YOU DO NOT BELONG TO THE WORLD

Bible reading John 15:18-27

Key Verse: 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you
do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the
world hates you.
Part One: Hatred from the World (Verses 18 19)
Lets reads these verses together, 18 If the world hates you, keep in mind that it
hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is,
you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why
the world hates you.
Having cautioned His disciples of remaining and abiding in Him as the True vine, Our
Lord goes on to elaborated on what awaited these tender lambs of God as they
walked on the pilgrim journey to the eternal Kingdom. Through this message we
also ought to see what awaits us in this generation. Verse 18 opens up with what
these disciples where to expect in this World, if the World hates you, keep in mind
that it hated me first the Lord taught His small flock of disciples. From Wikipedia,
Hatred (or hate) is a deep and emotional extreme dislike. It can be directed against
individuals, entities, objects, or ideas. Hatred is often associated with feelings of
anger, disgust and a disposition towards hostility.
I believe the disciples where puzzled by this remark, hatred awaited them; they
must have looked at the Lord with anxious eyes asking Him, WHY? Why will the
world hate use, after all you have done, The miraculous signs, Healing the sick,
Raising the dead, Is this how we are to be thanked, In verse 19 which is our key
verse, I request we read it together again, 19 If you belonged to the world, it would
love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you
out of the world. That is why the world hates you. The Lord Jesus revels to them
their identity; the hatred was steaming from there not belonging to the word. Again
the English dictionary defines belong as to be a member of a group, such as a club.
or to fit into a group naturally: So the Lord was telling them and Ultimately telling us
that we are members not of this world and therefore we cannot and should not fit
into the worldly system. We were recently visited by our uncle he is still at home
who is currently a citizen of Germany. We had not seen him for the last 20 years.
During a conversation with him, He revealed that it was hardly impossible to find a
lady in Germany who does not smoke or drink, often times he could excuse himself
to smoke outside the house, what do I learn from this? That the world has its own
value and it demands that we fit in, He went on to tell us about his 13 year old boy,
To the amazement of the rest of the Ugandan family, His disclosure that his boy now
had a girlfriend and could often call him and tell him dad am not home, you cant
see me today because am with my girlfriend. So what do I learn in all this? Jesus is
clear I am not of this world. Where then do I belong? Verse 19 b goes on to say I
have chosen you out of the world the Lord taught His disciples that He had chosen

them out of the World, This means we once belonged to the World, in Titus 3:3-7
Paul tells us of this choosing by Jesus, He says 3 For we also once were foolish
ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending
our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. 4 But when the kindness of
God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, 5 He saved us, not on the basis
of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the
washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out
upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by His grace
we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
So Jesus has called us out of the world and made us heirs in the eternal life, In
Matthew 6:19-20 Jesus reemphasizes our belonging to an eternal Kingdom and
cautions us to work towards it. Look at Matthew 6:19-21 19Do not store up for
yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves
break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where
neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for
where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Part Two Persecution for the Lords Name (Verses 20 24)
No only where the disciples to expect hatred, This was to culminate into persecution
for the sake of the Lords name, Lets read verse 20 together, Remember what I told
you: A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will
persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. The
master had faced persecution in their own presence, Persecution from the religious
leaders, the Pharisees and so many sects in the Jewish setting; This was coupled
together with the persecution of the entire Jewish nation under the hostile Roman
political leadership. All this was to come against them due to their faith in the Lord
and their not being a part of the world. According to the World watch list of
persecution of Christians, 50 countries are listed in which Christians and believers
are persecuted up to date, The list is topped with North Korea and mostly Islamic
nations. What are we to do then in the face of this persecution? John writing to the
seven churches encouraged them to be faithful unto death. Look at Revelation 2:10
Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of
you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful,
even to the point of death, and I will give you a crown of life.
The Lord requires us to remain Faithful, and then He would give us the crown of life
in His eternal kingdom. I pray that none of us shall be timid in the face of
persecution, But that we shall endure all hardships for the sake of His name. Amen
Part Three We must Testify (verses 25- 27)
Look at Verse 26 Let me request . To read it for us, 26 When the Advocate comes,
whom I will send to you from the Fatherthe Spirit of truth who goes out from the
Fatherhe will testify about me. The Lord Jesus promises to send us an advocate,
The Holy Spirit whose work is to testify about God, He is to do this work through us

for the sole purpose of Glorifying God. John Writing about this promise says in John
16:13-15 that 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all
the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will
tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will
receive what he will make known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine.
That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.
We must see that whatever we do in this service returns, All the glory to God, Paul
has a parallel caution to us as we serve in the vine yard of the Master, He writes in
Ephesians 6:7-8 that 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not
people, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good
they do, whether they are slave or free. This teaches us that whatever the Lord will
do through us by the Holy Spirit must bring glory to His name.
Lets read verse 27 together, lets go And you also must testify, for you have
been with me from the beginning. In this verse, Jesus authors in the great
commission to his disciples and to us as well, The English dictionary defines must as
a verb meaning 1.be obliged to; should thats to say expressing necessity). The
Lord tells us in this verse that we are obliged without option to one thing Testifying.
In the midst of persecution and hatred, We may easily despair and have a good
excuse of not testifying to the Cross and Salvation that comes through the Messiah,
This leaves no option to the world other than eternal destruction, I pray that God
will empower each one of us to embrace and continue with the testimony of Christ
through one on one bible studies within Kyambogo University.
Lets read our key verse again: Key Verse: 19 If you belonged to the world, it would
love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you
out of the world. That is why the world hates you.
Prayer: .