Abide in Christ

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit.”
–John 15:16

God created you to bear fruit. But what does it mean to be fruitful? What is the fruit that you are called to bear? 

Dear one, you bear fruit when you allow God to nurture Christ-likeness in you. We are God’s fruit-bearers when we choose to live for Him and grow to be more like Him. As the Spirit of God is working in our lives, He is producing fruitfulness in us. 

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
-Galatians 5:22, 23

I think we would all agree that we want to live fruitful lives. But how do we accomplish this? Let’s take a closer look at John 15.

“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 does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 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. 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.”
-John 15:1-5

Did you catch that? Whoever abides in Christ is one who bears much fruit. This work of abiding—of remaining continually in fellowship with the Lord—is where fruit bearing begins, and how it is sustained. This passage also shows us what it looks like to abide in the Lord. 

“If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
-John 15:7

Sweet sister, cover your days in the Word of God and in prayer. A mark of a fruitful believer is one who allows God’s Word to guide, correct, inform, encourage, and transform them. You must resist anything that attempts to pull you away from daily being in God’s Word and meditating on it throughout the day. Abiding in God’s Word means to believe it, cherish it, and long for it. Will you commit to making time in the life-giving Word of God a daily priority? As your roots go deeper into His Word, you will find you life increasing in fruitfulness.

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.”
–John 15:9

Christ’s love for you is His commitment to provide for you, right now and for eternity. Abiding in His love means not doubting that He will always do what is best for your good and His glory. Abiding in His love means resting in Hjs goodness and grace towards you. Do you believe that in every place you go, every season of life, every circumstance you face, the Lord loves you and will do what is good for you. Living secure and confident of this truth is what it means to abide in the love of Christ. And as you do, you will bear much fruit.

“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”
-John 15:8

The reason you ought to seek to bear fruit is not just for your own joy, although there is joy in bearing fruit (John 15:11). Rather, we seek to bear fruit so that God our Father will be glorified. Jesus died not only for your forgiveness, but also for your growth and renewal, so that we would increasingly become a people who reflect His greatness. As the Spirit of God comes to reside in our lives, and His transforming power accomplishes in each of us what we cannot accomplish on our own—namely, cultivating His fruit in our lives—God is glorified. 

But bearing fruit doesn’t come without a cost.  It can be a painful process. 

“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.”
-John 15:2

If we want to be fruitful, we must trust ourselves to the loving hands of the vinedresser. We must submit to being pruned. Just like the vine must be carefully cut in order to maximize its fruit-bearing potential, so must our lives endure the careful pruning of the Father. He must cut away anything that is hindering our growth. He knows exactly where we need to be pruned and just how much to cut away. Will you let Him sever the commitments that are stealing your time away from Him? Will you let Him clear away the thoughts, attitudes, and habits that are keeping you from being all that God has made you to be? Will you let Him carefully cut out anything that is not nourishing your full fruit-bearing potential? 

You are in a unique position. You, who have seen such deep sorrow, can bear much fruit despite the brokenness you feel. God does not want you to wait until your circumstances are better, or the pain isn’t so close to the surface, or when everything in your life seems to fall into place. No, He wants you to be fruitful even now. God can use this suffering in your life to produce much fruit in your lives if you will only let Him. Then you will be able to echo the words of Joseph:

“God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”
-Genesis 41:52

Yes, dear one, even in the land of affliction you can bear much fruit for the glory of God. He can take this brokenness and mold it into something beautiful. Will you let Him? 

Over the next nine weeks, we will be studying each of the fruits of the Spirit on the blog.  Will you join us as we learn how to better reflect our Savior in our lives?   

---

Ashlee is the Editorial Coordinator for Hope Mommies and author of I AM (Hope Mommies, 2017) and Identity (Hope Mommies, 2018). She and her husband, Jesse, live in Milwaukee with their children—five on earth and two in heaven.

Are you a writer who would like to join the blog team? Learn more and apply here.

---

---