What is Fruit?

'I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains
in me and I in him he will bear much fruit; apart from
me you can do nothing. John 15:5

Nothing? I can do nothing? This just took the wind out
of my sails.
I have spent my whole life trying to do something for
God; working for God.
Isn't that what the Christian life is all about?
So, just what is fruit, anyway?

"Fruit is the over-plus of the tree's life, over and above
what it uses on itself, for self-existence.

Fruit has the flavor of the tree, is separable from the tree,
can be given away, is such as to be a blessing to others.

Jesus showed us we are so united to Him, as branches to
Vine, that His life flows into and through us, manifesting
itself as fruit. That is, we are so to appropriate and live
His life as not to use it up on ourselves, not, as is often
said, in 'trying to live the Christian life.'

What self-centerdness! Rather, to let Christ so realize
His own life in us that His very quality of life, with all its
power to bless, is manifest through our transformed,
yielded, self-effaced personalities.

Should there be no such fruit, we defeat the very purpose
of our being 'in Christ,' but as we abide, draw upon Him,
the inexhaustible Source, and yield ourselves to His
in-flowing, there results an out-flowing of His life in
'fruit.'

As we learn better to abide in Him, the fruit becomes
'more fruit.' But Christ is satisfied only when 'more'
becomes the abounding 'much fruit.'"
Norman B Harrison.

One more thought:
"Fruit is not produced by making fruit an object, nor by
thinking of fruit; it is the outcome of having the
Lord Jesus as one's object, of thinking of Him. He is
the one True Vine who precedes and produces fruit."
Hannah Whitall Smith

Reader, the name of the website is
His Victorious Indwelling. It is impossible to produce
fruit that lasts, eternal fruit, out of my own resources.
But, I continue to try...

www.hisvictoriousindwelling.com