Saturday, May 4, 2013
John 15:5, 8 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. ... By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."
A CHRISTIAN IS A FRUIT-PRODUCING VINE
There is no life without Jesus, but let us consider the blessings when we are connected to our Savior. "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." Just as a branch receives its nourishment and life through the vine, so also we receive all that we need for life through Jesus.
Jesus says: "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you." You and I have been justified, that is declared "not guilty" because we have been cleansed in the blood of Christ. Because you are connected to Jesus, God looks upon you and declares that you are holy. He does not see your past sin and failures because that was washed away in the holy, precious blood of Jesus. He purified you by taking your sin and its punishment upon Himself, and giving you His righteousness. In that great exchange you were grafted onto the living vine.
You are now fruit-producing branches. If you have an apple tree that really produces, you wouldn't say it's a good tree because it has a particular branch that is so wonderful, but the tree itself gets the credit. The tree is the source of the goodness. Because Jesus is the source of your spiritual life, the fruits of faith that you produce in this life are credited to Him. In your life you will reflect what Jesus is like, and that is love, patience, joy and hope and the other fruits of goodness that are of God.
