INTRODUCTION

Prerequisite to Christian growth is Christian life -- that is, the life of Christ within the believer. Much of what commonly passes for Christian growth is not Christian at all; it is merely religious, and leaves little or no room for Christ among those who profess to be His people.

As a living relationship with Christ through faith is essential to Christian life, so continued fellowship with Him is essential to Christian growth. This simple truth is illustrated by the figure of the vine and its branches representing Jesus and His disciples.

For an outline of the lesson we may note:

1. Appending, John 15:1-3. 
a. Vital partaking, 1. 
b. Vital purging, 2. 
c. Vital purifying, 

2. Abiding, John 15:4-7. 
a. Fruit of fellowship, 4-5. 
b. Failure of fellowship, 6. 
c. Faith of fellowship, 7. 

3. Abounding, John 15:8-11. 
a. Full discipleship, 8. 
b. Full devotion, 9-10. 
c. Full delight, 11. 

4. Assuring, John 15:12-16. 
a. Sureness of love, 12-15. 
b. Sureness of life, 16. 

NOTES ON THE TEXT:

APPENDING, John 15:1-3.

Tying a limb from a thorn tree to a vine does not make it a branch of the vine. Genuine disciples of Christ are appended or attached to Him, but this does not mean merely that they are associated or outwardly connected with Him. They are produced and given life by Him as branches are produced and given life by the vine.

Vital Partaking, 1.

Of course Father and Son are one and the same God, but in this figure the Father is the "husbandman" or farmer and the Son is the "true vine" that was planted and is tended by the Father. The branches, or course, are parts of the vine, partaking of its nature and life; and these branches represent believers or disciples, as plainly stated in verse 5.

Vital Purging, 2.

Branches that do not bear fruit are a hindrance to those who do, and so the farmer takes them away. Fruitbearing branches are pruned or "purged" of useless twigs and foliage to make them produce more fruit. "Every branch" emphasizes individual responsibility. Human farmers may sometimes neglect their vineyards, but God faithfully attends to this vital purging of the branches of the true vine.

Vital Purifying, 3.

Christ uses His Word to cleanse or purify His disciples from all things that hinder them from bearing fruit as they should. To the extent that we give careful heed to that Word, we may avoid sterner measures.

ABIDING, John 15:4-7.

Here is a distinction of truth unknown to heretics who deny the doctrine of eternal security. To "abide" simply means to remain or continue. Now, a believer can never lose his relationship to Christ, but he can lose his fellowship.

This fact is beautifully illustrated in the figure of vine and branches. A branch cut off from the vine is still a branch of the vine cut off, and it can either be grafted back or, if it remains cut off, it will soon wither and die, and so be good for nothing but firewood. Remember, however, in applying this figure to the Christian, that it is through the use of these mortal bodies that we bear spiritual fruit in this world; and it is the physical body that perishes, not the soul or spirit of the believer.

Fruit of Fellowship, 4-5.

Note further that although natural branches of a natural vine have no moral responsibility, spiritual branches of the true vine do have a personal responsibility to abide in Jesus and thus bear spiritual fruit. There are degrees of fellowship. Full fellowship with Jesus will result in much fruit, but apart from Him we can do nothing.

Failure of Fellowship, 6.

If fellowship is completely and irreparably (in this world) broken, the chronic backslider is cast forth ''as a branch." He is not cast off as a child of God, but ''as a branch." See I Corinthians 3:15.

Faith of Fellowship, 7.

When we are in full fellowship with our Lord, we will do what He wills, and therefore, we get what we ask for. See I John 5:14-15.

ABOUNDING, John 15:8-11.

As mentioned above, there are degrees of fellowship. Jesus holds before us the ideal of abundant life and perfect fellowship as the condition for fullness of blessing. To abound we must abide.

Full Discipleship, 8.

God the Father is glorified when believers in His Son "bear much fruit," and as the tree is known by its fruit so believers in Jesus are manifestly shown to be His disciples when they bear much fruit. Let us be His disciples not only in name and profession, but in demonstration of the Spirit in fruit-bearing power. See Galatians 5:22-23.

Full Devotion, 9-10.

Perfect love on the highest plane is the love of God. If we could measure the love of the Father for the Son, maybe we could measure the love of Christ for us. Verse 10 will not go away: there it is, a portion of God's truth. To digest it properly, we need to put it with other Scriptures like John 14:23, II Corinthians 5:14 I John 5:3, etc.

Full Delight, 11.

Jesus certainly wants His people to be joyful, though it is a sad mistake for us to be always trying to be happy. Such efforts are pure selfishness and can lead only to miserable failure. But when we stop trying so hard to be happy and simply listen to Jesus, we have His joy remaining in us, and our joy becomes full [Psalm 16:11].

ASSURING, John 15:12-16.

Doubts and fears have no rightful place in a Christian's life. The Word of God is filled with assurances of salvation and blessing for all who will believe.

Sureness of Love, 12-15.

Love commanded is love exemplified, and the sureness of love is not in our imperfect attempts of love but in Christ's perfect example of love. His example, His precepts, and His Spirit assure us of the love of God; and even the faintest experience of that love in our hearts gives us courage to seek a fuller and richer experience.

Sureness of Life, 16.

If our salvation and possession of life stemmed from our own choice, if our ability to bear fruit depended on our- selves, we might well despair. But it is the Son of God that chose us and put us in a position to serve Him and bear fruit to the glory of God. He is our life; it is in His name and in His Word that we trust.

CONCLUSION [Galatians 2:20]

The words "I am crucified" are from a Greek perfect passive, meaning "I have been and still am crucified" with Christ. There is a permanent identification here that begins in regeneration and continues in sanctification. "Faith of the Son of God" means essentially the same as "faith in the Son of God"; or it could be interpreted as faith that come from Him, faith that belongs to Him and that He gives to us. Either interpretation is Scriptural.
=================

[From AAB, June 17, 1975, pp. 2-3. -- jrd]

---

Return to NT Lessons
Return to HOMEPAGE