Abide in Me and I in You

John 15:1-10

The Lord is the True Vine and Believers are the Branches

Before the Lord Jesus was crucified and departed from his disciples, He indicated that “He is the vine and the disciples are the branches”, and they have life connection.

vv1-3 says that,

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.”

Christ turns out to the Vine and God is the gardener who is in charge of pruning the branches in order for them to bear more fruits. Branches refer to all who call themselves Christians.

Those branches that bear fruits are true disciples while those branches that do not bear fruits are superficial Christians who promise God without sincerity and they betray Him ultimately. They are not progressing and lifeless.

What does it mean to “bear fruit”?

“Bearing fruit” does not only mean bringing others to Christ. Prayers that are heard by God, and joy and love are all fruits (15:7,11-12). Fruit can also refer to the character of Christians (Galatians 5:22-24; 2 Peter 1:5-8).

God will prune those branches that bear fruits, and trim those branches that hinder the vine from bearing fruits, so that it will be more fruitful. In another word, God will discipline us sometimes in order to strengthen our character and faith.

On the other hand, God will cut off those branches that bear no fruit. These branches are useless and they consume the nutrition of the plant. They signify those who cannot bear fruit for God or who hinder the work of God. They will be cut off by God and be thrown into the fire and burnt.

Remain in the Lord by the Spirit to have Life

Hence, the Lord Jesus reminds the disciples that they have to remain in Him so that they can bear fruit. Or else, they will be cut off and thrown away.

Vv 4-5 says that,

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

“Remain” （in Greek is μένω）is the key word in this text (vv1-10), and it appears ten times. The word can be translated as “remain” or “abide” in this text. For example, verse 4 can be translated as, “Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”

What does it mean to “remain in the Lord”?

The Lord Jesus explained it by the relationship that exists between the vine and its branches. He said, “I am the vine; you are the branches.” The disciples have to remain in the Lord, just like branches are to remain on the vine. There is a life connection between them.

1 John also mentions about “remaining in the Lord”.

In 2:24 it says that,

“See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.”

The word “remains” and “abide” in this text also derive from the Greek word “μένω”, and “remain in heart” was translated literally as “remain in you.”

The Scripture reminds us to keep whatever we have heard in our hearts, and these include believing Jesus Christ as the Son of God, receiving Him as the Saviour and the Lord of our lives, as well as keeping the commandments of God and holding on to the truth.

1 John 2:27 specifically tells us to remain in the Lord in accordance to the teaching of his anointing—Holy Spirit.

“As for you, the anointing you receive from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit – just as it has taught you, remain in him.”

The Lord Jesus promises that the presence of the Holy Spirit will be with His disciples forever (John 14:14-17). The Spirit of the Truth will guide the disciples into all truth, and He will speak forth whatever He had heard, and He will teach them all things and will remind them of everything the Lord Jesus has said (John 14:26, 16:13).

The Holy Spirit dwells in us and He guides us to remember all the teachings and the words of Jesus, so that there is an intimate life connection between us and God.

“Maintaining an intimate relationship with the Lord” includes also connecting the communities of believers with love, for the communities of believers are the Body of Christ.

Therefore, let us not quench the Holy Spirit, but to seek to be filled by Him, and to rely on His power to pray unceasingly, to reflect upon the Word of God, to keep His truth and to serve God and people in the Church.  This is the life that “abides in the Lord”.

The Life Characteristics of “Remaining in the Lord”

We can see from verses 1-10 that the life that “remains in the Lord” will bear fruit. The life that bears fruits is also a life that is cleansed by God, and gives glory to God. It is a life that loves God and loves people.

1.      Cleansed by God

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.” (vv1-3）

“You are already clean……” reminds me of a previous record of the Lord Jesus washing the feet of His disciples, and He said, “And you are clean, though not every one of you. “

The one unclean among the disciples was Judas Iscariot (John 13:10-11.)

Though Judas was one of the twelve disciples, his heart was away from God, and he eventually decided to betray Jesus. Even though Judas had been so often hearing the sermons preached by the Lord Jesus, yet he did not receive it genuinely. Neither did he obey nor did he believe, and he eventually ended his life miserably.

A true disciple who remains in the Lord is someone who believes and is willing to obey the Word of God. The Word of God compels us to forsake evil and to accept the life that is given by the Lord Jesus. God also prunes our lives to make them clean with His Word so that we can grow to be more and more like Christ.

When we remain in the Lord and the Word of the Lord remains in us, and we are willing to obey His Word and we allow Him to change our lives, our lives will be cleansed and we shall experience growth.

2.      Glorify the Father

“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” （vv. 7-8）

This is a precious promise and it was special and extremely valuable to the disciples at that time. Their Lord Jesus was to leave them and He had clearly told them that they would be hated and persecuted by the world! Nevertheless, the Lord commanded them to remain in Him!

As such, the Word of the Lord also remained in them and they would remember His promise of peace and victory in the midst of their tribulations (John 14:31,16:33). They would then be able to seek God’s help in accordance to His promises.

The Bible has recorded many of God’s promises and may we remember them all and keep them in our hearts. The Lord is merciful and He is faithful. We can ask God for help as His grace is sufficient for us to handle all situations.

When we ask in accordance to His promises in whatever circumstances or needs, we are in, He will meet our needs, and He will enable us to be filled with peace, joy and patience, etc., and to bear the fruit of the Spirit in any circumstance.

It is a life that glorifies God, for when we bear the fruit of the Spirit and we reflect the glorious image of Him, others will see it in our lives and they will recognize us as disciples of Christ and they will give all glory and praises to Him.

3.      Love God and Love People

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.” (vv. 9-10)

The Lord Jesus loves God and submits to all of God’s will. We who are His disciples should also learn from Him to be obedient to God and to keep His command to love others and to abide in His love.

“Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” （1 John 3:16）

Christ loves us with sacrificial love. He commanded us, that, “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” (John 13:34)

Therefore, we have to love our brothers and sisters with such sacrificial love.

Although not every believer will experience the laying down of his/her life for his/her brother and sister, all of us will surely meet someone who is in need, and we need to love them sacrificially. E.g., lending out our support by giving out our money, energy or time, etc.

This kind of sacrificial love has to be translated into action (1 John 3:17-18).

Abiding in the Lord and remaining in the Word of God helps us know that loving God and loving people is the example and command given to us by the Lord. We abide in God’s love when we keep His commands.

Conclusion

Ask the Lord to pour on us His Spirit, and to guide us to take root in His living words, to remain in Him, and to allow His word to purify us and help us to go on with our lives, that we will dwell in the love of God and imitate Him to love God and people.

May we be branches that bear much fruit so that God the Father shall receive all the glory.