An Appointment With the Vinedresser
John 15:1-2 – 1“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”
John 15:8 – “By this My Father is GLORIFIED, that you bear MUCH FRUIT; so you will be My disciples.”
John 10:10 – “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it MORE ABUNDANTLY.”
John 15:2 – “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear MORE FRUIT.”
Psalm 90:12 – So, teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
I. What You Refuse to CONFRONT You Choose to CARRY – Don’t Complain
• Most of what you must Confront was UNCHOSEN and RANDOM.
Ecclesiastes 9:11 – I returned and saw under the sun that— The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, nor favor to men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all.
1. PEOPLE God is trying to cut from your life
Proverbs 13:20 – He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed.
2. PLACES God is trying to cut from your life
Psalm 1:1 – Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standsin the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.
3. THINGS God is trying to cut from your life
1 Corinthians 6:12 – All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.
• The hardest to Confront is what you are Choosing to AVOID – the Pruning.
1) The Wrong Positon – Doing work that was never your assignment and calling the resulting exhaustion faithfulness.
2) Unforgiveness and Bitterness – Almost everyone carries at least one name you haven't fully released.
Hebrews 12:14–15 – 14Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: 15looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.
3) Unhealed Wounds – Governs your decisions silently for years.
Luke 15:25-28 – 25“Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’ 28BUT HE WAS ANGRY AND WOULD NOT GO IN. Therefore, his father came out and pleaded with him.”
4) Your Traditons – There's always a person’s name attached to it.
Mark 7:8-9 – 8“For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the traditon of men—the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” 9He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition”.
II. What You Refuse to PRACTICE You Choose to FORFEIT – Don’t Settle
Hebrews 5:14– But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
• Maturity Cannot be Downloaded or Inherited from someone else.
1 Timothy 4:7 – But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness.
• DOING is where the Magic happens.
James 1:22-25 – 22But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
2 Corinthians 9:6 – But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bounTfully will also reap bounTfully.