Sent on May 10th, 2017
Greetings,
John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”
It is the energy of the vine that gives life to the body. Life to your personal body and life to the body of Christ. Jesus spoke of life flowing from Him and those who abide in Him will have His life flowing through them. What does it mean to abide in Jesus?
The Amplified translation of the above verse goes like this: “I am the Vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him bears much fruit, for [otherwise] apart from Me [that is, cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.”
We see from this translation that “abide” means to “remain in Jesus”. It means to not be cut off from vital union with Jesus. In this day there are many voices within Christian circles often making headlines out of “new revelation”, yet the one main headline of our message must be Jesus giving us Life through His Word.
Abiding in Jesus brings life and vitality to your spirit, soul and body. Stay close to the Vine, allow the intimacy of the One whom God has sent to be ever present in your life, for He is the Holy One who has called you to holiness. Walk with Him in the Kingdom of God and rejoice, for it is a pleasant place to be, it is a place of God’s love and of God’s Grace that will be poured out upon you as you walk with Him.
Don’t say, “I’m about to go off in another direction”; hold fast to the Vine. Many have learned from God’s Word, from men who have proclaimed it in a powerful way, but in some cases the Word has become dry to many because the intimacy of the One of the Word has been left behind.
Always remember that Jesus and His Word are one. If you abide in His Word you abide in Him.
In 1 John 1:7 we read, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
We cannot walk in the light on our own. Notice that the above verse says that if we walk in the light we will have fellowship with one another. In other words, we will be connected to a local body of believers. Are you joined to a local body of believers? Your abiding in Jesus is directly related to your abiding in a local fellowship of believers (church).
There are many voices saying, “I can live a life with Jesus without going to church.” That’s like saying, “I can be in a healthy family as long as I don’t have to talk with them, don’t have to see them or don’t have to care about them.”
Someone said, “Living with you in heaven won’t that be glory but living with you down here now that’s another story.” This humorous saying acknowledges that it is not always easy to grow together while here on earth, but grow together we must because the church is what the life of the Vine is flowing into.
Considering Jesus, reading His Word, and honoring His church and the life that flows from our wonderful Saviour will produce a fruitful, joy-filled journey while here on earth.
You are blessed of God and highly prized in the eyes of Jesus.
Love to all…pb
P.S. Here’s a new article on the Faithworks blog about the importance of being part of a local body of believers: Why Your Church Family Is Essential To Your Faith