Devotional: Abide
"I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."
-John 15:5
In this passage of scripture, Jesus is talking to His beloved disciples shortly before His crucifixion. He’s offering them direction and comfort before He leaves.
In line with Jesus’ character, He uses a parable to get His message across to them: He is the vine and His disciples are the branches.
Imagine a grapevine– the root, the main vine, the branches, the leaves, the grape clusters. When you picture it, you see the whole thing as one unit and I believe that’s one aspect of Jesus’ message to the disciples. We are one with Christ when we become a believer because He indwells us through the Holy Spirit. In John 17:22-23, Jesus prays to God, “And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.”
The other aspect that Jesus is trying to get across is that the branches are an offshoot from the primary vine. The vine comes first, then the branches. The branches cannot exist or thrive unless they are connected to the vine. The branches that are connected receive the nourishment from the root and ultimately produce healthy fruit. The branch that is disconnected is dead and obviously unfruitful.
The Greek word for “abide” is menō, which means “to stay, to remain.” In Scripture, that word is often used in reference to traveling and staying somewhere or in reference to where someone lives. Another definition of menō from Strong’s dictionary is “to remain as one, not to become another or different.” With the understanding that we are one with Christ, this definition fully supports the analogy of the grapevine. Like I mentioned earlier, the vine and the branches are intended to be one unit.
If our identity in Christ is being a branch, then we won’t thrive through any other means than remaining attached to the vine. If we remove ourselves and try to be our own root or vine, we’ll fail because that’s not who/what we are. In other words, our primary identity is being a child of God. If we go and try to find our identity in our career, health, people-pleasing, talents, fame, money, worldly achievements, vanity, relationships, etc., we won’t thrive. I’m not saying that we can’t have any of those items listed; what I am saying is that our identity cannot be found in any of those things because every single item listed can be taken away from us; that’s the reality of life. We are thankful for our blessings, but we hold them loosely. They are not our source or purpose for living– Jesus is. The ONE thing that can never be taken away from us is the fact that we belong to Him and that’s why we must stay connected.
So how do we abide in Jesus?
First of all, I want to clarify that abiding is not synonymous to believing. Believing in Jesus comes first for salvation, then abiding in Jesus follows for discipleship. Discipleship is how fruit is produced in our lives. This is why He commands His disciples (which includes us!) to abide in Him.
One way that I like to picture “abiding” is through the analogy of sunbathing. If you lie out in the sun, your skin soaks up the Vitamin D and UV light. Over time, your skin gets darker, you might get tan lines, or you get sunburned. Additionally, your cells soak in the vitamin D which bolsters your immunity, improves your mood, and assists the absorption of other minerals. Likewise, as you spend time with Jesus, you start to notice changes and the “fruit” produced in your life. You don’t try to change yourself; you allow God to change you by abiding in Him.
Spend time with Jesus
What does this look like? Pray as you go about your daily activities. Set aside time to pray, pouring out your heart to God in the good and the bad times. Listen or look for Him to speak through the Bible, through sermons, through the still small voice in your heart, or through other believers. Worship Him by listening and singing along to worship music. Journal your thoughts and prayers to Him. When you spend time with Jesus and understand His character, then you will start to look more like Him. It’s like the quote that says, “You become who you hang around.”
2. Meditate on the Word
All Scripture is God-breathed, meaning that the people who wrote it were divinely inspired. Reading the Bible nourishes our soul because we learn more about God and His love for us. We learn His guidelines for living and for loving. Reading the Bible is like eating food for our soul. Meditating on Scripture is to stop to pray and contemplate what it is saying and what it means for your life.
3. Obey His prompting and His Word
The Holy Spirit lives inside of you and He is ready to guide you; you just have to be willing to listen and obey. It’s that still small voice that might prompt you to go talk to a stranger and tell them about Jesus. It could be that internal push to share your experiences with someone and how God helped you through it. When we follow through with His still small voice inside of us, we are exercising our faith and growing in it. Additionally, when we read the Bible, we learn how God wants us to live. Obeying His words and putting it into action takes faith, trusting that He’s in control and will embolden us to live the way He wants us to.
What is the “fruit” that we produce as a result of abiding?
Romans 6:22 defines the fruit as our sanctification (which is our spiritual growth in Jesus): “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.”
Galatians 6 details the fruit of the Spirit which are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Ephesians 5:8-10 tell us to “walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”
Take a moment: Do you see the fruit of the Spirit in your life?
Have you grown? Or have you been detached from the vine? If you haven’t been abiding in Jesus, then you are probably experiencing some detachment and lack of fruit. I know that when I am in seasons where I’m not abiding in Jesus, the fruit of the Spirit doesn’t come so naturally. It’s only when I’m attached to the vine that I feel nourished, filled, and spiritually healthy.
Use this devotional as your prompting to rest in Jesus. He loves you and just wants your heart. Spend some time reading all of John 15 and praying for a hunger to spend time with Him.
Abiding in Jesus and allowing Him to grow you is what it means to live by faith.
-Alina