“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.”
John 15:5
Growing healthy grapes is an elaborate process. Grapevines need a strong trellis, plenty of sunshine and adequate space. In order to fertilize they need to alternate male and female plants, though some are “self-fertilizing” now. And all advice about caring for grapes focuses on the importance of pruning.
“Grapes produce on growth that is a year old. This makes it important that a pruning schedule is kept to remove older growth and ensure new growth develops. The most common mistake made with grape pruning is not pruning hard enough. Once a grapevine is fully established, you will actually be cutting off more plant than you leave behind.”
Monrovia Blog
The trunk grows up to horizontal cordons, which branch out into canes. From last year’s canes, new shoots grow in the spring. Around 90% of last year’s canes and shoots must be pruned to create space for the remaining canes to produce large, healthy bunches of grapes. Left to themselves, grapevines will overspread and take over whole areas, producing lots of leaves and grapes but the bunches will be very small.
All this to say, Jesus chose a perfect metaphor for the Christian life. I suppose he could have compared us to carrots or potatoes but he wanted us thinking about grapes.
If you are going to bear fruit for the glory of God and the building of His kingdom, you need to create an environment in your life where that kind of fruit can grow. You can’t produce the fruit of love, joy, peace and patience in your heart any more than you can force grapes to grow on a vine. All you can do is set up the best possible environment and then trust God to give the growth.
What is the environment in which a Christian can grow? Jesus says it’s all about abiding in Him.
We have developed a Spiritual Life Worksheet (Word Doc) to help you figure that out.
It is built around four questions:
- How are you trusting Jesus right now?
- How are you worshiping Jesus?
- How are you walking with Jesus?
- How are you working with Jesus?
Trust in Jesus – a commitment of personal faith – is what gets you into the game called discipleship, which we visualize as a baseball diamond. Trusting and knowing Jesus will lead you to love Him with all of your heart. What will propel you from first base to second is the cultivation of a life of worship. How can you truly put God first in your life? How can you delight in Him above all other things? As you trust and love and worship Jesus, you will grow more and more into His character. To keep growing you need to walk daily with the Lord, faithfully listening to His voice through His Word and taking daily steps of obedience, particularly in His call to serve the church and “love one another.” Finally, you press on toward home plate by working with Jesus to reach the world with the good news of His great love.
But discipleship doesn’t stop there, you continue to trust, worship, walk and work – continuing to run the bases and get others into the game with you.
You will get the most benefit from the Spiritual Life Worksheet if you meet with one or two other believers to share your ideas and commitments. This kind of “cross-pollination” is essential for every healthy plant, and every healthy follower of Jesus.
What kind of fruit is your current life environment producing?
Are you growing closer to Jesus and becoming more like Him? Are you growing in love for others and service to Christ and His kingdom?
Use the worksheet to evaluate your current schedule, priorities and practices and to prayerfully make adjustments so you can obey the instruction of our Lord:
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.”
John 15:9