John 15:4
“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.”
In John 15, we observe Jesus talking to his disciples, of which we are, too. He communicates some vital instructions that we must follow as his kingdom ambassadors.
The New International Version (NIV) of this chapter teaches us to remain in him. The King James Version (KJV) of the word “remain” is abide. Abide, per Oxford languages means to accept or act in accordance with (a rule, decision, or recommendation).
Moreover, the Greek and Hebrew translations of abide are stay (in a given place, state, relation or expectancy), be present, remain, dwell, continue, tarry, endure, cleave, sit, join, and rest.
Jesus wants us to see the importance of remaining in him, obviously indicating that it is possible to no longer remain, and possible to leave or withdraw. In the previous Chapter 14, Jesus is comforting the disciples signaling that he would be leaving and going to prepare a place for them.
The Lord then reiterates the fact that he is the only way to the Father, promising that if they loved him, they should keep his commands. Further, He would ask the Father to send the Holy Spirit to be with them forever.
Jesus highlighted some interesting points about abiding or remaining in him, with a key item being that we should remain in him, like he remains in us. The truth is, we can’t bear any fruit without him, just like a branch can’t bear fruit without its vine–it must remain attached.
(1) John 15:5, “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.” We should not expect to accomplish anything for the Lord successfully without the Lord’s assistance. He wants us to remain in him continuously which will enable us to be fruitful or productive.
(2) John 15:6, “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.” This pretty much paints a picture of being useless, as mentioned in Matthew 5:13, described as losing one’s saltiness, “no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” It is quite detrimental, but not hard to understand as stated. We all just need to remain in Jesus.
(3) John 15:7, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” Though some people find it hard to receive these generous words of the Lord, he said what he said. If his words remain in us, we can expect to receive what we ask for. Of course, if his words live in us, his will lives in us. As such, we are told to pray his will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
(4) John 15:8, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” We glorify the Father when we show ourselves to be his disciples by being fruitful or productive. The fruit we bear is evidence that we belong to the Lord, not forgetting even wicked people can do good works from time to time.
However, we should consider what the Bible calls fruit in Galatians 5:23, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Moreover, we are called to walk in this Spirit so as not to “gratify the desires of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).
(5) John 15:9, “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.” As Jesus experienced his Father’s love, now we too can experience Jesus’ love. He just wants us to continue in His love, doing what he says. He has provided his instructions to us in his Bible, and by his Spirit continues to provide his will to us. Graciously, He works within us to will and to do for his pleasure (Philippians 2:13).
(6) John 15:10, “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.” If we read Jesus’ instructions exactly as stated, it’s clear that we remain in his love by keeping his commands.
I think of a parent and child relationship when pondering this verse. If you are a parent, you love your child and want them to do as you’ve taught them. When they do, you are thrilled and want to reward them. The measure that they don’t, determines how you will discipline them.
At some point later, they could get to the place where they never do anything you’ve taught them and end up in the worst way because they refuse to change. At some point their state of living may get out of your hands, and they be judged with punishment or even death because of continuous wrongdoing. This would be the worst.
Nevertheless, in focusing on remaining in Jesus, we’ve obtained blessings, benefits, and spiritual gifts that include justification, peace with God, access to grace, and hope of glory, among others. We just need to be mindful of the very specific things that the Lord Jesus has spoken as truth and not define them as things we can merely rewrite to appease us for our own comfort.
Ms. Rita's Minute 