Abide in the Vine

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. ² Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. ³ Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. ⁵ 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. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷ If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ⁹ As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. ¹¹ These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”

-John 15:1-11 (ESV)

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What does it really mean to “abide” in Christ?

Strictly from the English understanding of the word, to abide is to “remain” or “stay” in a location or situation, to reside there. In the context of this parable in John 15, Jesus compares Himself to the Vine and explains that we (His followers) are the branches that grow off of that vine. No branch can survive for long apart from the nourishment that is supplied to them from the main vine. To abide in Christ is to fully and completely depend on His spiritual nourishment in our lives. An appropriate response to this life we are supplied is to reflect our dependence on Him through worship and exaltation. He has purchased our Justification and now He promises to provide Sanctification to those who abide in Him.

John Macarthur does an excellent job in describing the necessity of sanctification;

“Sanctification is absolutely essential to the life of faith—so much so that Scripture frequently treats holiness as the identifying mark of a true believer. Indeed, when the term saints (meaning “holy ones”) is used in Scripture, it refers not to dead luminaries whom the church has formally canonized but to living Christians—all the redeemed without exception. Paul writes “to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 1:2). Notice that he’s not talking about a special class of advanced sainthood. He’s underscoring the truth that all genuine believers are saints—holy people. A person who is utterly unsanctified is no Christian at all, no matter what verbal confession of faith he or she might make.” ^{(MacArthur, John. Sanctification (p. 45). Crossway. Kindle Edition.)}

So we know what it means, but how can we practice it?

One example that is given in John 15 is that those who abide “produce much fruit” and by doing so, we “prove to be” Jesus’ disciples (v. 8). We produce fruit as followers of Christ in tow main ways; (1) through our spiritual discipline and (2) our obedience to Christ’s commands. The result of this fruit is our progressive sanctification in Christ.

Spiritual Discipline

• Personal study of the Word
  • Spend a significant amount of time reading the Bible, but also dedicate time to do deeper study of the Scriptures and not just reading it. We abide & grow in Christ when we know Christ.
• Personal Prayer
  • I specify that we need to practice personal prayer because we cannot be dependent on the prayers of others. We abide & grow in Christ when we speak to Christ.
• Meditation on the Scriptures
  • Contemplate on God’s Scriptures. Spend time thinking deeply about the revealed will of our God, His character, attributes, how He is glorifying Himself through redeeming a people to Himself, but also contemplate your response in your thoughts and actions to our God. We abide & grow in Christ when our thoughts are consumed by Christ.

Obedience to Christ

Of course, by practicing the Spiritual disciplines we listed above, we are acting in obedience to Christ, but our obedience goes deeper than our pursuit of spiritual discipline. How is your life different from your neighbor who does not know Christ? Are we setting the example of what it means to love God with all that we are and love those around us like ourselves (Matt. 22:36-40)? Do we care for the widow, orphan, and weakest among us (James 1:27)? In all that we do, is our chief goal to glorify God to the upmost (1 Cor. 10:31)? Because of the great love that Christ has lavished upon us, our highest preoccupation should be faithful obedience for His glory.

Let’s focus on two things as followers of Christ: Abiding in Christ & producing fruit in our faith and practice. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, He will faithfully conform us to His image in our sanctification on our path to holiness.