ABIDING IN THE TRUE VINE
Introduction
Last Sunday, John presented to us the image of Jesus the good shepherd. A good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep because he sincerely cares for them and loves them too; who knows the sheep one after the other. That is, he knows them individually and can always identify them anywhere, everywhere; a good shepherd carefully and continuously leads the sheep, calls the sheep to order; protects them from danger and if injured, dresses the wound. A good, caring and loving shepherd who lives for the sheep. This Sunday, we have another powerful and awesome image – Jesus, the true vine dressed by the Father Himself. The vine is any woody climbing plant, which bears grapes. It is a prolific plant, which supports many branches. In the Hebrew (Old) Testament, the symbol of vine is frequently used to refer to the Israelites (cf. Ps 80:8–16; Isa 5:1–7; Ezek 19:10–14; Jer 2:21). However,.…
Remain in me
The idea of cutting off implies judgment. Pruning brings about fruitfulness. In the Gospels and other Christian Testament Writings, the image of good life represents the product of a godly life or virtuous living (cf. Matt 3:8; 7:16–20; Gal 5:22–23; Eph 5:9). According to Jesus, the only way to avoid being cut off and to be pruned, is to remain in him. Now, the question is: what does it mean to remain in Jesus? The Greek verb menō means remain, stay, dwell, abide. For nine (9) good times, John employs this verb in the following sequence: “remain in me, as I also remain in you…. It (branch) must remain in the vine…. unless you remain in me…. If you remain in me and I (remain) in you…. If you do not remain in me.… If you remain in me, and my words remain in you.” The whole message of this Gospel passage is summarised in this verb. To remain in Jesus is to imitate him in words and actions. To remain in Jesus is to remain in the words of the Gospel. To remain in Jesus is to have fear of God. To remain in Jesus is to be responsible and accountable for our actions and words.
Conclusion
That a person goes to Church and belongs to different associations in the Church does not mean the person is (remains) in Jesus. The image of the vine is a beautiful image. Jesus is not just the vine; he is the true vine. God is the gardener who takes proper care of this vine. And we are the branches of this vine. As a branch, if you remain faithful, the gardener, that is, God will keep pruning you, and you will keep producing good fruits. But if you become unfaithful, the only option is to cut you off so that you do not contaminate other branches. Therefore, keep to those things that will make you faithful and keep away from those that will make you unfaithful. Jesus said that His Father, the vine-dresser, removes any branch that does not bear fruit. This means that it is not enough to be in Jesus. It is not enough to profess Jesus as my personal Lord and saviour. These might be formal acts which do not portray true faith. In fact,.….
FOR DETAILS, GET YOUR OWN COPIES OF THE BOOK “THE WORD OF LIFE: SUNDAY REFLECTIONS” (vols. I and II)!! The reflection for the FIFTH Sunday of Pascha (B) is found in vol. II pages 202–209. Happy reading!
For details on how to get it, contact the author on this link: https://m.me/uchennabiblia?fbclid=IwAR2yeg4a6sDGBp9QGkIvKj6FSADumMokN6lshdE0zuo-JHs6qOmlhA7jyHo or email me at: postmaster@uchennabiblia.com or simply send an SMS on 08116100926, and I will get back to you.
