“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” John.15:11
JESUS begins to speak “I AM THE VINE” the seventh of the “I AM” claim in the gospels.
Let’s look in brief about the Vine.
The Grape Vine is a useful prolific plant, its produce span into fruits to eat, raisins to store and wine for meals and ceremonies. A single vine supports numerous branches and bears many grapes. It’s structure is unique.
Vines are climbers normally secured to posts or sometimes trees, which require more detailed attention than most other plants. “he cuts off every branch . . . that bears no fruit . . . every branch that does bear fruit he prunes.” The farmer would clip away fruitless branches so that the vine’s strength would go into the fruitful branches. One would prune the weakest vines more thoroughly, for the sake of bearing better fruit in the long run. Most of the pruning during the year is trimming fruitful branches to strengthen them, but the severest annual pruning is to cut off the completely fruitless branches.
According to the Bible pruning is a metaphor for testing, trails, circumstances and challenges of one kind or other that strengthen us. Pruning has a method of hurting without harming, yielding in fruit bearing.
In John 15 we see the Key to experience Joy in Full as a believer. According to the Greek word used μένω menō, it’s a single word “REMAIN”.
Interestingly this word appears 11 times in the chapter, 40 times in the entire gospel and St. John also uses the same word 27 times in his other epistles.
It means every believer will experience “Perfect Joy”. Jesus Christ experienced it with the Heavenly Father.
We should also experience the same. It begins when He/ She REMAINS in believing, in loving and in obedience with Jesus Christ.
Very often now we are echoed with the word “Unlocking”. WE NEED TO REALIZE THAT THE WORD IS NOT LOCKED, IT IS UNLOCKED THROUGHOUT AGES TO BREAK THE BONDAGE AND SET US FREE WITH JOY IN FULLNESS. IT WILL REMAIN and will be the source of all your blessings.
FINALLY, REMAIN IN JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD HIS LOVE, HIS WORD AND YOU WILL PRODUCE THE FRUIT AND ASK IT SHALL BE DONE.
CONTINUE IN THE ABIDING LOVE THAT YOUR JOY MIGHT BE FULL.
SHALOM
Pastor. Suresh Abraham
