E110 - Hope’s Harbor Gritty Bible Devotions - Abiding / A Close Look - Part 1

Hope’s Harbor

Gritty Bible Devotions

Episode #110

Title: A Deeper Meaning of John 15 - Abiding

Date: June 12, 2023

Contact: info@hopesharbor.net

Key verses: John 15:1 & 2:

VS 1 – "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

VS 2 – “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”

Intro: The 15th chapter of the Gospel of John has been one I go to often for comfort, instruction, and encouragement. Even then, during the past week, I came to see a deeper meaning of the first two verses, which are the key verses for this episode.

The event giving me a deeper understanding was a medical discovery of heart issues needing attention so that I may avoid, if possible, a heart attack or stroke. When this diagnosis sank in I came to see everything differently but I can’t really explain how or why this is.

Since I happened to be reading John 15 about this time, I slowed down and reread the first of this chapter numerous times and thought about the implications of Jesus’s teaching.

I will do my best to share what I’ve learned. One thing for sure – all GOD does for us is rooted in His deep love.

Devotion focus: Jesus’s plan for you –

The events in John 15 occurred the night of Jesus’s arrest. Knowing He would die the following day, as Jesus and His disciples walked from the upper room in Jerusalem to the garden called Gethsemane. They likely walked alongside a vineyard and so Jesus used that setting to teach the correlation of the relationship between Him and GOD, and them in a way they could relate.

We need the same understanding of this relationship in order to draw the comfort Jesus intends each of us to have, especially in this day and age.  

For this devotion, as I studied John 15 verses 1 & 2, I took each word in these verses and looked them up in Strong’s Concordance. I thought about the context of what Jesus said referring to Himself as a vine and people as branches. The analogy is one of our dependence on Him for life. Whether we are doing so is evidenced by ‘fruit’ or good works that Jesus performs through His people.

The fact that all people are referred to as branches is found when vs 2 is compared to vs 6. Listen carefully to how Jesus compared the two types of branches. In vs 2 said ‘every branch in me,’ and in vs 3, every branch not in Me. We may take this to mean branches, or people, who are in Jesus, and belong to Him as His people. Branches, or people, who are not in Him are not His as His sons or daughters. These branches are cast away and burned, a vivid image of the end times’ judgment.

I point all this out to show the comfort of vs 2 when Jesus said branches in Him who are not bearing fruit are taken away. Now many well-meaning preachers have claimed this means if we don’t bear fruit we are cast away. But that is not what GOD’s Word clearly states. The term ‘takes away’ also means lifted up. It may be thought of as ‘takes away’ from lying on the ground having fallen from grace. Not loss of salvation, that is impossible and Jesus said as much in John 10:28 & 29 –

VS 28 – “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.

VS 29 – “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.”

Verse 2 is a tender image of GOD lifting up His fallen, downcast child and putting that child where he or she may recover. This is what a vineyard keeper does with branches that fall from where it was intertwined with other branches. He lifts it out of the dirt and places it back in the sunshine of His love for restoration. Now, how can we know this?

Listen once more to verse 2: “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” If we compare the first part of this verse with the second part we see two applications of the vineyard keeper’s care. The branch drooping is lifted up. The healthy branch bearing fruit is trimmed of excess hindrances so that it may bear even more fruit.

You see, GOD is tenderhearted with His own. Those in need of restoration are treated differently than those who are healthy. I know from experience this is how GOD operates. Whenever I fell in the past, some of those times were so painful I didn’t think at the time I would live through them. As GOD worked to restore me He never placed demands on me that could have pushed me over the edge of death.

Instead, He dealt tenderly, gently, with me, and sometimes the restoration took years.

It’s time for me to ask you: are you in a healthy relationship with GOD, or is something going on that’s draining the life out of you?

Let me paraphrase John 15:1:

In Jesus is life and GOD the Father watches over everyone who comes to Him to share in that life. (On a side note, Jesus said in John 14:6 - "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’)

Summary: Jesus is our life. The lesson of John 15 is about the relationship with GOD the Father, His Son Jesus, and their Spirit. This is the Holy Trinity. Paul wrote concerning this in Colossians 3:3b – ‘…For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.’

Action to consider: Living life with GOD is personal, one-on-one, between each one of us and our Savior. No one can do this for you, not your pastor, your friends, not even trusted Bible teachers. Others can remind us, try to encourage us, even teach us, but in the end, you must take responsibility for developing your friendship with Jesus.

If you don’t have a study Bible, get one. Then, begin to read your Bible every day. Start with the Gospel of John. Read slowly, considering the context, the recipients, and how it applies to your life. When you learn something that challenges your mindset, work to change your mindset in accordance with Scripture. Write down the new teachings of Jesus and read over this new information until you internalize it. This is the only way to grow in faith and knowledge of GOD. 

Next week’s devotion: More blessings from John 15 -