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About-Him.Com Devotional 02-25-2006
Http://About-Him.Com/ My Thoughts on the Life of Christ, from His Baptism to His Ascension. 212a: Parable of the True Vine John 15:1-17 Knowing that Judas the betrayer would soon be coming with the temple rulers to arrest Him, Jesus found it necessary to leave the place where He and the disciples celebrated the Passover and where He had instituted the Lord’s supper. He would be going to the garden of Gethsemane, where He would pour out His soul in anguish unto His Father. On the way, He used the time to give some last minute instruction to the remaining eleven disciples. Perhaps they passed the temple which had as image of the vine of Israel inscribed on it’s gate. There are many Old Testament descriptions of Israel as a vine or a vineyard, the planting of the Lord. (Ex. 15:17; Ps. 44:2, 80:8; Isa. 5:1-2, 60:21, 61;3) . In spite of God’s tender care they failed to live up to His expectations. Thus Jesus gave the teaching of the True Vine, where He in essence states that He is the Israel of God. Paul follows this train of thought in Romans 11, where he talks of the gentiles being grafted in to olive tree in place of the Jews who had rejected Jesus. (Thankfully, he goes on to say that they, the Jews, will be grafted in again). 1 ¶ I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. The Father planted a vineyard in Christ. Colossians tells us that it pleased the Father for all the fullness of the Deity to dwell in Him bodily (Colossians 1:19, 2:9). Jesus earlier had stated that He was the Way, the Truth and the Life and that no man could come unto the Father except by Him (John 14:6). Upon His ascension he would claim all the power of heaven and earth (Matthew 28:27). Speaking of vines, Isaiah describes Jesus as a root of Jesse who will grow up as a tender plant out of dry ground (Isaiah 11:10, 53:2 & Romans 15:12). In Revelation 22:16, Jesus describes Himself as being the root (forebear) and also the offspring of David. 2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. We are all quite familiar with the necessity to constantly prune the various plantings we have in our yards. We have a number of rose bushes at our home which require regular attention. After pruning them around the first of January, they didn’t look too good. However, they are already showing new leaves, which will grow to large branches by the time it is necessary to prune them again. Between pruning, we will have some beautiful roses. God does some drastic trimming on us at times; not because He wants to hurt us, but because He desires to see the beautiful fruit of our lives. He will prune anything and everything in our lives that is not pleasing to Him. Any word or deed that we do that does not magnify His name will be brought to our attention (Colossians 3:17). John the Baptist said that He would burn our chaff with unquenchable fire as He gathered our wheat into His garner (Matthew 3:12). Hebrews 12:27 tells us that everything that can be shaken will be shaken, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Our lives and works are a mixture of gold, silver, and precious stones along with hay wood and stubble. We will be put to the test of God's fire. Our hay wood and stubble will be burned up so that our gold, silver and precious stones may remain. It would be to our advantage to yield to the pruning and chastening of the Lord in this life, rather than in the next (I Corinthians 3:11-15). 3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. When we respond to the word of God that tells us how that Jesus bled and died for us, we pass from death unto life (John 1:12-13, John 5:14; I John 3:14, 5:1; I Peter 1:23) 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. It all comes down to relationship. When we are born of God, we are a new creation ( II Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15) , we carry His DNA, so to speak (I John 3:9). We have ceased from our own labors and have entered into the rest of the Holy Ghost (Hebrews 4:10). We sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:3, 2:6) and have direct access to the throne of God (Hebrews 4:16). With this kind of relationship, our works are an extension of the works of Jesus, when He was here on earth. Our desires are His desires. Our whole being can say with Jesus, "Not my will, but thy will be done" (Matthew 26:42; Hebrews 10:9). Our continual prayer is, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10)." We say with John the Baptist, "I must decrease, so that He can increase" (John 3:30). 6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If we resist the pruning of the Lord, there can come a time of being cut off (Luke 12:45-46; I Corinthians 9:27) 7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. A question that we might ask ourselves is, "Are we living where God answers our prayers?" If not, why not and what are we going to do about it? 8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. There is a ready field for us to labor in. Billions of people have not heard the gospel one time. 9 ¶ As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. 10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love. Ephesians 3:17-19 tells us that the love of Jesus is beyond understanding. As I abide in the love of Christ I began to get a glimpse of the breath, length, depth and height of His love. In doing so, I am filled with all the fullness of God. That’s rich stuff. 11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. 12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Why did Jesus love me enough to die for me? I don’t know. I just know that He did. Why did He love me before creation? Why did He know me while I was yet in my mother’s womb (Psalms 139:13)? Why did He hang on the cross for me? It certainly wasn’t anything that I’ve done or will ever do? He loved me because love is the very essence of His nature (I John 4:8,16). I cannot claim to love God if I don’t love my brother and my neighbor (Luke 10:27; Galatians 5:14; James 2:8; I John 3:14-19). 14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17 These things I command you, that ye love one another. What a privilege to be called a friend by the very Creator of the universe. We didn’t choose Him, He chose us. He ordained us to bring forth much fruit. He promised to give us that which we ask for in the name of Jesus. That’s hard to comprehend, but it depends on our love for one another. John put it rather bluntly: 1John 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. 1 John 4;20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? In About-Him
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A Florida real estate salesman had just closed his first deal, only to discover that the piece of
land he had sold was completely under water.
'That customer's going to come back here pretty mad,' he said to his boss. 'Should I give him his money back?' 'Money back?' roared the boss. 'What kind of salesman are you? Get out there and sell him a houseboat.' Somebody Has Said
"Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable, and receives the impossible."- Corrie Ten
Boom
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