June 5, 2021
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in John? Here’s today’s reading:
John 15 (NIV)
The Vine and the Branches
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you..........Continue Reading
“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. This is my command: Love each other.”
John 15:16-17 NIV
https://www.bible.com/111/jhn.15.16-17.niv
“Love each other” is not a suggestion, but a command. May the Holy Spirit help us to follow Gods commands!
John 15 – I love Jesus’s analogy of the vine, the fruitful branches are us when we believe and live for Christ. It is the father’s Glory to bear much fruit. Then he commands us to love one another as he has loved us, that should be easy but in this day and age it gets harder, but as a child of Christ we are reminded to look on them as Christ does even if we are hated for it, Jesus warns us of that in this chapter, that we will be hated because of our love for him but he offers us hope through the Holy Spirit, our Counselor will give us strength .
The picture Jesus starts with in this chapter is truly an amazing way to look at out walk with Christ. The picture of God as the vine and we the branches reminds us that we can do nothing apart from Christ…He is the nutrients, the power, the source of life for us!
When He speaks about this world hating the disciples because this world hates Him it reminded me so much of the world today. The resistance to the truth of God and looking at our own sin as sin. The world wants to do what feels good even if it leads to destruction and acceptance of Christ would require them to turn from their sin. We must remember we are set apart from this world FOR this world!
John 15
16You 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.17This is my command: Love each other.
18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.19If 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.
The whole point of a vine is to bear fruit! And Jesus makes clear that bearing fruit is the best way to affirm we are of Him. I couldn’t miss the connection that Jesus makes between remaining in Him, remaining in HIs love and remaining in His word. All together they will result in fruit bearing, obeying Jesus commands, showing true love for Jesus, joy and answered prayer. I also couldn’t help but think what the disciples thought about Jesus statement about laying one’s life down for one’s friends once He was on the cross.
Now when we connect ourselves with Jesus’ influence and thereby live our lives for Him, it will result in us being hated by the world. But it’s a pretty good trade off isn’t it? It is much better to have this indelible connection with God, where we bear fruit for Him and know His love and joy more fully than to live for the world and have the world love us. Right?
I was thinking about fruit. How do we define fruit ? How does God and Jesus define fruit? What is the result of our abiding in the vine? Keeping His commandments….loving one another….keeping and abiding in Him and His word…..bearing witness. In the past I thought fruit was defined as converts to Jesus….a frustrating pursuit making my relationship with Jesus measured by other’s response to my sharing of the gospel and their response to Him….which I have no control over. Ultimately that is “good works” of a sort. I now see fruit as the fruit of the Spirit and obedience in using the spiritual gifts to further serve believers and share the gospel. I think I should do a word study on “fruit”.
Amy, I think the concept of fruit involves all of it: Christian character, Christian service, obedience to God, the fruit of the Spirit and bearing witness to Jesus….anything that flows from our connection to Jesus which would involve the things that Jesus Himself was and did.
Amy, I think the concept of fruit involves all of it: Christian character, Christian service, obedience to God, the fruit of the Spirit and bearing witness to Jesus….anything that flows from our connection to Jesus which would involve the things that Jesus Himself was and did.
I did a word study of every appearance of the word “fruit” in the Bible.
In the Old Testament, fruit is used for food and offspring. Having offspring was a blessing (IS A BLESSING) and considered a major component of God’s plan for men. It’s interesting how today baby’s are aborted, considered an inconvenience and hinderance to life, and even now, increased population is a threat to the environment. I wonder who came up with those ideas?
“And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you.” – Deut 7:13
There is also the fruit of works, good and bad.
good:
Proverbs 11:30 “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.”
Isaiah 3:10 – “Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, For they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
bad:
Hosea 10:13 – “You have plowed wickedness; You have reaped iniquity. You have eaten the fruit of lies, Because you trusted in your own way, In the multitude of your mighty men.
Good and bad:
“What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.-But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.”
– Romans 6:21-22
Fruit is a reflection of the heart. I think this emphasizes what you said about fruit being all of the things in keep in with Christ.
“Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance” – Matthew 3:8
“Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.” – Matt 12:33
The Spirit produces fruit.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness – Galatians 5:22
“for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth” – Ephesians 5:9
The Word produces fruit.
Colossians 1:6 “because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth;”