True Fruit comes only from Abiding in the True Vine
Jesus told His disciples shortly before His death, “’I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do. Arise, let us go from here.’” (John 14: 30-31) The ruler of this present world is Satan, a powerful supernatural being who fell from heaven because of his pride. He now operates this world’s system through “force, greed, selfishness, ambition, and sinful pleasure.” (Scofield 1744) Ultimately, Satan brought about Jesus’ death and crucifixion, but Jesus was triumphant over Satan. He rose from the dead, and opened the door to eternal life for all men and women who come to Him in faith.
Jesus then spoke to His disciples about the true vine, and the branches. He identified Himself as the true vine, His Father as the vinedresser, and the branches as those who follow Him. He told them, “’If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.’” (John 15: 7-10)
Can we expect to ask God for anything we want? No, He said that ‘if you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.’ Through “abiding” in God, and allowing His word to “abide” in us, we then ask for those things that please Him, rather than what pleases our fallen natures. We come to want what He wants, more than what we want. We come to recognize that His will is the best for us, no matter what. Jesus said for us to “abide in His love.” He said that if we keep His commandments, we “abide” in His love. If we disobey His word, we are separating ourselves from His love. He continues to love us, but in our rebellion, we break fellowship with Him. However, He is full of mercy and grace, and when we do repent (turn) from our rebellion, He receives us back into fellowship.
God wants us to bear much fruit. This fruit is described in Romans 1: 13 as converts to the gospel; in Galatians 5: 22-23 as character traits such as love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control; and in Phil. 1: 9-11 as being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are ‘by’ Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. On our own, or through our own efforts, we cannot produce the true ‘fruit’ of God. These fruits only come through ‘abiding’ in Him, and allowing His powerful word to ‘abide’ in us. As Scofield points out, “the moralities and graces of Christianity, which are the fruit of the Spirit, are often imitated but never duplicated.” (Scofield 1478)
If you do not know Jesus Christ. He wants you to understand that He came to earth, veiled Himself in flesh, lived a sinless perfect life, and died as a willing sacrifice to pay for our sins. There is only one way to live with Him eternally. You must turn to Him in faith, recognizing that you are a sinner in need of salvation. Ask Him to save you from eternal wrath. Those who do not turn to Him, remain under the wrath of God, which will last forever. Jesus is the only way out of that wrath. Welcome Him to be your Lord and Savior. He will begin a work of transformation within your life. He will make you a new creation from the inside out. As the well known verse of Scripture proclaims: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3: 16-17)
REFERENCES:
Scofield, C.I. Ed. The Scofield Study Bible. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
