We’re launching a new series today on the podcast called Breakthrough Disciplines. We’re going to dig into some spiritual disciplines that have been used for centuries. Today is going to be more of an introduction to the purpose and benefits of spiritual disciplines and then beginning in the next episode we’ll dig deeper into 4 specific spiritual disciplines you can implement to experience breakthrough - breakthrough in your relationships, breakthrough in areas of bondage, and breakthrough in finding your significance in Jesus.
Intro
The idea of a spiritual discipline may sound old fashioned or even legalistic. These timeless principles are still valuable for believers today.
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We’re launching a new series today on the podcast called Breakthrough Disciplines. We’re going to dig into some spiritual disciplines that have been used for centuries. Today is going to be more of an introduction to the purpose and benefits of spiritual disciplines and then beginning in the next episode we’ll dig deeper into 4 specific spiritual disciplines you can implement to experience breakthrough - breakthrough in your relationships, breakthrough in areas of bondage, and breakthrough in finding your significance in Jesus.. This isn’t an exhaustive list. There are more than 4, but these are foundational and every man can develop and benefit from them. I think men are used to thinking about discipline. We want to exercise a certain amount of self control in our lives. Many of our listeners probably have a routine of going to the gym, or jogging. That’s discipline. Hopefully, you’re already engaging in some spiritual disciplines as well. If not, we hope this will give you the encouragement to get some started. It’s important to know that these disciplines aren’t the end goal. They are a means to an end. The end goal is to grow closer in our relationship with Jesus. It’s to be able to more clearly hear his leading. It’s to be quicker to submit to his will in our lives. It’s to grow in our understanding of just how much he loves us.
More Jesus
A spiritual discipline is a purposeful habit that draws us closer to Jesus. John 15:4-5, Galatians 5:22-23
To develop a spiritual discipline, it has to be purposeful. It won’t happen by accident. Disciplines, like habits, take time to form. Developing spiritual disciplines isn’t a quick fix to a problem you’re experiencing. It’s a new way of prioritizing. The goal of the discipline isn’t just to be disciplined. It’s to experience more of Jesus.
John 15:4-5. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.
Jesus essentially repeats the same command in two verses in a row. It’s not only a command, it’s a word of encouragement. Verse 4 - Remain in me and I will remain in you. This is a promise from Jesus that he is never the one that seeks distance from us. If we remain in him, he will remain in us. Anytime you and I are feeling distant from Jesus, we’re the ones who have moved. We haven’t remained in him. He tells us that if we don’t remain in him we can’t be fruitful. He then repeats it in verse 5 and instead of emphasizing that we can’t bear fruit if we don’t remain in him, he says we will bear fruit if we do remain in him.
I think a lot of us, particularly as men, want to get right to the fruit part. I just want to see the results. But this verse is such a powerful reminder to me that if I get the remaining part right, the fruit will come. It’s a natural by-product of being connected to the vine. The scary thing is that there is no promise that the reverse is true. No where in the Bible does it say if you just focus on bearing all the fruit you can, then...
