PRODUCING FRUIT

Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and My Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful… Remain in Me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.”  (John 15:1-5 NIV)

Two ways of staying connected to Christ involve (1) removing what is unnecessary in our lives, and (2) staying focused on the vine.

On one side we have the vine, our life source. On the other side we have fruit. Our effectiveness is determined by which one we focus on, and in our world it’s hard not to focus on the fruit. So much of our worth is measured by what we produce. …

We also measure ourselves by comparing our fruit to what others produce. We can feel fine until we look around. Focusing on the success, achievements, and appearance of others can undo us.

We can obsess over fruit. We start to believe that the fruit is up to us. But Jesus says that it’s not. … Our job is to be a branch and let God’s power flow through us. … We begin to think we are the vine and are our own source of strength. We have to ask ourselves, “Do I receive my identity from the things I produce or from the One who produces through me?” 

-- Rob Fuquay in “The God We Can Know: Exploring the ‘I Am’ Sayings of Jesus”

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