Our Good Gardener prepares the soil for the best outcome of growth and health for the Roots, Vine, branches and Fruit. Our Wonderful Roots keeps the Vine attached to the soil so that everything that is good can flow through Him to the branches, who bear the Fruit.
“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.” Jn 15:5 NIV
Remember the Good Gardener? In planning everything that would ever happen in this world, the Father also planned for the 1st coming, the life, the death, the Resurrection and the 2nd coming of His Son, Jesus our Christ. The planting of The Vine, Jesus, into the soil, this world, was something the Father had already foreseen because He also knew we humans would choose our own way. Remember Isaiah 53:6?
The Vine had to be planted in this world so that He could carry all the branches, making it possible for us to be grafted into Him. We Christians have this way of saying that believers are “IN Christ.” This becoming a branch attached to the Vine is what we are talking about. If you are not a member of God’s Forever Family through the sacrifice of Jesus, then your are not “IN” Christ, and nothing good will flow into you from Christ. Just like a branch must be attached to the Vine for it to receive any nutrients to help it grow and bear fruit, you and I must be connected to Jesus in order to have Eternal Life, and begin living the Abundant Life here. If a branch is not attached to the Vine, it will die and be thrown away. Verse 6 of John 15 says, “If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.” If you have not surrendered your life to Jesus, then you are not IN the Vine and…well, just read the sorrowful results in v6 again for yourselves.
Grafted in. The moment we become born again, we are implanted into Jesus. That is, His sacrifice, His payment for our sin, His clearing of all our debt, becomes real to us. Eternal Life in Heaven with God becomes our destiny. But in the meantime, before we leave this world, we must remain attached to, and growing IN Jesus, so that we can begin to experience this New Life here. We do this by reading, studying and applying God’s Word. We do this by participating in our local church…note I did not say “attending,” but participating! Each member of a family should have their own responsibilities and duties. It is the same with God’s Family too! We also can stay attached to Jesus through prayer, listening to Christian music, doing good deeds as we follow the Holy Spirt’s lead and…and so many more ways. Please leave a comment below on some ways you are currently remaining in the Vine.
Again I say, without the Good Gardener Who makes sure the soil is rich, without the Roots Who keeps all good things flowing, and without the Vine through Whom we receive the life-giving nutrients of the rich soil, there would be no branches and no fruit.
Join me in memorizing 52 verses this year:
January: 1- Jn 3:16; 2- 2Co 5:17; 3- Jas 2:26; 4- Eph 2:10
February: 5- Jn 10:10; 6- Ro 6:23; 7- Rev 21:4; 8- Php 4:13
March: 9- 1Pe 5:7; 10- Jn 8:32; 11- Dt 30:19; 12- Jn 3:30; 13- 2Chron 20:3
April: 14- 2Chron 20:12; 15- 2Chron 20:15b; 16- 2Chron 20:17
May: 17- Ro 8:28; 18- 1Co 13:13; 19- Php 2:12; 20- Mt 5:4
June: 21- Lk 23:42; 22- Jas 4:7; 23- Pr 22:6; 24- Mt 5:3; 25- Jn 14:6
July: 26- Jas 2:19; 27- Dt 31:8; 28- Jn 14:15; 29- Jn 8:11
August: 30- Ro 8:1; 31- Pr 4:23; 32- Pr 18:21; 33- Ps 118:24; 34- 1Jn 4:4
September: 35- Mt 16:24; 36- Isa 53:6; 37- Ps 23:1-6
38- Heb 4:12
39- Jn 15:5
<>< Peace, Diane
