I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. John 15:1-2 NIV
Dead branches are not only unfruitful, they jeopardize the health of the entire tree as they invite disease and unwanted insects to take up residence. Every farmer understands the importance of removing unproductive branches, and pruning healthy branches so they can thrive even more. Pruning is preventative maintenance that shapes the plant and encourages new growth. If you want God’s hand on your life, and you desire to be fruitful, pruning by the Gardner must take place, but the cutting process can be quite painful! God takes inventory of the things in our lives that are holding us back, that are keeping us from being everything He wants us to be. He knows what drags us down, what sucks the life out of us. He sees the things that are getting in the way and He cuts them off. He prunes us. And if we submit to the process, if we allow the pruning, we grow. I find it interesting that pruning is typically done during the dormant season. Could it be that we are most likely to be pruned when we are dormant spiritually?
You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:3-5 NIV
What an encouraging thought, that the Lord is committed to remain in us! Branches receive all their nutrients from the vine. Without the vine, the branch would die. It’s just like a beautiful rose, cut from the bush and placed in a vase to enjoy. Its beauty lasts for a week or so but soon it begins to wither and die. The water in the vase is not enough to sustain it. It must receive the life giving nutrients the plant provides. The reality is that we need to remain connected to Jesus, just like the branch to the vine, or the rose to the bush.
If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other. John 15:6-17 NIV
If you want your life to be full of joy, the secret is to remain close to Jesus. Remaining in Him is really all about love: receiving His love, loving Him in return, and loving each other. No one has ever or will ever love you more than Jesus! His request is that we in turn love each other the same way. This whole dialogue speaks of relationship, not one that is based on forced servitude but rather on love and friendship. Take a minute to wrap your mind around the thought that Jesus says, “I chose you.” The King of all the universe, the Creator of the world, chooses to love us and wants to include us in His circle of friends! It really doesn’t get any better than that! Will you allow Him to prune you, remain in His love, and experience His joy?