“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. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much
fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” John 15:5,8
The
vines referred to here in John and throughout scripture are grape vines. Vineyards were very important in Palestine
back in Biblical times. So much so that
during the harvest season the people of the town or village would literally put
up tents and live among the vineyards, leaving the towns temporarily
deserted. It was a celebratory time with
lots of singing and shouting for joy.
Christ describes Himself as the vine, not a vine. We are the branches, the offshoots if you
will, which derive our nourishment from the main vine. The Jews rejection of Christ as Messiah
opened the door for all non-Jews (Gentiles) to become grafted into the
vine. It is imperative that the branch
remains attached to the vine for sustenance, without which it can bear no
fruit. We should understand in a very
literal way that there is nothing we can do spiritually speaking without
Christ. We are incapable of being all
God knows we can be without the assistance and guidance of His Holy
Spirit. Sure, we can do the mundane
things that people do each day without God’s help, but for our lives to matter
for the kingdom we must tap into His deep reservoir of spiritual
resources.
Bearing fruit is important.
In Bible times when a tree didn’t bear any fruit it was cut down and
burned (Luke 3:9). This is symbolic of
the fate of anyone who has been redeemed yet fails to bear any fruit
whatsoever. It’s pretty difficult to be
void of any fruit. It must be a
deliberate act to cease bearing fruit, for those who truly seek to please God
find that they have a compulsion to do that which pleases Him. The fruit we bear in our daily lives reveals where
our allegiance lies. It should be our
hope that the unsaved world will take notice of the fruit of our good works and
see God in them. This is why we are to
draw close to the Lord and seek to imitate Him in all things. For the glory and honor of God. Until next time, walk with the King and be a
blessing!
