Preparation – John 16: 1

All this I have told you so that you will not fall away.

Jesus continues to give the disciples his last minute instructions. In the last ten verses of chapter 15, Jesus begins to explain about the world’s hate for God and everything associated with Him. At the time Jesus is saying this the Jewish leaders are the biggest threat that the disciples can see. Yet these words of Jesus are prophetic. They apply to anyone who is of the world. They all hate God and anyone who is of God. His words apply to all time.

The disciples (and us) are being told this for a reason. Why? So that we will not “fall away.”

What does he mean?

One of my summer jobs during college was selling books door to door. It was a hard job. If the company I worked for had just handed me a sales kit and sent me out into the field, I wouldn’t have lasted a week. I would have fallen away. Instead, they gave me and the other salesmen an entire week of very intensive training.

Some of the training was about how to sell the products. A great deal of the training was similar to the training Jesus is giving his disciples. It was about what to expect.

Expect to feel sorry for yourself. When those feelings come remember they are just feelings.
Expect people to say no. Not everyone is going to want what you are selling.
Expect that some people will be having a bad day. That happened more than once!
Expect it to be hard, but it will be worth it.

The goal of sales training was to get the people who were selling to focus on what was important. Ignore the distractions. Stay focused on the goal. When it comes to being a follower of Jesus our goal is to be with Him in heaven.

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