The imagery of the vine is ancient, as the Old Testament portrays Israel as God’s vine. But Israel proved to be a fruitless, unfaithful vine, and their apostasy made it disqualified as the channel for God’s blessing. Those blessings now come only from union with Jesus Christ, the true vine. Theologically, the point of John 15:1-5 is that Jesus displaces Israel as the focus of God’s plan of salvation. The implication is that faith in Jesus becomes the decisive characteristic for membership among God’s people. The point of this analogy is not to define the relationship of the father to the Son, but to emphasize the Father’s care for the vine and the branches. There are many who have a false profession of faith, the evidence lies in whether or not shoes professing ranches bear fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). Knowing the truth, Orthodoxy, is not proof of salvation, proof of salvation comes manifesting the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. The lack of love in the church today, is a reflection of the worldliness and carnality of the Christians who comprise it. We need to examine our lives and see if we have life, and fruit, and if the source … READ MORE

With the solitude of the upper room now over and the agony ahead, Jesus talked as he made his way to Gethsemane. First to his followers, then to His Father. This talk with his followers gave them information about God the Son (Himself) God the Spirit, and God the Father. The Bible uses many analogies to depict God’s relationship to His people. Here in our text of John 15:1-17, Jesus does exactly this in depicting our relationship with him. As they walked, perhaps their journey took them through a vineyard, and Jesus Begins to talk to them about the importance of abiding with Him. Just as a branch depends entirely on the vine for life, sustenance, growth, and fruit, so believers depend completely on the diving Lord as the source of their spiritual life and effect. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit unless it is connected to the vine, so believers cannot bear spiritual fruit apart from their life-giving union with Christ. The central truth the Lord wanted to communicate in this symbol is the importance of abiding in Him. IN the most basic sense, whether or not a person abides in Christ reveals whether they have a relationship … READ MORE

The sum of all that Jesus’ death meant to Him was joy! The path to that eternal joy led through suffering. Having triumphed over death, Jesus has returned to the glory that He had from all eternity in heaven at the Father’s right hand. There He received forever the unceasing and undiminishing praise of the Living creatures and the elders as seen in Revelations 4:11. Jesus wanted the disciples to understand, that us through them, that He was not leaving them for no reason, but because he was leaving them, they would be stronger, and have a better grasp on the things that He had taught them. If you truly find yourself struggling to know peace, and understand truth, perhaps it is because you have no true relationship with God through Christ. Maybe it is time for you to come to a proper understanding of that relationship offered to you through Jesus Christ.… READ MORE