I you would like to join me in studying the bible, I am going to be reading small passages each day and asking this set of questions about them: what is the main point of this passage? Which part of the passage spoke most deeply to you? What kind of questions does it bring to mind? (Can you then answer any of those questions?) What do these verses challenge you to do? What steps do you need to take to meet that challenge in your life right now? Feel free to write your own responses in the comments section, I would love to hear what God is speaking to you through His Word.
John 15:1-7
What is the main point of the passage? Jesus is trying to drive home a point in this passage that every single one of us needs to understand. We were made for community with him. We are spiritual beings, created in the image of God, to be a part of the community of God himself...and sin cut us off from that relationship we were created to take part in. Jesus is our lifeline to the community we were created for. If we do not remain plugged in and connected to Jesus, we will only ever experience a dry husk of the a life. We will be plagued with emptiness, lack of direction, confusion, frustration, etc...and we will try to fill the void inside of us with anything we can find in this world. Yet none of it will ever satisfy...we were made by God and for God and we must do everything we can to abide in Jesus Christ.
What part of this passage spoke most deeply to you? Verse 5. A couple things really stand out for me about this verse. First of all, Jesus promises us that if we abide in him (remain connected to him, open ourselves to him, trust in him, live for him, etc.), that he will abide in us. How incredible is that promise?! Jesus promises to actively partake in my life...the shaping of my mind and soul...he promises to give me the strength I need to live in a way otherwise impossible for me. The second part of the verse is also sobering...anything I attempt to do by my own strength, will, creativity, etc...will ultimately fail. It is impossible for me to do meaningful things for the kingdom of God through my own power.
What kind of questions does this passage bring to mind for you? (Can you answer those questions) It seems that the whole passage is focused on the vine illustration, except for verse three which seems to come out of left field...it says, "Already you are clean because of the word I have spoken to you." I wonder why Jesus interjects this phrase into the midst of his illustration? It may tie into the the teaching of the foot washing that Jesus gives in John chapter 13. He washes his disciples feet as a symbol for the washing of their sins they will receive when he gives his life on the cross. He tells Peter that if he is not washed, Peter will have no part in Jesus' kingdom. Jesus then says that a person who is clean needs only to wash his feet which continually get dirty. Some scholars believe that this means that even though you have received forgiveness of your sins through Jesus death on the cross, which brings salvation...you must everyday work to rid yourself of the sins that still crop of and every day turn to God for repentance. It is possible that Jesus throws this into his discussion on remaining in the vine because this daily battle to destroy sin and to seek repentance is part of the "abiding" process.
What do these verses challenge you to do? What steps do you need to take to meet those challenges today? I think too often I allow myself to think I can handle things at work or at home without the need to "bother" God with my problems. To abide in Christ, I feel that I have to make seeking his counsel and strength a priority in basically every task of my daily life. When I am writing a lesson, it is not enough that I just jump right into because I have taught on that topic 30 times before...I need to seek God's face and ask Him to show me His truth in each new teaching. It is not enough that Mandy and I discuss decisions about our family and then act...we need to make sure we are seeking God's guidance in all our decision making. I think the first step in making this challenge a reality is to spend some time in prayer before anything I do and to spend time praying with my wife (Which unfortunately I don't often do...we almost always pray individually).
2 comments:
I like verse 2. Before, I never really let God into my life and it was pretty miserable, but once I accepted Christ and asked for God to take over, oh the pruning that He has done! I believe that my life has been much more fruitful now than ever before. If I am not in His word as I should, and interacting with Him daily, I feel a distance that is uncomfortable.
Thank you for sharing Aime...it is awesome how God works in us just like He does in nature. Sometimes plants need to be cut back so they can produce better fruit...sometimes we need to have things cut out of our lives for the same reason. Thanks again. - B
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