The branch cannot bear fruit of itself. John 15, verse 4. How did you begin to bear fruit? It was when you came to Jesus and cast yourselves on his great atonement and rested on his finished righteousness. Ah, what fruit you had then! Do you remember those early days? Then, indeed, the vine flourished, the tender grape appeared, the pomegranates budded forth, and the beds of spices gave forth their smell.

Have you declined since then? If you have, we charge you to remember that time of love, and repent and do thy first works. Be most in those engagements which you have experimentally proved to draw you nearest to Christ, because it is from Him that all your fruits proceed. Any holy exercise which will bring you to him will help you to bear fruit.

The Son is no doubt a great worker in fruit creating among the trees of the orchard and Jesus is still more so among the trees of his garden of grace. When have you been the most fruitless? Has it not been when you've lived farthest from the Lord Jesus Christ? When you've slackened in prayer? When you've departed from the simplicity of your faith? When your graces have engrossed your attention instead of your Lord? When you have said, My mountain standeth firm, I shall never be moved. And have forgotten where your strength dwells. Has it not been then that your fruit has ceased?

Some of us have been taught that we have nothing out of Christ, by terrible abasements of heart before the Lord. And when we have seen the utter barrenness and death of all creature power, we have cried in anguish, From Him all my fruit must be found. for no fruit can ever come from me. We are taught by past experience that the more we simply depend upon the grace of God in Christ and wait upon the Holy Spirit the more we shall bring forth fruit unto God.

Oh, to trust Jesus for fruit as well as for life.