Leader Packet
Getting Started
1. Describe a personal experience when you needed to completely rely on someone else. How did it play out for you? What thoughts and emotions did you attach to that experience? The easiest way to get to this feeling might be going back to childhood or maybe a time when you were sick/injured and unable to care for yourself.
2. In what ways do we really have no other choice but to rely entirely on the provision of God through Christ? How is Jesus our only hope? This is a good place to kind of let the group freestyle their answers and bounce ideas off of each other's ideas. If the group is stuck, encourage them to think of personal anecdotes, truths from the Bible, etc.
Digging Deeper
1. Read our main passage in context: John 15:1-17. If you highlight in your Bible, what parts did you highlight or take note of? Share one or two with the group.
2. How do we bear fruit? What will happen if we do not? What does this tell us about the importance of abiding? Pastor Jeremiah reminded us that, like a branch firmly attached to the vine, a true believer cannot be separated from their source of life. The life of the vine flows through the branch, and they are forever intertwined.
3. Read verse 8 again. How does abiding in Christ make us “true disciples?” Without Christ and His grace, we would be dead in our sin. But, because of Christ’s great love for us, we are made alive in Him. In Ephesians 2:10, the Apostle Paul characterizes us as Christ’s “workmanship,” created to do His work here on earth. Genuine discipleship necessitates submitting to Christ as our Savior and aligning our actions with His Word.
4. Considering the notion that continuing in Christ serves as evidence of our salvation, how do we reconcile the biblical requirement of that evidence with the assurance of salvation? The whole issue of John 15 is that life is found in Christ, and this life is passed on to those who are connected to Him. Pastor Jeremiah reminded us that we evidence the reality of our conversion by consistently continuing in the faith. The proof that we are saved is not that we walk forward one day in service and then go back to “life as usual.” It is that we go on and live for God, one day at a time, to the very end. Bottom line: a Christian will continue. They will abide in Christ and persevere because they receive their life from the vine.
5. Below are the five characteristics of a fruitful life in Jesus. Take a few moments to think through each characteristic and share with the group how they relate to your life:
- Fruitfulness is character
- Fruitfulness is conduct
- Fruitfulness is contributions
- Fruitfulness is communication
- Fruitfulness is converts
What does it look like to live a life of character? How are you conducting your life in such a way that those around you know you are a follower of Christ? Are you contributing to the furthering of the gospel? Are you speaking grace and truth into the lives of those around you and representing Christ in your words? Are others coming to know Christ because of your actions?
If you are walking with the Lord, He will change your character and conduct, and if you are connected to Him, He will give you a spirit of generosity and your lips will bear the fruit of righteousness. And somewhere along the way, somebody is going to come up to you and say, “Why are you the way that you are?” This will open the door for you to tell them about Jesus.
Applying the Message
1 .How do you feel you are doing regarding staying connected to Jesus? Do you see a corresponding - and growing - level of “fruitfulness" in your life? What can you do better to “remain” in Him? Pastor Jeremiah shared that it's impossible to be a Christian and not bear any fruit. However, the road of life can be challenging, and, depending on where we are at and what we are going through, it can directly affect how much fruit we are able to produce. This question is meant to help us evaluate where we are at and what steps we can take to become more like Christ in all we do.
2. We are not meant to do life alone. Growth happens best with others. How can you ask for help in this area of your life? In what way will you share your needs with those who know you best?