The Most Important Post You'll Ever Read

 

If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown out like a branch and dries up; and such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire and are burned up.  John 15:6

 Today’s verse seems scary, but it doesn’t have to be. As a gardener, a vine-dresser, or a plant mom, there are things that must be done to maintain the health of our charges. We looked earlier at verse 2 of this chapter that talks about pruning. A plant has a limited amount of energy, and if it sends it all to branches that are just making pretty leaves, there won’t be enough left for others to bear fruit. Our Heavenly Father, our perfect gardener, knows this. That’s why He prunes out of our lives those things that are not bearing fruit, so that others may bear fully. Zooming out from an individual’s life, God is also concerned with the life of His church.

 If a branch breaks off a tree, even if it still looks green, it is dead already. If it does not remain connected to the tree it cannot survive. A few years back we had an intense ice storm on the coast. Everything was coated with an inch, or more, of ice. The weight on the branches was intense, and one of the large limbs of our tree broke off and fell on our house, landing neatly on the power lines! Yes, once the ice melted, the branch still looked fine, but there was no hope for it. It couldn’t be glued back on and continue its life. It had become disconnected from the tree and all that was left for it was to be fully severed and thrown into the firewood pile.

 Even when we’re talking about plants this sounds harsh. I feel sad when I see a broken branch that has lost its potential in life. How much more so when we see this in people? This is one of the subjects I don’t like to discuss, for exactly that reason, it makes me sad, it feels uncomfortable. But the reality is, not everyone is living in relationship with Jesus and heading to Heaven. How much more sad than this fact would be me saying nothing and someone missing out?

 The Bible makes it quite clear that a relationship with Jesus is the ONLY way for us to enjoy eternal life. One of many examples is John 14:6 which reads, “Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” When we enter into relationship with Jesus, we enter into Heaven itself, even though our body may remain on earth. Our eternal life begins immediately. This can only come though from a true and complete surrender and a choice to follow God with all our heart. As I mentioned in the last post about grafting, our lifeblood must be joined to His, our vascular tissues coming into direct contact, that the join may be pure and complete, allowing His perfect lifeblood to flow through us. This is not “fire insurance,” friends! I’m not talking about praying a few simple words and then going on with your life as usual. I’m talking about a 180° turn around where we are no longer living for ourselves, but for Jesus. We must be crucified with Christ so that we no longer live, but it is Jesus Christ who now lives in us (Galatians 2:20). This is a full connection to the True Vine.

 Just as the Bible makes it clear that Jesus is the only way to the Father and Heaven, it shares over and over what will happen if we are not found in Christ. In today’s verse we read, “If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown out like a branch and dries up; and such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire and are burned up.”  John 15:6. Just like that limb that broke off of our tree at the beach, a dead branch no longer connected to the vine only has value as firewood. Without that life-giving connection and sustenance, it withers up and dries. Apart from Jesus we are just like those broken limbs, worthless dry things destined for the fire. But praise God we don’t have to remain like that!

 I want to address the elephant in the room as well. Many read these verses and are concerned that although they believe in Jesus maybe they don’t “believe enough.” What if they break off? What if the solidity of their connection to the vine won’t hold up to scrutiny? I’ve been there and I want to offer you some hope and peace, friend! First off, the fact that you would have these questions or be concerned is a very good sign. It shows that you care about your relationship with Jesus. The next step is to examine your heart. Do you feel as though you are fully committed to God? No, we are never going to be perfect in this life, and we will stumble along the way, but is your first desire to love and obey God? If this is the case then I want to offer you the assurance that once you are in Christ, nothing can take that away! John 10:28-29 tells us that whomever Jesus has given eternal life can never be taken away from Him. No one can “snatch” them out of His hands, much less our Heavenly Father’s hands!

 If, on the other hand, you look at your life and don’t see Jesus at the center of it, you’ve come to the right place! You see your need for Him, a connection to life and hope and a future beyond our wildest dreams. That is the first step. The next is admitting that need, acknowledging that you have sinned and cannot measure up on your own. That’s called confession and it is followed by repentance. You need to be sorry for your sin. You need to see that it is apart from God and His perfect will for you and you need to turn from it. That’s called repentance. When we come to Jesus, we are turning away from this world and its priorities and desires. Finally, we lay our lives at Jesus’ feet, trusting Him for what’s ahead and believing Him for what’s behind. We commit to live the rest of our lives for Him. We express our love for Him. How can you do all this? Well, it might start with praying a prayer like this:

Heavenly Father, my heart is broken. I have done things I shouldn’t have that I cannot fix. I am so sorry for them, and I want to be free from the burden of pain that they put on me. I believe that You can forgive me and wash me clean of all the guilt and mess in my life. I ask You to do that for me today. Jesus, I believe that You died on the cross as a punishment for my sin, my wrongdoing. I thank You for this sacrifice You made for me, and I accept the free gift of salvation, of relationship with You that will last forever. Please work in my heart to love You more each day and help me to live in and obey You.

 That’s the first step, and the next one you can probably guess, is to turn your heart to Jesus and learn to love Him. Don’t worry, He’ll even help you with this part! That’s how much He loves us, He’ll even help us to love and trust Him! Get into connection with other believers. Find a community, like a church, where you can learn more and grow. Learn how to read the Bible and truly understand it, also with God’s help. If you prayed this prayer for the first time today and you’d like to let me know, or if you’d like more information or resources, please send an email to SaltyZebraBlog@outlook.com. I would be overjoyed to welcome you to the family of Christ and help however I can.

Here’s the Thing: In Christ, we never have to be afraid. He’s got us held in His hand forever and nothing can change that! If we’re not in Christ, however, that fear should be very real, and propel us into a desire to seek the change we need.

Abiding in Jesus

  1. Week 1: Trusting the Gardener's Work
    1. John 15:1 - Seven Things Jesus Is
    2. John 15:2 - Pinch Those Suckers Out!
    3. Philippians 2:12-13 - Working Out My Salvation
    4. Matthew 5:16 - Stay Salty!
    5. 1 John 1:6 - Walking in Relationship
  2. Week 2: Bearing Lasting Fruit
    1. John 15:3-4 - It Takes Two to Abide
    2. John 15:5 - Grafted In
    3. John 15:6 - The Most Important Post You'll Ever Read
    4. Psalm 1:1-3 - What We Expect to See
    5. Galatians 5:22
  3. Week 3: Abiding in Jesus Through His Word
    1. John 15:7-8
    2. John 8:31-32
    3. Psalm 119:9-11
    4. Psalm 119:15-16
    5. 2 Timothy 3:16-17
  4. Week 4: Abiding in Jesus Through Obedience
    1. John 15:9-10
    2. James 1:22
    3. 1 John 3:24
    4. Matthew 7:24-25
    5. John 14:23-24
  5. Week 5: Abiding in Jesus Through Love
    1. John 15:11-12
    2. John 15:13-14
    3. 1 John 4:10
    4. 1 John 4:11-12
    5. Romans 12:9-13
  6. Week 6: Chosen and Commissioned by Christ to Bear Fruit
    1. John 15:15
    2. John 15:16
    3. Ephesians 2:10
    4. Galatians 6:9
    5. John 15:17

Wrap-Up

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