A Fruitful Summer May 20, 2014
John15:1-11 is one of my favorite passages in the Scriptures. Most of the best oflife is there: intimacy, joy, love, personal fruitfulness, answered prayer,cleansing from sin, the glory of God. What could be better than this? In oneconnection or another, I’d venture that some of these topics are on your mind(or should be!) as you look forward to the summer months. Wouldn’t it bewonderful to reach Labor Day in a few months, look back on June-August, and beable to say that your summer of 2014 was filled with these sorts of things?According to Jesus, it’s entirely possible. Here’s how.
First,remain intimately connected to the Savior. “Abide in me” is how He puts it, andHe uses a gardening metaphor to enhance the point: “As a branch cannot bearfruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abidein me” (v4). It’s a picturesque reminder that genuine Christianity is not atechnique for self-improvement or a system of moral standards. It’s arelationship of intimate connection with Jesus. The fruit of your life is thedirect outgrowth of whatever you receive (or fail to receive) from yourconnection to the Vine. Are you concerned about “anti-fruit” in your life—sin,dysfunction, bad habits? Start by strengthening your life-giving connectionwith Jesus.
Second,reassert yourself in daily prayer. Use your summer to cultivate this mostimportant habit of the heart. Prayer is, in fact, the primary posture forabiding in Christ. As Jesus put it: “If you abide in me, ask whatever you wishand it will be done for you” (v7). Abiding is, at least in part, dependentpraying.
Third,meditate daily on the word. It’s instructive to note how Jesus interchanges Himselfwith His word in this passage. In one place He says, “Abide in me and Iin you” (v4); and then later He says, “If you abide in me and my words abide inyou” (v7). Apparently, Jesus’ word abiding is the same as Jesus Himselfabiding. The application is obvious: a life that is filled with fruit, joy,love, answered prayer, intimacy with God, freedom from sin, and a sense ofGod’s glory is a life first filled with the word of God.
So slowdown, pray, meditate, and abide. A summer of rich fruitfulness can be yours,but it can’t be cultivated on the run!