Abide in Me, and I in you

 

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  

 

 "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

 

- John 15:1–11 

 

This week, we are reading through Christ's Final Discourse at the Last Supper.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus told the disciples, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.  At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.   He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."  Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.  These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.'  If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.  I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.  But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.  Arise, let us go from here."

 

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."  My study Bible explains that the vine is a symbol of Israel (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21).  In contrast to disobedient and unfruitful Israel, it says, our Lord calls Himself the true vine, which together with the branches constitutes a new and fruitful people of God:  the Church.   At the Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox Church, the bishop prays that the Lord will visit and confirm the vineyard, the local body of Christ, which He planted with His own right hand (Psalm 80:15-16).  Moreover, to abide in this vine is to abide in Christ and His Church.  My study Bible adds that this image of the vine and the branches shows several things.  First, that our union with Christ is intimate and real.  Second, that life flows from the vine to the branches -- to abide in Christ is dynamic and vitalizing.  Finally, the fruit we bear is both good works and mission (John 15:16; 17:18).  

 

  "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  My study Bible comments here that one cannot love God and refuse God's commandments.  To love God is to keep His commandments (John 14:15).  

 

Christ's words in today's reading convey to us the depth of relationship in meanings of love, communion, and covenant.  The image of the vine, branches, and vinedresser conveys to us the depth of communion between Christ and His followers, and that this also includes God the Father.  As vinedresser the Father prunes those branches which do not bear fruit, for the health of the whole and so that the vine may be even more fruitful.  In the sense of this image, Jesus teaches, "Abide in Me, and I in you."  To abide is to "stay," in the sense of residing somewhere, staying in a particular shelter or home.  Jesus says, "He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."  Thus, He conveys to us that unless we make our home with Him, and He in us, we do not bear the fruits God looks for.  No branch can bear fruit off of its vine, and so it is with us.  Without the vine, a branch simply withers.  "By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."  The spiritual fruit we bear by abiding in Him, and He in us, glorifies the Father, and declares that we are Christ's disciples.  Finally, what Christ offers to all of us is a communion of love:  "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love."  We are to remain in that love as a shelter, an abode, a place to dwell.  Finally, here is covenant, the bond that doesn't break and is inseparable:  "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."  Here is love, loyalty, and even duty.  So long as we keep in this love and follow what He teaches we abide in this communion.  We are to live to the fullest this life that produces spiritual fruit, keeping in His love, following what He teaches us.  This is an active love and a dynamic communion.  It is a covenant of love, a bond that goes all ways, between Father, Son, and the faithful, where faithful means being true to what we are taught, how we are guided, faithful to the One who loved us first (1 John 4:19).  Finally, here is the joy that surprises in the midst of the world:  "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  We are not created to "be our own boss," so to speak, but we are created to bloom and to bear fruit, to grow in as healthy a way as possible.  And for us to understand the fulfillment of our own creation, we need Christ to guide, and the love of the Father, and the help of the Holy Spirit.  In this way, we fulfill the purpose for which we are created -- and that is the source of joy.  For so many people, "duty" may be seen as an oppressive word, but a duty borne of love is not coerced nor compelled; it is voluntary.  This is loyalty, and desire.  Often we imagine -- in the midst of a taxing circumstance -- that if only we had nothing to do, we could be happy.  But the truth is, human beings do not become happy by being idle; our joy comes by fulfilling a deeper purpose, and most particularly in living that love in this communion Christ describes.  It is the heart and life of our very soul that forms this communion, and the one in which Christ asks us to abide -- for there we will find our surprising joy.  If we think about it, we may come to understand that even in the midst of tribulation, in the midst of a difficult and troublesome world full of worries and hardships, we may still have this joy when we follow what He teaches, and abide in His life.  Let us learn to find this joy, in all circumstances.  Let us seek Him and stay where He teaches us to be.  

 

 

 

As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love

Christ the true vine; 13th century.  Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  

"As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

 

- John 15:1-11 

 

We are currently reading through Christ's words to the apostles at the Last Supper, in what is called the Farewell Discourse.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus said to them, "If you love Me, keep My commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.  I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.  At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."  Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.  These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.'  If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.  I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.  But that the world may know that I love  the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.  Arise, let us go from here."

 

  "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."  My study Bible comments that the vine is a symbol of Israel (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21).  In contrast to disobedient and unfruitful Israel, it says, our Lord calls Himself the true vine, which together with the branches constitutes a new and fruitful people of God:  the Church.  In the divine liturgy of the Orthodox Church, the bishop prays that the Lord will visit and confirm the vineyard, the local body of Christ, is planted with His own right hand (Psalm 80:15-16).  To abide in this vine is to abide in Christ and His Church.  My study Bible comments that the figure of the vine and the branches shows first that our union with Christ is intimate and real; second, that life flows from the vine to the branches.  In other words, abiding in Christ is dynamic and vitalizing.  Finally, the fruit we bear is both good works and mission (John 15:16; 17:18).

 

 "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  My study Bible notes here that one cannot love God and disobey His commandments.  To love God, as Jesus taught in yesterday's reading, is to obey God (John 14:15).  

Jesus teaches us something more about love in today's reading.  He says,  "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love."   He seems to say to us, to tell us through these words, that love comes from somewhere.  Love has a Source, and that Source is God.  As long as we know that we are created by a loving Father, then we know that there is love, and that love is part of who we are because it comes from the ultimate Source of all things.  Jesus teaches us, "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."   We express and live our love for Christ by keeping His commandments, and in this way we become like Him -- for He has kept the Father's commandments and so abides in the Father's love.  He is inviting us into this depth of communion, which is a communion of love.  We may stop to think, in our modern context, that to follow the commandments of an authority figure, even a parent, doesn't necessarily translate into love.  We can, after all, receive abusive or wrong commandments in our lives, from those whose wills are unhealthy, unhealed, suffering, and all the ways in which our imperfect world expresses its imperfection.  But Christ is not speaking of worldly commandments and worldly authority; He is speaking and offering the opposite.  He's offering us the life of what is necessary for us, and that which is in so many ways missing in our world.  He is offering communion in and with the Source of all love, even as we are in a world distant and separate from that communion, with the "ruler of this world" an opponent to Christ.  He follows with, "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  He's offering us joy even when we have sorrow, even when we are disappointed and afraid, even abandoned by the people and things we are fond of in life.  For this joy remains in us when all else may fail.  For what Christ is offering is to abide in Him, and He in us, within the strength and Source of the Father's love, rooted in a place so deep within us we might not even know it's there.  This is the way Christ offers us love and communion, and all we have to do is love Him by following the commandments which are His words of life for us.  These commandments are for us, and they are the words of eternal life for us.  They are the words that share His love with us, and share with us His joy.  Let us take in all that we are offered, and take Him up on His offer, so that we may abide in His love, and joy may abide in us. 

 

 

 

Abide in Me, and I in you

 

Vine and branches harvest, 4th century Byzantine mosaic; Mausoleum of Santa Costanza, Rome, Italy

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  

"As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

 

- John 15:1–11 

 

Currently we are reading Christ's Farewell Discourse which He gave at the Last Supper.  Yesterday, we read that He said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.  I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.  At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."  Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.  These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.'  If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.  I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.  But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.  Arise, let us go from here." 

 

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."  My study Bible tells us that the vine is a symbol of Israel (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21).  In contrast to disobedient and unfruitful Israel, it says, our Lord calls Himself the true vine, which together with the branches constitutes a new and fruitful people of God:  the Church.   At the Divine Liturgy, the bishop prays that the Lord will visit and confirm the vineyard, the local body of Christ, which was planted with His own right hand (Psalm 80:15-16).  To abide in this vine, it adds, is to abide in Christ and Christ's Church.  The figure of the vine and the branches shows, first, that our union with Christ is intimate and real.  Second, that life flows from the vine to the branches -- to abide in Christ is dynamic and vitalizing.  Finally, the fruit which we bear is both good works and mission (John 15:16; 17:18). 

 

 "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  My study Bible reflects that one cannot love God and disobey God's commandments.  It states that to love God is to obey Him (John 14:15).  

Some of us might be put off by Jesus' insistence (now seen several times, and in various forms, in the Farewell Discourse) that to love Him is to keep His commandments.  We might consider this in light of political thought and democratic values, or autocratic parenting that demands absolute obedience.  But then we would be forgetting that God is love, and that what it means to follow Christ's commands is to abide in that love.  That is, to abide in His love, which is the source and understanding of what love is and does.  Therefore by so doing, we learn ourselves what love is, and how to love in turn.  ("We love because He first loved us" - 1 John 4:19.)  In today's reading, Jesus emphasizes the need to abide in Him.  This is the only way we can truly bear fruit, the kind of good fruit that Christ seeks.  Jesus says, "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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."  He gives Himself, once again, as the example.  He keeps the Father's commandments, and abides in the Father's love.  So we are to do the same with Christ.   He gives us the image of the vine and branches for this; as branches, we must bear good fruit, and there is only one way to do that -- by abiding in the vine.  Note that He also says, "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit."  Those branches which fail to bear the spiritual fruit desired will be pruned away, removed from the vine.  And even those that bear fruit will also be pruned in and of themselves, so that they produce more.  This gives us an image even of how Christ's commandments shape our lives, as we grow in discipleship, learning His "way," and discard or cast off those things we come to understand as hindrance, stumbling block, the "wrong way."  This is a dynamic image of love, in which there is give and take; we are given His commandments made in love, and in turn we show love by learning from Him, abiding in Him and His commandments, living His life that He shows to us and offers us.  So we also become bearers of fruit, and we are in turn "pruned" in order to more abundantly bear that fruit.  This is a dynamic, powerful, loving relationship -- and He describes what it means to "abide in Him" in ways that make it clear that this is growth and a process that doesn't end, but also extends to the world and keeps growing, both internally through God's love and work, and externally through whatever fruits are produced and made to grow even more abundantly (see Matthew 5:16).  So, we have a dynamic lifetime ahead of us, couched in Christ's love, and through that love, His teachings for us, His guidance, His leading.  Let us bear the fruit He seeks, and abide in His love, learning His commandments more fully day by day.  He gives this word, He says,"that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

 

 

Abide in Me, and I in you

 

Vine and branches mosaic, 4th century.  Santa Costanza Church, Rome

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

"As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

- John 15:1–11 

 

Currently we are reading through what is known as Jesus' Farewell Discourse, given at the Last Supper.  Yesterday we read that Jesus taught the disciples, "If you love Me, keep My commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.  I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.  At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."  Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.  These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.'  If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.  I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.  But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.  Arise, let us go from here." 

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."   My study bible expands extensively on this passage.  It says that the vine is a symbol of Israel (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21).  In contrast to disobedient and unfruitful Israel, it says, our Lord refers to Himself as the true vine, which together with the branches constitutes a new and fruitful people of God:  the Church.  In Church services, the bishop prays that the Lord will visit and confirm the vineyard, the local body of Christ, which the Lord planted with His own right hand (Psalm 80:14-15).  To abide in this vine is to abide in Christ and His Church.  My study bible explains that the figure of the vine and the branches shows first that our union with Christ is intimate and real; second, that life flows from the vine to the branches -- abiding in Christ, it says, is both dynamic and vitalizing; and third, the fruit we bear is both good works and mission (John 15:16, 17:18).  

"As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."  My study bible comments that one cannot love God and disobey God's commandments.  To love God is to obey God (John 14:15).  

In today's reading, the setting is somewhere Jesus has moved the disciples in order to continue His Farewell Discourse.  They have moved from the setting where they ate the Passover Meal (the Last Supper) to another location.  The images of the vine and branches perhaps gives us a hint as to the location, a place in which a grapevine could be seen growing, such as in an arbor.  But the power of Christ's farewell speech to them is in the image of the vine and the branches.  He speaks of Himself as "the true vine" and God the Father as the vinedresser.  This suggests one true vine that bears the true fruit of Israel, the people of God.  And this vine is in the hands of God the Father, who prunes and nurtures, and tends the vine.  Those branches that produce no fruit are borne away, but of the branches that do, "every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit."  This gives us an image of the work of God in our lives, trimming away those things that get in the way of our spiritual growth and fruitfulness, a constant repentance that lets go of what we don't need.  But perhaps the most important word Christ gives to us all is, "Abide in Me, and I in you."  Note that with Christ, this "abiding" does not go just one way.  It is instead a thorough depth of relationship with Him.  And we should note that this is a mutual abiding; it doesn't just go one way.  We abide in Him, and in return His commandments of life are known to us.  We can therefore bear spiritual fruit, which in turn glorifies the Father.  And then Jesus goes much deeper.  He says, "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love."  We are not promised life, spiritual fruit, and understanding of Christ's word alone.  We are promised love.  And there is even more to this love we are given and in which we share:  "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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."   Christ's love, and the commandments He speaks to us, are both His joy -- and they become the fullness of our joy.  This is a promise indeed, and for when all else fails in life.  This is a rich inheritance in which we can participate, and through which we can be filled.  It is a never-ending promise, for God's steadfast love and mercy don't know worldly time.  Instead, this promise waits for us.  All it needs is our trust.   John the Baptist spoke of this joy when he said, "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled" (John 3:29).   In Matthew 11:11, Jesus said, "Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."  If John, then, understood this joy in his place as friend of the bridegroom, imagine what we're promised in terms of Christ's word, the Father's love, and the help and understanding of the Holy Spirit Jesus has promised.  Let us bear the fruit produced by abiding in that love.    For this will be our joy.

I am the vine, you are the branches

 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.  You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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.  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."

- John 15:1-11

Jesus has been giving His Farewell Discourse to the Apostles.  This is the time just before He will be betrayed and seized by the authorities.  He began with the words, "Let your heart not be troubled . . . " (see In My Father's house are many mansions).  In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued:  "If you love Me, keep My commandments.  And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.   I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me.  Because I live, you will live also.  At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.  And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."  Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.  These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.  Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.  You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.'  If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I.  And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe.  I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.  But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do.  Arise, let us go from here."

"I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser."  My study bible notes that "the vine is a symbol if Israel (see Is. 5:1-7, Jer. 2:21).  In contrast to disobedient and unfruitful Israel, Jesus calls Himself the true vine which, together with its branches, constitutes a new and fruitful people of God, the Church."  We note that every time Jesus identifies Himself, it is with clear reference to the Father.  Here, He is the true vine, but His Father is the vinedresser.

"Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit."  Here, we are invited to consider what it means to bear fruit in the context of Jesus' teachings.  We are all called upon to bear spiritual fruit, the fruit of His teachings and commands.  Note that even those branches that produce are pruned by the Father; the things we don't need in our lives are pruned away for better spiritual growth, more fruit.

"You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me."  My study bible has a note here:  "Abiding in Christ is living out our union with Him in faith, baptism, love, obedience, and Eucharist.  The figure of the vine and branches shows:  (1) our union with Christ is intimate and real -- we are a new people in Christ; (2) life flows from the vine to the branches -- abiding in Christ is not static nor 'positional,' but dynamic and vitalizing; and (3) the fruit we bear is both good works and mission (v. 16, 'go and bear fruit').  Those who do not abide in Christ bear no fruit, and are cut off from Him (v. 6)."   The words Jesus teaches here are very clear:  just as He has always referred Himself back to the Father, so are we dependent upon Him for our own fruit we bear.  We cannot do it of ourselves, just like a branch can't bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine.

"I am the vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."  My study bible notes, "Without Christ we can do nothing -- nothing which is properly motivated and gives glory to God."  Jesus takes this metaphor of the vine and continues, turning it to different angles and teaching us what this really means for us.  Again, there is an even stronger emphasis now on bearing fruit:  abiding in Him, we can bear much fruit.  But without Him we can do nothing.  Abiding in Him isn't a one-way street:  we abide in Him, and He in us.  This speaks of the depth of relationship, of communion, among believers and Christ -- but He will take this even further.

 "If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.  If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."  Without this abiding, our worth is like a branch that is withered and bears no fruit at all.  It is a sense of dying spiritually without Him, without this abiding.  He again refers to His commandments, His words, as in yesterday's reading, when He taught, "If you love Me, keep My commandments."    Abiding in Him is a relationship made possible through the Helper, the Spirit which He will send.  In Monday's reading, He taught, "Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask anything in My name, I will do it."  Here He links this again with what it is to abide in Him.

"By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.  As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.  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."  My study bible tells us, "The fact is, God does love us unconditionally, no matter what our response.  But His unconditional love does us no good unless we keep His commandments and abide in His love.  We show our love for God by obeying Him."  Jesus gives us a deeper response to what it is to keep His commandments, the teachings He has emphasized and given:  we also abide in His love and we are linked through Him in turn to the commandments of the Father and the Father's love.

"These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full."   Not only love, but joy is given here through Jesus at His Farewell Discourse.  He is going away, but it is His joy and love in which we are to abide.  This word for joy, in the Greek, is linked to the word for grace - they share the same root.  It is also the root of the word with which Gabriel greets Mary at the Annunciation, which has often been translated as "hail."  It means, in the Greek, "be joyful."  The good tidings of God's grace renders us joy; it is the fullness of this joy that Jesus leaves us (and His disciples) here.

In today's reading (and the earlier ones in His Farewell Discourse), Jesus ties in what it is to remain "in His name" with His commandments, with the Spirit who will enlighten us to them, with abiding in Him and the Father, with His love and the Father's love, and finally with the fullness of His joy in us.  The fullness of this cup cannot be overestimated.  He is going away, but He goes to the Father and will send us something greater than any gift.  In the fullness of His grace we abide in His love and share the fullness of His joy.  We bear spiritual fruits and so are "like Him" by abiding in Him.  Even the things which do not help us to bear such fruit will be pruned away from us by the Father.  Love and grace and the truth of His commandments are mixed with the fullness of the joy with which He leaves the disciples and gives to us in turn.  How do you experience the love of God, and how do you return that love?  Are there spiritual fruits in your life?  Are His commandments precious to you?  All of these questions are opened up for us here, and the depth of His love is something we have within ourselves, as He promises that He also abides in us.  Let us remember that joy and grace are linked:  Mary's good news greeting is the same joy with which Jesus gives His farewell.