Key Verse: John 15:5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."
Key Thought: Just as a television set must be plugged into the wall to get the electricity it needs, so we must stay plugged into Jesus in order to have the power we need to serve and obey Him.
Verse 1. The grapevine is a prolific plant; a single vine bears many grapes. In the Old Testament, grapes were a symbol of Israel's fruitfulness in doing God's work on the earth. (Psalm 80:8, Isaiah 5:1-7, Ezekiel 19:10-14) In the Passover meal, the fruit of the vine was a symbol of God's goodness to His people.
Verses 1-8. Jesus Christ is the Vine, the true Vine. The union of the human and Divine natures, and the fullness of the Spirit that is in Him, resemble the root of the vine made fruitful by the moisture from a rich soil. Believers are branches of this Vine. The root is unseen, and our life is hidden with Christ; the root bears the tree, diffuses sap to it, and in Christ are all supports and supplies. The branches of the vine are many, yet, meeting in the root, are all but one vine; thus all true Christians, though in place and opinion distant from each other, meet in Christ. Believers, like the branches of the vine, are weak, and unable to stand alone. The Father is the Husbandman. Never was any husbandman so wise, so watchful, about His vineyard, as God is about His church, which therefore must prosper. We must be fruitful. From a vine we look for grapes, and from a Christian we look for a Christian temper, disposition, life and love. We must honor God, and do good; this is bearing fruit. The unfruitful are taken away. And even fruitful branches need pruning; for the best have notions, passions, and humors, that require to be taken away by Christ. The word of Christ is spoken to all believers; and there is a cleansing virtue in that word, as it works grace, and works out corruption. And the more fruit we bring forth, the more we abound in what is good, the more our Lord is glorified. In order to possess fruitfulness, we must abide in Christ and must have union with Him by faith. It is the great concern of all Christ's disciples, constantly to keep up dependence upon Christ, and communion with Him. True Christians find by experience, that any interruption in the exercise of their faith, causes holy affections to decline, their corruptions to revive, and their comforts to droop. Those who don't abide in Christ, though they may flourish for awhile in outward profession, yet come to nothing. The fire is the fittest place for withered branches; they are good for nothing else. Let us seek to live more simply on the fulness of Christ, and to grow more fruitful in every good word and work, so our joy in Him and in His salvation be full.
When you are running low on power, ask yourself, "How long have I been away from the Source?"
Verses 2 and 3. Jesus makes a distinction between two kinds of pruning. (1) separating (15:2), and (2) cutting back branches (15:3). Fruitful branches are cut back to promote growth. In other words, God must sometimes discipline us to strengthen our character and faith. But branches that don't bear fruit are cut off at the trunk--they are not only worthless, they often infect the rest of the tree. Those who won't bear fruit for God or who try to block the efforts of God's followers will be cut off from the divine flow of life.
It's either fruit or fire.
Verses 9-17. Those whom God loves as a Father, may despise the hatred of all the world. As the Father loved Christ, who was most worthy, so He loved his disciples, who were unworthy. All that love the Savior should continue in their love to Him, and take all occasions to show it. The joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment, but the joy of those who abide in Christ's love is a continual feast. They are to show their love to Him by keeping His commandments. If the same power that first shed abroad the love of Christ's in our hearts, did not keep us in that love, we should not abide in it for long. Christ's love to us should direct us to love each other.
Verse 11. When things are going well, we feel elated. When hardships come, we sink into depression. But true joy transcends these waves of circumstance. Joy comes from a consistent relationship with Jesus Christ. When our lives are intertwined with His, He will help us walk through adversity without sinking into lows and manage prosperity without moving into deceptive highs. The joy of living with Jesus Christ daily keeps us levelheaded no matter how high or low our circumstances.
We can't always control our circumstances, but we can control our response. We can't determine what hand of cards we are dealt, but we can decide what to do with them.
The circumstances never control the agenda. Jesus has given us our agenda and we must stick to it.
Verses 12 and 13. We are to love one another as Jesus loved us, and He loved us enough to give His life for us. We may not have to die for someone, but there are other ways we can demonstrate our sacrificial love for others: listening, helping, encouraging, giving, praying. Think of someone in particular who needs this kind of love today. Give all the love you can, and then try to give a little more.
Verse 15. Because Jesus Christ is Lord and Master, He should call us slaves, but instead He calls us friends. Because He is Lord and Master, our obedience should be unqualified and blind, but Jesus asks us to obey Him because we love Him (14:23, 24).
Verse 16. Jesus made the first choice--to love and to die for us, to invite us to live with Him forever. We make the next choice--to accept or reject His offer. Without His choice, we would have no choice to make.
Verses 18-25. How little do many persons think, that in opposing the doctrine of Christ as our Prophet, Priest, and King, they prove themselves ignorant of the one living and true God, whom they profess to worship! The name into which Christ's disciples were baptized, is that which they will live and die by. It is a comfort to the greatest sufferers, if they suffer for Christ's name's sake. The world's ignorance is the true cause of its hatred to the disciples of Jesus. The clearer and fuller the discoveries of the grace and truth of Christ, the greater is our sin if we do not love Him and believe in Him.
Verses 26-27. The blessed Spirit will maintain the cause of Christ in the world, notwithstanding the opposition it meets. Believers taught and encouraged by His influences, would bear testimony to Christ and His salvation.
We must testify about Jesus Christ.
It's not about how often people come to Christ, it's about how often you share the good news of the gospel.