Abiding in the Vine
Jackson
Snyder
John
15:1-12, Psalm 80
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Yahshua said, “abide in the vine.” The people of his day knew exactly what he
meant. We want to learn. Psalm 80, written by the great Bible singer
Asaph, tells us that the vine is Israel, the people who suffered as
slaves in Egypt. Like a vine, Israel
was transplanted into a promised land by the enduring hand of Yahweh. There, the vine grew lavishly, spreading out
so lushly that
Ps 80:{10} The mountains were covered with
its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. {11} It sent out its boughs to
the Sea, its shoots as far as the River.
Though Asaph
lived in the time of David - a time of great nationalistic fervor and success -
he sees a time in the future in which the wild beasts had eaten the fruit of Israel and ancient foes
had torn the vine to pieces. Only
worthless remnants were to remain of the bounty.
Indeed, this prophetic song came to pass a couple hundred years later. So if the
vine is Israel, what does the psalm say about the people of Israel in that
future time? It says that Yahweh, their protector, had forsaken them
for their lack of fruitfulness.
Asaph leads the choir in crying out to
Yahweh on behalf of this future remnant:
14. Almighty of Hosts, come back, we pray,
look down from heaven and see, visit this vine; 15. protect what your
own hand has planted. 16. They have
thrown it on the fire like dung.
Israel the
vine is in the fire! Asaph calls upon
Yahweh to send Messiah to the rescue.
The choir sings,
17. May your hand protect those at your
side, the son you have strengthened for yourself! 18. Never again
will we turn away from you, give us life and we will call upon your name. 19.
Almighty of Hosts, bring us back, let your face shine on us and we shall be
safe.
It took Yahweh
500 years to completely answer Asaph’s song-prayer by sending
Messiah to replant the vine Israel and restore hope to the whole wide world.
An Allegory:
A Story With a Deeper Meaning
The Messiah, Yahshua be Yahweh, takes up the
subject of the vine, as recorded in John 15. He tells his disciples that he has always been
the true
vine and the agent in the creation of this wayward people. They were to be his fruit, but they
had rotted away. Yahshua, the true
Vine, is finally sent forth from the heavenly realm to re-graft life
into the ruined vine of Israel.
In Yahshua’s story about the vine, branches
and fruit, Yahweh the Father is the gardener, the expert in horticulture, the
one who nurtures the vine as he would nurture his own children, tenderly, with
wisdom and patience. Yahshua is the
True Vine, the True Israel: Yahshua represents Israel. By calling
himself the true vine, he implies that there’s a false vine. The false vine consists of only the
appearance of Israel, what is seen by the eye, including the political
establishment, the religious tradition, the modernistic culture, the nationalistic fervor – with all its
inherent evils. The false vine
represents not only the appearance of Israel, but also the
infrastructure of any nation: its politics, culture, religion and
nationalism. Elsewhere (in Revelation), John calls such
appearances “beasts” that rob our Father Yahweh of true worship, faith and
homage. By putting one’s faith in
any established political or religious entity, even in this great nation
we call ours, we abide in the false vine. We see in appearance only; the true
we don’t yet see except through eyes of hope. Yet though we don’t see Him, he’s more real and true than
any other vine we can see!
Through his great grace, love and
sacrifice, all people of all places may branch from him, the true
Vine, for Yahshua ha Moshiach is the author of all creation. All of the stuff of life came to be by
him and through him.
(John 1:3) {3} Through [Messiah] all
things came to be; without him nothing came to be that has come to be.
If humanity
came to be through Yahshua Messiah, and he is the true vine, and people may
become the fruit of that one true vine, then we the people ought
to bear the same fruit that Yahshua bore. And all may bear, he tells us, by abiding in the vine.
What Does It
Mean, Abiding in his Vine?
To abide means to reside, or
dwell within, or inhabit. It means, “to
stay in.” Abiding in Messiah means we
can no longer compartmentalize our lives. We can’t allow Him access only to a certain few heart-rooms and
bar his entry from others. If we abide
in him, we dwell in him continually; we make our habitation in him in faith and
hope. And if we are living in him,
then we are no longer living in the world and its
ensnaring systems, the
false vine. Though in the world, we
are no longer of it. We die to the
false to become alive in the true. And he
can thus live in us. We bear fruit
of truth instead of illusion or delusion or confusion.
Let's be practical. How can we possibly constantly abide
in him? Brother Lawrence (1614 - 1691) illustrates
the practice of abiding for us in his journal. Lawrence spent most of his life in a monastery. He never married
or had a family. He took a job cooking
for dispossessed people. Lawrence
abides in the Vine, even while doing the most menial chores. He writes,
I turn my little omelet in the pan for the
love of God. When it is finished, if I
have nothing to do, I prostrate myself on the ground and worship my God, who
gave me this grace to make it, after which I arise happier than a king. When I can do nothing else, it is enough to have
picked up a straw for the love of God.
If his menial work in limited circumstances
was able to bring forth such great praise that every little thing he did was
unto the Father, just think how the complicated doings of our lives,
fast-paced and varied as they are, could be used to glorify Yahweh all the more
and thus bear fruit! If only we could
just pick up every little straw for His sake! We can!
Most folks really don’t care much for
spiritual disciplines. However, some
actually study
to learn how to love their Father.
They hope to attain true worship by formulas. They read books by famous Christians. Some feel great guilt because they’re lax in spirituality
or morality. But - isn’t it a natural
thing for branches to be nourished by their vine? Yes, it is.
Should we have to listen to Christian radio all day and imitate famous
religious folks to abide? Some need
to, I guess. Doesn't it seem there
should be a more direct way to abandon the appearances of the false
vine so as to do everything for the True?
Couldn’t we just make use of our tasks in life to worship
Him? Couldn’t we just do all things
unto him as sacraments? Yes, we could.
Abiding in the vine was never meant to be complicated! One has only to open up one’s arteries to
Yahshua’s nurturing favor. Then we will
do everything as unto him and keep His commandments fully, which are not
a burden but a nourishing joy.
What Are the
Blessings of Abiding?
Abiding in the vine requires a
mind-change, a teshuva. We become intentional
about everything. We think about what we
do, everything we do, and we offer the work of our hands and minds to him, consciously. We become conscientious livers. When we intentionally abide, he
offers valuable benefits, far superior to those of the false vine, such
as:
1. The
Granting of Petitions (vs. 7). The
Father will do anything you ask through his Son’s will. However, there’s one condition: "If
you abide in me...."
If you abide in the vine, you can’t possibly ask amiss. That’s why he assures us that all we ask will
be given. When what we ask is received
and when we give testimony to it, we glorify our Father’s ability to
meet our needs. His answers constitute
some of the tremendous blessings of abiding.
When I abide in the True Vine, he always answers my prayers – always.
2. Another
benefit -- the honor of glorifying the Father. Making your Father’s goodness known is a benefit because it converts
you and gives you a mission beyond yourself. People can’t live without a valid purpose;
living just for one’s own desires is neither healthy nor valid. If you abide in the Vine and attend to your
mission, you’ll certainly make the Father’s goodness known in specific ways,
such as:
You will glorify him through praise. Corporate worship is important, but falls short
of perfect praise. Perfect praise comes
from the mouths and hearts of those who are grateful for their deliverance from
the world of appearances, now finding their dependence on the Vine. "Have you never read By the mouths of children,
babes in arms, you have made sure of praise (Matthew 21:16)?" Our nation declared independence from Great
Britain in 1776. We who abide also have
declared our independence from the Dominion of Darkness. In doing so, we declare
our dependence on Yahweh’s Savior.
We can't work that up! Like it so happens for babes in arms, praise and thanksgiving flow from our
surrender to him, not our independence from him. He is praised and radiated through our
close companionship and partnership.
We also glorify the Father through Works. Yahshua said,
(Matthew 5:14-16) "You are the light
of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. …Let your light shine before
men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
Having declared your intention of abiding
in the Vine, you begin to come under scrutiny by some people and evil
spirits. You’re just like a city
set on a hill, or, as they say today, you live in a house of glass. You say, “Well, I don’t want to live in a
house of glass,” but the truth is that everybody does whether they abide
in the Vine or not. If you do well for
others, Yahshua will be radiated through you. Your realness will make Him plainly real to
others. You will become a witness to
the divine power of dependence through your actions.
And this is a good, good thing.
And it makes your windows bullet-proof.
3. We also benefit by being able to love
and to be loved. Agape love
is compassion and action, as I’ve so often instructed. It’s not pity or "loving from
afar" or some fond, romantic feeling.
It’s hard-working.
Love must work three ways: Vertically, horizontally and internally (as
the love cross illustrates). Love must
extend through several levels (as the love target illustrates). You will not be able to bless others with agape
love unless you abide in the true Vine and experience Yahshua's
abiding love first-hand, faithful every moment of your life.
4. We benefit from abiding in that we have
the Law of Yahweh written on our hearts
(vs. 10). One writer puts
such discipleship and obedience into perfect perspective. Listen:
It is not difficult in our world to get a
person interested in the message of the [Good News]; it is terrifically difficult to
sustain the interest. Millions of
people in our culture make decisions for [Messiah], but there is a dreadful
attrition rate. Many claim to have been born again, but the evidence for mature
discipleship is slim. In our
kind of culture anything, even news about [the Creator], can be sold if it is packaged
freshly; but when it loses its novelty, it goes on the garbage heap. There is a great market for religious
experience in our world; there is little enthusiasm for the patient acquisition
of virtue, little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what
earlier generations ... called holiness.
Let me ask
you, what kind of model are you for your children and grandchildren? Do you nurture your spiritual life? Or is your sanctity based on the false vine
of appearances? And concerning the will of Yahweh in your life: Are you justifying your activities by saying
you’re "doing for G-d" when you really don’t know what He wants you
to do? Sometimes people who say they
are ‘working for G-d’ are really finding the easy way out of working!
But let me tell you the secret of
obedience, as set down by the great missionary Andrew Murray:
The secret of true obedience is the clear
and close personal relationship to [the Almighty].
All our attempts after full obedience will be failures until we get
access to his abiding fellowship. It is
His holy presence consciously abiding with us that keeps us from disobeying
Him. I must consciously include the
Him in every thought, activity, and conversation until the habit is
established.
Murray is
describing abiding in the Vine.
“Consciously include Him in every thought, activity, and
conversation” is expected of every branch, every branch, of the True
Vine. It’s an acquired habit and the
only way to avoid being cast off.
There are
Consequences of Not Abiding
Did you know: US Catholic Magazine recently asked its
readers what they thought about hell?
The fire-and-brimstone idea is out now, replaced by hell as an absence
of G-d. Some say this means people are
becoming more concerned about doing good for goodness sake and less about doing
good to avoid punishment. If that’s
true, then it’s a good thing, I think.
As for heaven, folks think it’s a great
place for a picnic, a "forest setting where it never rains," a big
ol’ family reunion. I don’t have
trouble with that idea. I believe in
the restoration of Israel and the re-creation of the entire earth. The survey said that 83% of the
magazine's readers think they’re heaven-bound. 17% must have very sleepless nights. Do you think 8 out of 10 of those readers
were abiding in the Vine in the fashion our Father expects? Hardly.
Maybe 8 out of 100 would be more realistic. We depend more upon our hope for His favor than we like to admit.
Yes, we are true believers in Yahshua. The power of Yahweh has drawn every single
one of us here together. You can’t deny
it; you are here for a purpose. Our congregating
is an essential part of abiding.
You and I really have little choice but to obey. As branches, we are pruned and blessed
and we bear lots of fruit. We may
someday become fully engrafted into the Vine as true branches. It is a peaceful, joyful and awesome thing
to be and integral part of the Living Elohim.
However, a branch that ultimately fails to
abide and thrive falls off, like an old, dead, tree branch, withering
and drying out, its nuts and leaves scattered to the wind. Even the best tree surgeon can’t reconnect a
dead branch, though, with Elohim, even that may be possible. It’s not our intention to hurt feelings, but
it’s a fact that some kind of punishment awaits the wishy-washy, the impudent, the
fence sitting, the pew-sitting, the back-sliding, the radical individualist,
the double-minded, the uncommitted, the fruitless, the has-been, the dry and
the dead branch, fallen off of the tree of life and worthless except to fuel
the wood stove. Many “good people” are
in for a rude awakening in the resurrection.
Our hope is that you are not and don’t become one of these
fallen branches. We’ll pray, and
Yahweh will restore you, if need be.
So, until your restoration, abide in the true Vine. Rededicate yourself today to this end. Reconnect with the source of your
nourishment. Rethink your mission,
especially as it concerns the assembly you are a part of.
Love your neighbor. Do good to
all. Give Yahweh the esteem. And don’t forget that your ultimate destiny
lies in the reality of eternity and not in appearances only. Amein.
Composed September 23, 1995, updated
January 16, 1998, February 20, 2013, preached January 18, 1998 PM and March 10, 2002.