He is the Vine
There is an issue I have seen, and have been guilty of being a part of myself.
There are “Christians” who know stuff about Christ, who talk about Him and maybe even read the Bible regularly, but their life doesn’t reflect the love of Christ. Unless we spend time in intimate fellowship with Him, living a productive fruit-bearing life as a disciple, it means nothing.
Dr. Tony Evans discussed the importance of an intimate relationship with Christ, pointing to John 15.
“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. “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. 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. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” John 15:4-8
Dr. Evans gave a profound example. He said, “No wife can get pregnant by having a discussion of sex around the breakfast table with her husband. Yes, she can talk about it with her husband every single day, and he can even make some pretty powerful points. In fact, both of them can talk about it for years. The length of time they talk makes no difference at all because no wife is ever going to get pregnant from a discussion of the subject or from her knowledge of sex. There has to be an accompanying level of intimacy, an experiential knowing, in order to bear life.”
Wow.
Do you truly know the One who loved us so much He gave His life for each one of us? He desires to have a deep level of intimacy with each of us just like a branch to a vine. The branch is connected to the vine, and the vine counts on the branch to give it life. If the branch does not prove to be fruitful it gets pruned, and it can’t be fruitful without the vine.
I don’t know about you, but I have a deep desire to have a fruit-bearing life, and I can’t, nor do I want to do it without Jesus.
“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. “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. 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. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” John 15:4-8
Dr. Evans gave a profound example. He said, “No wife can get pregnant by having a discussion of sex around the breakfast table with her husband. Yes, she can talk about it with her husband every single day, and he can even make some pretty powerful points. In fact, both of them can talk about it for years. The length of time they talk makes no difference at all because no wife is ever going to get pregnant from a discussion of the subject or from her knowledge of sex. There has to be an accompanying level of intimacy, an experiential knowing, in order to bear life.”
Wow.
Do you truly know the One who loved us so much He gave His life for each one of us? He desires to have a deep level of intimacy with each of us just like a branch to a vine. The branch is connected to the vine, and the vine counts on the branch to give it life. If the branch does not prove to be fruitful it gets pruned, and it can’t be fruitful without the vine.
I don’t know about you, but I have a deep desire to have a fruit-bearing life, and I can’t, nor do I want to do it without Jesus.
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