APRIL 27 READINGS…JOHN 15
Jesus tells us that He is the “true” vine. There are many “vines” out there, but there is only one true vine, that is Jesus. It is important for us to understand that if anything is going to be produced in our lives of eternal value, it will be because we are abiding in Christ. Branches that are not attached to the vine die…and a dead branch is incapable of producing any fruit. It is not the branch that supplies what is needed to produce fruit…it is the vine. We believers are incapable of producing anything of God, or from God, unless we are abiding in Christ Jesus. Jesus promises that when we abide in Him, and He in us, we will produce the “fruit” of God. He speaks an eternal truth…apart from Him, we can do NOTHING!
Jesus then carries our dependence on Him to teach us of God’s plan that we be interdependent on one another in the body of Christ. He calls us His friends, not His servants. He intends for us to not only be His friends… but friends with one another. He lets us know that it will be impossible for we, who are His friends, to be friends with the world. For the world hates Him…so they will hate us. He warns of the persecution to come. It is important for us to understand that the worlds hatred of Christians has little to do with us, and ultimately is based on the fact that they hate God. That is what Jesus says. They have no legitimate reason to hate God, but they do so for they love darkness more than light, and lies more than they do the truth. Finally, Jesus promises that we will have the Holy Spirit who will speak God’s to us and through us.
Please share your thoughts from today’s reading.
TOMORROW’S READING…JOHN 16