“I am the vine, you are the branches; if you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing” John 15:5.
In my last post, Abiding in Christ and Bearing Fruit – Part 1, I stated that true Christians are born again by the power of the Holy Spirit (John 3:3; Romans 8:14-16; 1 Peter 1:3) and abide in Christ. The more we abide in Christ, the more we bear spiritual fruit. Last time we looked at what it means to abide in Christ. Let’s look now at what it means to bear fruit.
Often, I meet with people visiting our school and sometimes it becomes apparent they are not Christians. We begin talking about Christianity and what it means for a person to have saving faith in Jesus Christ. I ask them, “Does this sound good to you – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? Would you like these things?”
“Yes,” they respond, “Of course!”
I continue, “These things are only given to Christians. They are the fruit of the Spirit and given by God to believers who are born again into the family of God. For instance, unbelievers can have love, but it is human love. The love from God the Bible is most often referring to is ‘agape’ love. This “agape’ is given to Christians by God. In Romans 5:5, we read about this special love God has given to believers through His Spirit.”
“God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
Then, I’ll turn in my Bible to Galatians 5:22-23 and ask them to read this passage about the fruit of the Spirit:
“And the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Christians abide in Christ and grow in fruit – spiritual fruit. We are like trees “planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in season” (Psalm 1:3). The more we abide (live, remain, dwell) in Jesus Christ, the more we will bear fruit.
To bear fruit means to yield or produce fruit. We either bear good fruit or bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Jesus taught His disciples this spiritual truth in Matthew 7:16-20:
“You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, you will recognize them by their fruits.”
In Jesus Christ, a Christian can grow and bear much fruit because as a Christian, the Holy Spirit dwells within you (Romans 8:11). However, apart from Jesus Christ, you cannot bear fruit nor do anything spiritual because the Holy Spirit does not dwell within you (John 15:5).
Do you love Jesus Christ? Are you abiding in the “True Vine” and bearing fruit that comes from the righteousness of Christ? If not, Jesus is calling you now.
“I am the vine, you are the branches; if you abide in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing” John 15:5.
May God bless you with His grace, love, and truth!