Abide in Christ.

Be Shaped by the Father.

Bear Fruit by the Spirit.

Verse 1

It all starts with the vine. This statement is much richer than it seems at first glance. God’s vineyard is a designation used of Israel in the OT (Isa.5:1-2). This prophecy centers on God’s cultivation of Israel as His “beloved…vineyard.” However, when the Lord returned, expecting to reap a harvest from His vineyard, there was only bad/little/no fruit. Here, the cursing of the fig tree during the entrance into Jerusalem helps with understanding what God is doing. The Isaiah prophecy notes that God did everything necessary for His vineyard to produce a beautiful crop, but it only yielded “wild grapes.” So, the vineyard is judged. God’s response is to remove the “hedge” around His vineyard so that it may be “devoured…trampled down” and made “a waste.” In place of the fruitless vine, there now stands One who is the true vine. And, the Father, who is the vinedresser, will ensure that those tied in to the true vine will bear fruit.

Verse 2

The question is NOT whether we are being formed, but rather, who or what we are being formed to. The goal is fruit, this is not up for debate. The first question that needs to be answered is what Jesus means by fruit. If you do a word study of fruit in the NT, you’ll see it can be used of literal fruit, so we can rule that out. And, you’ll see that it refers to people becoming more like Jesus and growing in righteousness. This is what Jesus has in mind — righteousness. It comes through discipline (Hebrews 12:11 “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”), the Spirit’s work (Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,”), and repentance (Matthew 7:16 “You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?”).

The Father is the One who makes sure we bear more fruit…continue growing. Pruning is the difference between a vine that grows up to 15-20 feet but yields no fruit, or a vine that grows slower and maybe shorter, but actually yields produce. Remember that we must be shaped in our thought-life, but God intends to move the truth from our head to our feet, so that we live out truth. Who’s interested in being a mile-wide, inch-deep Christian? Sure, we want our breadth to expand, but our depth (of character, life, and love) should pace it.

Verse 3

Being clean seems to be necessary for a fruitful life. This shouldn’t catch us off guard. Isaiah 64:6 teaches that apart from Christ, a person’s righteousness is only filthy rags. How, then, could we expect to bear the fruit of righteousness if we are not initially made righteous through Christ?

Verse 4-6

Jesus really stresses the idea of abiding with His disciples. It is the life that we are called to live — abide, remain in this state or condition, literally has the idea of making a room in a house for someone. Because this is such a prominent idea in these verses, we’re really going to camp out on it at the end, but Jesus is supposed to be our home base…the thing we return to, the One that everything else is centered around. He’s supposed to be what is most familiar and most comfortable, not in a “familiarity breeds contempt” way, but in a safe, sure, and returning way. Jesus should be the place where we return, constantly and continually. Our true home is in Him.

Verse 6-7

Those who do not abide do not bear fruit, but those who do abide are heard and answered. Earlier, Jesus had stated that anything we ask in His name, He will do (Jn14:13-14). We made note that “in Jesus’ name” isn’t a magical incantation that ensures our prayers are answered how we want. Jesus further clarifies this by giving us to means for asking in Jesus’ name: 1.) we abide in Christ, belong to Him, have faith in Him, and follow Him, and 2.) His words abide in us. If we are to ask as if Jesus Himself were asking, then we must be attached to Him as our spiritual life-giving source, and His words must inform and direct our lives.

Verse 8

When a hardened sinner stands and gives testimony of the change from sinner to saint, no one thinks to applaud his effort. Rather, they praise God for work that has been done. Similarly, when we live lives that are different that what comes natural, different than whatever feels good to us, that only happens because God is at work. Couple this with the fact that worship is deeper than a song, and it often comes as we respond obediently to the love of God, and it’s not hard to see why bearing fruit glorifies God as it proves that we are Jesus’ disciples.

Verses 9-11

The question of Jesus’ love has been settled. The perfect love extended from the Father to the Son is the same perfect love that has been given to Jesus’ followers. Therefore, He says, “Abide in my love.” How will disciples do this? They must keep the commandments of Christ.

What is interesting is what Jesus also attaches to obedience here: joy. We tend to think that if we are not free to do whatever brings us pleasure in the moment then we have a harsh taskmaster over us, a killjoy who’s out of touch and doesn’t want us to have any fun. Is that true of a parent who sets any number of rules in place for the safety and well-being of their child? Obviously not. Is it wise to let an 18-month old play with a skill saw? Nope, but is there a place where maybe one day they’ll grow and use it for good? Absolutely, but the rule to stay away protects the child and protects against catastrophic injury. In this way, God’s statutes do serve as a protection for the sake of a truly good and full life. Sure, some of the feel-good fleshly pleasures of the moment may not be met, but they protect us from what could be come catastrophic injury in the end.

Verse 12

This is a repackaging of Jn13:34. So, I won’t rehash it all.But, listen to one church father’s remarks: Augustine asked, “What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.” This is a great summary of the love of Christ and how we should mimic His actions in the world.

Verse 13

Calvin, in Commentary on John, said, “Christ sometimes proclaims the greatness of His love to us, that He may more fully confirm our confidence in our salvation, but now He proceeds further in order to inflame us by His example to love the brethren. Yet He joins both together, for He means that we should taste by faith how inestimably delightful His goodness is, and next He allures us in this way to cultivate brotherly love.” Notice that His declaration of His own love comes on the heals of His command for His disciples to love one another as He has loved them.

Verse 14-15

Note the cross will change the depth of relationship between Jesus and His followers. Instead of the master/servant relationship, it becomes one of deep personal knowledge and affection. This is stunning given the fact that God is Holy, Holy, Holy, and utterly transcendent. In the OT, Abraham (2 Chron. 20:7; Isa41:8) and Moses (Ex33:11) are the only saints called friends of God.

Verses 16-17

These verses began with Israel-like language, the picture of the vine and Jesus as the fulfillment of it all. It ends with Israel-like language as well. Jesus chose the disciples and appointed them to bear fruit that lasts. It’s this final reminder in these verses that it’s all about Christ and our relationship with Him, and part of the relationship is for Jesus’ followers to actually follow Jesus and actually be changed by Him. The end goal of our sanctification…of our becoming more like Jesus? Well, it all starts with love…after all, it’s the first fruit listed and the greatest command. But, it all ends with love as well. John 15:17 “These things I command you, so that you will love one another.”

So, circling back to this whole idea of abiding, because it is so essential in our life with Christ.

John doesn’t believe that the church replaces Israel. Israel is not done away with or put aside. It might be better to say that Israel is redefined through Jesus. Remember that throughout John’s gospel Jesus is defined in terms of OT images, ideas, and hopes. For instance, Jesus is the Living Water. Here’s the rest of the story — in John 7, the people of Israel are celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles. Robby Gallaty notes, “Every day, a designated priest would descend from the temple toward the pool of Siloam in the midst of a multitude of jubilant worshipers. The priest led a procession of people toward the pool singing the words of Isaiah 12:3, ‘With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.’ …Silver trumpets would be blown and palm branches would be waved in unison with chants of Psalm 118:25-27, ‘ Save us…’ …The priest then held the pitcher of water up before pouring out the water, symbolizing God’s provision of water for the people in their desert journey.” However, on the last day, when the pitcher was held high and tipped over, no water ran out. It was an empty pitcher, symbolic of the disobedient generation that died in the wilderness. This would be met with sorrowful silence from the crowd. No trumpets. No shouts for salvation. Until this wandering rabbi stands and shouts, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Your cries for salvation, they’ve been answered in Me. I give you more than just water in the wilderness — I give you living water, eternal life.

This is a small snippet of a greater reality of how Jesus didn’t abolish but fulfilled the OT. When He proclaims Himself the true vine, He is doing the same thing. Jesus is the embodiment and fulfillment of God’s true intentions for Israel. He’s the channel through which God will bless His people and cause them to bear fruit. And, Jesus is now the focus of God’s plan of salvation. What originated with Israel is fulfilled through Jesus, and faith in Jesus now becomes the single determiner of a person’s standing before God. If there is no faith in Jesus, you are not a part of the people of God.

As the people of God, we either bear fruit or we do not, which in and of itself is a type of fruit. And, where we abide will determine what fruit we bear. John Mark Comer makes such practical application of this: “If we are rooted in the infinite scroll of social media, it will form us, likely into people who are angry, anxious, arrogant, simplistic, and distracted. If we are rooted in the endless queues of our streaming platforms of choice, they will form us too, likely into people who are lustful, restless, and bored, never present to what is… If we are rooted in the pursuit of hedonism — another drink, another toke, or another hookup to take the edge off the pain and let us find a moment’s peace — that will form us as well, likely into people who are compulsive, addictive, and running from our pain and, simultaneously, our healing.” He quotes another in the book, saying, “What you live in is what you live out.” Then, Comer includes examples of what “abiding” has been called by saints through the ages.

“Paul called it prayer ‘without ceasing.’

“Madam Guyon — the French mystic — called it a ‘continuous inner act of abiding.’

“The old Quakers called it ‘centering down,’ as if abiding was getting in touch with the bedrock of all reality.

“The Jesuit spiritual director Jean-Pierre de Caussade called it ‘the sacrament of the present moment,’ as if each moment with God is its own Eucharist, its own movable feast.

“A.W. Tozer called it ‘habitual, conscious communion’ and said, ‘At the heart of the Christian message is God Himself waiting for His redeemed children to push in to conscious awareness of His presence.

Dallas Willard loved to call it ‘the with-God life.’”

Brother Lawrence, a dishwasher in a 17th century monastery in Paris, called it “the practice of the presence of God.” Commenting on all of this, Comer says, “If this life of being with Jesus required practice as far back as the 1600s — four centuries before the iPhone — how much more so now, in the age of urban noise pollution and the digital distraction of nonstop alerts, notifications, and an ‘ecosystem of interruption technologies.’”

One thing is for sure — “spiritual formation is not optional. Every thought you think, every emotion you let shape your behavior, every attitude you let rest in your body, every decision you make, each word you speak, every relationship you enter into, the habits that make up your days, whether or not you have social media (if you do, how you use it), how you respond to pain and suffering, how you handle failure or success — all these things and more are forming us into a particular shape. …We are being either transformed into the love and beauty of Jesus or malformed by the entropy of sin and death. …C.S. Lewis claimed…we are either becoming ‘immortal horrors or everlasting splendours.’”

So…what are we abiding in?