July 26, 2021: To Stand with Jesus Means That We Must Be Willing to Give Up Ourselves to Him Fully.

In Chapter 15 of the Book of John, Jesus explains to his disciples and followers the role we must play if we want "to stand with", (abide), and follow Jesus. As I came to fully understand the role I must play as the "branch" in my relationship to Him, I finally realized that it is not "I" who must produce the fruit in my life, but it is the "Holy Spirit" who produces the fruit in me by "abiding in" and/or "standing firm" with Jesus.

John 15: 1-4

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

This relationship we have with Christ in our lives, as branches, is the type of relationship our Lord wants to have with us, total dependency. And how does He fulfill that trust of dependency that we should have in Him? Does this dependency only happen from time to time during certain periods of our lives with Him?

These questions brought home for me the full meaning of my relationship with my Lord. You see, as a young child growing up in the Central Valley of California, I grew up around grape vines. I used to pick grapes as a child with my mother and brothers. And then later in life, I would help prune the branches in the winter months preparing the vine for the coming season. The branches must always be connected to the vine if it is to produce fruit. It is not a temporary season...It is always connected.

Author, Andrew Murray, stated in his book, "Absolute Surrender" in the 9th chapter, "Ye Are The Branches", that if the branch is connected to Vine, it will produce much fruit. But once the branch is cut off from the vine, it can produce nothing.

John 15: 5

“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".

The same is true with our relationship with Jesus. If we stay connected to our Lord, Jesus, He will produce the fruit in us...through the power of the "Holy Spirit", in His time and in His way. We must do nothing but to stay connected, and "stand with Him". So simple, but so true. What do we tend to do? We want to help Jesus in everything in our life and hold on to every circumstance that we struggle with. What's the old adage? "Let go and let God".

PERSONNAL COMMENT:

To be able to fully abide as "branches" in the "Vine", we must be "fully and absolutely surrendered" to Jesus in our lives. The sap that runs through the vine is continuous and never stops. So, we must allow the "Holy Spirit" to be always in control in our lives so that He can produce the fruit that give God, our Father, the complete glory.