Scripture Shapes our view of Success

Abide: True Success in Christ

Bible Passage: John 15:1–8

New International Version (2011) Chapter 15

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 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. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 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.

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. 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. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

1. Planted with Purpose

John 15:1–3

Perhaps we start by illustrating the importance of true connection with Christ. These verses remind us that God is the gardener, tending the branches so they can flourish. As students navigating pressures, you might find encouragement in knowing your growth is His priority, empowering you to endure challenges and excel where it truly matters—in your relationship with Christ.

This passage is a very clear illustration of our relationship with God. God the father is the gardener, and Jesus is the true vine. And we are branches thanks to his grace. And we can draw a few things just from these 3 verses. The first is this, God prioritizes our Growth more than anything else. He is a tender Gardner, and he is careful to make sure that we are well taken care of, and that we continue to grow. That means that he does several things for that goal.

First, he planted us. He created the entire earth, and all the animals and people. And as he was looking at the earth he decided that this world was not complete with our you. So he placed you specifically where you are so that one day you may live to know him.

He gives us spiritual water. Nobody can be a good gardener without giving plants water. God knows that we have needs, and he is the perfect provider. He knows when we are running low, when our hearts are drying up, and he is very purposely watering us just when we need it. And he knows better when that is then we do. I constantly will look up and say “hey God, I need some help right about now” and he waits. Because he knows in order for me to grow, I need some time. If I get to much, ill drown in it. But instead he waits patiently through my complaining and gives me what I need at the perfect time.

He deals with the branches. Now there are 2 types of branches, those that grow fruit, and those that don’t.

Jesus is clear about what God does to the branches that bear no fruit. They are cut off from the true vine. A branch that is attached to the vine that doesn’t produce any fruit is simply taking the recourses that the other branches need. To be cut off from that vine means to be cut off from Christ, and that is clearly not our goal. Because to be cut off from Christ is to enter a eternity without Him in hell. And to attempt to live this life without the foundation that is christ will burn you out faster than you realize. A branch can be cut off and lay on the ground for a while, it may even be caught up in the tree by other branches. But eventually, it will fall, and dry up, and crack and break into many pieces, and it is either decomposed or burned in a fire because it can do nothing without the fuel the tree collects.

This same thing will happen to people on earth. Why does it seem like the wicked prosper? Why do they have all the success that I want. They have the house and the car, but they are bound to fall. They will fall from their status, there hearts become cold, and the things they thought would make them happy end up to be the chains keeping them from joy.

So clearly, we don’t want to be the branch that bears no fruit, but the next part makes me uncomfortable too. Because even if you do produce fruit, then it says this.

New International Version (2011) Chapter 15

while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.

Which doesn’t sound so bad until you remember what pruning is. That cutting off the parts of you that aren't necessary for a plant to grow. Or the branches that look cool but take up recourses from the actual fruit. But sadly, I don’t think that means what I want it to mean. I want it to mean that anything that is wrong with me or that is bad about me or my circumstances get removed, and then all that's left is the good in my life. To that, I say cut away. Remove my selfishness, my anger, my desires for things of this world. Take away the car troubles I keep having. Take away the personal struggles that make me sad or angry and make it hard for me to be kind to those around me.

But sadly, this may mean removing something else. The things in my life that are good. Things that I love, but maybe they get in the way of me producing fruit. Maybe they don’t even get in the way, but they simply are not needed for me to produce fruit. For me, this might be my obsession with MMA, or the gym. I don’t think either of these things are bad, in fact, I think they are good things in my life. But there may come a time where these are in the way of me producing fruit, and God will cut them away. And maybe the hard things in my life give me the wisdom and strength to produce the kind of fruit that God wants from me. This is not Jesus telling us that if we are in Him nothing bad will ever happen to us, it’s Him telling us to continue to bear fruit, and he will continue to work in us, despite already being made clean.

2. Remain for Real Success

John 15:4–5

Maybe you can explore the concept of abiding, emphasizing that without Christ, our efforts are fruitless. For teenagers, it's crucial to realize that real success doesn't come from worldly accomplishments but from a life intertwined with Jesus. This connection is our source of strength and the foundation for genuine achievement, especially crucial when facing peer pressure.

God

New International Version (2011) Chapter 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.

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 are to abide in Christ. Remain in Him as He remains in you. We can do nothing apart from Christ. Without him, we are doomed to failure, no matter what our life looks like right now. We can look like we have it all, and yet it will fail.

What do we consider to be success. What would have to happen in your life to consider yourself successful?

Things like having a big house

Owning a home

Having money

Having a boyfriend or girlfriend

Being good at school

Being good at sports or video games

Being popular or famous

Going on a cool vacation

All of these things are good right? At the very least, they’re not bad. We certainly can have these, pressure them, and sometimes, they can help us examine how successful people are in the world. But are these things the true measure of success? Thankfully, no they're not.

Success doesn't come from the wordly accomplishments that we are told to chase. Success comes from a relationship with Jesus. A life intertwined with Him. This is the connection to the father that will fuel us. It gives us the strength and foundation to achieve something great in the eyes of the Lord. It gives us the strength to say no to the world. It helps us to see that when all of our freinds or people we know are chasing the success and validation this world offers, they are running the wrong way. It gives us the path forward to the success that God defines for us. Success that is much more fulfilling and lasting then status and money.

3. Fruitful and Fulfilled

John 15:6–8

You could discuss how abiding leads to revealed greatness through God in these verses. As teenagers, being fruitful in Christ means showing His love and character in daily interactions. The application here is powerful: true fulfillment and recognition come from embodying Christ’s teachings and allowing His light to shine through us, ultimately glorifying God.

New International Version (2011) Chapter 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. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

We must remain in Christ to bear fruit. Or eventually, all our worldly success will wither away, and we will fall. And if we are not in Christ now, then we will not be with Him forever in Heaven. But if we remain in Him, we will be able to ask whatever we wish and it will be done for us? That doesn’t mean that God is a genie in a lamp, but rather whatever we ask for, in his name and for his glory, he will give us.

But here is the main point. Success is bearing Fruit, and giving the Father glory, and in this we show ourselves to be true disciples of christ. And thankfully, we know that the fruit is the fruit of the spirit. And it’s not what we do in order to grow, but rather it is was happens in our life as a result of our growth in Christ.

The fruit of the Spirit comprises love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal 5:22–23)

These are the things that give God Glory. This is our success. This is what God is looking for in our lives, and this is what shows others that we are the true disciples of Christ. And thank God that we are not just expected to do this on our own.

Sometimes we get this backwards. God doesn’t expect us to have these fruits just off rip. He isn’t waiting for us to be born and as soon as we take our first breath we have to be like this. Rather God is expecting us to grow closer to Him. We don’t have to aim to do these on our own. We simply have to aim to Abide in Him. As we Abide in Jesus, the father tends to us. He waters us, he prunes out what we don’t need. We are simply aiming to stay, and God helps us to Grow. And as we abide and grow in Christ, He changes our hearts. He gives us the strength and foundation to act in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. That will give god Glory, and that is true Success. Abide in Christ, and He will changes us, aligning our hearts with His. And as we grow in Him, we give God Glory as his true disciples.