Abide in Me: A Vision for Discipleship

INTRODUCTION

Discipleship is foundational to the Christian faith. It is a process of learning and drawing closer to God in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is a process of reflecting more and more of the glory and majesty of Christ in our daily lives. In the western church since the revivals of the Second Great Awakening in the early to mid 1800s, we have reduced discipleship to saying the sinner’s prayer and asking Jesus into our hearts. Some churches will have the number of those who gave their life to Christ on the marquee outside during revivals.

This is not to say that making an intellectual decision to follow Christ is unimportant. It is very important and a first step. But in most of evangelicalism, that’s where it stops.

This was not the case in the early Church. The idea of saying the sinner’s prayer was not existent. No early Church Father wrote about this. Jesus and the apostles preached that a person had to make a decision for Christ, but they did not end there. In the ancient Church, faith was not something one just declared. It was something that was entered into. According to Kenneth B., a writer and Christian historian, “it was learned slowly, practiced daily, and embodied within a community that prayed, fasted, confessed, and worshiped together.”

Discipleship is what Christian author, Eugene Peterson, called “the long road of obedience.” Discipleship exists in a framework of change and transformation. It is moving from one point to another. It is a journey that begins before we even realize who Christ is through God’s prevenient grace. In baptism, we declare the work of God’s grace through the waters of baptism that leads us and guides us. Discipleship is about formation into something new. It is a rejection of sin and a daily decision to heed to the call of Christ.

This is magical. It takes dedication and daily surrender to the Spirit. That is why discipleship is the foundation of the ministry of the church and why we begin here today.

Last week, in Mark 1 we watched Jesus rise early, go to a quiet place, and pray before He went out to minister. But the question we have to ask is this:

What does that kind of life look like for us?

On the night before the cross—when time is short and words matter—Jesus does not give His disciples a plan, a schedule, or a strategy. This section of the Farewell Discourse that began in chapter 13 is the bull’s eye of Jesus’ final teaching to his disciples. The image of the vine is an extended metaphor for our relationship with him. What follows this teaching are two important promises: the world will reject those who follow Jesus and the coming Holy Spirit to empower and guide his followers. Our connection to him is vital if we are to be his disciples.

He says, “I am the vine. You are the branches.”

And over and over again, Jesus uses one word: abide.

This is Jesus’ vision for discipleship.

1. Abide in Christ: Discipleship Begins with Relationship (vs. 1-5)

Jesus says:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower… Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.” (John 15:1, 4)

This image would have sounded familiar to Jesus’ listeners—but Jesus reshapes it in a powerful way. Throughout the Old Testament, the vine usually symbolized Israel, and most often it was a vine that failed—fruitless, wild, or under judgment. God was the gardener, and Israel was the vineyard that did not produce what God desired.

But in John 15, Jesus makes a radical claim: He is the true vine. Israel is no longer the vine—Jesus is. And His disciples are not the vineyard; they are branches whose life depends entirely on their connection to Him.

That changes everything.

Life, nourishment, and fruitfulness do not come from religious identity, effort, or activity. They come from a living relationship with Jesus. The Father remains the gardener—the one who tends, prunes, and cares—but Jesus stands between the Father and the disciples as the source and mediator of life.

That is why Jesus can say so plainly:

“Apart from me you can do nothing.”

He is not exaggerating. In vineyard terms, a branch separated from the vine is not weak—it is dead. It cannot bear fruit at all.

The focus here is not fear or speculation about being cut off. The focus is fruitfulness. Fruit is the visible evidence of a real connection. Where there is abiding, fruit naturally follows. Where there is no fruit, there is no living attachment.

The psalmist captures this same truth when he says:

“Those who are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God.” (Psalm 92:13)

Notice the language—planted and flourish. Flourishing does not come from rushing. It comes from being rooted.

Abiding in Christ means recognizing that we are not spiritual freelancers. We are not self-contained disciples. We are branches, entirely dependent on Christ for life, growth, and faithfulness.

Vision Application

As we walk into 2026, discipleship in our church begins right here. Before programs. Before planning. Before activity.

It begins with abiding.

This year, our vision is to become a church that is:

rooted in prayer

grounded in Scripture

centered in worship

shaped by daily dependence on Christ

We are not striving to be a busy church. We are praying to be a deep church— a people planted in Christ, drawing life from Him, and flourishing for the glory of God.

2. Remain in His Word and Love: Discipleship Shapes How We Live (vs. 7-12)

Jesus moves deeper into what it means to abide when He says,

“If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”

Abiding in Christ is not only staying connected to Him—it is allowing His words to take root so deeply in our lives that they shape how we pray, how we live, and what we desire.

Jesus is not promising blank-check prayer. He is describing what happens when a disciple’s life is so formed by His teaching that prayer becomes an echo of Jesus’ own heart. When Christ’s words abide in us, our prayers stop being self-centered requests and become aligned with God’s will and purposes.

In other words, prayer is not about persuading God to join our agenda. It is about being shaped so deeply by Christ that our agenda begins to reflect His.

That is why Jesus immediately connects abiding to fruitfulness:

“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”

The disciples do not glorify God by their own independent efforts. God is glorified through them, because they are abiding in Jesus, the Vine. Their obedience and fruitfulness point beyond themselves—to Christ, and through Christ, to the Father.

At this point, Jesus ties abiding directly to love. He describes a circle of love: the Father loves the Son, the Son loves the disciples, and the disciples are called to love one another.

And Jesus makes something unmistakably clear: love and obedience belong together. Loving Jesus leads to obedience, and obedience keeps us living within His love. You cannot separate the two without losing both.

The prophet Jeremiah captured this kind of life-shaping relationship with God’s word when he said,

“Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart.” (Jeremiah 15:16)

Notice Jeremiah does not say God’s words merely informed him. He says he ate them. They became part of him.

That is what Jesus is describing. When His words abide in us, they no longer sit on the surface of our lives. They shape our loves, our decisions, our relationships, and our prayers.

And then Jesus brings all of this to a surprising conclusion:

“I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.”

Abiding, obeying, loving, and bearing fruit might sound demanding—even costly. But Jesus insists that the result is not burnout or bitterness. The result is deep, lasting joy. Not shallow happiness, but a settled confidence that our lives are rooted in Him, even in suffering or uncertainty.

Vision Application

As we walk into 2026, discipleship in our church must go beyond information and activity. It must become formation.

This year, we are committing ourselves to:

letting Scripture shape our thinking and priorities

creating space for God’s Word to dwell deeply in us

forming small groups and mentoring relationships where faith is lived out

practicing love that is visible, patient, and faithful

Our vision is not simply that people know more Bible verses. Our prayer is that God’s Word becomes the joy and delight of our hearts, shaping how we pray, how we love, and how we live.

Because when Christ’s words abide in us, our lives begin to look like His—and that is the heart of discipleship.

3. Bear Lasting Fruit: Discipleship Leads to a Changed Life (vs. 8, 16-17)

Jesus says something that redefines how we understand discipleship:

“You did not choose me, but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last.”

The disciples did not earn their place with Jesus. They did not initiate the relationship. They were chosen by grace.

But Jesus makes it just as clear that His choosing is never about privilege alone. It is always about purpose.

Throughout Scripture, whenever God chooses someone, it is not simply to bless them privately, but to use them for the sake of others. Abraham was blessed so that all the families of the earth would be blessed. The risen Christ promised His presence to the disciples as He sent them into the world. In the Gospel of John, Jesus breathes the Spirit on His followers and sends them to proclaim forgiveness.

The same pattern holds here. Jesus chooses and appoints His disciples so that they may bear fruit.

This fruit is not limited to personal religious improvement, nor is it reduced to activity or success. Fruit is the visible evidence of a life that is truly connected to Christ—a life that communicates the reality of the gospel through both character and witness.

Paul describes this kind of fruit clearly when he writes:

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22–23)

Notice that Paul does not call these the works of the Spirit. They are fruit.

Fruit grows organically over time when a life remains rooted in the right source. These qualities are not manufactured through willpower; they are formed through abiding in Christ and walking by the Spirit. And this fruit does not exist for the disciple alone—it blesses families, strengthens churches, and bears witness to the world.

Jesus also reminds His disciples that they are not left to bear this fruit on their own. He returns again to the gift of prayer. They are invited to ask the Father in Jesus’ name—not as a formula, but as people whose lives are aligned with Jesus’ heart and mission. Their effectiveness does not depend on their worthiness, but on their dependence.

And fittingly, Jesus closes this section where He began:

“I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.”

Love is the defining mark of authentic discipleship. Fruit that lasts always expresses itself in self-giving love, modeled after Jesus Himself, who laid down His life for others.

Vision Application

As we walk into 2026, our vision for discipleship does not end with deeper roots or better formation—it moves outward into visible fruit.

This year, we are praying to become a church where:

Christlike character is growing steadily

the fruit of the Spirit is evident in everyday life

faith is lived out in love and service

the gospel is made visible through our words and actions

and our community is blessed because Christ is alive in His people

Our vision is not simply that we attend church or complete programs. Our prayer is that our lives are so connected to Jesus that fruit naturally flows— fruit that strengthens the church, fruit that blesses the world, and fruit that lasts for the glory of God.

Because when disciples abide in Christ, their lives begin to look like His— and that is the true measure of discipleship.

CONCLUSION

Jesus’ vision for discipleship is simple, but it is not shallow. He calls us first to abide in Him, to stay rooted in His presence as branches connected to the vine. As we abide, His Word and love shape us, forming our prayers, our obedience, and our joy. And as His life flows through us, we begin to bear fruit that lasts—fruit that reflects His character, blesses others, and glorifies God. This is what it means to walk with Jesus, not just on Sundays, but day by day. As we step into Vision 2026, we are not chasing activity or measuring success by numbers alone. We are committing ourselves to a deeper way of life: rooted in Christ, formed by His Word, and poured out in love for the world. And Jesus’ promise remains true—when we abide in Him, our lives will bear fruit for the glory of God.