Bearing Fruit In Christ

CATCHIn this morning’s reading, we see Jesus use of something common as a metaphor representing the life of the household of God.Now, if you were going to produce a banner or a pamphlet that needed a picture of something that symbolised life, what would you choose. What things can be used to symbolise life?There are probably many things that could be used to symbolise life. The reason so many things can be used is because life can mean so many things to peopleWhat does the word life connect with in people’s minds?CONNECTLast couple of Sundays, we saw how Jesus was speaking to his disciples as a Master to his household. He was going to be leaving them and he wanted to give them clear instructions about how his household was to be managed and how it was to function.As we move into chap. 15, we see that the scene is changing. Jesus calls his disciples to get up from the table and to leave for another place. Later, in chap. 18:1, we see Jesus leading his disciples out of Jerusalem, across the Kidron Valley, up a hill and into an olive grove. So, at this point, Jesus would still have been in Jerusalem. In fact, they probably would still be within the compound of the household where they had been meeting, in that upper room. As they are walking through the courtyard area of the compound, Jesus must have seen something that was, in fact, very commonly part of a household in those places. He apparently saw a grape vine and used it for a very important teaching moment - one that would have vividly stuck in their minds.COMMUNICATE

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1. Background to Vine Metaphor

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In ancient Israel, it would be common to see a grape vine grown within the the walls of the household compound. For those who owned a larger vineyard, a plot of land would be prepared with a stone wall around it to protect the grapes from wild animals. Watchtowers were sometimes also built to prevent thieves and marauders. Most commonly, in ancient times, grape vines were allowed to grow running over the ground. When the harvest time drew near, branches bearing fruit would often be lifted up on rocks to prevent the fruit from spoiling. By the time of Jesus, the Romans had introduced the practice of growing vines on trellises.After the grapes had set on the branches, the vines were pruned (Lev. 25:4; Isa. 18:5; John 15:1–2). This process produced stronger branches and a greater fruit yield. The pruned branches were useless except to be used as fuel (Ezek. 15:2–8).(Laughlin, J. C. H. (2003). Vine. In C. Brand, C. Draper, A. England, S. Bond, E. R. Clendenen, & T. C. Butler (Eds.), Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (p. 1652). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.)The reason vines were so common was because of the abundant use for its fruit. The grapes could be eaten fresh, dried as raisins, or pressed for their juice, from which wine was made. Wine, of courses was valued as a drink because if its effect in making people feel glad and emboldened. But wine was valued for more than that. Because of it’s alcoholic content, it was used as a preservative for other food, as an analgesic for reducing pain, as a sedative for the anxious, and as a disinfectant for skin wounds and tummy bugs.Because of all these benefits of the fruit of the vine, vines were seen to represent the abundant life. By comparison, we see that Jesus also is like a vine. He also gladdens and emboldens the heart, and comforts those who are sorrowing. He also disinfects us from the contamination of sin and brings healing to the wounded heart. He also produces an abundance of fruit that brings about an abundance of life. In many ways, Jesus is the true vine.

Have you ever felt that your life is lacking significance?

2. Jesus Is the True Vine

Have you ever wondered why your efforts in Christian ministry, or in witnessing, or in mentoring others seem to fail to produce any lasting effect?

But there is another sense in which Jesus was the true vine. In the O.T. the vine was often used as symbolic of Israel.Israel was described as being like a vine uprooted from Egypt and planted in the land prepared for her. But because of her rebellions against God, his choice vine had become a wild vine, a false vine, whose walls were broken down and she had become like a vine forsaken to the wild animals. Her branches had become like dead wood, good for nothing but fuel for the fire. (Ps. 80:8–13; cp. Isa. 5:1–7; Jer. 2:21; Hos. 10:1; Ezek. 15:1-8).By comparison, Jesus Christ was also brought up out of Egypt, after his parents fled there from Herod. Because of his perfect obedience to the Father, his ministry flourished like a prosperous vine that produced an abundance of good fruit. He was the true vine, the true Israel, who never rebelled against God's Law, so he was never forsaken for his own sin. Yet he was forsaken momentarily by the Father when he died for our sins on the cross. And by his death, he poured out the New Wine by which many would be forgiven, cleansed, healed and receive an abundance of new life.

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3. Find Your Life In the Vine

The purpose of a vine is to bear fruit, good fruit that is useful for the owner or gardener. As we work through this passage in John chap. 15, we see Jesus drawing from what would have been common knowledge about vines and vine-keeping. He began by referring to himself as the true vine, no doubt for all the reasons mentioned previously. He went on to talk about the work of the Father, who is likened to the gardener, in looking after the vine, and he would further talk about how he, the true vine, would produce fruit through his disciples, who are the branches.We will be looking at what it means for us to bear fruit, as the branches, another time. But for this morning, we need to begin looking at this passage by making sure we understand the most important thing about bearing fruit.As Jesus said, “No branch can bear fruit of itself” - i.e. if it is not receiving the sap, the life-blood, from the vine. It must remain attached and receive its life from the vine.Now this might sound all very obvious, when thinking about literal vines and branches. But somehow, too often, we foolishly seem to believe that it is different for us as Christians. Somehow, too often, we foolishly allow ourselves to be deceived into thinking that we can draw our life from all kinds of things other than from Christ, the true vine. But in 15:4-5, Jesus said… So what does it mean for us to ‘remain’ in Christ?

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1) Christ Living In You

‘Remain’ = ‘abide’, ‘dwell’ - like in a house - connecting once again to the householdFiguratively - ‘find your life in me’> The place where we abide is the place where we rest and revive> The place where we abide is the place where we eat, drink and are refreshed, strengthed> The place where we abide is the place where we learn and grow as family> The place where we abide is the place where we enjoy the company of family and friends> The place where we abide is often the place where we plan and order or work before we get into the day> All of these and more are the arenas of life that are associated with being at home, with abiding. It is through these kinds of activities, as we grow up as children, that we learn to define what life is all about and how to live a good life.> But Jesus said that we are to abide, to find our life, in him in order that he might abide in us. How do we do that?

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This morning, we are going to look again at Jesus’ metaphor of the vine in John chap. 15. Back in 1996, I had the opportunity to work in a vineyard picking grapes. I say picking, but in reality, we were using small pruning scissors or shears. It was painful work. I had a habit, as most inexperienced pickers did, of not getting my fingers out of the way in time as the shears went snip. There was real blood, sweat and tears that went into my work. But that experience did gave me a new appreciation of viticulture, the cultivation of vines, and of this metaphor of the vine.

i) The Spirit of Christ living in you

This morning, we are going to look again at Jesus’ metaphor of the vine in John chap. 15. Back in 1996, I had the opportunity to work in a vineyard picking grapes. I say picking, but in reality, we were using small pruning scissors or shears. It was painful work. I had a habit, as most inexperienced pickers did, of not getting my fingers out of the way quick enough as the shears went snip. There was real blood, sweat and tears that went into my work. But that experience gave me a new appreciation of this metaphor of the vine.

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Throughout John’s Gospel, there is a lot of teaching a lot about the Spirit. For example> John 1:33, John B. declares, “I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’”> John 3:5-6, Jesus declares to Nicodemus, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”> John 6:63, Jesus declares, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.” Compare that to what Jesus said of himself in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life.”> In John 7:37-39, we are told, ‘On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.”’ Here we see Jesus making the direct connection between the receiving the Spirit and receiving himself, between believing in him and receiving the abundant life he had to offer.> Similarly, in John 14:15-19, we read of Jesus promising to ask the Father to send the Spirit, who will dwell in his disciples, and then immediately promising also that he himself would come to them.From all the above, we learn that those who truly believe in Jesus Christ are given the Spirit of Christ, who is the Spirit of life, and that he produces in us the abundant life of Christ.The apostle Paul, or Saul, as he had previously been known, was a very scholarly and devoted Pharisee who thought he was living for the glory and honour of God. But one day, as we read in Acts chap. 9, he had a rude awakening to the truth, when Jesus Christ revealed himself to Saul and revealed the truth of Saul’s own life to himself. Suddenly Saul realised the sham of his own life, that he had been living for his own glory and pleasure. Some years later, as the apostle Paul, he wrote a letter to the believers in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Similarly, he wrote in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

ii) The Word of Christ living in you

Last week, we were looking at the most basic truth Jesus was drawing out of this metaphor. As members of his household, we are part of the vine - and his intention for us is that we bear much fruit. Further to that, we saw that the most essential requirement for us to bear fruit is that, like branches drawing their life from the vine, we must find our life in Christ, as he lives through us.This morning, we are going to look a little deeper and see what Jesus had to say about bearing fruit. To help us focus in, let me begin by asking some questions.Have you ever felt that your life is lacking significance?Have you ever felt like you are not achieving much for God?Have you ever wondered why your efforts in Christian ministry, or in witnessing, or in mentoring others seem to fail to produce any lasting effect?Have you ever struggled to know the Father’s approval or blessing on your life, or to know his love or his peace or joy?If you’ve ever had any concerns or questions about any of these matters, then understanding what Jesus had to say about bearing fruit will help you find an answer.

Last week, we were looking at the most basic principle Jesus was drawing out of this metaphor. As members of his household, we are part of the vine - and his intention for us is that we bear much fruit. Further to that, we saw that the most essential requirement for us to bear fruit is that, like branches drawing their life from the vine, we must find our life in Christ, as he lives through us.This morning, we are going to look a little deeper and see what Jesus had to say about bearing fruit. To help us focus in, let me begin by asking some questions.Have you ever felt that your life is lacking significance?Have you ever wondered why your efforts in Christian ministry, or in witnessing, or in mentoring others seem to fail to produce any lasting effect?

iii) To find your life in the Vine means finding your life in Christ and having Christ live in you

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As we dive back into the text, we see something of critical importance in v. 1. The Father is the gardener or vine-dresser. That means: 1) The vine and its fruit belong to him, and 2) he cares for the vine so that it bears abundant, healthy fruit. Why this is important will become evident as we work through the text.

Verse 1

Take notice of the warning for those who do not remain in Christ, who do not find their life in Christ.> Verse 6 - Branches that are not attached, not drawing their life from the vine are not true branches at all. They have no life in them and cannot produce the fruit of the vine. They are not good for anything. You can’t make anything useful from the wood of vine branches. They are only good for burning.

2) You Living In Christ

1. What is the Fruit?

The Father is the gardener or vine-dresser. That means:

1) The vine and its fruit belong to him.

Before we can look any further, however, we also need to define what Jesus meant when he spoke about the fruit and fruit bearing. We will look at this in depth later, but a quick look at the metaphor will give us a definition that we can work with and apply.

i) What are you truly living for?

In the case of a grape vine, the fruit is the vine’s means of reproducing itself. The fruit grows out of the natural outflow of the life of the vine.Now, as we apply that to Jesus and his disciples, we see that the fruit is the natural outflow of the life of Christ in his disciples, those who are abiding in him, and it is his means of reproducing his life, and therefore himself, in others. This follows the first and most fundamental principle about life - that life only ever comes from life.

2) He cares for the vine so that it bears fruit

Is it to please Jesus as your Lord? Or do you live for your own pleasure?Are you living for your own glory, or for the glory of Christ?

Verse 2.

2. Fruitless Branches

ii) What is ruling or ordering your life?

Immediately we get into this chapter, however, we see Jesus is not talking about life or fruit-producing branches but about branches that are not producing fruit. Why is that? Because non-fruit bearing branches are a drain on the life of the vine.

Those who are abiding in Christ are obedient to his every command.What commands how you use your time? (What about your ‘free time’?)What commands how you use your energy?> What commands how you use your skills, talents, etc> What commands how you use your financial resources?> What commands how you use your earthly possessions?> What commands how you use your home?> What commands how you grow and shape your relationships - and with whom?What gives you hope? What keeps you thinking positively about life?What identifies or defines you?> Sexuality or gender?> Work or social status?> Wealth and possessions?> For the true disciple or follower of Jesus, it should be Jesus Christ who defines you. Our identity should be found only in him, if we are truly abiding in him. It should be glaringly obviously to all around us that we belong to Jesus Christ, because we are easily identified as those who have the Spirit of Christ within us.What makes life feel like it’s worth living?

1. What is the Fruit?

Now, the translation “he cuts off” is sometimes translated “he lifts up” in more recent translations. Reason being theological: seems problematic to say those who are part of the vine are ‘cut-off’, i.e. removed. Implication: loss of life, therefore of salvation? Alternative translation is seen to have support from viticulture - where branches that are underneath may not be bearing fruit due to lack of light. Therefore the vinedresser lifts them up into the light to encourage fruit bearing. This is feasible, linguistically, and is more appealing theologically, but perhaps is not necessary. Take note of the following

iii) Life In the Household & Body of Christ

Before we can look any further, we need to just quickly define what Jesus was talking about when he spoke about the fruit and fruit bearing. We will look at this in depth later, but just quickly, so we have some idea of what we are talking about, let’s look at the metaphor and apply it.

1) Jesus was using the metaphor of the vine as part of his discourse about his household. Being part of the vine is the same as belonging to the household. Someone could belong to a household and yet not belong to the family. (See ). In the same way, someone can ‘belong’ to the vine by participating in the activities of the body of Christ through a local church, thereby benefiting from the grace and goodness of God, and for all intents and purposes appear to be demonstrating the life of Christ - i.e. lots of green leaves - yet not truly be part of the vine, not truly be receiving the gift of the life of Christ. These are the kind of branches, the kind of people that cannot bear fruit because they are not drawing from the life of Christ. Notice again v.4b.

1) In the case of a grape vine, the fruit is the vines means of reproducing itself. The fruit grow out of a natural outflow of the life of the vine

Real, abundant life is found in the household of GodAre you finding your life in the relationships of the household?Are you finding your life in the work and service of the household?Are you finding your life in the fellowship of the household?

2) Compare with v.5. Those who are abiding in Christ, who find their life in Christ, who are receiving the life of Christ, they will bear much fruit - they just will because that’s the power and the nature of the life of the vine. So the inescapable conclusion is that if anyone is not producing real fruit, they are not truly abiding in Christ. They don’t truly have the life of Christ in them.

2) Applying that to Jesus and his disciples, his household, the fruit is the natural outflow of the life of Christ in his disciples, those who are abiding in him, and his means of reproducing his life, and himself, in others.

v) Living For Christ in the World

3) Now, notice the very somber warning in v.6 for those who fail to produce fruit. They will be “thrown away and wither”. So, clearly, the Lord was not speaking of merely lifting up fruitless branches but completely removing them. In fact, he warned that they are destined for the fire of judgment.

John 20:31The household of God was never intended to be understood in terms of a Monument - like the Temple in Jerusalem - it was supposed to be understood in terms of a Missional Movement.

2. Fruitless Branches

Now, at this point, there may well be some who find this message very disturbing, threatening and perhaps offensive. Well, that may be for good reason, or it may be that you are perhaps being too judgmental of yourself.

The translation “he cuts off” is sometimes translated “he lifts up” in more recent translations. Reason being theological: seems problematic to say those who are part of the vine are ‘cut-off’, i.e. removed. Implication: loss of life, therefore of salvation? Alternative translation is seen to have support from viticulture - where branches that are underneath may not be bearing fruit due to lack of light. Therefore the vinedresser lifts them up into the light to encourage fruit bearing. This is feasible, linguistically, and is more appealing theologically, but perhaps is not necessary. Take note of the following

1) For some, they may need to heed the warning that the lack of any evidence of the life of Christ being reproduced in you means your are indeed at risk of finding yourself cut off from Christ and ending up in hell, the fire of eternal judgment. Now that is not a message that either Jesus or his followers have ever preached with joy or self-vindication, but with real sadness and a desperate pleading. If you are not sure that you really have the life of Christ in you, don’t turn away in self-indignation but rather make sure of your salvation today...

1) Jesus was using the metaphor of the vine as part of his discourse about his household. Being part of the vine is the same as belonging to the household. Someone could belong to a household and yet not belong to the family. Metaphorically, that is to say someone can ‘belong’ to the church of Christ, participating in the activities of the body of Christ, benefiting from the grace and goodness of God, and for all intents and purposes appear to be demonstrating the life of Christ - i.e. lots of green leaves - yet not truly be part of the vine, not truly be receiving the gift of the life of Christ. These are the kind of branches, the kind of people that cannot bear fruit because they are not drawing from the life of Christ. Notice again v.4b.

2) Compare with v.5. Those who are abiding in Christ, who find their life in Christ, who are receiving the life of Christ, they will bear much fruit - they just will because that’s the power, the nature of the life of the vine. So the inescapable conclusion is that if anyone is not producing real fruit, they are not truly abiding in Christ. They don’t truly have the life of Christ in them.

2) For others, you might unjustly be experiencing a sense of fear and guilt. The devil is very good and producing doubts and fears in our hearts and at attacking us with false accusations. Don’t listen to him. He is a liar and the father of lies. Remember that Jesus was not saying that God would cut off people who are bearing poor or little fruit, but about people who are bearing no fruit. Remember also what Jesus said in , “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”

3) Now, notice the very somber warning in v.6 for those who fail to produce fruit. They will be “thrown away and wither”. So, clearly, the Lord was not speaking of merely lifting up fruitless branches but completely removing them. In fact, he warned that they are destined for the fire of judgment.

On the other hand, we also need to understand that often the devil is only able to cause us to doubt and fear because we have become satisfied in producing very little fruit, or even poor quality fruit.

2. Improving Our Fruitfulness

Now, at this point, there may well be some who find this message very disturbing, threatening and perhaps offensive. Well, that may be for good reason, or it may be that you are perhaps being to judgmental of yourself.

1) For some, they may need to heed the warning that the lack of any evidence of the life of Christ being reproduced in you means your are indeed at risk of finding yourself cut off from Christ and ending up in hell, the fire of eternal judgment. Now that is not a message that either Jesus or his followers have ever preached with joy or self-vindication, but with real sadness and a desperate pleading. If you are not sure that you really have the life of Christ in you, don’t turn away in self-indignation but rather make sure of your salvation today...

So what are we to do if we know our fruit-bearing is less than what it ought to be? Well, to begin with, we need to go back to the first principle of life - that life only ever comes from life. So, If bearing fruit is the natural outflow of abiding in Christ, then a lack of fruit, or poor fruit, is simply put, strong evidence that we have a lot more to learn about what it means to abide in Christ - to find our life in Christ.

Now, what shocks me is that many Christians don’t seem to be at all worried about their lack of fruitfulness - their lack of reproduction of the life of Christ. I would want to ask them, “don’t you realise, if you are part of the vine, you do not belong to yourself? - your life does not belong to you? Remember what we began by saying, both the vine and the fruit belong to the gardener, they belong to God.

2) For some, you might unjustly be experiencing a sense of fear and guilt. The devil is very good and producing doubts and fears in our hearts and at attacking us with false accusations. Don’t listen to him. He is a liar and the father of lies. But on the other hand, we also need to understand that he is able to cause us to doubt and to fear because of we have become satisfied in producing very little fruit, or poor quality fruit. In the first instance, we need to remember that Jesus was not saying that God would cut off people who are bearing poor or little fruit, but about people who are bearing no fruit.

2. Improving Our Fruitfulness

Essentially, this is the same as saying that Christians who are not fully living for Christ have not yet understood what it means for them to be redeemed by Christ.

2) Those who are being fruitful, must also be cleaned (v.2).

But what of those of us who can honestly acknowledge that our fruitfulness is less than what it ought to be? Well, that’s a good thing. All of us ought to be willing to admit that. Thankfully, Jesus had some things to say to help us. There are several points we need to look at here.

The word translated as pruned in v.2 comes from the same Gk word translated as cleaned in v.3. Why do vine-dressers ‘prune’ or ‘clean’ their vines? There are two prunings or cleanings - before and after the harvest.

1) If bearing fruit is the natural outflow of abiding in Christ, then a lack of fruit, or poor fruit, is simply put, strong evidence that we have a lot more to learn about what it means to abide in Christ - to find our life in Christ.

i) Before: Too much immature fruit reduces quality

Now, what shocks me is that many Christians don’t seem to be at all worried about their lack of fruitfulness - their lack of reproduction of the life of Christ in them. I would want to ask them, “don’t you realise, if you are part of the vine, you do not belong to yourself - your life does not belong to you. Remember what we began by saying, both the vine and the fruit belong to the gardener, they belong to God.

Essentially, this is the same as saying that Christians who are not fully living for Christ have not yet understood what it means for them to be redeemed by Christ.

ii) Before: Faulty or poorly developing must be removed. Faulty fruit draws life away from the good fruit, reducing the quality of the crop.

2) Those who are being fruitful, must also be cleaned (v.2).

‘Cleaned' by the word of Christ (v.3) Allowing the word of God to bring to light anything in our hearts that prevents the life of Christ from being reproduced in us - anything that is robbing us of life.

iii) After the harvest, if any fruit left on the vine must also be removed lest it cause disease.

The word translated as pruned in v.2 comes from the same Gk word translated as cleaned in v.3. Why do vine-dressers ‘prune’ or ‘clean’ their vines? There are two prunings or cleanings - before and after the harvest.

The disease of boasting

i) Before: Too much immature fruit reduces quality

ii) Before: Faulty or poorly developing must be removed. Faulty fruit draws life away from the good fruit, reducing the quality of the crop.

3) But what about the harvest itself, the good fruit?

i) All fruit belongs to the owner of the vine, not the vine itself. If fruit is left on a vine too long, what happens to it? It spoils, doesn’t it? And then what value is it to the owner?

‘Cleaned' by the word of Christ (v.3) Allowing the word of God to bring to light anything in our hearts that prevents the life of Christ from being reproduced in us - anything that is robbing us of life.

ii) So what is this telling us about the nature of the fruit? If we are thinking it is the fruit of the Spirit that the life of Christ produces in us, we run into a problem. Can you see it? If the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace and the like, then what are we to make of God removing that from us?

iii) After the harvest, if any fruit left on the vine must also be removed lest it cause disease.

The disease of boasting

iii) So we need to think more carefully about the fruit. In fact, the fruit is the love of Christ, the joy of Christ and the peace of Christ, and so on. But our failure to understand the nature of the fruit is directly linked to our failure to fully understand the nature of the peace, joy and love of God. This is why Jesus said in that we are to love each other as he has loved us, and that by this love others will know that we are Jesus’ disciples. After all, what is the ultimate goal of a disciple if not to become just like his or her master? Again, in , Jesus said anyone who loves him will obey his commands, and in v.21, anyone who loves him will be loved by the Father and by him. You see, it is one thing to know about God’s love and an entirely different thing to know God’s love. And how is it that you know what love is? Yes, first it is by knowing about God’s great love through Christ Jesus, but that will only take you so far. To truly know love you have to love others. It is only in loving others as Christ has loved you that you begin to understand Christ’s great love for you. Another way of putting it - you only have love in as much as you give it away.

iv) So what of the fruit of love? When is it measured as good fruit to the Father? Not when you think you have experienced it in your own heart - that’s a good thing, but not the kind of fruit the Father wants for his harvest. No, he is looking for the love you have sown into the hearts of others. After all, isn’t that the reason why plants produce fruit? Isn’t the seed by which it reproduces in the fruit? But what good is it to the plant if it remains in the fruit and the fruit on the vine? The branches must give up their fruit so the seed may be planted in the soil. And the soil is the hearts of others into whom you sow the life of Christ - his joy, peace and love, and so on.

3) But what about the harvest itself, the good fruit?

v) What Jesus was really talking about here was discipleship, the work of making disciples, which is why he said in v.8, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” So, anyone who is not producing fruit must ask the question as to whether they are being a genuine disciple. And anyone who is producing poor fruit is being a poor disciple. 

i) All fruit belongs to the owner of the vine, not the vine itself. If fruit is left on a vine too long, what happens to it? It spoils, doesn’t it? And then what value is it to the owner?

COMMIT (Communion)

ii) So what is this telling us about the nature of the fruit? If we are thinking it is the fruit of the Spirit that the life of Christ produces in us, we run into a problem. Can you see it? If the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace and the like, then what are we to make of God removing that from us?

iii) So we need to think more carefully about the fruit. In fact, the fruit is the love of Christ, the joy of Christ and the peace of Christ, and so on. But our failure to understand the nature of the fruit is directly linked to our failure to fully understand the nature of the peace, joy and love of God. This is why Jesus said in that we are to love each other as he has loved us, and that by this love others will know that we are Jesus’ disciples. After all, what is the ultimate goal of a disciple if not to become just like his or her master? Again, in , Jesus said anyone who loves him will obey his commands, and in v.21, anyone who loves him will be loved by the Father and by him. You see, it is one thing to know about God’s love and an entirely different thing to know God’s love. And how is it that you know what love is? Yes, first it is by knowing about God’s great love through Christ Jesus, but that will only take you so far. To truly know love you have to love others. It is only in loving others as Christ has loved you that you begin to understand Christ’s great love for you. Another way of putting it - you only have love in as much as you give it away.

So, where are you at this morning? Are you concerned that you are not producing the kind of fruit that Jesus would have you produce? Well there is an answer to that, and it’s found in the example that Jesus gave to us. Look again at v.9-10.

As Jesus had lived for his Father’s glory by abiding in his Father’s love, so he calls us to live for him, which we can only do if we abiding in his love. Will you commit yourself today to learn how to abide in Christ and to abide in his love more fully, more truly? If you will, you will find that your life will produce fruit, the kind of fruit that only the life of Christ can produce in and through you - fruit that will last for eternity.

iv) So what of the fruit of love? When is it measured as good fruit to the Father? Not when you think you have experienced it in your own heart - that’s a good thing, but not the kind of fruit the Father wants for his harvest. No, he is looking for the love you have sown into the hearts of others. After all, isn’t that the reason why plants produce fruit? Isn’t the seed by which it reproduces in the fruit? But what good is it to the plant if it remains in the fruit and the fruit on the vine? The branches must give up their fruit so the seed may be planted in the soil. And the soil is the hearts of others into whom you sow the love of God.

But as we had seen earlier, we can only truly know this love if we are willing to show love. We can only truly receive God’s love in as much as we are willing to give it away, to share it - and that takes sacrifice. That brings us back again to the example of Christ, which we will look at as we gather around the Lord’s Table.

v) What Jesus was really talking about here was the work of the household, the work of making disciples, and thereby growing and building up the household, which is the body of Christ.

vi) So now we can make sense of why the Father, the gardener, removes the fruit. He does not remove his love, his peace, his joy from us. He removes those whom we have been discipling - teaching, encouraging, mentoring - so that they may go and bear fruit elsewhere, and so that we might bear more fruit in others, making new disciples. 

COMMIT (Communion)