'abide in me'
John 15:1-4 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.''
Verse 4 of the above scripture says 'abide in me.' Ever thought of what this scripture truly means?
- To abide is to remain stable or fixed onto something.
- We are the branches while Jesus Christ is the stem/vine.
- Just like a branch is lifeless without a stem, so are we outside Christ.
- It is the stem that is the point of connection to the plant's roots.
This means that all nutrients and substantial elements get to the branches through the stem/vine.
From this analogy, and knowing that Christ is the branch, can we really bear fruits outside Him? Certainly not.
Let's expound the name 'abide' in three ways, to better understand our relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ.
1. Connection
Just like a branch to a stem, you must be connected to the Lord.
It is to be united with Jesus. If there is no connection, there is no life, and therefore no fruits.
Being connected means;
1. Having a life-giving connection to Jesus
2. Union with Christ
2. Continuity
Continuity in Greek is 'meno.' It means to continue or remain (stay)
Continuity means 'without breaking.'
This calls for us to rely on Jesus fully, without breaking or being separated from Him at any point.
According to Rom 8:35, nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.
Verse 37 of the same chapter says that we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
If you choose your own path to destiny, you Will wither, get dry and be cast out.
We are completely dependent on Jesus.
3. Dependence
The branch depends on the stem. If you cut the branch there will be no connectivity and continuation to the stem. The branch can no longer depend on the stem.
Naturally, if you cut off a branch from the stem of a plant, it will wither and then go dry.
This is because the stem is the source that supplies the branch with nutrients. There also will be no water.
It calls for us to remain in Jesus and depend on Him for everything.
- A branch is dependent on the vine.
- The branch derives its life and power from the vine.
- Without the vine, the branch is useless, lifeless and powerless.
- Without Jesus, there is no flow of the Holy Spirit.
A healthy christian has a flow of the Holy Spirit.
- We are completely dependent upon Jesus for everything that counts as a spiritual fruit.
A branch is attached to the stem on its own. No branch depends on another for provisions.