Keeping the Right Connection!

A few weeks ago, I turned on my device and heard the computer lady state this, but when she said "phone 1 connected", the word "connected" kind of popped out for me.  I immediately thought about my connection with God.  I wondered about my connection and how connected I really am with God.  Am I connected with him throughout the day and talking to Him and praising Him for things that are happening? 

Let me give you a few examples:  

1) am I connected enough to give God some praise when I wake up?

2) am I connected enough to have patience while at work when several staff members call in sick or are arriving late and I have to decide how to continue Rec. Therapy training that day without any cancellations?

3) am I connected enough to have calmness when driving on the interstate and another car does not yield while on the ramp to enter I-85 but they just conveniently slide their car right in front of me?

4) was I connected enough to thank God when He showed my son & me favor at the Verizon store when we walked in with very little time to spend but our favorite salesperson was the next available employee to help us & she took care of business quickly? 

God's message through my bluetooth device certainly sent a current of electricity through me to focus on this word "connect".  In several dictionaries, I found quite a few definitions for the word connect, but let's start by looking at this word as a verb:

·      -  to become joined or linked together

·      -  to have or establish a rapport

·     -   to establish communication

·     -  to cause to be associated with

·     -  to relate to or be in harmony with another person

Now look at connection which is a noun:

·     -  a relation of personal intimacy

·     -  continuity

·     -  act of transporting someone or something from one place to another;

·     - source of contraband; denomination or clan; to make direct contact for the illegal sale or purchase of narcotics

Connections are pretty powerful.  For every connection we make, there is an action that results - a relationship may be established with a person or a group; a service on your car may be provided when connecting with your mechanic; drugs may be purchased and delivered; or alcoholism begins, etc.  As you can see, not all connections are the right ones.

The scripture for this message comes from the Thompson Chain Reference Bible (King James Version) in John 15:4-5: "Abide in me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches.  He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." 

There are 4 points that I would like to make this morning about "connections".   

 1) Find the right connection

2) Make the connection

3) Keep the connection

4) Ensure  a complete connection

1)   Finding the RIGHT connection:

God has always needed a body, right?  He uses each person or persons in different ways.  Someone came along for each of us at the time appointed by God.  It was up to us to decide whether or not this was the right connection to make and to listen to what that person had to say or to listen to that CD that they gave us.  It's easy to throw away a CD or to dismiss what someone tells you. 

So what made us listen?  Why didn't we throw the CD away or walk away from this message?  It was God speaking to our hearts and our minds and urging us to make this connection because this is our time for the manifestation of His word in us. It was God telling us to "abide in me and I will abide in you".  In fact, not long after I began attending Greater Works Ministry Bible study and worship, I heard from God in a way that I had not heard from Him before.  He planted the word "abide" in my spirit.  That's all I could hear or think about.  He was telling me to abide in Him, abide in His Word.  That's all He wanted me to do.

We know that if it isn't God speaking, the Holy Spirit will let us know.  Have you ever agreed to do something for someone or an organization but later didn't feel right about it?  The Holy Spirit was telling us something. 

There is a story in 2 Chronicles that tells us what can happen if the wrong connection is made.  Jehoshaphat was ruler of Judah.  Scripture says  "He walked in the way of his father (Asa)and did that which was right in the sight of God."  But there was a time when he made a wrong connection. 

2 Chronicles 20:35-37:  "He joined himself (or connected) with Ahaziah, king of Israel, who did very wickedly".  He did this for the purpose of making ships to go to Tarshish.  He then received a prophecy from Eliezer who told him that he had joined up with the wrong person!  Jehoshaphat had a right relationship, a right connection with God, but an offer came to him that he felt he couldn't refuse, and he made a wrong connection which cost him.

God wants to have this connection with us because as Jesus tells us:  " He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit". (John 15:5)  We need this connection in order to be bringing forth the sons of God.  This is the right connection.  But listen to the last part of verse 5:  "without me ye can do nothing".    (John 15:5) 

"Without me ye can do nothing".   Do you know what the word "nothing" means?

Ø  something or someone of no importance or significance; a nobody

Ø  something that is non-existent

Ø  a trivial action or remark

That is pretty clear, right?  Without God in our lives, we can do nothing of any significance for Him; we are non-existent; we are trivial; we cannot fulfill his purpose in us.  How often do we see this in our society - people who want to be important; who want to be recognized; who want to be someone and maybe they are for a while but then they fall; people who want to stand up to others in a big way and do for a while but then they fall.  They fall because they tried to be someone that they are not. They fall because they didn't choose the right connection, which is our God.  I don't think God could make it any plainer that this.

Now let's also look at verse 6:  If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." John 15:6

This demonstrates the absolute necessity of abiding in Christ.  Without Christ, man is cast forth, or thrown away, from the source.  He becomes withered because he cannot receive any nutrients from the source,  which is the Word, and he is cast into the fire.  I think we can all agree that this is the fire of the wrath of God and not the persecution of God, which we have discussed  in our study of Revelation.  "For our God is a consuming fire."  (Hebrews 12:29)  We cannot fulfill God's purpose in our lives if we don't have this key connection with Him.  We must listen to our spirit for clarification.  God will let us know when we have found the right connection to proceed with.

2)  MAKE the connection   

Once we have found the right connection, we have to act upon it.  Something needs to happen to create that connection.  As I just read, Jesus told his disciples "I am the vine, ye are the branches".   When we say "yes" to God, he connects us to himself - the vine.  We are connected to the vine just like the grafting of one plant onto another.   Grafting is a means of joining or uniting tissues from one plant into those of another so that the two sets of tissues may join together.   One plant is selected for its roots, and this is called the stock. The other plant is selected for its stems, leaves, flowers or fruits, and is called the scion.  

First let's focus on the four major functions of the roots:

1) absorption of water and inorganic nutrients

2) anchoring of the plant body to the ground, and supporting it

3) storage of food and nutrients

4) vegetative reproduction

These sound like they describe our God, don't they? 

Ø  God is the anchor or the rock for our heart, soul, mind, and body.  Jesus told the 12 disciples about the importance of building a their house on a rock in St. Matthew 7:25: "I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock."  God is our rock and our anchor upon which we build our house.

Ø  God has all the nutrients that we need, and he has an endless supply.  "My God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."  Philippians 4:19

Ø  He provides all that we need to produce sons of God.  "My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you."  Gal. 4:19

In looking at the scion, it contains the desired genes to be duplicated in future production by this new plant.  The desired genes are the ones that you want to duplicate through another plant - the stems, leaves, flowers or fruits - what I call the beauty of the plant or the fruits.  So God grafts us with the desired genes to the root - our anchor  - who is Himself, and they are desired because he made us this way.  As the graft takes hold, then we become sons of God created in His image with His desired genes and reproductive abilities in us.

Let me give you another example of making the connection through Philip and the Ethiopian in Acts 8:26-38.  We will read verses 26-31:

"And the angel of the Lord said unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert.

And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,

Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Isaiah the prophet.

Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.

And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Isaiah, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?

And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him."

Here we see how Philip was obedient and followed the directions of the angel.  He went to the chariot of this man of great authority and asked if he understood what he was reading.  The Ethiopian was having trouble understanding the prophet's words and desired Philip to sit with him and help him.  Philip "joined" him - he made a connection - in the chariot and explained the scriptures and about Jesus.  When they came upon some water, Philip baptized him.  Philip made the connection.

What a connection!  The word "join" in the Greek is "kolla" meaning to glue or to stick; cleave thyself; keep company.  This is just what Philip did.  He was not a nobody because he was connected with God, and he made a connection with the Ethiopian who accepted Christ.

Let's read about the veil in Matthew 27:51-53.

"And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many."

When we say "yes" to God, we are tearing down the veil of the religious system; we are tearing down the flesh of the old man's ways; we are tearing down the cover that has kept us from knowing the truth of the gospel, and we are connecting through Jesus's blood which he shed on that cross for us. 

But did you hear what the saints did?  Verses 52 & 53 tell us that they came out of the graves, went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.  The word "appear" in the Greek means to exhibit in person or disclose by words; inform, tell, or manifest.  They made a connection with many people by coming in person and telling them of the resurrection and freedom through Jesus Christ.

We must find the RIGHT connection, and we must MAKE the connection.

3)  There has to be a COMPLETE connection. 

We know that the devil doesn't want us to make a connection, much less make a complete connection.

If we don't stay completely connected with God on a continual basis, we will not have a complete connection.  Some might say "what does that matter?  I don't have time to read and study all the time."  I am here to tell you from personal experience that when I don't study and read God's word daily, I gradually become disconnected and start short-circuiting and actually feel myself losing God's energy.  I did not feel this way when I was in the religious system and under its teachings.  But now, when we have missed a service or a Bible study over the last 2 1/2 years, I have learned that I have to guard against succumbing to the ways of the enemy and ensure that I am staying in the Word.  We need full power to have a complete connection!

Consider this powerful experience of the woman with the issue in Mark 5:25-34:

Jesus was on the way to the home of Jarius, one of the leaders of the synagogue, whose daughter was dying.  Many people were following him and the disciples.  The scripture reads:

And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,

and had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had,

and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,

When she heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. (made connection)

For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.

And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.

And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?

And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?

And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.

But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.

And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague."

Here was a woman who had dealt with this problem for 12 years!!!  Can you imagine?  She tried to get the problem resolved by going to doctor after doctor, suffering through all of the treatments which they put her through, and had gone broke in the process.  Scripture says that her condition actually grew worse! 

Then she heard that this man Jesus was coming to town, and she knew without a shadow of a doubt that he could heal her.  She said "If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole."  The Greek word for touch is haptomai, meaning to attach oneself to or touch in relations.  The Greek word for whole is sozo, meaning to save, deliver, protect, heal, preserve.  She knew that she needed to come into a relationship with Jesus and attach herself to him in order to become saved, delivered, and healed.  She knew that she had to connect with this powerful source and not that of the religious system or the man-made system.

How did she know that?  Matthew 14:34-36 tells us that Jesus and the disciples had come to the land of Gennesaret.  "And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto him all that were diseased; And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment; and as many as touched were made perfectly whole."  Those people  also knew.  I think she knew because of all that she had heard from others but also because God placed it in her spirit just as I so clearly heard him tell me to "abide" as I began to attend GWM.  There are times when you just know because God has placed it in our spirit.

It only took 1 touch to receive the healing, but it had to be a touch of faith, and she knew that.  She knew she had found the right connection, and she knew that she had to make the connection, but would it be a complete connection?  There were throngs and throngs of people pushing all around Jesus and probably pushing her around as well.  But she did it!  She touched his clothes; she made the connection; and it was a complete connection. 

 She felt her issue immediately stopped and healed.  Immediately - not in a few hours or the next day but immediately!  That was some powerful connection!  The divineness of God in Jesus was so powerful that it emanated throughout his body and his clothes.

But what happened with Jesus during this time?   He immediately knew that "virtue" had gone out of him.  Virtue or dunamis in the Greek means force, miraculous power, ability, abundance, might, strength.  He knew that power had left him, and it was an immediate process.  He wanted to find out who touched his clothes.  He needed to know who had connected with him and received this healing.  When the woman presented herself, he confirmed that her faith had healed her.  But she would never have been healed if she had not made the COMPLETE connection with him.  It was through this connection that Jesus made her free.  John 8:32:  "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  She was freed from her blood issue and freed from the bondages of men.

Now we know that we have to find the RIGHT connection; we have to MAKE the connection; we have to have a COMPLETE connection; and lastly

4)  KEEP the connection.

Today we have so many avenues for connecting with people - Facebook, Twitter, email, and other means which I don't even want to know about.  Among many professionals, there is a site called "LinkedIn", which is like a business Facebook.  LinkedIn operates "the world’s largest professional network on the Internet in over 200 countries and territories with over 175 million members".  Their mission is to connect the world’s professionals for networking purposes to become more effective and successful in their careers. 

But how do these people become more effective and successful?  Just because they are "linked in" doesn't automatically mean that they will work harder or smarter or be more successful.  They have to stay connected and act upon these connections to become more effective and successful in their careers.

If something or someone interrupts our connection with God, our healing will not be received; our blessings will not be received; our favor will not be received.  I know that we don't want that to happen.  We must stay connected so that we are receiving constant power from our source.  How?  By staying in this Word and studying it.  It must reside in our minds and souls and hearts and bodies!  Don't let the devil cause a short circuit to occur in your mind or cause you to stray so far that you disconnect from God.  Don't claim sickness in your life; don't claim that everyone is against you & that's why you have to act a different way; don't claim jealousy; don't claim unfairness; don't claim that you're broke and that's why you can't do this or that.

When I say "don't claim", I mean don't say "I am sick"; "I am broke";" I am not popular".  What are we doing when we say this?  We are connecting these things to ourselves so that we will be sick; we will be broke; we will be unpopular.  Who is the "I am"?  GOD!  Is He sick; is He broke; is He unpopular?  NO!  Then don't claim that connection for Him or for you!

These claims are just like a magnet.  If we say them, they will stick to us "like flies on sticky paper".  Then it takes a powerful act to disconnect from these false and negative claims on our lives.

In closing, think about some of the different ways that we connect:

·       we connect with what comes out of our mouths

·       we connect with anything or anyone we touch or look at

·       we connect when we provide food for others or other kinds of assistance

·       we connect with people who have experienced the same things we have

·       we connect with those who look like us

·       we connect with foods that taste good to us

·       we connect with those who cheer on the same sports team

·       we connect when we pray

The list will go on and on and on.  But what God wants is for the body of Christ to connect with each other and keep connected and continue to connect with others as we spread the truth of this revelation of Jesus Christ.

So listen to these words one more time from John 15:4-5 "Abide in me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches.  He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing."  This is the connection that we MUST have. 

We must:

·       find the RIGHT connection

·       MAKE the connection

·       Ensure a COMPLETE connection

·       KEEP the right connection. 

So Power on everybody and keep a strong, complete connection with our God!

~ Rachel West