s another matter altogether to follow through on that. It’s one thing to claim to be something, and it’s something altogether to really be that thing. I did a New Year’s resolution one time that I was going to join the gym and exercise regularly. And I bought a gym membership and paid for that gym membership all year long.

But then when I realized that there were too many steps going into the gym, I just got less than motivated and never visited the gym.

Truly being who we claim to be. And that’s what I want to talk about this morning is the biblical principle that faith, our faith, our Christianity, is to be more than just a commitment that we make. I’m not downgrading making a commitment. But it’s more than that. It’s more than a name than we wear. It’s more than a claim that we make. Our faith, our Christianity, demands that we live it, that we demonstrate it, or that we prove it. Would you begin with me in the Gospel of John? In fact, you may put a bookmark there. We’re going to spend a lot of time in the Gospel of John. I’m going to go to the end of the Gospel of John. Let’s begin at the ending.

In John chapter 20, the end of John chapter 20, you’ll be very familiar with this section of Scripture, these two verses that we’re going to read. It follows up the incident with where we get the nickname Doubting Thomas. Remember that other disciples were able to see Jesus and to see the scars and the wounds, and Thomas unfortunately wasn’t there. And he said, I’m not going to believe unless I see. And Jesus said, then see and touch Thomas so that you can see I am who I claim to be. I did the things I said I was going to do. And blessed are you, Thomas, because you’ve seen, but blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believed. And so he talks about us, those of us who did not see Jesus, who were unable to touch the scars or the wounds in his body, yet we believe in him.

And so John is going to emphasize the importance of faith. And then he says this, beginning in verse 30 of John chapter 20, and truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name. John says Jesus did many other things. But these things have been handpicked, specifically selected as things, as stories, as events that will produce faith. These were written so that you may believe. Now, a couple points about that. Number one is John gives us a hint in how to study his gospel. And so if he says that at the end of his gospel, as we begin the beginning of the study of the Gospel of John, we need to ask ourselves, why am I being told this?

What about this event will produce faith? What about this story, this miracle, this teaching, will produce faith in my life? Because John says these things were selected so John’s gospel is about faith, about producing faith in the hearts of those eyes that did not see Jesus. But John’s going to say more in his gospel about faith. Not only is he saying these stories are selected so that you might have faith, he’s going to challenge our faith and tell us what our faith must really be like. Because John in his gospel, as well as in his epistles, 1 John, 2 John, and 3 John puts an emphasis upon proving our faith. We won’t turn over there. We’ll look a little bit later at 1 John, but you remember how many times in 1 John the inspired writer will say, a man, if you say you have this, but you don’t do this.

He tells us that we must back up our claims of faith with concrete actions. In other words, John is going to challenge us to not only have faith, but to have true living, dynamic faith by proving it. And I want us to look at three arenas that John in his gospel ways that he tells us that we must prove our faith. He’s going to tell us that a true disciple of Jesus Christ will have certain characteristics in his or her life that will prove their faith. Very briefly. I want to remind you what a disciple is. You know what a disciple is, but let’s remind ourselves. A disciple carries with it two aspects. Number one is a disciple is a student or a learner, but he’s also a follower.

1. Prove It by Abiding in My Word

So a learner slash follower of Jesus Christ. John is going to tell us that true disciples will prove their faith in at least three ways. The first thing he says is found in John chapter 8. Will you turn with me back? Stay in the Gospel of John. And let’s go to chapter 8. Jesus is going to challenge those Jews of his day. Because John throughout his gospel is going to talk about and challenge these Jews who believe in him, but are unwilling to act upon that faith. We’ll see that a little bit later. But here in John chapter 8, challenging some of those, he says in John 8, verse 31, Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, if you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed.

You see that Jesus is challenging their faith and challenging their faith to be exhibited, to be demonstrated. He said this to those who believe in him, but he seems to be saying, you need to do a little bit more than believe in me. If you truly believe in me, if you truly want to be my disciple, my follower, then you will abide in my word. Now, what does that mean? What does it mean to abide in his word? Well, let’s just look at the two key words. The first word is the last one, word. It’s the word, the spoken word, the word that Jesus taught. Now, that would include the word of the apostles. Let’s spend just a little bit of time establishing that. In John’s gospel, John would tell his apostles toward the end of his time with them that I’m going away, but my Father is sending another comforter, another helper, the Holy Spirit, and he will guide you into all truth.

There is no distinction, Jesus tells us in the Gospel of John, between the words that Jesus spoke and taught and the words that the apostles would speak and teach. They are all the words of Christ. You’ve heard me make this illustration, this point before, but you may have a Bible that has the what’s called the old red letter edition. Your Bible have the words of Christ in red, and that’s okay. It helps you to find out words that Jesus spoke. But please do not misunderstand about that color distinction in your Bible. That does not mean that those red words are important and to be obeyed, and the black words are less important. That’s not what that means. And if it’s that’s what that means, then it’s just wrong.

All the words of the New Testament are the words of Christ. And so he says, if you’ll abide in my word, in the word that he spoke, the word that was to be imparted to the apostles after his exodus from this earth. But he says, if you’ll abide in my word, the word abide simply means to live there. It’s the idea of staying somewhere permanently as opposed to just passing through. And so we are to live, we’re to set up home permanently in the word of God. That’s to be our dwelling place. Our abode. Our home is in God’s word. Now that carries with it a myriad of ideas and principles. One is that should teach us that every aspect of our lives is to be governed by God’s word.

There is not one single relationship sustained in this life that should not be governed by the word of God. There’s not a single occupation, hobby, or endeavor that shouldn’t be governed by the word of God.

Our Christianity, our faith is not a part of who we are.

That’s one thing that it surely means to abide in his word, that if we live in his word, then everything about our lives is touched and governed by that word. It also means that it changes our behavior. Who we are and how we act and how we dress and how we talk, everything is going to be touched by the word of God. Let’s illustrate a little bit more of what that might mean. Hold your finger in the gospel of John, and I’m going back to the Old Testament to Psalm 119. You may remember Psalm 119 and its distinction. It’s the longest, if we view it as a chapter, it’s the longest chapter in all of Scripture by a long shot. But it carries with it, despite its length, it carries with it one single topic.

It’s talking about the word of God and the psalmist attitude and view of the word of God. And so we can go to Psalm 119, the Psalm about the Word of God, to see how we are to dwell or abide in His Word and what that means. It’s going to mean, the psalmist will tell us that we have a love for God’s Word. Psalm 119, verse 47, beginning says, I will delight, Psalm 119, 47. I will delight myself in your commandments, which I love. My hands also I will lift up to you to your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes. Dwelling and abiding in His word, living in Jesus’ word, surely carries with it the idea that we love the Word of God.

We are drawn to it. And because of that, skip down, still Psalm 119. Skip down to verse 97. It means that our life is going to be again engulfed in that word. Psalm 119, beginning in verse 97, says, Oh, how I love your law. It’s my meditation all the day. You through your commandments make me wiser than my enemies, for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, because I keep your precepts. I have restrained my feet from every evil way that I may keep your word. I have not departed from your judgments, for you yourself have taught me. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.

Through your precepts I get understanding. Therefore I hate every false way. We are to be engulfed. The psalmist depicts a life completely consumed with his word. And then thirdly, beginning in verse 59 of Psalm 119, we see that abiding in that word is going to change who we are.

2. Prove It by Bearing Much Fruit

It’s going to change who we are. And so Jesus said, if you’re truly to be my disciples, then prove it. Prove it by abiding in my word. Another thing Jesus would challenge his disciples and challenge us is found in John chapter 15. You see, it’s not enough to make the claim to be a disciple, to be a child of God. It’s also not enough to just make the commitment to be a child of God, to be a disciple. Jesus says, if you’re to be my disciples, there’s to be some real concrete action, some proof to it. John 15 and in verse 8, he says, By this my Father is glorified that you bear much fruit, so you will be my disciples. If you’re my disciples, you’ll bear fruit.

Scripture has a lot to say about fruit and about bearing fruit. The concept of bearing fruit really carries with it two basic principles when applied spiritually. Number one is the first principle that Jesus teaches about bearing fruit spiritually from the horticultural world is that that’s the purpose of a fruit tree. You don’t grow, at least a farmer doesn’t, you don’t grow a fruit tree for its beauty. It might have beauty, but that’s not why you plant a fruit tree. You don’t plant a fruit tree for the aromatic benefits of its flowers. You don’t plant a fruit tree because it provides shade. A fruit tree is planted in this context for one purpose to produce fruit. And remember what Jesus would say about a fruit tree that doesn’t produce fruit?

It’s cut down because it’s not doing what it’s supposed to do. It’s cut down and thrown into the fire. And so the first principle of that is that that’s the purpose of a fruit tree is to bear fruit. The purpose of a disciple, Jesus says, is to bear fruit. And if we’re really the disciple, the proof will be in the fruit. Now the second thing we need to think about is what does that mean? I know what it means for a tree to bear fruit. That’s pretty obvious. But what does it mean for a disciple or a Christian to bear fruit? Bearing fruit spiritually, bearing fruit for the Christian and for the disciple is just the idea of the proof. It is the product of our Christianity.

It is the demonstration of our Christianity. It is the proof that we are what we claim to be, and that we’re doing what we’re supposed to do. I don’t know about you, but I’m not real gifted at identifying trees. Some people have that talent. My father-in-law could look at a tree a hundred yards away and tell you whether it was a pin oak or whether it was a maple, or he knew all those. I look at them and you ask me what that is, I say, I’m pretty sure it’s a tree. Other than that, I don’t know. And so I’m not good at telling fruit trees apart. An apple tree, a pear tree, a peach tree, what a cherry tree. I’m not real good at that.

But you know when I get real good at that? When it’s producing fruit. I am as quick as can be I can identify an apple tree when there’s apples on it. It’s hard to fool me about pear trees when they’re bearing pears. I’m an expert at identifying a cherry tree when it’s covered with cherries. Because we can identify those trees by their fruits. And Jesus teaches us that as well. And that’s one principle spiritually of the Christian. How do you identify a Christian? Is it because they say they’re a Christian? Is it because that at some point in their past they were baptized? Is it because they have a fish sticker on the back of their car or they wear a cross necklace around their neck?

How do we identify somebody? Well, it may be difficult at times, but it’s going to get real clear and real easy when we bear fruit. And so it’s just the product of being a Christian. Turn with me again, hold your finger in the Gospel of John. We’re not done there. But go to a familiar text in the book of Galatians, Galatians chapter 5. And let’s not miss this point about this well-loved and well-known passage of Scripture, Galatians chapter 5, beginning in verse 22. After challenging us to walk in the Spirit, to walk in the Spirit and not walk according to the flesh, because he’s going to go on to say that the flesh is going to produce certain works. If you walk according to the flesh, then you’re going to demonstrate these works, and those are what we call the works of the flesh.

But let’s skip ahead. He says, if you walk in the spirit, you’ll bear the fruit of the spirit, which verse 22, you know this list. For the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control against such there is no law.

Now, sometimes I fear we get this horticultural practice misaligned or reversed. An oak tree, an oak tree can’t decide to quit producing acorns and start producing cherries. No matter how much it strains and thinks about cherries and grunts and tries to produce cherries, it can’t. And so I think sometimes we get the cart before the proverbial horse, and we try to say, okay, I’m a Christian, I need to be long suffering. And so I’m going to try to be long-suffering. And you ever find that to be a struggle, and you fail at it, like an oak tree fails at producing cherries. Now, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying that there shouldn’t be some effort, some education and some effort to be what we ought to be.

But really, the principle that Paul is teaching here is that if you walk according to the Spirit, if you’re truly his disciple, this will be the results. This will be the fruit. A cherry tree doesn’t have to strain at producing cherries. It produces cherries because it’s a cherry tree. And the child of God who has made that commitment and seeks to fulfill that commitment to be a child of God is going to almost naturally produce long suffering and love, joy, and peace. Now there needs to be some education.

But we commit ourselves, we abide in the word, we want to be like God.

3. Prove It by Loving One Another

The last principle that we want to look at. John teaches more than this, but the last one we’ll look at is found in John chapter 13. Jesus in John’s gospel challenges us not to just make a claim, not just to begin the commitment, but to prove our faith. In John chapter 13, look with me in verse 34, our Lord would say, a new commandment, a new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this, look at verse 35, by this all will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. We’re talking this quarter in our yearly theme that we are family and that our family loves. And that is certainly true, but we could also make the point that a disciple of Christ loves.

And the stark and maybe painful reality is that if I don’t love, and we talked recently, remember that lesson from 1 Corinthians 13, what love looks like and what it does? If I’m not doing that, then I’m not loving, and if I’m not loving, I’m not his disciple. It’s as simple as that. By this the world will know that you’re my disciples, that you love one another. I want to make the claim. If I’ve made the commitment to be a disciple, to have faith, if I say I believe in Him, my Lord is saying, then prove it. Live in my word. Let it pervade every aspect and every facet of your life. Bear fruit. Walk in the Spirit and produce the fruits of the Spirit. And prove it by loving one another.

Conclusion

Self-examination time. When I look into the mirror, as James would call it, the mirror of God’s word. Do I look like a disciple? Do I look like a believer? Do I love? As Jesus loved. Do I bear fruit? The fruits of the Spirit. And do I live? Spend my life and the living of my life in the Word of God. We’ve talked about the importance of living out a commitment, of not just making the New Year’s resolution, but keeping the New Year’s resolution. Of not just starting but finishing, of not just claiming but living it. And you can’t live a commitment until you make a commitment. And so we want to challenge you this morning. Challenge you in a loving and meek way to make a commitment, to be his disciple, but knowing that that commitment carries with it some proof.

There are certain things you’re going to have to do to live and fulfill that commitment. Would you make that commitment this morning? Maybe you’ve made that commitment in times past, and you can look back and say, I’m not really abiding in his word. I’m not bearing fruit as I ought to, and shame on me, I’m not as loving as I ought to be. Then renew that commitment to be his disciple, to be his children, and to live in faith this morning. Can we help you? You need to render obedience in any way to the gospel call. Let it be known as together we stand and sing.