I'm going back to John chapter
15. This morning the title was Christ
is the Door. Tonight the title is Christ is
the True Vine. The True Vine. Now, if you'll notice how this
chapter starts out, I AM. Capital. I AM. This is God declaring to
be divine. This is Jehovah declaring to
be divine. I AM. The great I AM is divine. He is divine. Moses said, who
shall I say sent me? He said, you tell them, the children
of Israel, I am that I am have sent thee. And here he says, I am. I am the true vine. I thought about this as I sat
down and looked at this again today. If I am the true vine,
And we are the branches. We are a part of that vine. Can
the fruit of the vine, can the branch connected to the vine
not have the nature of the vine in it? I thought that's not easy. It's not possible, is it? It's
not possible for a branch to be connected to a vine and not
be a partaker of the very nature of that vine. Not possible. And when he said, it just struck
me today as I was reading this, I am, and he's talking about
Jehovah. This is God speaking. He said,
I'm the true vine. You know, we often quote that
I am the vine. He said, I am the true vine.
And my father is the husbandman. He's the farmer. Scripture says
we are his workmanship. created in Christ Jesus. We are
His workmanship. Our Lord speaks here of our union
to Him. This morning we saw how that
Christ came through the door by the divinely appointed way,
the means, satisfying the law of God, righteousness, blood,
redemption, and the porter opened to Him. And then he said, I am
the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved. And here,
here he now speaks of our union. That living union that we have
with the Lord Jesus Christ. With the real living person.
And the importance of it. How important this is. There
cannot be any greater blessing than to be one in Christ. to be connected to the vine,
to be joined to the Son of God. All the spiritual blessings that
God has for believers, that God has for His church, all the spiritual
blessings come through this vine. We know that just in the natural
realm, the branches on that tree. If it's going to be fruitful,
If there's going to be any blessings of fruit, it's going to come
through the vine first, then to the branches. And then the
evidence of it is the fruit. It's the fruit. The fruit is
not the cause, it's the evidence. It's the evidence. And so all
the spiritual blessings that we've been blessed with, as Paul
tells us in Ephesians, we were blessed with in the heavenly
places in Christ, in the vine. In the vine. Christ is the true
vine. I mean, he's saying this, I am
the genuine. I am the real. You know, he said
in different places, I am the true light. I'm not just light. I am the true light. He said,
I am the true bread from heaven. See, that was manna that came
down from heaven. That manna that the children
of Israel ate of was not the true bread. Christ is the true
bread. That manna was bread that came
down from heaven. Christ said, I'm the true bread
that gives life to the world. He's the true tabernacle. See,
the tabernacle and the manna and those things were just types
and pictures. And He's saying, here, I'm the
true. I'm the real. I'm the one they pointed to.
I'm it. Look over in Hebrews chapter
9. Let me read this to you. In Hebrews chapter 9 and verse 24, for Christ is not entered
into the holy places made with hands. which are figures of the
true. You see, they're just pictures
of the true. And who's the true? Christ. Christ. But into heaven itself,
now to appear in the presence of God for us. The high priest
has entered into God's presence. The true high priest has entered
into the true holy of holies in God's presence for us. He
said, I'm the true God. I'm true. And my Father is the
husbandman. It was the Father who sent the
Son, who sent Him forth to be the propitiation for our sins.
The Father did that. It was the Father who prepared
a body for Him. He said, a body hast thou prepared
me. It was the Father who chose the
branches that will be in the vine. It's the Father who engrafted
them. The vineyard is His. That's why
He's saying this vineyard, the church, belongs to my Father. The whole vineyard belongs to
my Father. Now, every branch in me, and some of these verses
are not easy to deal with. Every branch in
me that beareth not fruit, He taketh away. And every brass
that beareth, beareth, and that means keep on bearing fruit,
he purges, purgeth it, continually prunes it. That's what he's doing,
pruning, prunes it. That it may bring forth, and
here's the reason, that it may bring forth more fruit. More
fruit. The Father takes away all the
dead branches. Here's two thoughts I'm going
to give you on this. The Father takes away all the dead branches.
Just like he did Judas. He took him away. Or anyone whose
profession is just a dead profession. That's all it is, a profession.
A mere profession will not get the job done. It will not get
it done. There must be a living union,
a living connection to this vine. Must be. Not just a profession. Paul said this in Philippians
chapter 3, Oh, that I might know Him and the power of His resurrection,
that I may be joined to Him, know Him and experience that
powerful life of His. I might know Him. There must
be a vital union to the branch, to the vine I mean, to the vine
for us to have life. It has to be. But if you notice, go back here
and look at this. He says, every branch in me. He's saying in me, he's saying
every branch in me. And I take it to mean this also,
and I think it has both meanings. It's possible for a branch. That used to bear fruit. To become
fruitless. through the cares of this world,
neglect of the Word of God, neglect of the preaching of the gospel,
neglect of the gathering together of the church where Christ puts
a special blessing on, neglect of prayer, caught up into these
things. And he says here, my Father will
take him away. He'll take him out. That's what
he's saying. And I believe that's so. I believe
it has both meanings. I believe He's saying here that
those who profess to be in Christ, sooner or later He'll just take
them away. And those who at one time bore
fruit are in Christ, they've let things get in the way. And
sometimes instead of pruning it, He just takes it away. Takes
it away. And every branch that beareth
fruit, he purges it. He purges. Boy, you know what
purging is. That's a powerful word. Purge. Purge something. Cleanse. In this respect, it's to prune.
To prune it. Now, if you've ever pruned something.
Have you ever watched someone prune a grape vine, grape arbor? Have you ever watched them prune
it? They cut it back to look like it's dead. I saw this on
TV one time. They cut it back to where it
looked like there was no way that thing was going to bear
fruit the next year. But you know why the vine dresser did
that? That it might bear more fruit.
That it would bear more fruit. Every branch that bears fruit,
he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. He never leaves. The Father never leaves the fruit
bearing branches alone. He never leaves them alone. Constantly. Daily. Minute by minute. He's working on them. He's working
on those branches. You ever see someone just out
pruning the garden and working that garden? That's what the
Father does. Constantly working His vineyard.
Constantly working. He never leaves them alone. He's
always pruning them. He prunes them with His Word. You have sat under the gospel
for years and there's times when a message has been preached and
it has just shot you right in the heart. I know, I've experienced
it. There's times that it's just
like it was just shot straight at me and nobody else. As if
no one else was there. The Holy Spirit takes the Word
of God and convicts. We talk about the Holy Spirit
taking the Word of God and convicting of sin. That's just not a one-time
event. That happens throughout life.
That's the whole process of the whole journey. Constantly convicting
and directing by using His Word. And then He sends trials and
afflictions. That's what pruning does. That's
what He uses them for. He takes trials and afflictions
and prunes us, purges us. These trials and afflictions
are given that we might bear more fruit, that we might be
made more like Christ and bring forth more fruit, spiritual fruit. You know, if trials were to stop,
if trials were to stop and everything just went what you and I would
call our way, Everything is just going our way. It's just a great
day and everything just falls in place and checks in the mail. You know the fruit would stop.
The real love and joy and kindness and long-suffering would stop. You would finally become fruitless
if He stopped pruning you with trials and afflictions and His
Word. They would soon dry up. Someone
said this, in the making of a believer, in the making of a believer,
God cuts off everything that does not look like a believer.
That's what pruning is. He cuts off everything that does
not look like a believer. Here's the fruit of the Spirit,
Galatians 5. in verse 22. But the fruit of the Spirit is
love. This is the fruit he's talking about. Love, joy, joy
in the Lord, real joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith. That's the fruit that he prunes
for. That we bear more of it. More
of it would be evident in our gathering together And then I'll
walk out here among the world and it would be more evident.
It says over in Ephesians 5, 9, for the fruit of the Spirit
is in all goodness and righteousness and truth. And the purging, the pruning
is for more of this fruit. It's for more of this fruit.
You want more of it? You want to love more? Now really,
seriously, you want to love more? You really want more joy in the
Lord? You really want more peace? You really want more long-suffering?
It's going to take some pruning. It's going to take some pruning. You can't have it without it.
You can't have it without it. What kind of husbandman, what
kind of farmer, what kind of vineyard owner would God be if
He neglected to do this? If he neglected his vineyard,
he would be nothing more than a slugger. He'd be like the man
that Solomon spoke of when he went by his house, the walls
were broken down and the weeds had grown over. That's what it'd
be like. For us to be useful, for us to
be tenderhearted, for us to be kind, it takes pruning. It takes pruning. And he says,
now you're clean through the Word which I've spoken unto you. After he sent Judas away, he
tells his disciples, now you're clean. Now you're clean through
the Word. One day, all the Judases are
going to be gone. And there'll be nothing but clean. A clean
vineyard. But he speaks here, what he's
speaking here of, is that the Word of God is a cleansing agent. It is a cleansing agent. Now,
it's the blood of Christ that puts away our sins. It's the
blood of Christ that makes atonement for our sins. But the Word of
God used in the power of the Holy Spirit to convict of sin
and to shine the light on us has a cleansing effect by it.
That's the reason I read Psalm 119. Wherewithal shall a young
man cleanse his ways? By taking heed thereunto thy
word. It has a real cleansing effect
about it. Scripture says over here in Psalm
19.8, the statutes of the Lord are right. Rejoicing the heart,
the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. It's through the Word that you
know, has been revealed to you, what sin is. What you are. What I am by nature. That's how
we learn. Through the Word. It's through
the Word that we are directed. in the hands of the Holy Spirit.
It has a cleansing effect about it. Now, he says here in verse 4,
Now abide in me. See, you've been cleansed through
the Word. I've spoken to you. Now abide in me. And that word
abide, you know what it means? Here's the meaning of it. Stay. Stay in me. It means this. fellowship. Stay in me. Keep fellowship with me. Communion
with me. Don't leave me. Could a believer leave the Lord
Jesus Christ? Could he? Look over in Revelation. Revelation chapter 2. In verse 1 it says, Revelation
chapter 2, Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write,
These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right
hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks,
I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and how thou
canst not bear them which are evil, and thou hast tried them
which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them
liars, and hast borne, and hast patience, for my name's sake
hast labored, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless, I have something
against thee." You've left your first love. Where's your heart? It's almost
like they started going through this thing mechanically. You've
left your first love. That's the charge to the Ephesian
church. Go over and read that epistle
again. What an epistle. And he says, you've left your
first love. So can that happen? Yes, it can. We can get so caught up with
other things that we could leave our first run. That's why he
says, stay in me, abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot
bear fruit of itself, you cannot bear this fruit of the Spirit
by yourself. It's not possible, except it
abide in the vine. Can an apple tree branch bear
apples? If it's laying on the ground,
if it's cut off, it cannot do it. It cannot do it. It has to
be joined to that tree. And this is what he's saying
here. Abide, stay in me. Stay with me. What Paul told
those Colossians, if you continue in the faith, the ground isn't
settled and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel. Abide in me, as the branch cannot
bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine. No more
can ye, except ye abide in me." Remember, continue in me. There
were many who left Him. And I've seen some over the years
lead that surprised me. Surprised me. But there were
some who left Him. He said, Except you eat my flesh and drink
my blood. Sounds like cannibalism, doesn't
it? That's what they thought. They didn't understand he was
talking about faith, spiritually. They said, this is a hard saying. And they walked no more with
him. A whole lot of them that called themselves disciples turned
and left him. He said, abide in me. Stay with
me. Our fruit bearing is in direct
connection to the vine. We cannot bring forth anything
good except as we are united to the
Lord Jesus Christ by faith. Can't do it. Can't do it. And he gives us another example
here. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide
in the vine, no more can ye except ye abide in me. A branch by itself
bears no fruit. As we saw this morning, corn
on the shelf, corn left on the shelf without being buried will
produce nothing. And a branch by itself will produce
nothing. It cannot produce this true love,
joy, peace, longsuffering. It can't do it. Our fruit-bearing
has to do with our union to Christ. Paul said this over in Philippians
1.11, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by
Jesus Christ. The fruits of righteousness are by Jesus Christ. It's His
work in us. Thou hast wrought all our works
in us. He's done that. And it's unto
the glory and praise of God. That's what the fruit's for.
It's for the praise and glory of our God. Now, I'm the vine
and you're the branches. He that abides in me and I in
him, the same brings forth much fruit. If he abides in me, if
this relationship is real, if it's real, he said he will bear
forth much fruit. He will show forth this kind
of fruit. I in Him, He said, He that abides in Me, and I in
Him, the same bring forth much fruit. For without Me, you can
do nothing. You can't bring forth fruit.
You can do nothing. And I mean, you can't even take
the next breath without Me. Christ can do without Me. I cannot do without Him. He existed. without me. I have never existed
without Him. I have no existence without Him,
but He existed long before I came around. Long before then. In Him we live and move and have
our being. But apart from Him, we're dead.
Dead. He said you can do nothing. Nothing
good can come out of you. except you abide in Me. Now if
a man abides not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and he
is withered, and men gather them and cast them into the fire,
and they are burned." Only God can see the heart. Only God can
see the heart. He knows the difference between
the tares and the wheat. And in His time, in His time,
He will take away those false professors, those false religionists,
He'll take him away. I know he's not going to destroy
the believer. Even though a believer may become fruitless, if he takes
him away, he's not going to destroy him. He'll not destroy him. Not
if he died for him. Not if he's redeemed him. He
may take him out of this life and take him home, but he's not
going to burn him. That's why I said some of these
are not easy to deal with. I do know that. Now, if you abide
in me, my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will and
it shall be done unto you. Now, religionists, false religious
people have just wore this thing out. They have just wore it out
with their own advantage. But notice the condition he lays
down here. If you abide in me, you stay in me, commune with
me, and my words Abide in you. Here's His words, right here.
If they abide in you, then you can ask what you will. Go ahead. Ask what you will. And I'll do
it. You know why? Because if you
abide in Him, and His words abide in you, and you have that close
fellowship with Him, you know what? What you will ask will
be according to His will. And you'll be praying for things
spiritual, not carnal. That fellowship is there. That
union is there. He said, ask what you will, and
I'll do it. Because if you have that kind of closeness and union
and fellowship, you're going to be asking according to His
will. And you're going to be seeking those things that are
above, where Christ sits at God's right hand, and not the things
of this earth. You're not going to be saying, Lord, give me a
mansion here on earth. Great job, Rob, make a lot of
money. No, you're not going to ask that. You know what you're
going to say? Lord, increase my love. Increase my joy in Thee. Increase my peace with Thee. Give me more of a sense of it.
That's what you're going to seek. And these other things are going
to be added. Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness
and these other things will be added. That's what he's saying. Herein is my Father glorified.
Verse 8, and I'll wind this down. Herein is my Father glorified.
Here's how He's glorified. That you bear much fruit. The
fruit of the Spirit that I read to you. Love, joy, peace. That
glorifies the Father. You know, when your children
love each other, When they do things for each
other because they love each other and they want to do things
for each other, the parents are honored. Parents are honored. And he said, you bear much fruit. There's love and joy in the way
you treat each other. The way you handle each other.
And love and joy in the way you do that. He said, you honor my Father.
You honor my Father. And the way it will be known
that you are My disciples is this, that you bear much fruit.
That's evidence of it. That's evidence of it. A real love for one another,
a real love, a real joy in the Lord, a real true spirit of humility
is real evidence that God has done something for you. That
God has done something in you. It's a real mark of discipleship.
Now as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Boy, if
we could just comprehend a little bit of that. How has the Father
loved His Son? He said the Father loved the
Son and has committed all things into His hands. He has loved His Son everlastingly. There was never a time He did
not love His Son. There was never a time He did
not love me. He loves His Son fervently. He
loves His Son constantly. He doesn't waver. That's the
way He loves me and you. You're in Him. Now, if you keep my commandments,
you shall abide in my love. If you follow my words, if you
love my word, you study my word, my words abide in you. You'll
abide in my love, you'll seek it, you'll want it, you'll desire
it. Even as I've kept my Father's commandments and abide in His
love. You want a real sense, a strong sense of the Lord's
love for you. He says, keep my commandments.
And what's His commandment? Love one another. to express
that same love that God has expressed to you in His Son. These things have I spoken to
you, that my joy might remain in you, that your joy might be
full. He said, I told you these things
that your joy may be full. I revealed these things to you
that your joy may be full. Our Lord rejoices in His fruitful
people. He rejoices in them. Like a farmer, when he plants
a vineyard, he plants his crops, and they grow up. When they grow,
it brings forth a lot of fruit. If it's had a good year, it brings
forth a lot of fruit. And he rejoices in it. He rejoices
in the taste of it. Oh, this communion that we have
with Christ is real. It's real. That's why it's real. There's nothing, nothing is more
desired by Christ than that the joy of His people would be full,
that it would be constant and uninterrupted. If I do not have the joy in the
Lord that I ought to have, it's my fault. It's never His fault. It's my fault. I got caught up
with something and something else got my attention. Something else
turned my head. This is my commandment, that
you love one another as I have loved you. He left us this one commandment
here, that you love one another. He said the whole law is fulfilled
in this, that you love your neighbor as yourself. If you love one another, you'll
take care of one another. If you love one another, you'll
watch after one another. As I have loved you." How has
He loved me? Completely. Sacrificially. He gave Himself for me. Now, He says, greater love. Greater
love, He says, has no man than this, that a man lay down his
life for his friends. And we cannot express a greater
love to Christ and sacrificing ourselves to taking care of one
another. Can't do it. Can't do it. And he says in verse 14, I'll
wind this down, you are my friends. He called Abraham his friend.
You're my friends if you do whatsoever I command you. It's evident you're
my friends if you obey me. Rebels don't obey. Not willingly. But friends who love their master
obey. And he said, you're my friends if you keep my commandments,
if you do whatever I tell you, because it's evidence you're
my friends. It's evidence you love me. You're obedient. Our obedience is evidence of
our love to Christ. It's evidence of it. He said,
I don't call you servants, although we are servants of Christ. He
said, I call you friends. You're my friends. You're my
friends. And I loved you. And I laid down
my life for you. But remember this. Remember this. You didn't choose me. I chose
you. Let's never get that out of order.
Let's never get that out of order. You did not choose me. I chose you.