Jesus said in John 15:5: I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me, you can do nothing.
As I sit here pondering this I see the vine as the Tree of Life. This Tree/Vine has branches in all of the redeemed--fruit bearing branches. Each of us is a walking cluster of grapes giving forth life to an empty, desolate planet as we go about living each day. But, am I responsible for producing the fruit. NO! The fruit is formed out of abiding not working. In fact it is only by staying in the Tree/Vine that we can do anything.
Papa, what you are asking of me is impossible. I want to go forth and slay dragons; satisfy the needs of my brothers and sisters. I want to look good in the eyes of others. I want to be noticed and affirmed. I,I, I. Yuk! It seems to me that abiding in the vine is pretty passive and lazy in its appearance. I am asking you today to teach me all it means to abide--it is against my human nature. But I believe that what you are saying in this verse is truth and that abiding is activated through faith. I give you my nothing today--in exchange for your everything!
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