The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
Part two: The Solution
What We’re Really Talking About is a Rule of Life (2|2)
Pages 94-98
TOGETHER read the book and then the following scriptures slowly and attentively.
INDIVIDUALLY take notes in your journal on what stands out.
John 15:1-11 (ESV) “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 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. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”
GROUP DISCUSSION:
A rule was a schedule and set of practices to order your life around the way of Jesus in community. It was a way to keep from getting sucked into the hurry, busyness, noise, and distraction of regular life. A way to slow down. A way to live into what really matters: What Jesus called abiding. In the English Standard Version of John 15:1-11 the word abide is used while other versions use the word remain
Abide /əˈbīd/ verb
accept or act in accordance with
continue without fading or being lost
to live or dwell IN
(definitions from Oxford Dictionary)
What happens when you don’t abide?
Share just one or two things that stood out to you while reading the book and/or scripture. (try to keep it brief)
TOGETHER pray for one another.
INDIVIDUALLY answer the questions in your journal - process your notes and pray.
“The rule of life” started in a monastery a millennium ago. Monastic orders and entire communities chose to do life together. Sound familiar? Guess what? By being a participant in the NLDP of Gospel Community you are actively participating in “the rule of life”. A new monasticism with the privilege of modern technology, indoor plumbing, electricity, refrigeration, and, praise God, coffee available 24/7 in under a couple of minutes, but still a monastic “rule of life”!
What is your reaction to that statement?
What do you think of when you hear the word monastic or monasticism?
Does it have positive or negative connotations? Why?
David Janzen wrote: Vows, values, commandments, and shared practices all represent different vocabularies that communities have used to express the commitments and motivations that characterize their lives together. So much about life with Christ can only be caught, not taught. The community’s rule answers the question, how shall we live faithfully in response to the story of what God has given?
What is your reaction to that statement?
What happens when you don’t abide? You can do nothing. You stop receiving nourishment and life. You dry up, wither, and die. If your life with Jesus doesn’t have some kind of structure to facilitate health and growth, it will wither away.
What is your reaction to that statement?
If you were to take an honest assessment of your branch what does it look like?
What is the condition of the fruit it is bearing?
Are you growing or withering?
The great news is that to abide in Jesus and he in you is possible if you make it a priority.
What are some practical ways you can create time and space to abide in Jesus?
Pause and pray - Thank Jesus that his desire is for his joy to be in you - and that joy may be to the full! Spend a moment “abiding” in Jesus in gratitude. Express your joy in him and journal about it.
EXTRA READING:
A son of the American South, Clarence Jordan (1912 - 1969) was troubled by his people’s comfortable embrace of both Jesus and racism. After studying for a doctorate in the New Testament at the Southern Baptist Seminary, Jordan and his family returned to Georgia in 1942 to start Koinonia Farm, an interracial community in the heart of the Jim Crow South. Greeted by Ku Klux Klan members who told him, “We don’t let the sun set on people like you around here.” Jordan smiled and replied, “Pleased to meet y’all. I’ve been waiting all my life to meet someone who could make the sun stand still.”
Clarence Jordan wrote, “Jesus has been so zealously worshiped, His deity so vehemently affirmed, His halo so brightly illuminated, and His cross so beautifully polished that in the minds of many He no longer exists as a man. By thus glorifying Him we more effectively rid ourselves of Him than did those who tried to do so by crudely crucifying Him.”