1. In this week’s devotion, Jason talked about keeping God’s commands. People sometimes think of God’s commands as restricting or keeping them from doing what THEY want. God is holy and we are far from it. He cannot associate with us the way we are because we are sinful, yet he loves us so much that he sent Jesus to pay the penalty that we deserve just so we could have a relationship with him. So by keeping his commands, we are showing our love back to him and surrendering our will to his! When we become followers of Jesus, there should be an evident life change when we begin to understand this. Do you feel that your life looks different than before you became a follower of Jesus?
2. In John 15:1-17 there is a lot of talk about gardeners, vines, and branches. Basically what Jesus is saying is that apart from him (the vine) we (the branches) cannot do anything (produce fruit) apart from him since he is the source of anything good we could possibly do! We cannot walk out the plan God has for us if we are not connected to him. Do you feel connected to Jesus in a way that produces fruit in your life that leads you to be his hands and feet to those around you?
3. Jesus leaves his disciples with one last command at the end of verse 17. He says to them, “This is my command: Love each other.” As followers of Jesus, the church should be the best example of love that the world has. As individuals, we make the choices daily to be or not to be those examples of love. We are to love those that agree with us, and those that don’t. We are to love fellow believers and those that do not believe. We can be our biggest obstacle when it comes to this. We are ambassadors of Jesus to everyone that we meet, so it is important to examine our own hearts to makes sure that we represent him well. Can you think of anything in your life that keeps you from reacting in love to situations that can be difficult or challenging?
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REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. In this week’s devotion, Jason talked about keeping God’s commands. People sometimes think of God’s commands as restricting or keeping them from doing what THEY want. God is holy and we are far from it. He cannot associate with us the way we are because we are sinful, yet he loves us so much that he sent Jesus to pay the penalty that we deserve just so we could have a relationship with him. So by keeping his commands, we are showing our love back to him and surrendering our will to his! When we become followers of Jesus, there should be an evident life change when we begin to understand this. Do you feel that your life looks different than before you became a follower of Jesus?
2. In John 15:1-17 there is a lot of talk about gardeners, vines, and branches. Basically what Jesus is saying is that apart from him (the vine) we (the branches) cannot do anything (produce fruit) apart from him since he is the source of anything good we could possibly do! We cannot walk out the plan God has for us if we are not connected to him. Do you feel connected to Jesus in a way that produces fruit in your life that leads you to be his hands and feet to those around you?
3. Jesus leaves his disciples with one last command at the end of verse 17. He says to them, “This is my command: Love each other.” As followers of Jesus, the church should be the best example of love that the world has. As individuals, we make the choices daily to be or not to be those examples of love. We are to love those that agree with us, and those that don’t. We are to love fellow believers and those that do not believe. We can be our biggest obstacle when it comes to this. We are ambassadors of Jesus to everyone that we meet, so it is important to examine our own hearts to makes sure that we represent him well. Can you think of anything in your life that keeps you from reacting in love to situations that can be difficult or challenging?