The Gospel of John | Abiding In The True Vine – John 15:1-17
Jesus Christ offers the fullness of life and love in Himself as the one who gave Himself up for us so that we could remain in Him.
During that time, the culture remained largely agrarian. Most of the people found their sustenance from farming and new about the various aspects of crop rotation, soils, and all the other needed understanding in order to grow crops. For some, this would have been to feed themselves, for others, it was to sell to and trade with people. Thus, as Jesus begins this section of the Farewell Discourse, the imagery of a vine did not go unnoticed. For the disciples, they would be enduring the death and burial of their Lord and Rabbi. The temptation would be ever present to reject Him, abandon the faith, and turn away from the true faith. Jesus’ words would have resonated within them: abide in me. These words would have been profoundly impactful knowing that Jesus had been willfully approaching His death for the sake of the people. Yet, he claimed to be the sole source of life. The love of Jesus Christ for His people would give them the strength to abide in Him even during the most difficult of times or to seek to do enough good to merit the love of God.
The temptation of obedience usually comes in the form of our thinking that we must strive to be fully obedient to God. In essence, we think we must prove ourselves to God through our obedience by going above and beyond in order that God would love us more fully. Yet, to do this would miss the entirely of the point Jesus is trying to communicate. Jesus Christ, and Him alone, are the fullness of obedience and the fullness of love and salvation. The role of mankind is not to go out on our own but to abide in the vine. Anytime we become disconnected with the vine, we become disconnected from the source of our life. Furthermore, it is love that Christ offers to those who abide in Him. Jesus Christ offers the fullness of life and love in Himself as the one who gave Himself up for us so that we could remain in Him.
Abiding In the Vine
Jesus Christ plainly told them to abide in Him. The Father serves as the farmer and Jesus Christ as the true vine. Everything the vine does stems from the being sent and empowered by the farmer. Likely, Jesus Christ is sent by the Father as the true vine and the true authentic source of life. In farming, weeds will attempt to grow around a leech off the nutrients of the vine, but ultimately, life is find exclusively in the vine. The message of Jesus Christ then is to abide in the true source of life for all people. Life cannot be reasonably expected to be produced apart from the source of all life. Thus, for the Christian, the walk of the Christian life is to abide fully in the presence of God. The origin and sustenance of all life is found in Jesus Christ and apart from Him there can be no life
To abide in Christ involves a standing with Him. We go where Christ goes, say what Christ says, think what Christ thinks. Through the process of sanctification, we become more and more like Him every day by the power of the Holy Spirit within us. Some may think that to abide in Christ is merely a matter of being obedient to what He says. While there is truth it this, it misses the point that Christ has been victorious and obedient on our behalf. When we branch off and attempt to be obedient by our own merits, we disconnect ourselves from the vine. Our obedience is the natural outpouring of our abiding in Him as Jesus is the victor over all creation and as the one who stood perfect in the face of temptation. He is Holy. We do not “be Holy” so that we can abide in Christ. We abide in Christ and are Holy because He is Holy on our behalf. Furthermore, as we abide in Christ, we will find a joy in the process. The obedience we express is not a means of oppression (whatever our old, fleshly person would attempt to say) but rather it is a source of joy to be connected to the true vine, the source of life. Our joy can only be found in our abiding in Jesus Christ and submitting to the better will He has for us and for all creation. He is the true vine, the source of all life in Himself who offers this grace to us.
- What does it mean to abide in Jesus Christ? What are the effects of this abiding?
The Love of Those In The Vine
Many of us view the statement of “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13, ESV) as a command to be willing to lay down our lives for those around us. This is not wrong necessarily but it skips an incredibly important point in our understanding of abiding in the vine. Like obedience, love is not something we muster up on our own in order to best understand and approach God. This misses the point of abiding in Christ. Jesus is the source of love stemming from the eternal relationship between The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. The abundance of the love that God expresses in Himself pours out in excess to those connected to Jesus Christ in the vine. We are perfectly loved by Jesus Christ first and above all. Any attempt to produce love on our own apart from the vine will fail.
The love we have for other people comes from the overflow of abundance that God has in Himself. We love others because God loves us first and we abide in the vine. Our love should be a Godly love that draws people closer to a relationship with Jesus Christ. It should speak of the goodness and glory of God while extending grace to those who sin against us and who do not yet know the Lord. Remember, we did not choose God, God chose us first and took the first step in our salvation, giving up of Himself so that we might come to abide in Him. The love we have for others should reflect the love that Christ gives us to first as the complete and perfect love. We should be willing to lay down our lives for others because Christ first laid down His life for ours. Our life serves as a reflection of the love Christ gave to us so that when people encounter and receive our love, they experience the love of the one true God. The branches serve as extension of the vine and Christians serve as extensions of the Christ. We submit to Him because we know in Him, we have received and abundance of love that goes beyond ourselves and out into all the world.
- What is the difference between being called a servant and being called a friend?
Discussion Questions
- What does it mean that we continue to abide in Jesus Christ? What are the effects of this abiding in Jesus Christ?
- How does our life change when we continue to abide in Jesus Christ?
- We love God because He first loves us. What is the difference between a Godly love and a love that the world tries to dictate?
- How did God demonstrate His love for His people? What does this reveal about the character of God in the expression of His love for us.
About The Author
Daniel Burton is the founder of The Gospel Outpost. He is passionate about discipleship and seeing people grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. To find out more about him, check out his Author Page.
