(as it appeared in StarLife Magazine December 28 2019 issue)
A Fruitful Year
by JOSE ROBERTO RAMOS
SENIOR PASTOR, HIS LIFE MINISTRIES
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John 15:4
“Abide in me, and I in you.
As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine,
neither can you, unless you abide in me.”
The Year 2020 will be a fruitful year!
Guaranteed as you abide in God. As you abide in the LORD according to His Word and Will, you will be fruitful. Stay and remain in the only connection to real life – God.
Promises in the Bible are always conditional. There has to be faith exercised and expectation to receive rewards given from the One who makes the promise.
The year 2020 will be a fruitful one, a bountiful abundant splendid generous year!
The secret is to stay glued to the Lord. ABIDE … abide! When you do so, you exercise faith.
To abide in Christ continuously requires an earnest dependence upon the Holy Spirit who will always align us to the purposes of Christ. You may ask how? It begins with having a Faith Walk, then Moments of daily listening to the LORD through His WORD, the Bible, and wise counsel.
What other preachers said about abiding – what does it look like to abide in Christ daily?
A few descriptions from other men of God help us get a picture:
John Piper says, “Hour-by-hour abiding in Jesus means hour-by-hour trusting him to meet all your needs and be all our treasure.”
J.C. Ryle explains, “To abide in Christ means to keep up a habit of constant close communion with Him–to be always leaning on Him, resting on Him, pouring out our hearts to Him, and using Him as our Fountain of life and strength, as our chief Companion and Best Friend. To have His words abiding in us, is to keep His sayings and precepts continually before our memories and minds, and to make them the guide of our actions and the rule of our daily conduct and behavior.”
Erik Reed mentions, “a continual, hour-by-hour nature to it, a constant looking to Jesus through the Scriptures. If we could avoid gospel-amnesia and remember his grace, we could barely stand an hour’s absence from him. Being eager to say with King David, “Earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you”.
A conscious entering into a union with God that changes our lives forever together with joyful regular staying called communion.
Someone said, “Union with Christ without communion with Christ is joyless Christianity.”
People who are in communion and in connection with the Vine for our life and sustenance, will find themselves bearing fruit, producing more fruit and even harvesting fruit that will last forever!
As the year 2019 closes, and as the year 2020 bids hello, lets choose to abide in Christ who never changes and fills us with newness of fruit day by day, year by year, decade by decade and forever more to the glory of God the Father!
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