John 15:1-17
The Vine and Its Branches
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 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. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 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.
5 “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. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.
John 14:1-7
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
Jesus the Way to the Father
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Jesus teaches us that He is the vine and that we are the branches...If we can remain in Him and Him in us, we will bear much fruit...Apart from Him we can do nothing...If we do not remain in Him, we will be like a branch that is thrown away and withers...Such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned...But if we can remain in Jesus and follow His words and remain in Him, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you...This is to My Father’s glory, that we bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be His disciples...
God is our Creator and no matter what we do, He created us in His Image...And we in the end want to be with the One who created us...God has given us life, our place to live while we are here on earth, and everything else...God teaches us that life is about giving and love and learning and remaining in His Son...
Following Jesus is often seen as a set of rules that we must follow to get to His Father...These rules are God’s rules...By following Jesus we work our Way toward the hand of God, who offers us heaven...But the story is bigger than this, and everyday we live in this life, right here and right now each and everyday -doing what we do...The prize we want is to get to heaven and to get to God...And God has shown us that on the cross is His Self Giving Son, who will sacrifice anything and everything for us...
God has given us these things and He has shown us the Way to heaven and to Him with His Son's Words and His Son's actions...