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“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
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Dear Friends in Him,
We’re looking at John 15:1-8. The lesson in brief is that Christ invites us to abide in him so that he might make it possible for us to bear much fruit.
These verses are an allegory, and symbolically express: The Father is the vine grower (v. 1).
Christ is the vine (v. 5). The disciples are branches (v. 5). Those who do not abide in Christ are useless branches (v. 6
Where is the church here? "Abide in me as I abide in you" (v. 4a). These words are also addressed to the church, whose communal life and ministries of social justice are no more than branches to be tossed into the fire, apart from the indwelling Christ. “Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me" (v. 4b). The church is always tempted to look elsewhere -- to politics or wealthy donors for strength, but Jesus tells us that fruitfulness starts in a very different place. As long as we are in his presence, his strength becomes ours. As soon as we turn our back on him, our strength begins to drain away.
"Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me" (v. 4b). Abiding in Jesus enables the branch to bear fruit. What fruit? Jesus commands us to love one another (13:34; 15:12), so love must be one of the fruits. Jesus calls us to obey his commandments (v. 10), so obedience must be one of the fruits. Jesus promises joy (v. 11), so joy must be one of the fruits.
But perhaps the fruit involves more than is revealed in this chapter. Paul mentions the fruits of the Spirit -- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22). Surely abiding in Jesus must produce each of these in some measure.
Jesus is saying that all the useless foliage in our lives needs to be cut away. We may think this foliage makes us look attractive especially to the world, but will not in anyway help us to bear fruit that will bring glory to God. For example: in business greed, selfishness and disregard for the feelings of people or for their needs might be the way to get ahead, but must be pruned away to allow the fruit of generosity, kindness and humility to grow. If you are joined to Christ you cannot look the other way when someone is in need. As a branch attached to Christ we don't hold back our forgiveness, we try to be understanding and helpful, we want to be encouraging instead of being negative and critical. Being a branch to Jesus means that you will seek reconciliation instead of adding fuel to any disharmony. It means showing love and patience to those whom you don't think deserve it.
In other words, being joined to Jesus has practical implications for the way we live our every day lives; and bearing fruit isn't an option for us.
