You Can’t Do It Without Him - February 9

Read John 15:4-5

“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. 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.”

Reflect

Have you ever tried to change your behavior, habits, or lifestyle on your own? How did it go?

If you were planting an apple tree, what are some things you would do to ensure that your tree bore good fruit? Chances are you’d prepare the soil and make sure the tree would get plenty of sun. After you planted it, you’d regularly make sure your tree received the right amount of water. Then, you’d have to sit back and wait. An apple tree doesn’t start producing apples right away. Apparently, the process can take 2-5 years or more!

But if you want fresh apples from your tree, you probably won’t cut off a branch, take that branch inside your house, and wait for apples to sprout on it. Why? Because we all know that if you cut the branch off the tree, it will stop growing. Removing a branch from a tree cuts the branch off from its source of life. Well, if you are a believer wanting to grow in your faith and bear good fruit, there is one thing you can’t do. You can’t cut yourself off from your Source of Life!

That’s why, in today’s verses, Jesus urged His disciples to abide in Him. Abide means to stay, remain, or dwell with someone. He wanted them to stick with Him so that they can be fruitful.

Jesus used a metaphor in which He called Himself the true vine and the Father is the caretaker of the vine (John 15:1). In this metaphor, branches are people who profess to be Christians. But there are two types of branches, those who bear fruit and those who don’t. According to John 15:2 and John 15:6, the Father takes away every branch that doesn’t bear fruit and casts them into the fire to be burned. His point? People who profess to know Jesus but don’t bear spiritual fruit are not genuine believers. They aren’t connected to the True Vine, who is the source of eternal life.

In contrast, true believers bear good fruit, not because they work really hard at doing good works but because they are connected to the Vine! Jesus reminded us of what we logically already know—branches don’t bear fruit by themselves. That’s why it’s a bad idea to cut off a branch of your apple tree and expect it to produce apples!

It’s also a bad idea to cut yourself off from Christ while expecting to grow and become more like Him. It won’t work. Jesus Himself said that apart from Him, you can’t do anything of eternal value. If we want to be faithful and fruitful believers, the key is staying connected to Christ. The alternative is being a false convert who faces eternal judgment. True believers always bear fruit.

But what do we mean by “bearing fruit”? Fruit is used to represent the outward actions of a person’s inner nature. When a person becomes a believer in Jesus Christ, they receive the Holy Spirit. Their changed character, or new nature, is a sign that the Spirit dwells within them. Paul listed the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”.

This “fruit” is the evidence of our salvation. It is the proof that we belong to Christ. The good news is that if we are in Christ, we WILL bear fruit, not because of all the work that we try to do to produce it but because of His work in us to produce it.

Jesus told us to “abide in me and I in you.” That means remain with Him, dwell with Him, do life with Him because He lives in you. We have a personal relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ! In all of my other personal relationships, the deeper the communication and commitment, the deeper the connection. When we regularly communicate with God through His Word and through prayer, our connection with Him deepens and strengthens. As a result, we bear more and more spiritual fruit.

If you are trying to change your behaviors, habits, and lifestyle apart from Christ, you are fighting a losing battle. You won't win. But if you are connected to the True Vine, if you are abiding in Christ, then depend on His strength and ask for the Holy Spirit’s help to overcome your old, sinful nature. It is a process, it does take time, but when we abide in Christ, He will grow us and change us. In time, we will produce fruit that matches our new natures—the Fruit of His Spirit working in us.

Respond

Lord, I know that apart from You, I can’t do anything that matters for eternity. I can’t produce spiritual fruit that is worth anything on my own. Help me remain securely attached to You. I want to be a faithful and fruitful believer. Make me more and more like You every day. Amen

Reveal

What new fruit have you noticed the Spirit producing in your life? Share that victory with another believer and ask them to continue to pray that the Spirit would continue to cultivate and grow His fruit in your life.