Series: Committed
Message: Appreciation
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Refresh: Open with prayer. Read of listen to Psalm 50:1-6.
Read: John 15:1-17 - Read the Message paraphrase, and note 1-3 insights/questions that arise.
Reflect: In any causal conversation that you are part of or overhearing, take a quick note of how many times “really” or “you know” occurs. How many of your every day conversations revolve around information being shared with you? Is this information being shared for a response or just to be affirmed? That’s because information is power, and often good power. For the first 20+ years of our lives we are in a deep learning mode at home and school. Absorbing all the data, digesting to reject, accept or modify. Jesus knows this. I believe He created us with the inquisitive mind to discover. That’s why personally I believe science and faith are deeply compatible. Faith is the inspired expression of the unknown, and science is our human attempt at deciphering our faith. They may not always agree, simply because our finite minds can only process so much of the infinite mind of God, but the pieces we garner are inspiring.
Everyone single one of us wants to understand more about our origins, more about our source, more about our present and future. Jesus in this final “I Am” statement is letting us know that He is the source for all of that. Dale Brunner in his commentary on the Gospel of John, page 878, suggests that a good metaphor for us today would be the tree (root-trunk and branch) instead of the vineyard (vine-and-branch) and thus states: “What root and trunk are to trees, Jesus is to human life.”
Recalibrate:
Respond: Pray for understanding.
Research: Watch the talk by James Beacham: How We Explore Unanswered Questions In Physics on www.ted.com.