In John 15 Verses 1 to 4, Lord Jesus says, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”
Have you ever considered the huge importance of these words of our Lord Jesus to you in your own life? When Lord Jesus says that His Father is the “gardener” there are other versions of the Holy Bible where He refers to His Father as the “Vine dresser”. Whatever version we look at, He is really warning us that even He is being “pruned” by His Father so that He can be even MORE fruitful!
From John 15 verses 5 to 8 He is telling us that He is the “vine” and WE are the “branches”. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
Do you sometimes feel like you are lost in the world and Lord Jesus is far away from you? If you don’t that is truly awesome and must mean that you are speaking with Him every day and working to obey all of His commands. However, if you feel a little lost, or you don’t see much fruit of your own version of being a Christian, it is time right now to come back to “the vine”!
How exciting is this? It is so exciting to know that our Lord Jesus loves each one of us! He died on the cross and rose from the dead to give us the life changing opportunity to be a “branch” on His vine and have His own Father become our Father and the gardener who looks after the vine and all of its branches! Through our Lord Jesus we have the opportunity to start AND live and NEW LIFE every day!
There is a huge warning to us though, that if we DON’T remain IN HIM, if we go away from the vine we will be as a “branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.” There is great power in realising immediately, that our future therefore is in our own choice as to whether we remain in the vine with our Lord Jesus!
If we go running off to the world, listening to our thoughts or own feelings about what is happening, or we ask other people (whom the Almighty God describes in the Old Testament as “mere mortals”) we are not then looking at all times to our Father through Lord Jesus and making the effort to obey His commands.
The consequences of remaining in the vine or leaving the vine are obviously poles apart. They are two extreme results. Remaining in the vine and obeying our Lord leads to us being able to ask whatever we wish, and it will be done for us. The other is to be “like a branch that is thrown away and withers ready to be burned in the fire. Two choices! Two consequences!
Years ago, when I was at a horse riding competition with my husband, William God spoke to me about “luck”. He told me to tell William not to “accept” wishes of luck from people as “luck does not exist”! I was a little shocked at the time, but quickly realised that this is an awesome truth that is sitting right there in front of everyone, particularly Christians who have the phenomenal opportunity to listen to the commands and words of Lord Jesus! Where in the whole of the Holy Bible is there a word about “luck”? We are the ones who choose whether we will stay “in the vine” or not. There is no “luck” in this choice. We have two choices and those choices lead to very different outcomes for our future.
Will we listen to and obey Lord Jesus or will we listen to the false teachings of the world? He tells us not to call anyone on earth “teacher” because He is our “only Teacher”! Wow! To have the Son of the most HIgh God as our “only teacher” is such a huge privilege and sitting right there for any person who has “ears to hear” and “eyes to see”! Why would anyone on earth not choose to come with Lord Jesus if they really knew Him and how much He loves us? Perhaps the only reasons would be that people have never heard of Him yet, met Him or once they have met Him, do not want to give up their life of self service, sinning and doing what they want to please themselves.
How much notice do you take of every word our Lord Jesus spoke that are written in the precious Gospels in the New Testament in the Holy Bible? If you have been feeling a little lost, nervous or frightened about all that is happening out there in the world, come back to the “vine”. Lord Jesus loves you. He cares about you more than you may ever be able to appreciate. If you make the effort just to talk with Him and ask Him all of your questions as if He is your greatest friend(which He IS) and only Teacher you will be amazed at the changes which happen to you every day!
He follows on to say in John Chapter 15 verse 9, “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.
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