The Fruit, Day 4

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Key Scripture:

John  15:2a.  “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; …

Key Idea:

… fruit is the one thing the branch is for, and that if it bear not fruit, the husbandman takes it away.
— Murray

Pray for revelation:

Our Father, Thou comest seeking fruit. Teach us, we pray Thee, to realize how truly this is the one object of our existence, and of our union to Christ. Make it the one desire of our hearts to be branches, so filled with the Spirit of the Vine, as to bring forth fruit abundantly.
— Murray

Key words:
Fruit – one of those words that translates very well from Greek to English. It means exactly what you think it should. Fruit.
Take Away – to lift up and away.

The purpose of the branch is to bear fruit. Sometimes it feels like life is a fruitless experience, and bearing fruit is just too much extra work. But think of this, all a branch does to produce fruit is to just stay attached to the vine. Fruit comes naturally.

No matter how hard the storms rage, and the wind blows, and the branch waves around, the branch that stays attached just keeps on bearing fruit. All that waving in the breeze doesn’t add to, or take away from the fruit producing. Even if the fruit falls off, don’t worry, there’s more where that came from.

Seriously, when life bogs us down, long hours are worked, family life has us stressed, a medical emergency arises, in all those ways the storms of life rage against us, and our branch is waving around out there in the breeze, all we need to do is stay connected. Branches bear fruit naturally. If feelings are dead, reconnect, check your

The Branch, Day 3

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Key Scripture:

John  15:2a.  “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; …

Key Idea:

The branch is exactly like the vine in every aspect–the same nature, the same life, the same place, the same work. In all this they are inseparably one.
— Murray

Pray for revelation:

Lord Jesus, I pray Thee, reveal to me the heavenly mystery of the branch, in its living union with the Vine, in its claim on all its fullness. And let Thy all-sufficiency, holding and filling Thy branches, lead me to the rest of faith that knows that Thou workest all.
— Murray

Key words:
Branch.

Before a vine can produce fruit, there needs to be a branch. More on fruit tomorrow, but to continue the comparison of Jesus to the vine, we are the branches. Focus on that idea. The vine is the main trunk of the plant. It grows in the ground and provides life giving nourishment for the branches.

A vine doesn’t normally grow fruit on it directly, it grows branches, and those branches is where the fruit is produced.

There needs to be unity. The branch needs

The Vine, Day 1

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Key Scripture:

John 15:1a. “I am the true vine, …

Key Idea:

All earthly things are the shadows of heavenly realities–the expression, in created, visible forms, of the
invisible glory of God.
–Murray

Pray for revelation:

HolyLord Jesus, the heavenly Vine of God’s own planting, I beseech Thee, reveal Thyself to my soul. Let the Holy Spirit, not only in thought, but in experience, give me to know all that Thou, the Son of God, art to me as the true Vine.
–Murray

Key words:
True.

From a Greek word where we get our word for allegiance. The form of the word and the way it is used means that Jesus is the ‘True One’. He is true, he is real. Truth can be a dificult concept for some people. Jesus also compares himself to a vine. Ah, something that can be seen, touched, and understood. A vine, a living, growing plant. Jesus says

The True Vine, Introduction and Purpose

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The purpose behind today’s post, as well as those that will follow, are about daily discipleship. Some of the things I hope to accomplish are:

  • To learn about God.
  • To live according to what is learned from reading the daily scripture.
  • To be accountable to others by sharing in a public place.
  • To encourage readers to share their own reflections, and also to put into practice the topics that are being studied.

Accountability. You will notice that I post these devotional readings annonymously. It is not to avoid being accountable. Please use the comment feature on this page to hold me accountable for what I say. It wouldn’t take much work to discover who I am. I would rather that you spend that effort in focusing on these daily readings. It will benefit you more than trying to discover who I am. I have my reasons for being annonymous, but if it bugs you that much, tell me, and I’ll let you know.

Discipleship and devotional time isn’t about me, it’s about God, and how we grow to know him better, and show evidence of him in our lives.

This upcoming study material is a 31 day course in discipleship titled, The True Vine, by Andrew Murray. I’ll be using snippets from his book, add my own reflections, and leave it up to any readers to contribute comments as well.

Andrew Murray’s book, the True Vine, which is in the public domain, can be read in it’s entirety at:
http://www.whatsaiththescripture.com/Fellowship/Murray.The.True.Vine.html

The link to the book is off this web site, and is out of my control. The link worked when I posted it, but there’s no promise whether it will continue to be valid.

Please, feel free to download the book. Glance ahead. Read Andrew Murray’s entire commentary. However, try