John 15
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
Christ Jesus is The Vine of that vineyard. The base and stalk in which we are fed and grow from. God takes care of the vineyard. He prunes it and waters it.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
Refuse The Vine, Christ Jesus and be pruned off that Vine. The husbandman will get rid of the dead wood and it helps His believers grow and produce. Dead wood - non believes, get in the way and interfere with production.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Without Christ in your DAILY lives, your dead wood. And it's very important you study His Word in order to bear any fruit.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
You're NOT going to produce without Christ. Without faith, without living or "abiding" in Christ and His Word, there will be no peace. Without Him, your living outside His mansion = dwelling place where we find true rest and safety. Without Christ, you cannot produce what is good and of use to you and to those around you.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
"Without" Him, we "can do NOTHING." Only when we seek Him in His Word, can we produce anything. There are natural instincts when it comes to a babe walking, but when you want to know if something is right or wrong, good or evil, or if you want to know the how, who, what and when of this life, you need The Word of God.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
If you reject Christ, God cuts you off and cast you where you would rather be. Those people that have rejecting Him, will accept you as one of their own and all will reap what they want. Poof, up in smoke! Heaven is called such because those that hate God have no mansion there. They won't exists anywhere anymore. I look forward to this day, even if I'm not found worthy. It will be the best event in the universe.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
ATTENTION! There are Conditions to His promise. You had better do more than say "you believe". You had better believe whole heartily and STUDY His Word and LIVE His Word. Then and ONLY then will He provide for you.
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
Do you want to please God? You glorify God when you give Him time in His letter to you, The Bible. When you study His Word, you bear fruit. When you bear fruit, you become a disciple of Christ Jesus. "Disciple" = μαθητής mathētḗs, math-ay-tes'; from G3129; a learner, i.e. pupil, student of The Word. From μανθάνω G3129 μανθάνω manthánō, man-than'-o; prolongation from a primary verb, another form of which, μαθέω mathéō, is used as an alternate in certain tenses; to learn (in any way):—learn, understand. [To increase one's knowledge, to be increased in knowledge, to learn by use and practice.]
9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
That love is The Truth. Everything is tied to His Word. His birth, His sacrifice, His examples, His warnings. Do you love those in your life? Show them! Give them His love.
10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
If you love God, you want to follow All The Commandments and you follow ALL The Word. Know this though; Matthew 22:37-38 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. Live in Him, Focus on Him EVERYDAY. John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
There it is! You want to be blessed? If we abide in Him, it makes Him happy and we will be happy also. When you have The Word in you, you feel content, you feel you're ready for anything. You're much happier. You're Blessed!
12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Christ sets the example as our friend. He is about to lay His life down for us all.
14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
CONDITION!
15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
We're not in bondage, we are free to make our own minds up. Free to decide what we want to do. Christ asks us to follow His commands freely. He's love is best for us. If you commanded your child to look both ways before crossing the street, is that because you think of them as a slave or because you want the best for them, you want them to live?
16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
Ever ask yourself why you live today and not 100 years ago? Well if you're talking to yourself, you may have a problem. [Smile] You're chosen to be here at this time in history for a reason. We didn't chose Him to be our Savior, He chose us. The Holy Spirit sees our needs and provides what is necessary when we ask of it to fulfill the work that needs to be done. Even in those times we're not sure of what we need, He provides. Romans 8:26-27 26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. Even when we can't put our thoughts in words, our Father understands our faith. He knows our hearts and every thought, He is our Holy Spirit = Comforter. John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
17 These things I command you, that ye love one another.
Remember He told us before; John 13:34-35 34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. You love by humbling yourself to help others in need. That's with their physical needs and mental needs. Don't ever hold The Truth back, that is a very important love. If you keep silent of the Truth of God, others may not ever hear it, True loves grows. †
18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
The worldly people will hate The Truth. They love those that conform to whatever goes and those that believe things are gray = no good or bad defined by The Word. Things are being twisted today. If you hold to The Whole Truth of God's Word, you're going to be hated. Those that hate you indicates you're on the right path. You don't want evil liking you. They hated Christ, I hope they hate you also. Sounds strange, but should I twist the facts? .....NO!
19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
If you follow Christ Jesus, don't expect to be treated any different than He was treated. There will be those that hate and who you've become and some that will do as you have done and give themselves to our Lord and Savior. Some will accept the message of Christ and they will repent, changing their lives forever and some will hate you calling out the sins they chose to love more than Truth.
21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me.
The reactions of people will show where their beliefs are focused. Some will play the part of a Christian, but will follow the world and the hate they have for you.
22 If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin.
We have no excuse now. You can't hide behind ignorance any longer. The Truth is out! We have now heard about Christ Jesus bringing salvation to the world. We now know, He is life everlasting.
23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also.
Because They Are One.
24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.
The kenites had seen and heard everything Christ did and because they reject Christ and all He had done, they reject God, The Father and all He had sent. There are many religions out there, but Only One Reality. †
25 But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
Prophecy was being fulfilled, this law was The Whole Scripture and He's talking about what was foretold in Psalms 35:19 Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause. and in Psalm 69:4 They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away. They all turned from Him at that final hour, standing alone for us. He was hated for no rightful reason; they were just evil. John 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
The Holy Spirit will reveal the truth to everyone that seeks Christ.
27 And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
Some, His elect have been with Him in Truth since the very beginning of what we would call time. They've been with Him in the first world age. They know Him and can testify without hesitation. No matter what, continue to speak The Truth. It shows your love for those who love you and for those who hate you. Continue to preach His Truth and never worry. 2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. The Holy Spirit, The Comforter is always with you. †