The Relationship between Christ and the believer

The Characters

our Father is the vinedresser

Jesus is the true vine

to be a branch of the kingdom you must be in Christ Jesus

the believers are the branches

The Father takes away every branch in Me that does not bear fruit and every branch that bear fruit He prunes. The reason for the pruning is to help the branch be more productive.

But (1.) The doom of the unfruitful (v. 2): They are taken away. [1.] It is here intimated that there are many who pass for branches in Christ who yet do not bear fruit. Were they really united to Christ by faith, they would bear fruit; but being only tied to him by the thread of an outward profession, though they seem to be branches, they will soon be seen to be dry ones. Unfruitful professors are unfaithful professors; professors, and no more. It might be read, Every branch that beareth not fruit in me, and it comes much to one; for those that do not bear fruit in Christ, and in his Spirit and grace, are as if they bore no fruit at all, Hos. 10:1. [2.] It is here threatened that they shall be taken away, in justice to them and in kindness to the rest of the branches. From him that has not real union with Christ, and fruit produced thereby, shall be taken away even that which he seemed to have, Lu. 8:18. Some think this refers primarily to Judas.

Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume (p. 2018). Peabody: Hendrickson.

Jesus says that you are clean through the word that I have spoken to you.

The branches can not bear fruit without Jesus, they have to abide in Me (is in Jesus) to bear fruit (The of the fruit Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. But a branch which bears no Spiritual fruit will be cast out to wither and died to be burned.

What are the fruits of the flush? they are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.