Tag: branches

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John Devotionals

Changing yourself?

John

When Christians struggle with sin in their lives, one thought often pops up in their minds. “I have to do better.”

It is of course good to want to be victorious over sin.

But that way of thinking can also be dangerous. It often leads to pride if you are “victorious.” Or it leads to discouragement when you’re not.

And so Jesus’ words are very important here. He says,

You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. (John 15:3)

If you believe Jesus is God’s Son, that he paid for your sins on the cross, and that his words are life, you are already clean in God’s sight. (John 7:68-69)

We don’t need to strive to change ourselves to make ourselves acceptable to him. We are already clean in his sight.

So what do we need to do then?

Simply remain in Jesus.

Walk with him, each day. Learn to listen to his voice. Through his Word. Through your times of prayer. And as he speaks, with your hand in his, take one more step forward.

Jesus doesn’t expect you to become perfect in one day. All he wants you to do is to take one more step forward. And as you do, you will bear fruit. You will change.

There’s no striving to change yourself. No beating yourself up when you fall. No pride in thinking that you are somehow changing yourself into a better person. Only walking, one step at a time, rooting yourself deeper into Jesus and his love.

So let’s meditate on Jesus’ words this week.

You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.

Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me.

I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me. (John 15:3-5)

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John John 15

Chosen to be fruitful

John

This is one of the most famous passages in the Gospels in which Jesus shows us a beautiful illustration of our relationship with God.

Here he calls himself the vine. In the Old Testament, Israel was referred to as a vine. They were to bear fruit for God so that the nations would see them and be drawn to God.

But through their disobedience they bore only bad fruit, and as a result, God brought judgment upon them. (Isaiah 5:1–7, Jeremiah 2:21)

So now Jesus doesn’t just call himself the vine, but the “true” vine. A vine whose fruit would not only draw people to God, but save them.

And Jesus tells us we are the branches to the vine. He tells us in verse 16,

I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. (John 15:16)

What does it mean to bear fruit? I think the first thing it means is the fruit of a changed life.

Paul, after talking about the kind of sinful life we once lived, tells us,

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self‑control. (Galatians 5:22–23)

In other words, if we are Christians, it should be evidenced in our lives. Our lives should be different from what they once were.

And as our lives change, we’ll see fruit in that we’ll start to make an impact on the people around us. People will see God himself in us, be drawn to him, and be saved.

That’s what God originally intended for Israel, and that’s what God intends for us now. Peter puts it this way,

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. (1 Peter 2:9)

You were chosen to be fruitful. Are you?

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Ezekiel

Spiritually fruitless

Ezekiel

I’m not a farmer nor am I a carpenter, so I learned something about the wood from grapevines when reading this passage:  It’s absolutely useless for anything except for bearing fruit.

Now that I think about it, I’ve never heard of anyone saying, “Can I have some furniture made of grapevine wood?”

If a branch from a grapevine did not bear fruit, the only thing you could do with it back in Ezekiel’s day was to burn it and use it for fuel. 

A quick search on the internet shows that people nowadays sometimes use it for “grapevine wreaths” as a kind of art. 

But here’s what they say of the branches, and it points out why they are never used for anything else:

As soon as you cut a vine, it immediately starts to dry out and becomes brittle.  When that happens, they easily snap or break.

That’s what God was comparing Israel to. 

Throughout scripture, he compares the nation of Israel to a vineyard. 

They were to be fruitful vines that would show the nations around them who God really was.  Not only that, they were to be a blessing to all the nations surrounding them. 

But through their sin and idolatry, they had become fruitless vines. 

Instead of being a light to the nations around them, the Israelites had become just like them.  And now, cut off from their source of life, they had become dried out, brittle, and completely useless.

As a result, Babylon was coming and would literally burn down the city, destroying the temple, the royal palace, the major buildings, and many of the people’s houses.

The same thing can happen to us as Christians.  Jesus told the disciples,

Remain in me, and I will 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 a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 

If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned…

This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.  (John 15:4-6,8)

God calls us to be connected to Jesus who is the vine.  And if we are living in relationship with him, we will bear much fruit for him.  We will be a light to the people around us, showing them who God really is. 

But if we don’t remain in him, we wither and become brittle branches.  In that state, it’s impossible for God to use us.  And eventually, God will do something about it.

This doesn’t mean we’ll lose our salvation.  As God’s promises to Israel have never changed despite their unfaithfulness, his promises to us never change.  But he will bring discipline into our lives.

What kind of branch are you?  Are you bearing much fruit?  Or are you dry and withered?