(Following the Footsteps of Christ) Going Towards Gethsemane — Willie Mullan

642, please. 642, when we walk with the Lord in the light of his word, what a glory he sheds on our way. While we do his good will, he abides with us still and with all who will trust and obey. Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the sky, but his smile quickly drives it away.

Not a gulp, not a tear, not a sigh, not a tear, can abide while we trust and obey. And we'll sing from verse 3 to the end. 642, the last three verses, please. We're returning to John's Gospel this evening.

Christ’s Knowledge in the Upper Room

Last week we were in the upper room of the Master at John 13, and we were just learning how many things the Master knew. The unlimited knowledge of the Lord. Just mark these words as we read through here, John 13.

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour would come, and I said last Tuesday that my Master was the only person who ever lived on this planet who was never taken by surprise, even once.

He was never taken by surprise. He knew that his hour would come, and that he should depart out of this world unto the Father. And I pointed out this very carefully. It doesn't say that he should depart out of this world into heaven.

Oh, I know that would be right, but it was unto the Father. This is the thing that was in his heart most of all, to get back to the bosom of the Father. I think that was a tremendous thing, and it's so well placed in that.

And you know that Michael, my son, the other Sunday morning gave you a talk on the Father. But that's just another angle of it. That the Lord Jesus knew he was going back to the Father. It says when Jesus knew that his hour would come, that he should depart out of this world unto the Father.

Briefly, Jesus knowing, did you get that again? That the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God and went to God. Oh, some of the modernists tell me he didn't know where he was going.

It's a pity somebody didn't give them the New Testament sometime, and take them into a back room and teach them to read. Yes, Jesus knew where he came from. He came from God, and he knew he was going back to God.

Verse 11 says, for he knew who should betray him. He also knew that too. Oh, last Tuesday we went into the unlimited knowledge of the Lord in the upper room. And we can't go through that again. And you see I'm hurrying on, although we are following the footsteps, and I don't want to pick up all the messages even in the upper room, the wonderful things.

Because I'm trying to get At near the end of this subject we're at now, by the end of the holidays, and maybe just a couple of three weeks into the August month when we come back again, before we start demonology, because I want all the holidays over and all of us back when we start into this.

So you can see why I'm racing on, and working it out, and planning it just for you. At the end of John 14, it says this, verse 31, still in the upper room, speaks to his own again, but that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do, arise, let us go hence.

From the Upper Room Toward Gethsemane

I was pointing out that when he went into the upper room last week, you know he had left the multitude outside. The Pharisees, and the Pharisees, and the publicans, and the sinners, and even Judas gets put out, and it's a special part of his ministry with his own.

And he had so many things to say to them. Now he's leaving the upper room and he's going towards Gethsemane. Now I was in the upper room once with the At least he tried to persuade me it was the same upper room.

I'm not very sure whether it was or not, but one thing is sure, it was something like it. And I could visualize all that had taken place, and then I came down the stone steps with him, and I said, take me now to Gethsemane.

And you go up cobbled streets, little narrow streets, and you come to one of the gates into the courtyard of the temple. And you go through the gate and then you cross the courtyard, and at the other side of the courtyard was the beautiful gate of the temple.

It was called the beautiful gate of the temple. The moment you go through that, you're going down the hillside now, which is the valley of Jehoshaphat. The Kidron River is at the bottom. You cross the Kidron, and then you're into the garden of Gethsemane.

That's the pathway he was going. He's saying to them, arise, let us go hence, and he knows where he's going. And I think he walked along slowly. It was nighttime, you know, but the full moon was shining.

It was Passover time, wasn't it? Full moon always shines at Easter, that's how they mark it. And I think he walked slowly down this cobbled street and through this gate, and across the courtyard, and when he came to the beautiful gate of the temple, just before you leave and go down the valley of Jehoshaphat, I understand from Edersheim and men who know better, that it was one of these wonderfully wrought iron gates with the vine upon it.

It had got the vine, and the branches, and the fruits, and I think it was there that the Master stopped and looked out the gate. And then he began to preach, I think, the greatest message the Master ever preached to his own.

Now when you're taking the messages of the Master, once I took all the sayings of the Saviour, and I tried to get the seven super sayings out of the moon, that was quite a task. Now when you're taking all the messages of the Master, and you select one of the greatest messages the Master ever preached, I think it was preached when the moon was shining, and the eleven apostles were standing, listening carefully, and he was looking out the gate with the vine, and the branches, and the fruits.

Christ as the True Vine and the Father as the Husbandman

And he began like this, with a John 15. And I want you to see the picture our Lord painted first of all. It's a picture of a vine, and the husband man, who really owns the vine, and then the branches.

And he began like this, I am the true vine. He's going to explain and expound to his disciples before this message is over, that everything they're going to need in this world, to live and shine for God, will be found in it's all sufficiency in him.

I wish we knew this. Because if you really want to live for God, everything to make your life God glorifying, is found in Christ. He's the all sufficient. If it's wisdom you need, well he's been made wisdom unto you.

If it's grace you need, well this is my grace, is sufficient. If it's peace in your mind you need, he is our peace. I care not what you need this evening, if it's power, well all power belongs to him.

I care not what you need to live a God glorifying life, it's found in Christ, and I'll tell you how to get it before tonight's over. So when he says, I am the true vine, this brings the sufficiency of Christ before us.

Then he quickly added, and my father is the husband man, you know the expectancy of the father is there. Because if we profess to this world that we're in Christ, and that we're expecting his strength and his power and his grace, the father wants to see something of Christ.

What he expects? He expects to see Christ in you. He's the husband man. He's not worried too much about Baptist, you know, because that just wants a fight. He wants to see Christ. And in fact this is what the whole message is about.

How your life can glorify God by reflecting the beauty of Jesus. That's what it's all about. We'll get through to it. But the vine shows us the sufficiency, and the husband man shows us the expectancy.

And then the branches. You see, he talks not only about the vine and the husband man, but he talks about the branches. And this brings the possibility of every believer in Christ before us. You notice the branches that he mentions.

Let's try to get them. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit. Well, that's the barren branch. You know, some people make a profession of getting saved. And maybe they are saved, but they seem to get stuck somehow.

They're just saved and stuck. They seem to stay in the old things or something. They never seem to make any headway. Sometimes I wonder if they're saved at all. And yet the Lord says there are branches in me that bear no fruit.

He may walk round you and with you for a long time. But it does say here, every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. And I know that some of the scholars say this is just a branch that's lying in the ground in the mud, and he taketh it away from the mud.

And I'm afraid there's more to it than that. Because you know, if we were going into this this evening, there is a sin unto death. And God won't forever play about with you, or me either. You know, God can take you away.

Some of the Corinthians, you know, the way they carried on at the Lord's table, some of them were sick, and some of them died. God took them away. Dr. Ironside explained this to me once. He said, do you ever see kids playing in the street?

And there's one wee devil among them, he always hits the rest. And they don't play marbles for a minute till he hits them with her. Then the wee fellow goes to his mother's door and says, God hit me. She says, are you at it again?

I'm warning you. If you don't stop it, I'll bring you in. Then they play over again. Now he hasn't gone ten minutes more till he hits some other one. He's back at the door. She says, are we lost this time?

God, he hit me. She says, and I warn you. And you know how it goes. At last she just comes out and grabs them and kicks them in and shuts the door. Dr. Ironside says, God talks to you, you know. And you know right well what you should do with your life.

And there's some of you stuck in old dead churches where they're tearing this book to pieces. And God is telling you to get out and touch not the unclean things. But some of you don't seem to hear. Do you think they'll play on with us?

Ah well, you're not, you know. Because God can shift you. I saw a big man, you know, who was a brilliant preacher. Better preacher than I will ever be. That's my own opinion about it. And that's not just being modest.

We were both saved about the same night. I was a chump. He went to Queens. He got honours on the day that he graduated. And we preached together. Oh, he came from that side of the street and I came from this one.

He and I preached together as two young boys. And he got his eye on a woman of the world. And he soon wasn't going to the meetings anymore. One of our old elders, Mr. Joe Borden, went round and said to him, look, you're doing what's wrong.

God has given you a gift and there's something you could do for God in this world but you're just going to do as you like, aren't you? I'm warning you, you'll not do as you like. You know, he married this girl.

Three months after he married her, he was dying with TB when I went to see him. I stood in the room as he held the blanket. Face was white as snow now. He'd just got a day or two to go. He says, well, you know I'm dying and you know why.

I just wouldn't let God talk to me anymore. God's taken me away. You go on and watch yourself. You ever stand in a room like that? You're like that kid at school. You'll not do as you like, young woman.

Some of you young men think you'll marry whoever you like and you'll do as you like. Marry or not, God will take you away. That's what he'll do with you. That's a very serious thing. He'll take us away.

It's a barren branch. Couldn't be no good. Watch this one. First to every branch in me that beareth naught fruit, that's the barren one. He'll take it away. And every branch that beareth fruit, now that's the bearing branch, isn't it?

He purges it. You know that's a great word. As we were at this word on Sunday morning, he purged all things. And that is he took them away in their totality. When you're purging a branch to make it bear more, you take the most of it away.

It's pruning is a word. Have you ever seen them pruning? See the big long shoots on the apple tree. Some of the apple country men are here and I have to be careful. Branches. And they go right down, you know.

Cut them off. I went to prune an old lady's apple tree, you know, and when I did cut it down, I didn't know about this, and my sister looking at me, her eyes were blinking. She thought I had ruined the thing.

You need to cut it down if you're going to get fruit, you know. And this is what he does. When you begin to bear fruit, he cuts you down to size. You'll be the Lord's usual human. Maybe you're just getting to the place where you think you are something.

How well he'll cut you down to size. And that's what he does with every bearing branch. You see, it's only to make it bear more fruit. You see, that's the barren branch and the bearing branch. Just look down at verse 6 quickly, and we'll not do it now, but we will come to it.

If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and it's withered. And men gather them and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. And that's the blighted branch. But we'll come to that in a moment.

We won't pass it by. You see this one. See verse 8. Herein is my Father glorified. This is what glorifies God. That ye bear much fruit. Now there was a branch here that was bearing fruit. Then it had to be purged to bear more fruit.

But it's not fruit that pleases God. And it's not more fruit. It's much fruit. God wants to see much of Christ in you. You see, it's this fruit-bearing that's the subject of the whole message of the feast of Eden.

And you know, fruit in the Scripture is a very interesting subject. You know, when we look back at the years of old W. P. Nicholson, and we thank God for every memory of him, there were thousands and thousands and thousands of people really while he did dreadful things and said horrible things.

God was using him and there was a great harvest. And that's what you call evangelical fruit. When Paul was writing to the Romans, he says, I want to come that I might have some fruit among you. That's the kind of fruit he was thinking about.

Evangelical and Practical Fruit

If I got everybody to stand in this meeting tonight that I led to the Lord, that would be a pleasant sight. But that's what you call evangelical fruit. Now when Paul was writing to the Philippines, let's go to Philippians chapter 4 for a moment I suppose.

Philippines, and we're at the fourth chapter, Paul talks about the kindness and the generosity of these people of Philippines. Here's what he says, verse 15. Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel when I departed from Macedonia, Lutrex communicated with me concerning giving and receiving but he only.

And for even in Thessalonica he sent once and again onto my necessity. Not because I desire a gift, but I desire fruit that may abound for your account. You know that's a different kind of fruit again.

That's what you call practical fruit. That's putting your money into something that's going to do something for God. I could tell you many stories and we'll not take the time this evening. Practical fruit that is.

But we're not thinking tonight about practical fruit. And we're not thinking about evangelical fruit. When we talk about much fruit, we're talking about the very life of Christ flowing through the branches until the husband man sees his son in you.

That's what we're talking about. Have you got a hold of that? And that's the fruit that matters. And matters more than even building meetings. It matters more than even giving money. That's God seeing his son in you.

That's what we're talking about this evening. So that you can see here this evening the picture our Lord painted. You can see the sufficient savings in Christ and the expectancy within the Father. And you can see the possibility that before every believer, for every one of us, can have the glory of Christ shining through.

Abiding in Christ as the Central Precept

Now in this great message there's not only the picture our Lord painted, there's the precept our Lord preached. Watch this word, verse 4. We're back at John 15, verse 4. Abide in me, he said, and I in you, for the branch cannot bear fruit of itself.

You would know that. Except it abide in the vine. No more can ye except ye abide in me. Go over it again for them. I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abides in me, and I in him, the same, the same bringeth forth much fruit.

Isn't that the bit we're after? Because that's what glorifies God. Now let's get this word quite correct. I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abides in me, and I in him, the same, the same. Oh let's hit the word, the same bringeth forth much fruit.

For without me you can do nothing. That's the precept he preached. Preaches it to every one of us. You see you don't need to go to a certain college to bear the fruit you know. No you don't need to have a certain academic standard from Queen's either.

He said he that abides in me, and I in him, the same. Even if he can't even spell, even if he can't even write, even if he can't even talk properly, add for you. You only need to know what this is about you know.

Because he that abides in me, and I in him, the same. Doesn't make a matter what state he comes from. When I look down a meeting here, I always think that I'm the greatest dupe in the meeting. I don't just say that, I know that.

You all have a better chance than I have. You're your chance doesn't count when it comes to this. You just need to know the principle here. And you too. Because you are in the word of the same. You can bring much fruit can't you?

So cheap I can remember the day I read this nearly 40 years ago. He said Lord you're saying the same. I could be in on this. If I know how to go about it I could be in on it. So can you. Nights arise up every morning before you get out of bed at all.

You must remember first thing in the morning without you Lord. I can do nothing. Before I open the book you know. I've been through this book. I know this book. I could close this book and put the page used to that.

But before I open it at all I just think Lord without you I can't do nothing. I can't see nothing. I need him all the time. And you know it is never me. If there are any blunders made on this platform they are mine.

If there are any blessings there is. I've learned this. You've got a precept to learn. You know without him I can't get on. There can be nothing for God out of my life without him flowing through it. And the only way that I can get the things that he has to pass through me is by faith.

No wonder it says without faith it's impossible to please God. Because I need the faith in him for words to get through this meeting. I need to have faith in him for wisdom to get through this meeting.

I need to have faith in him for a whole lot of things for this meeting. And for every other meeting and for every other thing. It's just me and him again isn't it. Because I need to be able to trust him.

But we'll come to this you know. This is the precept. And you know faith can extract this grace and this wisdom and this peace and this long suffering and so on. And there's no use of saying that you're in Christ and you've got this kind of faith that we're talking about.

It is more certainly that you know it's all about abiding in Christ if the wife can't live with you. Don't tell me that Joseph. You're only wasting your time. It's not Christ that she sees. It's an old man she sees.

Trust, Obedience, and the Abiding Life

So you can see the picture our Lord painted and the precept our Lord preached. But we've got to come to the principle our Lord proclaimed. That's the bit that matters. It's this principle that matters and you can see that right down through this message that he stood in the moonlight here talking to them that they used this word abide.

Again and again and again and again. It's this abiding life. This word abide you know it's worth looking at a whole lot of times. It's not easy to stick it in the natural realm. You know about the vine do you?

You've seen the long gnarled stump of a vine and you've seen the branches coming out don't you? Well I'll tell you something. That in spring and in summer and in autumn and in winter the branch has to depend on the vine for everything.

It's not on its own. It has to depend. And this word depends, this word, because it's one of our English words that explains trust maybe better than any other one. I've got to depend on him. I've got to trust him.

I've got to abide. We're coming round to the principle aren't we? Now it's not just as easy as all that. It's just a little bit more to it than that. Now let's do this a little bit. Let's go to 1st John.

1st John and we're at the 3rd chapter. 1st John chapter 3. And it's that last verse. It's that 24th verse. Watch it. He that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him and he in him. See the word dwelleth?

Well I don't know why our translators translated it dwelleth when they translated the same Greek word abideth in John 15. Because even if you didn't know anything about Greek at all you would know that where you dwell is where you abide.

You would know that. Even if you saw papers on the street you would know that. That dwelleth and abideth is just the same. Just the way this English language of ours gets on. Dwell and abideth. Well you know if you're going to really abide in him you'll have to trust him.

Because if you're going to really abide in him you'll have to keep his commandments. You'll have to obey him. When it comes to believers baptism that's as clear as ABC in the book. How many of you have obeyed him?

You're stuck in some old church where they've practiced this Roman potpourri. That's where you are. Oh you're a great promise. You need to obey a good dear. Or you will not abide in him. How could you?

How could you refract the beauty of the Lord when you better obey in his words? He that keepeth his commandments abideth in him. Dwelleth in him. I've searched this book from end to end for forty years on how to live for God and I've never found anything better than this.

Trust and obey. For there's no other way. So be happy in Jesus name. There isn't any other. Will I tell you a wee thing? You know you need to trust him constantly. You need to trust him continually. I need to trust him in the morning.

I need to trust him all day. I need to trust him now. I need to keep trusting him. When I'm preaching I'm trusting him. He's so far to go and I'm far from pushing. It's only when I've pushed it enough Lord sometimes I'm saying.

I need to trust him continually. Listen this. I need to obey him promptly. It has took some of you thirty years before you've got to the place where you got baptised hasn't it? There's a gentleman coming in tonight bless him.

He isn't a youngster anymore. He says mister I'll need to be baptised. Yes he's going to obey the book. That's the only way you do you know. You obey the book. Where are you stuck on Sunday morning when you're remembering God?

Where are you stuck? There's a table here you know. And your Lord's request is this. This do in remembrance of me. And it's a big thing. Will you ever turn your back on it? He understood this. And he meant it for a reason.

And I believe that if you get close to the cross on Sunday morning. And I'll do your soul good. It says as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup. It doesn't say as seldom. I think that's how they do it in some of the churches.

As seldom. Happens to be as often in this book. You want to live for God. Do you want to live for God? Oh well you need to trust him completely. And you'll need to obey him. Promptly. Don't let him talk to you too long.

Just obey him. That's all. You can see the pressures of the abiding life there can't you? And I want to show you the promise of the abiding life. I've already done that. You see the same, the same brings forth much fruit.

You know friend, if you could just trust him for everything. And just obey him continually. You know you would reflect the beauty of Jesus. Sometimes you know when things happen to us and disappointments come and one thing in another hits us and the storm blows in our faces.

You know we're not trusting the Lord the way we should. I was saying to a young fellow the other day. He'd just been through a terrible serious thing. He stood beside me crying and I said look, did I help your tears?

Might be the best day in your life and now it's turning out to prove to be the best day in his life. Because you know you need to trust the Lord whether the boat gets full with water or not. You need to trust the Lord.

And no matter how dark the night might be you know there can always be a song in the night. And when your feet are fast in the stocks and your hands shame to the wall you can sing praises you know. Why we believers have got it far too easy far too long.

Wonder what we would do if we were really getting it right. Some of you would drop out of the fight altogether. We need to trust him and obey him. Those boys in Russia trusted the Lord tonight and rejoiced in them.

They're in holes in the ground. I wonder what we would do. Yes it's the same principle the same message for men. You can shame there too. You see the power of this abiding life. This is very lovely look at verse 7.

If ye abide in me and my words abide in you ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you. Oh my dear what wonderful words these are. You know what this abiding life is? It's living where God answers prayer.

That's what it is. That's what it is. You know dear if you trust him with all your being and you obey and it very dictates no matter who it upsets no matter who it annoys. You know friends when I refused to have our children christened as they called it.

The old minister would come round to christen them. I said I'll christen nobody here. Oh my old mother-in-law and she was the dearest old soul that ever lived. She wouldn't let our two boys in the door because the one sprinkled.

She was bad luck. She was a superstitious old creature you know. And I used to have to set the two boys outside the door. And there gone he stood holding the pram. The other fellow was in the pram. And she wouldn't let them in the door.

Not her. And many a pound I gave her you know. And many a ten pounds I gave her. I just loved her just the same. I just knew she was just a pure old dope-juke. Presbyterian. Say Emmanuel what are you my father-in-law?

You're sleeping in tonight so you are. Yes you know you need to obey the law. No matter what it costs. No matter who it is you know. Love will wake her up. Many a day afterwards she saw her falling. Brought the kids in and all the rest of it.

You need to obey God. You have to obey him. Not who it upsets. Because if you don't trust him and obey him you will stop praying. Because it's when you really trust and really obey him. You can ask what you will.

It shall be done you know. I'll tell you this when you're trusting him and obeying him you'll not ask anything stupid. He will just direct at what you ask. You'll ask in his will. And you see the practice of the abiding life and the promise and the power and the proof.

The Practice and Proof of Abiding in Christ

It's through the first John. I think this is great. We can't miss this tonight. There's no clock at the far end so I don't know what time it is. I swore I would take that clock down and now it's away.

First John and we're at the second chapter. Have a look at this. Look at it very carefully now. Verse six. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to watch even as he watches. Oh that's the proof of it all right.

That's the proof of it. You know friends if we were just trusting the Lord the way we should and we were obeying his every dictate then the world would say Jesus and us. Very often it's not so. And it's because we're not trusting in the babe.

Just when you're there have a look at the same chapter. It's chapter 2 first John 2. And this is a lovely one. Verse 28. And no little children abide in him that when he shall appear we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him of his coming.

You see that's the prospect of the abiding life. You saw the practice it's just in the babe. You saw the promise. The same thing as forth much rip. Whether he's a dust man or a bread man or a coal man.

The same. Bring us forth much rip. You saw the power. You saw the proof. See the prospect. You know if you're trusting the Lord with all your heart and obeying his word no matter what it costs. If he comes you'll not be ashamed.

One of these nights he's coming. Come and see. They're fiddling about with us. One of these days we're leaving it. We're going right up through the sky. And do whatever the like with it after that. The antichrist will tell them what to do.

And they'll be no fiddling around with him. Are you ready for this? Have you been brought up under the gospel? Do you know tonight that Jesus died for you? That his blood was shed on Calvary and there's no other sacrifice.

And it's time you were saved. Now he comes. You'll be left behind and you'll not only be doomed son but damned for all eternity. Let's go back to John 15. Let's start this of the verse out that we were looking at.

See verse 6. If a man abides not in me he is cast forth as a branch and is withered. Men gather them and cast them into the fire and their bones. For it is said to me there's the proof that a branch can be lost again.

Where's the proof of that? I said it is a brand. I said who burned them? He said man burned them. That's what he said. He said God burned them. And it doesn't say that they're burned in hell either. You see friend, if you're making a profession of faith and trust and you're not putting them at all.

You're not obeying them any longer. You know the fellow that lives next door, he sees you. And you know friend, if you're standing out in the yard drinking and smoking he knows all about it. And I'll tell you what he thinks about your profession.

He just takes it and throws it into the fire. It's no use anymore. You don't count with him. You're withered. But we're lost again about that. We're not talking about lost again in this chapter. We're talking about reflecting the beauty of Christ.

Christ says he's all around them. He says I'm all you fellas need. And my father's looking on. He's the husband man. He wants to see the beauty of Jesus in you. I'll tell you how to do it. Without me you can do nothing.

But if you trust me and obey me you'll bring forth much fruit. Herein is my father glorified. See that last little phrase on your notes. The production. Our Lord says much fruit. Oh I wonder how we're faring these days.

Bearing Much Fruit in a Changing Land

My we've got a chance in this land of ours. I believe you know with all my heart and soul. I believe that the Lord has given us an opportunity in this land just now. He has given it back to us. I believe that folks were trying to take it from us you know.

I haven't any doubts in my mind about that and I'm not a politician at all. But God has given us this week on All I fool around with. God wants us to start now. Start and live for Christ. I was turning out of the little road down there the other day.

And I nearly ran into a car. Not a woman. I didn't touch it. Just came up close beside me. There was a minister in it. And he had a bald head and a lot of kids in the back. And I thought he was a minister out of the big church down here.

And I put down the window and said hello. How are you? He says my you're looking fine. He says mind you I know your face. I was very eager to say well I've had it a long time. And I knew now that when he said I know your face.