Bearing Fruit Rooted in the Love of Jesus
I’ve been studying and meditating on John chapter 15, for a few weeks and I am super excited about this passage that calls us to live lives that bear much fruit that is rooted in the unsearchable love of Jesus for us. We will divide the message in two parts:
- We bear fruit by abiding in Jesus (v. 1-8)
- Love is the fruit but also the root (v. 9-17)
In part (1) we will see that we are called to bear fruit in our lives by abiding in Jesus. And in part (2) we will talk about the type of fruit we are called to bear and what should be the root of that fruit. We will use a lot of gardening language: root, and fruit and vines! But I trust that it will all be edifying and uplifting. Let’s get started!
Please open your Bibles in the book of John, chapter 15. We will read the first 8 verses. Remember in the larger context Jesus is sharing his last words with his disciples right before his death, and this is what he says in chapter 15:
“1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 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. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples”.
Let us pray
1. We bear fruit by abiding in Jesus (v. 1-8)
Jesus starts by saying: “I am the true vine”. Why does he say the true vine? Is there a false vine? And why a vine anyway?
There are several places in the Old Testament, where God refers to his people as his vineyard or his vine. He had cleaned the field, displacing other nations, so his vine could be planted, he had watered it, pruned it and taken good care of it. But his vine did not bear good fruit, it bore bad fruit. Despite all the care and all the blessings from God, his people did not honor and worship him, but instead they resisted him, disobeyed him, and they behaved like the rest of the pagan nations. So then, God brings judgment over his vine, which is “uprooted in fury and thrown to the ground”, as told in Ezekiel 19:12. The picture is rather somber. The judgment comes in the form of the surrounding nations attacking Israel and brutally trampling over God’s vine.
Now, it is with that background that Jesus says: “I am the true vine, I am not like the vine of the old days, that vine that did not bear good fruit, the vine that was uprooted and thrown away. I am the true vine, the one that the Father loves, the vine that truly bears good fruit and honors, and exalts the vinedresser, my Father. I am his beloved, fruitful, God-honoring true vine”.
And then Jesus delivers a serious warning starting in v. 2: “every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away”. Then the text makes it explicit in verse 5, that branches represent people: “I am the vine; you are the branches”. So there are some branches that are fruitless and the vinedresser takes them away, he cuts them off and pulls them away from the vine. Not only that, but in verse 6 Jesus says: “If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”
Now, I do not want to be overly dramatic, but I also want to be faithful to Scripture, and communicate with fear what the text is saying. If we read too quickly, we miss the seriousness of the warning.
In this analogy of the vine, Jesus is pointing out that it is possible that some branches in the vine are fruitless. There are people that, although they seem to be disciples of Jesus, their lack of fruit reveals that they are not. They do not belong to the vine.
That was the case, for instance, of the religious leaders of Jesus’ time. They saw themselves as righteous and good, they thought they belonged to the people of God, and yet Jesus exposed their hypocrisy and blindness, and called them multiple times to repent from their fruitless works.
To that kind of people Jesus solemnly warns “every branch in me that does not bear fruit the Father takes away”! And (verse 6): “If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned”. Those are strong words! The warning is as urgent today as it was then.
Are you bearing good fruit? Fruit that springs out of Jesus? Are you bearing fruit that is visible and tangible? A fruit that others can see and affirm and celebrate? Fruit that honors and brings glory to God. Are you bearing fruit? Or are you just a religious church attender, someone with a Christian label but with no fruit that proves you belong to Jesus, the true vine?
Now, I want to be careful here. Because some of you are bearing fruit, and yet you are constantly struggling with your performance, often thinking that you are falling short, while others see that you are bearing good fruit. This warning is not for you! How do you know whether you are in this group or not? Ask people around you, ask mature Christians that know you well. They will help you see the fruit of Christ in your life and celebrate it. Also, if you are experiencing difficulties and trials while bearing fruit, take heart, the vinedresser is lovingly pruning you so you may bear more fruit (v. 2b)
On the other hand, if you are not bearing good fruit at all, this warning is for you! And it cannot be more serious.
Perhaps you grew up in a Christian family and coming to church on Sunday is just what you’ve always done. But if you are honest, you think church is totally boring and the Bible is meaningless, and inside there is a secret life that is not pleasing to God. You think no one is watching, and nobody knows, but God knows!
Or perhaps, someone invited you to church a long time ago and you just stuck around. Maybe you just liked the community, but your life in relation to God is lethargic, cold, fruitless… The branches of the true vine bear fruit, and if you are not bearing fruit, then you do not belong to the vine. Are you bearing fruit? Is there any progress? Any growth in your life?
If you are not bearing fruit, if you are not in Christ, you will eventually be thrown away like a branch and will wither, dry and die. The end state is not pretty. For the fruitless branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. Wake up! Please, wake up! Before it is too late. Throw yourself into the grace of God and cry out to him, that he would have mercy on you, that he would change your heart, that he would rescue you and graft you, attach you into the true vine, into Jesus, so that you may have life, and you may grow and flourish and bear fruit! Although the words of Jesus are hard, his warning is intended to rescue you out of darkness so you may repent and turn and believe in Jesus and find life in him.
Ok, now for the rest of us, how do we bear fruit? This warning should compel us all to ask that question. What do I need to do to bear fruit? How do I make sure that I am not withering? How do I make sure that I am not among the fruitless branches that are thrown away?
Well, there is actually one and only one way! In verse 4, Jesus says: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me” and then verse 5: “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing”. Apart from Jesus there is no fruit. It is impossible to regularly and effectively bear fruit unless you abide in Christ.
When you abide in Jesus, when you are attached and connected and united to Jesus, you bear fruit. When the nutritious, life-giving sap flows from him, the vine, to you, the branch, then the certain result is that you will bear fruit, your life will be characterized by healthy, abundant fruit. Abide in Jesus, dwell in Jesus, cling to Jesus, attach to Jesus, he is our only hope. And let Jesus abide in you, let Jesus feed you and strengthen you and give you life, and you will bear fruit for the glory of God!
v. 8 “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples”. When we bear much fruit the Father is glorified. When people say: “Look at this vine and its wonderful fruit! Isn’t it amazing, who is its owner? Who cultivated this flourishing, vigorous, fruitful vine? What a great vinedresser!” And the fact that we are bearing much fruit is a clear and undeniable evidence that we belong to Jesus, the true vine.
Bearing fruit is important, it is critical, it is necessary, and it is only possible by abiding, dwelling, remaining attached to Jesus. That is section 1. We bear fruit by abiding in Jesus.
But you may be wondering how it looks to abide in Jesus and what type of fruit we are supposed to bear. Do you want to know?
2. Love is the fruit but also the root (v. 9-17)
Please read with me, verses 9-17 of John chapter 15. Jesus continues:
“9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17 These things I command you, so that you will love one another”.
Love is the fruit, but it is also the root. In this section, the word love is repeated 9 times. We are called to abide in the love of Jesus by keeping his commandments and to love one another as Jesus has loved us. As branches of the true vine, we are called to bear the fruit of love, love for God and love for one another. But as we will see, that is only possible because of the root, namely, the love of Jesus for us. The supreme love of Jesus for us is the root that makes it possible for us to bear the fruit of obedience and love for one another. Love is the fruit, but it is also the root.
v. 9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you”. This is where we start: Jesus has loved us just as the Father has loved him. Can you marvel at that? Picture the love of the Father for his Son, Jesus. Before time, the Father had this relationship with his Son, and he loved him with all his might, with a love that is eternal, pure, and infinite. And with that kind of love in mind Jesus says: “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you”! Isn’t that amazing? That is where we start, that is the root! The love of God: the Father has loved his Son Jesus, and with that same kind of love Jesus has loved us.
Then Jesus continues, last part of v. 9c: “Abide in my love”, and then 10: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love”
Now this could become confusing. Let’s clarify. What Jesus is not saying is: “If you keep my commandments, I will love you”. No, the love of Jesus comes first and is not conditional on my obedience. This love started in the past and extends to the present. That love makes it possible for us to keep his commandments. And as we do that, we will abide, we will remain in his love. Do not forget that, the love of Jesus is the root that produces in us the fruit of obedience to his commandments.
v. 12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you”.
We are called here to bear the fruit of love for one another. Once again, notice the importance of the order: Jesus has loved us (past tense), that’s the root. With that love in mind, now love one another, that’s the present fruit. If we do not understand the love of Jesus for us, we will not be able to properly love one another.
What is the magnitude of the love of Jesus for us? v. 13: “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends”. Jesus supremely shows his love by laying down his life for his friends. That is the greatest, the most noble, the most admirable, the most amazing love: that someone lay down his own life for his friends.
Who are his friends? v. 14 “You are my friends, if you do what I command you”. His friends are those who hear his voice and obey, those who do what he commands. He is not saying that in order to become his friends we first have to obey, he is saying that those who obey him, those who do what he commands are the ones who by their actions prove to be his friends. If you have even the desire, the aspiration to obey his commands, rejoice! You are Jesus’ friend.
v. 15 “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends”! Truly we are his servants, we depend on him for everything. He is the real boss, the master, the Lord and yet he calls me his friend when I am his dependent creature. Do you think we really grasp what that means? Let me illustrate.
I work for the richest man on earth. He has more money than anyone else in the whole world. I have not met him in person, and probably never will. I am just one out of thousands of his employees.
His net worth, as of last week, is roughly 160 billion dollars.
$160,000,000,000
That is a whole lot of money! Imagine you have 1 million dollars. What would you do with it? Now multiply that by 160,000 times. That is 160 followed by 9 zeros!
My paycheck comes from his wealth and therefore he deserves some respect from me. I mean, I would be a fool if I disrespected him. I am just a tiny servant. He could just get me out of the way if I dare to mess with him. I am just an employee of this wealthy, powerful man.
So now, let’s pretend that he decides to visit our town. And not only that, he also comes to our church. Would that be something? That the richest man on earth would sit among us? Now let’s push the illustration even further. Let’s say he comes up here to the stage and tells everyone while pointing at me: “Jose is one of my employees”, as I nod with my head down. “But you know,” he continues, “I consider him more than just an employee, I consider Jose to be my friend”.
“Say what?” I would be in shock! I mean, it is one thing that he acknowledges I am a low rank employee in one of his companies, but calling me his friend. That would be… freaking awesome! You know, I could tell him: “Oh am I your friend? I am so honored. Hey, can you share some of your money with me… ok, I will not be so selfish, after all I am supposed to be a pastor. Why don’t you share a little with our church. I mean, lately we are not doing that great financially. Soon we will need a new AC system, we also need a new carpet, those alone would be getting close to a million dollars, but what is that for you?”
Ok, but now seriously, it would be astonishing that this rich and powerful man would call me his friend. But for Jesus to call me his friend? That is almost unthinkable, because of who Jesus really is…
Do you recall how we started our John series a while ago: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He [Jesus] was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him”
Jesus is God, and through him all things were created. Jesus spoke and heaven and earth were made.
All things were made through him. Jesus created the beautiful oceans, and the magnificent mountains, rivers, rainforests, vegetation and plants, he created the animals, and every single living cell. He created giant planet Jupiter, and Saturn with those breathtaking rings around it. He made that massive ball of fire, that we call our Sun. He created and named all the stars, and black holes with their incalculable sucking force, and he created billions of galaxies, and he sustains them all by the word of his power every single millisecond of their existence.
He is the owner of silver and gold, and he has infinite power to redeem and to destroy. He has the ability to save or to send to hell and torment his enemies forever. You do not disrespect Jesus without consequences, you cannot escape from him and his perfect justice. He is glorious, majestic, almighty and powerful with no end, he is sovereign, indestructible and unstoppable. He cannot be defeated or restrained by anything or anyone, he rules supremely above all! And this majestic, glorious Jesus calls me his friend! And calls you his friend! How can it be?
He is the master, we are the servants, we should fall on our knees and worship him. All human beings owe him respect, reverence, and fear. But instead we are so blind, we are so proud and foolish. We rebel against him, we ignore him or dismiss him most of the time. We often dishonor him with our thoughts, our words, our actions. How did we become his friends?
Greater love has no one than this: that someone lay down his life for his friends!
Consider the context in which Jesus is telling his disciples these words. He is not using poetic language, he is not speaking in parables. He is about to literally lay down his life for his friends! In just a few moments he will be betrayed, beaten and humiliated, and in less than 24 hours he will die on a cross as a criminal. He will love his friends, with the greatest love of all. He will shed his blood, he will absorb and consume and placate the fury of righteous justice raised against their and my sin. He will lay down his sacred, innocent, pure life for his rebellious servants, so we may become his friends.
I am no longer his enemy, I am no longer just his servant, I am his friend! You are his friend, if you believe that Jesus laid down his life in your place.
v. 16: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide”
We did not choose Jesus first, we didn’t initiate a relationship with him. We opposed him! He chose us! We did not choose him. He loved us first, he befriended us first, he appointed us first to bear much fruit. Our fruit is the external evidence, the certain consequence, the result of his great, amazing, unsearchable love for us! Yes, we will bear fruit and we will increase in fruit, because he has chosen us and he has appointed us to bear fruit for his glory!
We do not seek to bear fruit to become his friends or to be loved by God. We seek to bear fruit because of his great love and because he has already declared in heaven YOU ARE MY FRIEND! He has loved me and laid down his life for me and for you!
Let us meditate, contemplate, rejoice and dwell in the greatest love of all, the love of our Savior, who chose you, who called you to be his friend, who laid down his life for you, who loved you to the extreme. So that when you feel the full force of his love, you respond: “my Lord and my God, let me live for you, let me bear much fruit for you, let me love you and adore you and worship you because of your great, amazing, undeserved love”
There is so much fruit to bear. Many of you have been bearing fruit for decades but we are not done. Let us bear even more fruit for the glory of our King. He is worthy of our lives, our effort, our fruit.
Just one example, look at the empty seats around you! There are many. God in his sovereignty has freed those seats so that they may be filled with new people! To be clear, the goal is not popularity. Neither am I primarily concerned about the finances. But think about this: in our streets, in our neighborhoods, in our cities, there are literally hundreds, perhaps thousands of people who do not know about this amazing love of Jesus. Oh let us pray that because of our fruit of obedience and love for others, many will get to know the love of Jesus and will fill these empty seats and join us as we sing and worship our Lord, while he increases our fruitfulness even more. Let us live lives that bear much fruit that is rooted in the unsearchable love of Jesus for us!