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Chapter 15.
I am the true vine, and my father is the husband, and every branch of me that beareth not fruit he taketh away, and every branch that beareth fruit he purges that that it may bring forth more fruit.
Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Abide in me and I and you.
As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except to abide in the vine, no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abyeth in me, and I in him same bringeth forth much fruit, for without me you can do nothing. 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 ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Here it is my Father. Glorified. If you bear much fruit, so shall you be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you. Continue ye in my love. If you keep my commandments, he shall abide in my love.
Even as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love, these things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Here, my friends, if you do whatsoever I command you.
Henceforth I call you not servants, where the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth, but I have called you friends. For all things that I've heard of my father I've made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me. But I have chosen you, and ordained you that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain. And whatsoever shall last of the Father in my name he may give it you.
These things I command you, that ye love one another. If the world hates you, you should know that it will hiteth me before it hated you.
If you are the world, the world will 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 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 sin, they will keep yours also. But all things, all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake.
Because they know not him that sent me.
If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin, but now they have no cloak for their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works which none of the man did, they had not had sin. But now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. But this cometh to pass, that the world the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law.
They hated me without a cause. But when the Comforter is calm, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of Truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me, and ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.
Well, I'm sure that the ministry that we have in these chapters 14 through to 17 is particularly precious to our hearts. If there's someone we love, the last words that they speak before they leave us are always very important and leave a deep impression on our minds. And we think of the Lord Jesus about to leave his own and how he spoke these words to them and how it ought to and and I'm sure it did in some measure.
Touch their hearts. It ought to touch ours too, because we're here now in his absence and his desire that we should experience in a practical way what he's bringing before us in these chapters, I might just say I believe that in the 13th chapter he prepares them for the ministry that he's giving here. He washes their feet. And we all know, brethren, that very often there's something allowed in our lives that's a hindrance to us walking in communion with the Lord.
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Hindrance to bearing fruit, hindrance in service. And so the Lord said to Peter, if I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. It didn't mean that Peter wasn't a believer. But if we're going to really enjoy the Lord in our souls, and be useful for him in this world, we know that there are times when our feet need to be washed. We pick up the defilements of this world that we're passing through and to all good for us.
To, as it were, be willing to put our feet into the Lord's hands and allow Him to remove anything and everything that would be a hindrance to communion and fruit bearing. So after this, then in the 14th chapter, I believe the main subject is communion, beginning with the Father's house, where communion will be perfect, for there will be nothing to hinder full communion up there. But He desires that there would be communion with him down here.
And the Spirit of God has been sent to comfort our hearts, to shed abroad the love of God in our hearts, to lead us into all truth. So I think particularly in the 14th chapter it's communion, whereas in this chapter it's more perhaps fruit bearing and service, in the 16th chapter I believe it's intelligence. And then how much we need is keeping this we have in that 17th chapter the Lord's High Priestly Prayer.
But in this particular chapter, I believe those two things are the.
Theme that are brought before us, that is fruit bearing in our lives and then serve us. It says later on in the chapter that he ordained us that we should go forth and bear fruit. And so I believe he's sending us forth, as it were, into this world to be a testimony for him in our lives individually and collectively too. I might just also add that particularly in John, we don't have so much the truth of the Church brought before us.
As the family and possessing the life and nature of Christ eternal life.
And also having the Holy Spirit within us, so that the thought is more particularly that we're in the family of God in a relationship knowing God is our Father being able to enter into and enjoy His thoughts, whereas in the the Pauls ministry we have particularly the Church.
The place we occupy A nearness to Christ as members of his body.
They're connected in a way, but there's sort of a different theme that is brought before us in Pauls ministry. But I believe brethren, if we're well established in John's ministry, we'll be able to enter into in fuller measure what we have in Pauls ministry.
As the subject on our chapter is fruit bearing, there cannot be any true fruit bearing if there's a troubled soul or if there's not peace in your heart, if there's something that would make you be uncertain as to the one whom we bear the fruit for. And by and so it's nice to see how he starts at 14th chapter. Let not your heart be troubled. And in the 27th verse the Lord says.
To his own. And as he's about to prepare them for his leaving 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. And so, how lovely it is. You know that he wanted to put that in their souls, that all is well, because he goes to the Father and he's going to be there representing them. And in the 14th chapter he says he'll send another comforter. How wonderful that is. So we have every reason to be able to go on in full communion without anything between the hinder and by grace bear fruit. That's what this chapter is about.
Bearing fruit. And you know each one of us, because we are indwelt by the Spirit of God, I really believe there will be something at the judgment seat of Christ that will last and wonderful will not be burned up. It's a wonderful thought. But what he would have is not just fruit, but more fruit, much more fruit and lasting fruit. That's really the way this progresses.
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This subject of the vine is brought before us in Isaiah. I think it's the 5th chapter, isn't it?
In the 5th chapter of Isaiah and the first verse.
Now will I sing to my well beloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My well beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill, and he fenced it and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein. And he looked that it should bring forth grapes.
And it brought forth wild grapes, and now all inhabitants of Jerusalem.
And men of Judah judge, I pray you betwixt me and my vineyard, What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? Wherefore when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes. And we learned from the seventh verse, The vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the House of Israel. So Israel were set as the vine in the earth, sat there to bear fruit for God, to represent God, so to speak, before the nations.
So that the other nations would see a people who had the knowledge of God, who could be a testimonial light for him in this Dark World. And so when he talks about what more could have been done in my vineyard that I have not done in it, it speaks about all the advantages that were given to Israel as a nation. The tower I believe referring to the temple, their place of separation, especially blessed of God.
But the whole test only proved that there was number fruit for God from the first man. There's nothing for God at all from our natural hearts. That's why the Lord said to Nicodemus in this very this very book, he must be born again. There's nothing we need. A new life says in the Old Testament that.
All that there was such a heart in them that they might walk in my ways.
It says if there had been a law given which could have given life.
Verily righteousness had been by the Law, so there was number, fruit, or God. But now shall I put it this way, God begins all over again. His own blessed Son comes down into this world, and every step of his blessed pathway was pleasing to God his Father. We find that heavens breaking asunder on 2 occasions to declare the Father's delight. In him Heaven looked down and saw one. I say again, whose whole life was fruitfulness for God.
Now he brings us into association with himself, gives us a new life and cares for us, prunes us if necessary, deals with us whatever is necessary, so that there might be, as our brother said, fruit and more fruit. Much fruit. Fruit that remains so that every one of us, brethren who are in the family of God have the same new life. We have the same power because we're indwelled by the spirit of God.
And if our hearts are disilling, there can be that which is a fragrance to the heart of God from these poor lives of ours, if we walk in communion with Him and allow him to deal with us in ways that are necessary, that there might be that fruit bearing for his glory, for our blessing too.
Sometimes think that that fourth verse of chapter 5 Isaiah is sort of a key to the Old Testament. What could have been done more to my vineyard than I have not done in it? There was no fruit for his glory. Nothing there out of man flesh was the reason in sin. God proved in the Old Testament that there can be no fruit for himself from sinful man, fallen man. That's it. And it's the key. There we can see what he did.
With Israel, how much he worked with Israel and how much he worked with his people but no fruit to his glory. And then sort of the 20th chapter of Luke, you've got an expression that I sort of feel is the key to the New Testament. And the verse 13 then said, the Lord of the vineyard, what shall I do for fruit for my vineyard? If you read the earlier verses, that was what was happening. He couldn't get any fruit even though he sent servant after servant, profit after prophet.
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They beat some and killed some and cast them out and wounded others. And there was number fruit. They wouldn't even listen. But then the key is what shall I do? I will send my beloved son. I like the way it's worded in Mark 12, verse six having. Yet, therefore one son is well beloved. He sent him also. Now there can be fruit.
And you know, it's a wonderful thought that by his marvelous grace, we can be fruit bearers. It's a marvelous thought. We're sinners. Brethren could have borne no fruit at all. But as our brother said, we've got a life. And that life is the very life of that one. The Father sent his own beloved Son. It's eternal. Never had a beginning. He'll never have an end. It's a wonderful thought. You have it now. The same life you're going to enjoy for eternity.
And it cannot sin, but it can only do one thing. Please God.
So when we let that life have its way, that's abiding in Him, that's continuing in the Lord, the source of that life, who is that life? So it's a wonderful chapter that's before us.
What is the character of the fruit that is born for in the fighting in the mind, and what purpose has it?
Well, I believe it's the manifestation of the life of Christ in the believer. We have something of it in Galatians chapter 5. Fruit of the Spirit is Lovejoy, Peace, long-suffering, meekness, temperance. But I believe in a simple way we could say that every time the life of Jesus is seen in our bodies, that's a fragrance to God, because that was the person in whom he found his delight. And so we read about that in 2nd Corinthians 4.
We would deliver all we delivered unto death, for Jesus sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our bodies. So God delights to see if I can speak in this way the reproduction of the manifestation in this world of one who walks, manifesting the life of Jesus. Now that's fruit.
So the and sometimes born that the world can't see. Sure, I've enjoyed that thought too, that there is that which the outside world can see, and that is most blessed. But there is that which only the eye of God may see. And I suppose, if we could use the expression this way, every right thought in your heart and mind concerning God's beloved Son is fruit for him.
And so the new life can be manifested in an outward way towards this world, and that's most blessed. But it's fruit for God. It's what He sees, and he may see that in your heart and mind which none other can see. Well, he appreciates that fruit, even if no one else can see it. And that's been a great encouragement to me. And I've often, I say often, sometimes been privileged to use it to someone who perhaps was lying on a sick bed or cut off from intercourse with the outside world.
And perhaps felt discouraged because they didn't think there was anything they could do for the Lord. But every right thought concerning God's beloved Son is fruit, isn't it? Even if the world can't see it, the Lord can see it.
In John 829 the Lord says, and he that sent me is with me.
The Father hath not left me alone, for I do always those things that please him.
There was always that fruit in his life that was for the delight of God.
And I think the answer is we've given it to our brother's question is what profit is the fruit. First of all, it's for the delight of God. He always delights to see his Son manifested.
In him personally it was perfect delight, and as manifested in us, he has that same delight, same character of delight, not the same fullness of it, but the same character.
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We often think of fruit simply as serving others service, Christian service. That's the way it's usually equated. Well, it includes that, no doubt, but it goes far beyond that. As has been remarked and I think the 1St and primary answer to What is the benefit of bearing fruit? It's for the delight of God.
That's brought out in Judges Chapter 9 and verse 13 where the vine says should I leave my wine, which cheareth God and men to be and go to be promoted over the trees.
So it's the vine that there's the fruit that gives the wine that cheers God and men, so it's for God's pleasure. I like to think of fruit rather than that list that our brother mentioned in Galatians 5.
Lovejoy, Peace. None of those in that list are active things. They're all passive. They're manifested, perhaps, in service, but they are not service in themselves.
And a tree to bring forth fruit is not running. Hit her and yon to make fruit. It is simply the branches remaining in the main stock of the tree.
The SAP runs up through the main trunk and into the branches out to the.
Place where the fruit is being formed and if that connection is maintained, that is the way fruit is produced. And so it's not a question of activity here, it's a question of what we had mentioned in chapter 14 is communion and I really like to think of chapter 15. Really the subject of it is not so much perhaps fruit bearing, although that is the result.
As abiding in Christ, abiding in the vine. That's the important thing.
And if you and I abide in the vine, the automatic result is going to be.
Fruit for God's pleasure. Fruit that's manifested as well to our brethren and to the world around.
I'd like to ask a question in connection with the first chapter Colossians in this regard that you've been Speaking of brother. In the eighth verse it says who also declared unto us your love and the spirit. That's where it starts, doesn't it? Love to Christ is not the spring of where the fruit comes from in the vessel. But then verse 9 For this cause we also since the day we heard it.
Do not cease to pray for you in the desire that you might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. Now here's the three verses that would perhaps be the question that has bearing on what we're speaking about. The 1St is outward, that you might walk worthy of the Lord on the wall, pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God. That's the directive, isn't it, for the Colossians of Saints. And then he says, strengthened.
With all might, according to his glorious power.
Unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness. That's the inward working, would we say. And then we come to verse 12. And I think this is lovely, brother. And because it's the it's going back to God. David says, all that I have is thine and I am thine. He's one of a receiver. I haven't received it from thee. And so it says giving thanks unto the Father.
Which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light? That's fruit upward, isn't it? So we can have fruit outward, inward, and upward. I think of that verse in the first of Philippians. It says it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. What is it? Well, our blessed Savior is bringing out here so beautifully in the our 15th chapter. Isn't it that we very much prove that we?
The we would develop in those ways that would bring what the vine would speak of its joy.
That's the end of it, isn't it? The joy in the Lord.
Hebrews chapter 13 speaks of the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. So there it's just praise. But I believe that it really is this manifestation of the life of the Lord Jesus. And so whether it's outward for others to see or not, the Lord sees it. He has a book of remembrance.
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And he records even a thought upon his name, while other people don't know when you have.
Lord Jesus, But God has a book of remembrance where he records that.
So that here we find but I believe in this verse where it says every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away, and every branch that beareth fruit he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. I believe the thought really primarily in the branch that bears no fruit being taken away was similar to the case of Judas, and is the same thought as in the sixth verse.
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. There was such a thing as being in the place of privilege, of being near the Lord like Judas was, but not being a true child of God at all. And I believe this is what the Lord is Speaking of. We see also the same thing in the 13th chapter of Matthew.
When the seed was sown, if there was number fruit, why there was nothing for God from it at all?
But anything that fell upon good ground didn't all bear the same amount of fruit. But there was some fruit, and I believe, as our brother said before, that there will be fruit in every believers life in that coming day. If there's no fruit, it's because there's no divine life. But there is such a thing as being like Judas or like those who are spoken of in the epistle to the Hebrews who made a place of.
Profession.
But then the reality came out. They weren't really the Lords. They had never really been in the family of God, and it comes out sooner or later. So every branch that beareth not fruit he taketh away, and Judas was taken away.
That every branch that beareth fruit he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. And we all need this purging process that is the Lord.
Deals with us in ways that are necessary so that there would be more fruit in our lives for him. And when he sees that we are his children, he knows them that are his. By then he brings into our lives circumstances sometimes very adverse, but in this way draws us near to himself, perhaps back if we wandered away so that there would be fruit and but I think that little expression. My father is the husbandman.
If I went to prune trees, I'm sure I would make a mess of it, because I don't know what to cut off and what not to cut off. But I think this is so lovely. My father is the husband and and brethren, if the Lord brings anything adverse into your life or mine, he didn't make any mistake about it. He knows what he's doing and we need grace to see his hand in it. And as we read in Hebrews 12, yielded the peaceable fruits of righteousness.
Unto them which are exercised thereby.
So often there's bitterness in our lives because of what the Lord does allow, but it's always because we have our eyes upon some brother or some sister or some set of circumstances that were contrary to us. It's almost always that way, brethren. But when we get our eyes on the Lord and realize that the Father is the husbandman, he's the one that's doing the pruning. Is there any room left for bitterness?
Or discouragement, brother can't be. We really have our eyes on him and realize that he is already given his only son to make his his own. And is he going to allow anything in our lives unnecessarily? No. He has our good in view and so to receive every single circumstance from his hand really brings peace to the heart and will bring.
Productivity in our lives as well.
That's what we have in Ephesians 5 and verse 20. Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father and the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's fruit bearing. Does it not give him thanks for all things that thought of purging every branch that beareth fruit? This is reality. These are ones that are vital belong to him. He purchased it.
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Not just ones that need it. Every branch he purchases that it might bring forth more fruit. And you know, purging is really not the most desirable thing as far as flesh is concerned. It's cutting back. It's knocking down a little bit. And we need that because, you know, if there is fruit bearing, there's a tendency to, like Joel, be pleased with yourself because of it. And we need a little purging, we need a little bit cutting back.
Knocking down and it's a it's a good thing. The Lord graciously does that, you know, I believe most of what will result, but whatever is done for the Lord in the Spirit or by the Spirit will not be known until the judgment seat of Christ. That's a wonderful thought, I think, of the children's work, so many going on all over in different assemblies and now up in the Maritimes in different places, but that won't be known the results, I think.
The great result of the fruit till the judgment seat of Christ. And in that wonderful itself it will be made known. But there won't be any time nor tendency to get puffed up there. You won't need any purging or cutting back. It'll be all to his praise and glory. Any reward or any crown will be cast at his feet. And so isn't it wonderful that it will be made known. But thank God it isn't all made known. Now we really have to be purged and cut down.
Because we have a tendency to think well of ourselves. It's just there. It's a sad thought, isn't it? So purging is very necessary. So there could be more fruit. There can't be fruit unless it's himself. That's manifested as doing it in you. Just a broken vessel.
That's all.
Sometimes it comes afterwards, that is the Lord.
Fees that we are getting that way or it might be preventative as with the Apostle Paul.
God allowed a thorn in the flesh, and it wasn't because Paul had been puffed up. But last he should be exalted. So sometimes the Lord may allow things when he sees a certain tendency in our hearts and in our lives, and He allows something that's humbling to us. And Paul felt this, and the Lord never took that away. He asked the Lord three times if he would remove that, and the Lord's reply was?
My grace is sufficient for thee.
For my strength is made perfect in weakness. Sometimes you might think, well, if I've learned a lesson, then the Lord will remove it. It's not necessarily.
He may leave it. He may leave it because he sees certain tendencies and we all have them. We may not be aware of them, perhaps our breadth and ours, but the Lord sees them. And sometimes it's correction, sometimes it's preventative, but it's always in perfect wisdom and in perfect love.
I'm not. I'm not much at farming, but isn't it possible to have a branch in a vine that had leaves on it? It's showing that there's some life there, but it doesn't have any fruit.
I think that's possible.
I've always thought, and would bear to be corrected if this is wrong, that verse two, look at it very carefully. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, He taketh away. I rather thought that might be one that wasn't going on for the Lord and not bearing any fruit for him, and he might remove him.
In government.
Doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't have life.
Every branch in me, he says. But in verse six it very clearly shows that that branch is burned and cast into fire and destroyed. Clearly an apostate, one who had been in the vine but was cast out. Just seems as though verse six is much stronger than verse two. Would you allow that that verse 2 might embrace just a very worldly believer?
That made a profession, but there's no there's no fruit, and so the Lord takes them away.
Well, I wouldn't be dogmatic. It does mention in me in the sixth verse also, so that.
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But it is true that the Lord does in his governmental ways, like we have in John's epistle. It says that there is a sin unto death. I do not say that he should pray for it. I really had thought of the second verse. And the sixth verse is bringing before us the thought of profession, because.
Judas was one who had been identified with the Lord and had part in that ministry, as it says, but still he wasn't a believer. However, I wouldn't be dogmatic.
That sin unto death and that wherein the Lord may have to remove one and take him home is not just that he's not bearing fruit, he's dishonouring in the name of the Lord and he's going the other way all the way. But I do believe here we have one that beareth not fruit because there's nothing there and and I've always thought that way but I believe by application you be say that it's one that's not doing anything or not letting us spirit have his way or something like that.
But even the thought of the Lord, you know, the worst of us have that I was thinking we were mincing. Much of the fruit is never manifested and never seen. We do have testimony as lights and so on. That's beautiful. That's that's a privilege we have. Or when we confess him before men, that's that pleases himself and he confesses us before angels in heaven and so on. So we have the outward manifestation. But I think probably the most beautiful is what God accounts and what the Lord himself appreciates.
And I was thinking it was highlighted in Matthew 26. We don't have to read these portions. But when when Mary came with the alabaster box and she had believed his word, that's all she did. That's everything She believed what he said. She didn't understand it. I don't believe she entered into it fully. He's going to rise again. The 3rd day she entered into that well, the disciples said when she anointed him with that precious ointment.
To what purpose is this waste? And the Lord said in verse 10?
Why trouble ye the woman? She has wrought a good work upon me. This is how much the Lord appreciates, even when we remember him on Lord's Day Morning, how much He appreciates it, and our Father think how much it means to him. So he says verse 12. For in that she has poured this ointment on my body. She did it for my burial. She, in faith, just simply believed what he said.
Without taking it in fully, I'm sure she didn't. But she knew he wouldn't be there early the first day of the week. He'd be gone. And she's one not there. She's not there. The others are there. Verily, I say unto you, This is how much it means to him Who wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this that this woman has done, be told for a memorial of her. And I think what she did.
Continues to bear fruit for her.
Is that a wonderful thought? And that's how much the Lord appreciates that.
The children here, they wonder, what must I do to bear fruit? Well, I believe the smallest act of love we do for Christ. The smallest act that's if we do it in love for Christ. That's true bearing. And we'll get us reward in the coming days.
But we have to remember at the end of verse 5, without me you can do nothing. That just sort of sums it all up. And that's why the abide in me. Without me, you can do nothing. Let's don't think we can do something, even though if it seems right according to the word of God, if our if, if it's our own thought, our own reason, our own initiative, and not a work of the spirit that isn't fruit, that may look nice, may be appealing.
You know that isn't fruit. Fruit is what is of God. Is fruit unto God, and it's from the Spirit. Enough. Wonderful, isn't it? We can't properly appraise fruit. We are not equipped. But it will allow the Spirit to have His way. It'll always occupy us with Christ, you know, Always magnify Christ. And that'll be fruit.
I think the thought and abiding is really the practical side of things, as we can see because the exhortation.
00:40:00
In the fourth verse, 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. Well, you can see that the thought of abiding in Christ is a practical side of things. If we're looking at it as a sign that a person is really in the family, well, every child of God in that sense is in Christ. But here it's an exhortation that we would abide in him.
So the disciples, Now the Lord was going away. It was a real trial for them to see him go away. It seemed the dashing of all their hopes, because they expected him as the Messiah to set up the Kingdom. But how important it was that they should, in their souls in communion, keep close to him. He's not here, brethren. Personally, he's gone away. But we can abide in Christ, and that is continuing in the path of obedience and communion, I believe.
And that's how we abide in Christ. And that's the only way that there can be.
Fruit bearing that is acceptable to God.
When none of us is a constant, it was with the Lord Jesus. He always did what pleased his Father, but with us, alas, it's not always true. But as we do seek by his grace to walk close to Him and in communion with him, then we know that there is this fruit that is so pleasing to Him for his glory, And it's a happy path too, as we can see, because.
Goes on about abiding in His love and so on. I believe it's a practical side of things that is brought before us in this portion that should touch each one of our hearts.
In that sense, then, is the expression in verse 6 where it says, if a man abide not in me, does that convey to us the thought that every believer, as our brother has remarked, will have some fruit for the Lord? That is, we could not say of a true believer that he is not abiding in Christ. He might at a particular time in his life be away from the Lord. But here it's in the absolute sense, If a man abide not in me, well, there's there's no life there at all, isn't it?
To me, that makes it clear it's a practical exhortation. But in every believer there will be something that manifests that new life. Sad to say, you may not see it very often in me, and that's a sorrowful thing if that's the case. But how many times, and perhaps speaking to our own hearts, have we come in contact with someone who, to all outward appearances, most of the time, didn't seem to produce much fruit for the Lord, but probe a little bit, probe deeper and.
Sometimes you'll get a confession of Christ that he didn't think was there. I can remember a man right now who for years.
People said, well, I don't think he's the Lords, I don't think, no, there's no evidence there. But once I had the opportunity of getting him by himself and he confessed Christ very brightly to me, told me he'd been saved when he was a young boy. Well, there was, there was fruit there, there was something there that you might say could be uncovered, but it would have been nice if there had been more manifestation on it. And so it is the practical side, but every time.
That the new life displays itself. Well, there is there's fruit for God. If there's never any of that, well, then there's no life at all. Is is that correct? Yeah, I believe so. And the leaves are not looked at in Scripture as a sign of reality because the fig tree, the Lord cursed, there was nothing but leaves, but there was nothing for fruit. There was no fruit for him. And so I believe that this is what the Lord is looking for. And brethren, I say again, and I believe it's important for us.
Every true believer has the capacity to bear fruit.
In fact, he has the capacity to bear as much fruit as any other Christian God doesn't have any favorites. And there's a beautiful verse in John Three that says God giveth not his spirit by measure. In the new translation the Mr. Darbys translation, the words God give us, not his spirit by measure unto him, are not put in. It's how could the Spirit of God be given by measure? He's a divine person.
And so you have the Spirit of God. I have the Spirit of God. But we may not be.
That power that God has given, we may not be in the enjoyment of communion that we can have because of having that new life, but the capacity is there in every believer. And so these chapters where the Lord is speaking to his own is to encourage them in that path to walk in communion, to allow the Spirit of God to have his way, to walk in the sunshine of His love. It's very precious, but it's very solemn. How?
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A person can be in an outward place just like Israel were, and there was number, divine light, and nothing for God, even though they kept up the outward ceremonies and went on with the ritual, but no heart for Christ.
It's a real challenge to this brethren to examine our ways too. That we live and fellowship daily with the Lord is that's the only way. There will be fruit in our lives. The tree or the vine will never be occupied with how much fruit is buried. That's not the point. The point is to maintain that vital relationship of fellowship, and that vine has to be intimately connected to the main trunk that goes into the ground.
And the SAP that comes up through the main trunk, down the branch to the place where the fruit is being formed, then that is the way fruit is formed, it says in the Song of Solomon.
The bridegroom says to the bride, Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vine. So oftentimes they're just little things in our lives may not be great things. It's the little boxes.
That come in and they nip those little branches and they cut the connection there, and it may appear that it's still connected there, but the main force of vitality has been broken and there's the fruit that was forming. There is no good any longer. And how often that happens in our lives as believers in the Lord Jesus, we even maintain an outward position of going on for the Lord.
But we allow some little detail in our lives that cuts that vital fellowship with himself, and the fruit is gone. There's no fruit there. The Lord. Exercise our hearts, dear brethren, and your young people too, to maintain that fellowship, that intimate fellowship with the Lord Jesus. That's what it's meant by abiding in Him. Without him, we can do nothing.
I don't know if a little illustration from the Archer, but help or not, but as being a brew grower, I do know that it's important for us and we're showing. It's been very exciting to remove that lush growth that you see coming up so vigorously.
On the branches because in removing that it permits the fruit buds to develop for 1991 last year. It also helps the colors of fruit to so that the fruit would be usable if we remove those branches that are so prominent sometimes in a tree, so all that outside vigorous growth that we see on the outside.
Is not always beneficial to the fruit that was found. I just get that little illustration because I believe that as our brother just mentioned, we really need to have the sunshine coming down on these trees. It was developed the fruit bugs for the following year.
And also helps to produce a nice fruit for the present year. And so sometimes drilling is very, very necessary.
I was just wondering the difference. I have an idea but I don't want to give it out. But where it speaks of fruit bearing and we've been mentioning that we all have the same capacity but not the same fruit. And in Mark 4 verse 20 it speaks about the seed falling on good ground and there's one now that in Christ in tight and it says such as here the word.
And receive it.
And bring forth truth, some 30 fold, some 60 and some 100, all some fruit, but there's an increase there. But my thought was in Matthew on chapter 13, it's the same thought, only it decreases. It begins with 100 and goes down to 30. And I was wondering is the difference because in Matthew 13, it's it's Israel, they rejected him and we're set aside.
00:50:09
The children, the Jews? Or what is the reason that it's decreased in Matthew 13 but increased?
I just wondered if you have a call on that.
Perhaps someone else did.
I've heard that the differences in Matthew.
It was committed to men, the board called America, sent them out. And so under the Lords people ourselves, we fail and everything that's given to us.
In the gospel of Mark, it's the perfect servant.
And there couldn't be anything but an increase when the word that's presented by the Lord Jesus that increased in its fifth term.
That's not my thought. That was a thought that was presented. I don't know who by or, but some years ago it stuck with me.
With a servant, there's a need for encouragement, isn't there? So he gets the the idea the hundredfold. I've talked to farmers out West and they tell me about how many bushels to the acre. You know, that's the big objective. How many bushels want to get 100 bushels or you get the acre of 60 bushels.
Or 40 bushels. Well, 40 bushels isn't doing very good, but you get up above the 60 to 100 acres, 100 bushels. That makes the servant all excited about the fight. Mr. Hunt says he's a sanguine servant. The Evangelist is a sanguine servant. So you want to tell him about results. But in when it comes to responsibility as the Matthew with the Kingdom, life, as you mentioned, everything left to man. It's not going to be fruitful, it's going to go the other way.
I think that analogy I've heard that also from others to verify what you have run out.
In a practical sense, it's true that there are some who start out very well and then toward the latter part of their lives, Brother spoke to us about Hezekiah, and he started out very brightly, but things diminished instead of increasing. And then others, you see they don't start out perhaps so brightly, but at the end of their life is very bright and there's much more fruit bearing in the latter part of their life. And so in a practical sense, we often see that.
I didn't say that to go against what has been said. Those are nice thoughts, but.
I was thinking, in a practical sense, that's often true in the lives of Christians as we watch them.
Some we watch them grow and make progress, Some, alas. As time goes on, there's a decrease instead of an increase. But there's always fruit where there's reality.
That thought brings out demons, does it not, of Paul, who in the Epistle to Philemon on the 24th verse could commend Demas as a fellow laborer that was fruitberry. When your fellow laborer with Paul, that's wonderful, but he's mentioned twice more, and the next time he's mentioned he doesn't commend at all. And then the final time, Paul says he's forsaken me. I believe it's a picture of Paul's doctrine.
Leaving it as Christendom seems to be doing today, he's forsaken me, having loved the present world. Demas means popular. And I believe there's a danger, brethren, if we find ourselves popular with those in the world. The danger of not only not bearing fruit, but leaving And sad, isn't it? Lemus didn't lose his life, didn't lose his soul. I mean, that's eternal, but he lost his life for Christ. That's one of those examples.
So it's a real solid thought. He was a fellow laborer of Paul, that's fruit fairy. But he ended up forsaking Paul the truth and going into the present world, not the present evil world. I believe he was going into the better part of the world, but his life was no longer fruitful.
Like to hear something said about verse three? A little further run.
First three, as you say, yes.
Well, I believe that he's Speaking of reality there in the same way that you have in the 13th chapter.
John John Chapter 13.
And the eighteen birds? Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.
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A verse 10 is what you want, Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, he that his wife needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whip, and GR Clean but not all.
For he knew who should betray him, therefore said he are not all clean.
So I believe he's speaking, as I mentioned in the practical side of things, about abiding in Christ. But as to our possession, we are washed all over once for all, and we are clean. That's the difference, brethren, between what took place when the priests entered their position. They were washed all over at the lever. They washed their hands and their feet, but they didn't have to be washed all over again because they were put in that position.
That every believer has been washed all over. If you turn to Titus Chapter 3, I believe we have the thought there.
And it's very interesting. It's connected with what we are talking about.
I'll read from the third verse, For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers, lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God, our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to His mercy. He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost.
Which He shared on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that being justified by His grace.
Should be made errors according to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying. And these things I will that thou affirm constantly that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men. That is, in our past days. He said, we were foolish, disobedient, deceived. But God met us, and he washed us all over, and brought an entirely new order of things into our lives.
The washing of regeneration is really not the thought of our sins being put away in the blood particularly, although that's blessedly true.
But you become a new creature in Christ Jesus. You stand before God in a new life, a life that never sinned and cannot say in the very life of Christ. And so he says, How do we correct those who have become careless in their walk? Do we place them under law? No, he said. Remind them of the position that they have been brought into, not only our sins, put away in the precious blood of Christ, but before God in this new life.
And we bring this before them. Why? You have a new life. You're before God. You've been washed all over. You have the Holy Spirit of God.
Now we're called upon in a practical sense to act accordingly, and that's what I believe the Lord is saying. Ye are clean through the word that I have spoken unto you. When a person receives the word of God, he's washed all over he comes a new creature in Christ. Jesus enters a new position. And now it's important in the practical sense that we abide in Christ so that there would be fruit bearing.
So that I believe he is Speaking of what he talked about in the 13th chapter.
It was true of all the disciples except Judas, but with Judas it wasn't true.
Peter might deny him, and did, but there was an entirely different result. He wept bitterly. He's restored. He's used again. He was washed all over, but he needed to have his feet washed after he failed. But with Judas, there was no reality. It was nothing to work on, so to speak.
Washing all over was something that happened once for all, wasn't it? In the case of the consecration of the priests, they were washed all over once, and then it was a continual thing as they went into the service of the Tabernacle to wash continually their hands and their feet as they went in to do the service of God. And so with us too, brethren, it's important if we're going to bear fruit, to realize that we are exhorted here.
Not to attain some position. It is to walk in the good of the position that I already occupied before God, and that really sets the soul at liberty, if we understand that.
01:00:16
That say abide in me to one who doesn't have divine life is meaningless, isn't it? It's impossible. Abiding in Him is communion and you can't have communion without the life. So the evidently that's why verse three is there to show that the the new life has been communicated, giving the power to abide in Him and produce fruit. We are clean every whip by the word Verse 3. And it's the same way that we continue practically clean. It's the word.
And I was thinking, is that the thought in the 17th chapter when he's speaking to his father and he says in verse 14?
Well, later.
Verse 16 or 17 Sanctify them through thy truth thy word is true. And verse 19 For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
And it's he's committing us now to the Father, isn't he? As he's Speaking of going to the Father. And that work is still the word of God. It's the only way we can continue in a way that we're in communion and we can abide is by that precious Word. And it's Christ. He is the word.
I think it's so important that we recognize the need, the absolute need, of pruning in order to to have good fruit. Whether Henry was telling us, oh, you'll get fruit if you don't prune the vines, but it won't be of high quality and there won't be any preparation for the future either. And God our Father, wants to see the blessedness of the reproduction of Christ in our lives.
And so he brings things in which hurt he brings. Pruning hurts. It's cutting off those chutes that would rob the the fruit of its vitality and make it all be much less than it would be without those, those other shoots. Our hearts are like that. We go out after 1001 different things in the world that are not Christ, and he will come in and deal with us and.
The Father will prune us. Every son whom he receives he chastens, and he scourges. That's a very strong word, every Son whom he receives. So if you be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, that are you ******** and not sons, and so as we've been saying this afternoon.
Reality requires because of the the old nature that's there, pruning because the old nature will shoot out after 1000 different things that are not Christ.
And in order for the new nature to have its full result in our lives, the father has to prune us. And so he's the husbandman that does the pruning. And he uses he uses things that are not pleasant sometimes, quite often of things that we would rather not have to go through to to bring forth fruit, to teach us to be cast upon him, and to rely upon him to teach us patience, for instance. We don't have patience.
Naturally speaking, that's one of the ninefold fruits of the Spirit. Fruit of the spirit. It's the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruits. It's. I like to speak of it as a nine flavored fruit. Lovejoy. Peace, long-suffering, Gentleness, Goodness, Faith, Meekness, Temperance. There you have it. But it's the fruit of the Spirit, and when the Spirit is operating in our lives, he produces that fruit.
And every one of those nine flavors speaks of Christ, doesn't it?
And one of them is patients or long-suffering.
Like to consider this group in connection with families that are here at the conference.
That Psalms 132.
I think there's a practical word for mothers and fathers who are here at the meetings, verse 11.
The Lord has sworn in truth unto David. He will not turn from of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne, If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them, their children also shall sit upon thy throne forevermore.
01:05:08
To me, there's a little bit of encouragement here. I don't want to belabor this thought too much, but fruit is children are mentioned here as the fruit of the body, and there are many young parents with young children here at the conference. They're not going to just grow up Christians. They have to make that personal decision for Christ that I enjoyed a thought that was once given out at a conference that children ought of Christian parents ought to be raised as though.
They were Christians.
The present trend in the world seems to be to allow children just sort to make their own choices and decisions. If they want to be religious, they'll make that choice at some point in time. But I believe that the word of God says something contrary or different from that. If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them for the fruit of the body needs to be taught. And that is a wonderful service. I believe that a sister, a mother and a grandmother perhaps can do in a family at lending school teacher can do.
Christian teaching is so, so needed today for living in a world where the Bible has been basically shelved and stools and many children who come to our Sunday school at home have no other exposure to the word of God than what they get in Sunday School. And so I just want to use this bought in the Psalms, I trust it's correct and did not believe corrected that as a word of encouragement to Sunday school teachers and to mothers who are here because as a fruit of the body.
Is like the fruit of the fruit tree. It's perishable and it needs all of that pruning and correction. Then we perhaps spend a lot of time on our plants. But do we spend as much time on the fruit of the body that the Lord has given us our children? That they might be raised for the Lord's glory and honor and for their eternal blessing? Even speaks of grandchildren here, because it says their children shall also sit upon thy thrill forevermore. So it's a real word of encouragement to every age group, I believe that's here at the conference.
Well, our time is nearly gone. I wonder if we could hear a remark on the expression of bide in me and I in you. It doesn't merely say abide in me, but it also adds and I in you. What are the significance of that mentioned twice?
I like to think about myself as the personal enjoyment of the Lord's presence with us, that as we abide in him. My we have the consciousness of his presence. But remember, when the Lord left the disciples there in the very end of Matthew, he said, Lo, I am with you, Alway, even under the end of the age. And there we find again in Hebrews, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.
And I think many of us can say that when we lose the sense of the Lord's presence with us, we've lost a tremendous amount. We may seek to keep near Him, but the sense of His being near to us is most precious. I think of those two on the road to Emmaus, the Lord was right there beside them, but they weren't conscious of it. And there He was, walking beside them, listening to their conversation, and yet they didn't know who it was who was there.
Well, brethren, I believe we need this not only to seek to keep near the Lord, but to have the consciousness that he's there.
I remember many years ago an older brother said to me when I was quite young. He said I never asked the Lord to be with me because he's promised to be with me. He's promised never to leave nor forsake me. But I do ask him to give me a sense of His presence with me, and I believe that is important. I think it's a good point that you have mentioned there that there's the exhortation to us to keep close to the Lord, but also to have the consciousness of His presence.
Will it also be the thought that Peter had in first Peter 315? Sanctify the Lord God in your heart. Would that be the same thought? He's abiding there, but you're making him important to yourself and he fulfills your heart. Sanctify the Lord God in your heart. I think that's the thought, isn't it? It's not just that you're you're biting in him, but your ever thought is him.
01:10:04
And he's there, of course. We were looking at a verse in Philippians chapter 4 the other day, and I think it's very nice what it says.
There was apparently some kind of difficulty in the assembly there at Philippi, and he mentions in the second verse, Ibcgiodius and beseech Sintiki, that they be of the same mind in the Lord. And then in the fifth verse let your moderation, or yielding us, be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. I believe Mr. Darby translates that the Lord is near. It isn't really the thought of the Lord's coming there.
But sometimes when a difficulty arises and there's a misunderstanding, we have the feeling, oh, nobody understands.
But he says the Lord is near. He's watching that he hears everything that was said. Other people may not clearly understand the situation, but the Lord is near, and how precious that is to our souls. I believe Paul had the sense of that all those in Asia turned away from him. But he could say, I know whom I believed and have committed. I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day, as if all these turned away, and the Lord's right near And he says.
Lord, I just have to commit it to thee. And he leaves it there because the Lord was near. And let's remember this brethren. Misunderstandings come difficulties. People say hurtful things. Never think. Nobody understands. The Lord is near. He sees it, so we're to abide in Him. But also it's very beautiful that it says. And I and you. The realization of His presence at all times is so precious.
The bond of the branch to the main trunk of the vine is not only outward, perhaps abiding me, but it is inward as well as SAP has to flow through. And perhaps that's the eye in you, because it's the life of Christ, brethren, that life that is in him, that kind of flows in through us when we abide in Him, and fellowship that produces automatically, perhaps unconsciously.
Fruit And I think it's so important that we don't merely maintain an outward stance of being in fellowship with our brethren, brethren, without cultivating that intimate fellowship with the Lord Jesus himself. Something that is not seen. What goes on inside of that branch, that SAP that's going out that branch, you do not see anything of that, but if there, if there is not that in the branch.
There's no vitality in the vine either, and it will be manifest in time. So may the Lord help us to maintain that intimate individual fellowship with himself.
The branch doesn't bear fruit by effort, but simply by abiding in the vine, it's just.
Just that simple, isn't it?
In 17.