Today was “Veggie Show and Tell” day in Alex’s Kindergarten class. Our instructions included bringing in vegetables, especially those with roots still attached, so the children could see the value of God’s creation in providing nutritious foods for our betterment. Alex, being the huge VeggieTale fan he is decided he wanted to take in a cucumber, a tomato and an asparagus in honor of Larry the Cucumber, Bob the Tomato and Junior Asparagus from VEGGIETALE fame. So to accommodate my son’s desire, I picked up these vegetables at the grocery yesterday, bagged them up and packed them in his backpack for their “show and tell” debut.
When I picked him up this afternoon he proudly held out his craft ~ a piece of orange construction paper with about 5 different types of vegetables taped on accompanied by little notes about each of them. He put a cherry tomato, a radish, lettuce, celery and broccoli on his paper and carried it with such care. When we arrived home he noticed a portion of the tomato had broken loose and was gently moving around on the paper. As he placed it back in its original place he made a comment that prompted this blog topic. He said “it isn’t going to live long without the vine”. He was exactly correct ~ once the tomato was removed from the vine its decline was sure.
Jesus applied this principle to our relationship with Him found in the Gospel of John:
“Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can't bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can't bear fruit unless you are joined with me. “
"I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you're joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can't produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.” ~ John 15:4-8 (MSG)
1. He is a resident, not just an overnight guest
What does He mean when He tells us to “live in me…make your home in me…”? Think about when you have company come into your home. You may tell them “make yourself at home” as a way to let them know how comfortable you want them to feel. Although we extend the hand of hospitality we still assume certain boundries will remain in place. For example, we don’t anticipate our company will sort through our personal items, choosing and using what they please without request or consent. We also suppose a certain level of decorum will be demonstrated in that we would not expect to see them roam through our home inappropriately dressed. So, in essence, we want them to feel as comfortable as company can be. Making our home in Him gives Him total access to our lives. He is not just “company”, He is a resident.
2. We are connected to Him, not just His tour guide
Not only do we make our home in Him, we are connected to Him. As with any fruit or vegetable the vine is the source of life. It is through the vine the nutrients and water from the earth are infused to make them healthy and useable. Jesus is our vine ~ our source of life. The language he uses in verse 4 of John 15 cannot say it any stronger...
· “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” (NIV)
· “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.” (NLT)
· “Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it stays joined to the vine, you cannot produce fruit unless you stay joined to me. “(CEV)
Apart from Him we cannot produce fruit ~ period. So what will our lives lack apart from the vine? Let’s inspect the fruit…
Galatians 5:22, 23 ~ But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives:
ü Love ~ unconditional, tenderness, fondness, affection, friendship
ü Joy ~ bliss, delight, elation regardless of the circumstances
ü Peace ~ serenity, harmony, calm despite the chaos all around
ü Patience ~ staying power, persistence, fortitude in all situations
ü Kindness ~ consideration, helpful, compassionate to all
ü Goodness ~ decency, kindness, integrity, what you are when no one is looking
ü Faithfulness ~ loyal, trustworthy, dependable no matter the circumstance
ü Gentleness ~ tender, kind, light-hearted to all
ü Self-control ~ strength of will, willpower, discipline no matter what happens
Apart from Him we cannot fulfill His desire for us. When we cut ourselves from the vine, we begin a slow spiritual decline. Our salvation remains secure, but what we produce will be anything but a reflection of Him. We give Him the tour of our lives but then take it from there.
3. When our home is where He is, He will do anything we ask
If you will think back to your childhood you can remember rules you parent’s had for the home. For example, maybe you weren’t allowed to leave your yard without a parent accompanying you when you were 8 years old. You knew that was a set rule for your home. Your parent’s had repeatedly reminded you of the rule, they have explained their reasoning behind the rule and you knew the consequences if you chose to leave the yard outside the company of one or both of your parents. Now, why in the world would you ask your parent’s permission to walk down the street, all by yourself, to visit a friend, knowing how emphatic they were about their directive? I guess it is the same reason we ask God to violate His principles and statues for our selfish reasons ~ we want what we want. God will not change who He is to accommodate us. When we ask Him to walk outside of who He is to answer a “prayer request”, scripture says we ask “amiss”. James 4:3 puts it this way…
“And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.” (NLT)
God will not respond to a request that will cause Him to violate who He is. The thing is when we are connected to the vine, having the life source of the Savior infusing us daily, we won’t ask God to do anything for us that would cause Him to go against who He is.
Are you connected or are you slowly withering away from the vine?
Is He your company or have you allowed Him to really set up a residence?
Inspect the fruit and give yourself an honest answer…
In Him,
Stefanie
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