I am the vine, you are the branches; he who
abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
John 15:5 [NASB]
What was Jesus talking
about in the first eleven verses of John 15? He talked about love and abiding.
God loves each of us so much He sent His Son to earth to die for us. That is
sacrificial love. God knew in advance His Son’s death was necessary. His task
was to die for us so we would not die forever and lose out on being in a
relationship with God.
That is sacrificial
love, agape, and comes from God. So often we hear of it as brotherly and
sisterly love among Christians, but it first came from God and gets its
definition from Him. God gave this sacrificial love whether a person accepted
or rejected it. He loves us that much. God loves us dearly. Do we love someone
that much? Would we be willing to lay down our lives for someone?
Jesus explained this
kind of love would be made full in believers when we love Him in return and
others (vs. 11). How are we supposed to love Jesus? He said how in verse ten.
Jesus said, “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.” Not doing what Jesus
taught does not keep Jesus and the Father from loving you, but it shows you do
not love Them. Remember, God showed His loved to us in that while we were still
sinners, Jesus died for us (Romans 5:8). That means there is nothing you can do
to earn His saving love. He already loves you sacrificially, dearly.
Jesus said to His
disciples in these verses to abide in Him. Abiding shows our love for Him
because by doing this we keep His commandments, remain clean, get what we ask
for in prayer, bear fruit, glorify the Father, and have complete and full joy
(vs. 3, 7-8, & 11). What is abiding? Abiding is remaining in Christ,
following His teachings and examples for living so as not to depart from it but
to continue walking in them, holding onto them and waiting for Christ’s return.
It’s not just doing what Jesus said today, but it’s for tomorrow, and
tomorrow’s tomorrow, and on and on until Jesus returns while we wait
expectantly. Abiding is not just doing, it is being and thinking. It’s not
giving up hope, but holding on to what Jesus taught, holding onto His word (vs.
3).
Do you abide in Christ?
Your reward is God’s love and complete joy. With this joy, God’s joy (charis)
in you is never ending because it comes from Him and He is eternal. Why
wouldn’t we want to abide in Christ when He loves us dearly. That’s what His
sacrificial love for us states. God loves us dearly, and it cost Him dearly. It
cost Him the horrific death of His Son who carried the weight and guilt of our
sins so we could be reunited with Him. That is dear love. That is sacrificial
love. That is AGAPE love.
Agape is more than what
one Christian gives to another. It is the love God gave them and they accepted
upon belief in Jesus Christ as their Savior. Agape love is sharing the love God
put into a believer’s heart with another believer. Agape love is sacrificial.
What are you sacrificing to love another person?
·
You are sacrificing your hold on your
life, your freewill, so that Jesus becomes Lord of your life.
·
You are sacrificing walls that once
guarded your heart.
·
You are sacrificing safety to show love
to the world.
What were Jesus’ points
in these eleven verses?
·
He is the true Way, and true Vine.
·
The Father, of which Jesus is the Son,
is the true God who takes and gives life.
·
Those who abide in Jesus, who continue
in His way and keep living expecting His return, are the healthy vine and will
be pruned, made clean and pure, so they bear more fruit.
·
Those who do not abide in Jesus will be
cut off and cast down together into a fire to be burned. They have no fruit and
are not true vines.
·
The people who produce fruit, who abide
in Christ, can ask for what they wish and it will be answered through Jesus.
·
Abiding in Christ glorifies the Father.
·
Abiding proves you are a disciple of
Christ.
·
Jesus loves dearly and sacrificially
those who abide in Him, just as His Father loves Him.
·
Jesus told His disciples this so His joy
would be in them and their joy would be made full and complete, abounding.
Are you abiding in
Christ? Are you showing your sacrificial love for Him by obeying His
commandments?
Why settle for
human-inspired and -originated love? Instead, seek the love that is dear and
was bought with a great price. Seek God’s sacrificial love that gives you an
eternal relationship with Him. That is True Love!
True Love. True Joy. True Life.
These come through
Jesus. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life” in John 14:6.
Come, He says, accept
His gifts of love, joy, and life.
God dearly loves you.
Come to Him and receive this great sacrificial
love for yourself through Jesus Christ.
Lord, I come to you acknowledging I
do not know how to live this life of abiding without You. I fail all the time
because of my self-seeking. Forgive me of this. Please give Your love and joy
to me. Teach me how to abide in You. Teach me how to love sacrificially.
