Sparks from the Gospel Anvil ARE YOU ABIDING IN CHRIST? JOHN 15:1-12
In the upper room Jesus explains to his disciples that he desires them to abide in them. When He first went around finding His disciples he said to them “Follow Me”. When about to leave for heaven, He gave them a new word, in which their more intimate and spiritual union with Himself in glory should be expressed. That chosen word was: “Abide in me.” But what does that mean for us today? How can one exactly ABIDE IN CHRIST? While trusting in their Savior for pardon and for help, and seeking to some extent to obey Him, they have hardly realized to what closeness of union, to what intimacy of fellowship, to what wondrous oneness of life and interest, He invited them when He said, “Abide in me.” This is not only an unspeakable loss to themselves, but the Church suffers in what they lose.
It was Reverend Andrew Murray, the prolific Dutch preacher and author that wrote, “let us day by day set ourselves at His feet, and meditate on this word of His, with an eye fixed on Him alone. Let us set ourselves in quiet trust before Him, waiting to hear His holy voice; breathing its quickening spirit within us, as He speaks: “Abide in me.” The soul that truly hears Jesus Himself speak the word, receives with the word the power to accept and to hold the blessing He offers.” (The True Vine; Murray, Andrew 1882)
The symbol for the nation of Israel was a vine, (ref. Psalm 80:810). This same truth is seen in Isaiah 5:1-2. But, this vine had not lived up to its intended purpose, (Ref. Jeremiah 2:21; Hosea 10:1) Therefore, God had sent His Son, the Lord Jesus into this world as “The True Vine”. What Israel had failed to do, He would accomplish! Whatever prompted this teaching that night, it is clear: that His desire was to teach them about the most vital relationship they have in their lives, the one with Jesus & His Father. We might ask, “Why did Jesus give them this teaching now?” The answer is simple: they needed it! These men have just been informed that Jesus is going away, but that His work is going to continue, He wants them to know that the only way they can be fruitful for the glory of God is to abide in Him, the True Vine.
God is still working through the followers of Jesus Christ to accomplish His work & will in the world today. In verse 2, Jesus uses the phrase “in Me.” He is speaking here to people who are in a vital, life-giving relationship to Himself; He is speaking to those who are saved. No one can be considered a branch in the Lord’s Vine unless there is a vital connection to Him. No one can bear fruit for the glory of the Lord they are attached to the Vine. No less than 6 times in these verses, Jesus uses the phrase “in Me.” He is talking about a situation that is an absolute necessity for life and fruit bearing. The thing required of the branches for fruit to be a reality is for them to “abide” in Jesus. The thing the Lord requires of the branches is for them to rest in Him, Jesus says to us, “COME UNTO ME; ABIDE IN ME and to draw their life strength from Him I must have ABSOLUTE SURRENDER.
If I am going to abide in Christ, I must draw my life from Him. I must yield my will to Him and allow Him to live His life through me. I must come to the end of myself and realize that apart from Him I am nothing and that I can do nothing.
The quality of that fruit is not my responsibility, I am simply to abide. He will bring the kind of fruit through me that pleases Him. The quantity of that fruit is not my responsibility. My duty is to abide in Him. He will produce the quantity of fruit from my life that pleases Him. If we could ever grasp the truth that being a fruitful Christian is about abiding, it would make a world of difference in our lives.
There are plenty of people “in” religion; and there are plenty of people “in” the church. There are many who are moral, upstanding people, but that does not mean that they are “in” Jesus! In fact, many are and will be deceived in this matter, (Ref. Mathew 7:21-23). Don’t let that happen to you! Be sure you are saved & that you have been grafted into the True Vine, (Ref. Romans 9:17.) No one can be a fruitful branch for the glory of God until they have a vital, life-giving connection to the Vine. Before you can have anything else, from God or with God, you must have that relationship to God. Before you can have a hope of Heaven, or forgiveness of sin, you must have a relationship with Him.
A vine has one distinct purpose: bearing fruit. But, if you will notice, the vine itself not bear the fruit. It delegates the fruit bearing to the branches. The vine has fruit, but its fruit is the branches! So, it is with Jesus Christ. He came to this world to die on the cross for the sins of fallen men, (Ref. Mark 10:45; Luke 19:10; John 18:37); His fruit is the souls saved by His grace. His fruit is believers. His fruit
Lt. Charles Smith is commanding officer of the Salvation Army of El Dorado. is those branches that have been grafted into Him by grace. His fruit is us, & He has delegated the bearing of fruit to you and me. God, indicates that He expects us to bear fruit. God expects us to always be growing. Are you abiding in Christ today?