Called and Appointed

John 15:12

John 15:12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 “Greater love has no one than this, than1 to lay down one’s life for his friends. 14 “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 15 “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 16 “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. (NKJ)

Last week with our Missionary:

“God’s call on our lives” refers to the belief that God has a specific purpose or plan for each individual, guiding them towards a meaningful life through a unique calling that may involve specific actions, roles, or service within their community or faith; it’s essentially a divine invitation to live a life aligned with God’s will.

Personal and Unique:

Every individual is believed to have a distinct calling from God, tailored to their strengths and abilities.

Spiritual journey:

Discovering and following God’s call is often seen as a lifelong process of prayer, reflection, and seeking guidance.

Divine Appointments in the Bible mean when God plans situations or occurrences to accomplish His goals or bring about particular effects in the lives of people or communities. A divine appointment is when God arranges someone to witness or provide for another person at the appropriate moment. It is understood to be an important event or meeting predetermined by divine guidance or ordination for a particular reason.

https://www.ministrybrands.com/church-management/divine-appointment

Transition: So, let’s look at John 15:16 a little closer and let’s visit the thought/fact of God’s Calling and Appointments.

“You did not choose me, but I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you.”  John 15:16

Choose – eklegomai {ek-leg’-om-ahee} =

Meaning: 

1) to pick out, choose, to pick or choose out for one’s self

1a) choosing one out of many, i.e. Jesus choosing his disciples

1b) choosing one for an office

1c) of God choosing whom he judged fit to receive his favours and separated from the rest of mankind to be peculiarly his own and to be attended continually by his gracious oversight

Ordained / Appointment – tithemi {tith’-ay-mee}

Meaning: 

1)      to set, put, place

2)      1a) to place or lay

3)      1b) to put down, lay down

4)      1b1) to bend down

5)      1b2) to lay off or aside,

Transition: 2 Very Important understandings in this verse.

First, That God Calls and Chooses

1. God’s Call and Election

Calling / Election / Predestination / Foreknowledge

The doctrine of election and predestination refers to the theological belief that God, before the creation of the world, chose certain individuals to be saved, essentially predetermining their eternal destiny, with “election” specifically meaning God’s choice to save certain people and “predestination” encompassing the broader idea of God’s predetermined plan for all creation, including who will be saved and who will not be saved.

Different interpretations:

While the core idea is similar, different theological traditions may interpret the nuances of election and predestination differently, with some emphasizing God’s foreknowledge of who will choose to believe as a factor in his selection.

The most important elements of the doctrines (Pentecostal Theology) in my mind are these:

• Election is God’s sovereign choice of individuals for salvation, predating any human actions or choices, and emphasizing that salvation is solely by grace through faith, not works.
  
  
• God’s election absolute sovereignty in salvation, believing that He, not humans, initiates the process.

• The emphasis is on God’s free choice and love, not on any merit or foreseen actions of individuals.

• Not Based on Human Deeds (good works or human effort)

• Pentecostals emphasize favor, not in human actions or choices.
  
  
• Focus on Christ:

Pentecostal theology emphasizes that God’s election happens in Christ and is entered around Him.

• My Position on election (though a little messy maybe to some) Not a “Chosen Few”:

My position of election does not suggest that some people are simply chosen and some are not, but that God’s election is a calling to all, and that those who are called will respond in faith and follow Christ.

https://www.google.com/search?q=pentecostal+theology+on+election&oq=pentecostal+theology+on+election&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRigATIHCAIQIRigATIHCAMQIRigATIHCAQQIRigATIHCAUQIRigAdIBCDgzNzRqMGo5qAIAsAIB&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Transition: What I can tell you is that God calls us in our life to be:

The Bible often mentions people being called by God for a specific ministry or service.

• To be a light
• To be a witness
• To be an example

Fruit Should Remain!

Remain – meno – 1) to remain, abide 1a) in reference to place 1a1) to sojourn, tarry 1a2) not to depart 1a2a) to continue to be present 1a2b) to be held, kept, continually 1b) in reference to time 1b1) to continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure

Application: Right now mango trees are bursting with fruit! Just like avocadoes and other fruit, they don’t bear fruit all 12 months of the year.

Context: Lauren is pursing her calling and gifting. It is unique and special to her!

Question? So, what about you and I?

We all have gifts, places within the body. We cannot be whole without every part.

Question: Both in Matthew 21:18-22 & Mark 11:12-14

Why did Jesus curse the tree? Why not bring it back to life?

Context: Need to look at the chronological and geographical setting and the significance or importance of the fig tree as it relates to the nation of Israel (the fig tree is used in the Scriptures to symbolically represent Israel.

• During the Week before the Crucifixion.
• Jesus had entered Jerusalem a day earlier amid the praise and worship of the Jewish people who were looking to Him as the King/Messiah who was going to deliver them from Roman occupation (Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11).
• Now, the next day, Jesus is again on His way to Jerusalem from where He was staying in Bethany. On His way, both Matthew and Mark record that He was hungry and saw a fig tree in the distance that had leaves on it (Mark 11:13). Upon coming to the tree expecting to find something to eat, Jesus instead discovered that the fig tree had no fruit on it and cursed the tree saying, “May no fruit ever come from you again!”
• Of course, upon seeing the tree “withered from the roots up,” the disciples were amazed, as that would have normally taken several weeks.

Question: Why did Jesus curse the fig tree if it was not the right season for figs? The answer to this question can be determined by studying the characteristics of fig trees.

• The fruit of the fig tree generally appears before the leaves, and, because the fruit is green it blends in with the leaves right up until it is almost ripe.
• Therefore, when Jesus and His disciples saw from a distance that the tree had leaves, they would have expected it to also have fruit on it even though it was earlier in the season than what would be normal for a fig tree to be bearing fruit.
  
  
• Also, each tree would often produce two to three crops of figs each season. There would be an early crop in the spring followed by one or two later crops. In some parts of Israel, depending on climate and conditions, it was also possible that a tree might produce fruit ten out of twelve months.
  
  
• This also explains why Jesus and His disciples would be looking for fruit on the fig tree even if it was not in the main growing season.

• The fact that the tree already had leaves on it even though it was at a higher elevation around
  Jerusalem, and therefore would have been outside the normal season for figs, would have seemed to be a good indication that there would also be fruit on it.

The presence of a fruitful fig tree was considered to be a symbol of blessing and prosperity for the nation of Israel. Likewise, the absence or death of a fig tree would symbolize judgment and rejection.

• Symbolically, the fig tree represented the spiritual deadness of Israel, who while very religious outwardly with all the sacrifices and ceremonies, were spiritually barren because of their sins.
  
  
• By cleansing the Temple and cursing the fig tree, causing it to wither and die, Jesus was pronouncing His coming judgment of Israel and demonstrating His power to carry it out.
  
  
• It also teaches the principle that religious profession and observance are not enough to guarantee salvation, unless there is the fruit of genuine salvation evidenced in the life of the person.
  
  

https://www.gotquestions.org/curse-fig-tree.html

James would later echo this truth when he wrote that “faith without works is dead” (James 2:26).

The lesson of the fig tree is that we should bear spiritual fruit (Galatians 5:22-23), not just give an appearance of religiosity. God judges fruitlessness and expects that those who have a relationship with Him will “bear much fruit” (John 15:5-8).

John 15:5-8 “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. 6 Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! 8 When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father’. (Joh 15:5 NLT)

The phrase “bitter and sweet water cannot come from the same fountain” is a metaphor from James 3:11-12, suggesting that contradictory things cannot originate from the same source, just as a single fountain cannot produce both bitter and sweet water.

James 3:11-12 ‘Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? 12 Does a fig tree produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No, and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty spring.’ (NLT).