Calvary Road Baptist Church
“NOTHING!”
John 15.5
Please read with me John 15.1-5:
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
You might notice that in verse 5 we see the second occasion in mere moments that our Lord Jesus Christ indicated to the remaining eleven apostles that He is “the Vine.” Thus, His identity as “the Vine” must be recognized as extremely important in its implications. However, you might also notice that His statement in verse 1 is a bit different in orientation than the statement here in verse 5, which is my text for this message from God’s Word.
When He said, “I am the true vine,” He immediately related what He was saying to His heavenly Father, “and my Father is the husbandman.” However, in verse 5, He says, “I am the vine,” but relates what He is to the eleven, “ye are the branches.” Thus, the Savior is relating the vine imagery to two kinds of relations He has, His relationship with the Father and His relationship with His remaining apostles. One aspect of His role as “the True Vine” is vertical, with the other aspect of His role as “the Vine” being horizontal.
Does it come to your mind as it came to my mind that the Ten Commandments also feature vertical versus horizontal implications?[1] The first four commands relate to God and are vertical in their orientation.[2] The final six commands relate to other human beings (the first being your parents) and are horizontal in their orientation.[3]
Observe that the only connection between the Father and the disciples pointed to in this John 15.1-17 imagery is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Vine. He is the Mediator between God and men.[4] Has it ever occurred to you that, apart from your relationship with Jesus Christ, you have no relationship with God? Many unsaved people imagine they have a relationship with God, but they do not.
When I use the word “relationship,” I refer to a connection based upon blood, marriage, or kinship. That is how “relationship” is defined by Webster.[5] Using that understanding of “relationship,” I think we can agree that no one has what might be termed a “relationship” with God except through the Lord Jesus Christ.
With that in mind, let me read the first statement in verse 5 once more:
“I am the vine, ye are the branches.”
What is obvious but sometimes overlooked in our considerations of the Christian life is that this imagery of the Savior being “the Vine” and the disciples being branches is an almost explicit declaration that, in certain respects, the believer in Jesus Christ is an appendage. After all, using this imagery of a vine and branches, a branch is a living appendage of the vine that has no serviceable function apart from its vital and life-giving connection to the vine. If you separate the branch from the vine, you have only a stick that serves no function but as fuel to burn. However, while it is organically connected to the vine, the branch brings forth a great deal of fruit.
The Lord’s elaboration of His initial remark is found in the final portion of verse 5:
“He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.”
Four observations tied to the four phrases comprising this statement:
First, “He that abideth in me.”
This, of course, refers to the disciple fulfilling his responsibility as one who is “in Christ” to discharge his duties, obligations, and responsibilities as a disciple:
“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”[6]
Abiding in Christ means there is more to your Christian life than form, though spiritual reality will accompany the outward form. Abiding in Christ includes the cultivation of one’s relationship with his Savior, learning of Him, serving Him, cultivating gratitude and appreciation toward Him, and exalting Him. Here we have the beginning of a first-class conditional statement that follows the pattern of “if so and so, then such and such,” with the first part, called the protasis, routinely assumed to be a true condition. The presumption here is that the disciple of Christ, the branch in this allegory, will abide in Christ.
Next comes, “and I in him.”
Can we rest assured that the Savior will faithfully discharge His duties and obligations? I think so. He is faithful. Sometimes we are neglectful of Christ’s faithfulness to abide in us because His abiding is not perceived by the five senses but is comprehended and appreciated by us as we feast on God’s Word. Therefore, when a believer does not nourish himself by feeding on God’s Word, he becomes quite dulled to the reality of Christ abiding in him. These two phrases together comprise the first part of the first-class conditional statement, that takes the form, “if this is true (and it is assumed to be true with a first-class conditional statement), then this is true.”[7]
Third, the phrase that reads “the same bringeth forth much fruit.”
Because it is assumed that the disciple will abide in Christ, and the Savior will do His part, the abiding disciple will bring forth much fruit. This is the back portion of the first-class conditional statement. This is an anticipated and expected conclusion. How can we be sure of this? Our Lord said so. And He is, after all, faithful and true. What if you are not bearing fruit? There are only two possibilities since there can be no doubt that Christ faithfully abides in every believer. Either the professing Christian is not truly born again, or the believer’s responsibilities to abide in Christ are not being properly and intentionally discharged. If you abide in Christ, since Christ will abide in you, you will bear fruit.
Finally, we read, “for without me ye can do nothing.”
Our Lord speaks here to His apostles, remember. Even they can become so caught up in busyness and mundane things that they forget to abide in Christ, even though they are still “in Christ.” So, too, you and I. It is not me, but Thee, O Lord. It is always Him.
With these truths fresh in our minds, I want to emphasize two realities for you to take home with you, two realities that are crucial to the thinking and growth in Christ of every child of God:
First, CONSIDER YOUR SPIRITUAL SITUATION POSITIVELY
“He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.”
We understand the Lord Jesus Christ is speaking to His 11 remaining apostles, after leaving the Upper Room following their celebration of the Passover, the institution of the communion of the Lord’s Supper, and Judas Iscariot’s departure to complete his arrangements to betray the Savior for 30 pieces of silver. The Lord Jesus Christ is now preparing those men for life following the crucifixion, following the resurrection, and after giving to them the indwelling Spirit of God.
Their responsibility as Christ’s disciples will be to abide in Him. Of course, He will abide in them. The result of this mutually beneficial relationship will be the production in their lives of “much fruit.”
By way of application, allow me to make use of our Savior’s comments to those men for our contemporary benefit. I believe that three comments are in order:
First, the promise of “much fruit.” No one doubts that our Lord’s reference in this imagery to “much fruit” was a promise of spiritual blessing. He was creating a picture in the minds of His men that would convey a spiritual imagery they would remember for the rest of their lives. In like manner, let us be careful in arriving at an understanding of what this verse means to understand that it can have only one meaning, with many applications.
The meaning of this verse has only to do with those 11 men, on that evening, at that time, on their way to the Garden of Gethsemane. For the last 2000 years, Bible students have been blessed by studying this passage and coming to a correct understanding of its meaning, and then being careful to apply the truths of the verse to our life’s situations. There can be as many applications of this verse as there are people who study it, while there is only one meaning. Our Lord Jesus Christ promised those men “much fruit,” resulting from them abiding in Him and He abiding in them.
What is the “much fruit” to be born? I take it to be love for one another, verses 12 and 17. Others take “much fruit” to refer to a full-bodied Christian spirituality and Christ-likeness, with others believing “much fruit” refers to souls that are saved through evangelism and outreach. I would not argue with those views, because what I believe to be the proper interpretation and what they believed to be the valid interpretations fit together like a hand in a glove. It might very well be that a proper understanding of this verse is not either-or, but both-and.
Next, the premise of “much fruit.” Whether the notion of “much fruit” is apostles loving apostles, apostles being Christ-like, or sinners brought to Christ, I have noticed a tendency to disregard the premise of “much fruit.” The imagery of the fruit and vine depends upon us understanding that the branch bearing fruit is utterly dependent upon its vital connection to the life-giving vine. Thus, there is no real fruit if there is no real abiding in Christ. That leads us to conclude that whatever is produced by any active and energetic individual who, despite his religiosity, is not abiding in Christ, but who instead substitutes form and ritual for intimacy and obedience to the Savior, is producing something that is not fruit when he produces what he produces, though it may appear to be fruit to those without discernment.
I speak of recording the number of baptisms, recording the number of decisions, recording the number of professions of faith, recording the number of those in attendance, and other such measures of success that do not correspond to the bearing of much fruit, and have the great tendency of being carnal results from carnal means employed by those who are not abiding in Christ. I need only remind some of you of the spiritual condition of a number of 20th-century figures who built rapidly growing Churches, proclaimed numerous conversions and baptisms, led the nation in the growth of Sunday School attendance and enrollment. At the same time, they were engaged in adulterous affairs and embezzlement. If you are cheating and stealing, you are not abiding in Christ. Therefore, whatever it is you are producing cannot possibly be considered “much fruit.” It is something, but it is not “much fruit.”
Third, the perversion of “much fruit.” The whole notion of bearing “much fruit” began to be perverted within the ranks of American Christianity during the 19th-century ministry of Charles G. Finney, whose Pelagian theology resulted in him introducing to evangelism the notion that techniques and persuasion were more critical to evangelism than abiding in Christ.[8] Finney’s influence grew in the 20th century with Billy Sunday and Billy Graham. His influence was so penetrating that personal evangelism courses being taught to both Church members and Bible college students preparing for the ministry focused more on personal hygiene, persuasion skills, the use of peer pressure, and an absolute commitment to the invitation system at the conclusion of the preaching service, than the evangelist’s consecration to God and walk with Christ.
Though the Savior never dealt with any two sinners in the same way, and there is no evidence that His apostles were any different in ministering the Gospel to individuals as individuals, such is not the case in our day. Throughout the 20th century, it was assumed (presumed might be a better word) that real evangelism required the use of a Gospel tract, mandated an instant decision by the sinner, and assumed that prayer was not only the necessary means to trust Christ but that someone who bowed his head, closed his eyes, and repeated the soul winner’s words, was taken to be a new creature in Christ not subject to any scrutiny or additional consideration.
If bearing “much fruit” can be reduced to a matter of mechanics and techniques, even if you remove the method of an invitation system and replace it with another way of some kind, then you have removed the requirement for abiding in Christ to produce “much fruit.” The reality when that is done, of course, is that what is produced is not “much fruit” at all. “Much fruit” is produced only in the life of those who abide in Christ.
Would you like to see sinners come to Christ? Do you have an interest in seeing a loved one converted to Christ? Do you imagine seeing that realized is not related to you abiding in Christ? Recognize, as well, that although a believer can faithfully attend Church, be discipled, read the Bible, pray, and give to the cause of Christ while not abiding in Christ, the reverse is not true. Those who abide in Christ live a certain way and do prescribed things that are pleasing to God. Those who do not abide in Christ sometimes imitate that kind of conduct without any corresponding reverence for God or desire to exalt the Savior.
Next, CONSIDER YOUR SPIRITUAL SITUATION NEGATIVELY
“for without me ye can do nothing.”
Remember, the Lord Jesus Christ is speaking to His remaining apostles. What the Lord Jesus Christ says here has direct application to Christians of our day and indirect application to unsaved people of our day.
Two days ago, I participated in a Zoom call with 35 Baptist pastors scattered around the state of California. It was a conference call initiated by several good men who are concerned about the pandemic lockdown and the prohibition by the governor of California against congregations gathering for indoor worship. Their idea is for pastors to rendezvous on the steps of the state capital in Sacramento to conduct a public prayer meeting, to call upon the governor of California to end the lockdown, and to speak to our legislators to express our concerns about the abridgment of our First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and the free exercise of religion.
They are well-intentioned men, but I fear they are oblivious to the intentions of our state’s elected leaders. Unless you have attended a secular university and interacted with those idealists who have spent years preparing themselves for what they are now doing, you have no idea what they believe, what their real agenda is, and how they define success. Understand that those longtime members of La Raza[9] and MEChA[10] are committed to the ruination of the state of California. They envision California being returned to Mexico, where they believe California rightly belongs. Do you doubt they will transform California into Tijuana to accomplish their goal?
Those leaders in Sacramento who are not in agreement with many of our state’s Latino leaders are themselves communists who would be happy to see California burned to the ground. They support Black Lives Matter and Antifa, with the leadership of those groups being admitted communists who are committed to the overthrow of our way of life and the demise of our form of government, and the replacement of our economy of capitalism with socialism. They adore Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez.
Wonderful and well-intentioned pastors who assume something about California’s leaders that amounts to little more than a projection of our goals and desires to them, without an understanding of Sacramento’s politicians’ goals and desires, are doomed to failure. What is needed is clarity and understanding, with the realization that clarity and understanding is no guarantee of success.
Back to our text. Our goal is clarity and understanding of this phrase, “for without me ye can do nothing.” Many professing Christians read this phrase, hear this phrase read and explained, and yet they are not impacted by what the Savior meant when He said these words. Let us strive for clarity and understanding.
First, let me address the confusion. So many Christians do what is easy to do, which is to seek to bear fruit without paying attention to the context in which this statement was made. The Lord Jesus Christ was speaking to His men, who were already believers in Jesus Christ, who were both determined and dedicated to discovering His will for their lives and then obeying it. It was to such men that the Lord warned that without Him, they could do nothing.
The believer in Jesus Christ, who is committed to Jesus Christ, who is seeking Christ’s will for his life, who is determined to obey and exalt the Savior, is, nevertheless, warned about the futility of attempting to bear fruit without Christ. Does that not suggest to you, as it must have suggested to those apostles, how easy it is for a believer in Christ, who is committed to Christ, who seeks to discover and obey the will of the Savior, who genuinely desires to abide in Christ, but who still risks seeking to bear fruit without Christ? Let us not be confused. Unless we are both conscientiously and consciously striving to abide in Christ, our efforts to bear fruit will be vain.
Would you like to know what this Greek word translated “nothing” means? Oá½deá½·s is used as both an adjective and a noun in the Greek New Testament. When used as an adjective the word means “No.” When used as a noun the word means “no one,” “nobody, and “nothing.” Thus, the word means zilch, zip, zero, nada, nothing![11] Has the Savior made His point? To those paying attention, yes, He has.
Next, let me address the consecration. What makes it difficult for many Christians to grasp the implications of what the Lord Jesus Christ says here is confusion in their mind regarding this matter of consecration. There is so much of self in the mind and heart of the contemporary Christian, with so little room for a consideration of Christ. We read Philippians 4.13,
“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
But so often, we merge Paul’s statement with the humanistic philosophy of the power of positive thinking, to think what is meant is the ability to do anything I want to do. That is not what the Apostle Paul meant by his statement, and it bears no resemblance to what the Lord Jesus Christ said in our text. Consider what the Apostle Paul earlier wrote to the Romans, in Romans 5.6:
“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”
“Without strength” translates the Greek word á¼€sthená½µs, meaning helpless in a moral sense.[12] Now notice Romans 6.19, where we read,
“I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh.”
Surprise, surprise. “Infirmity” in this verse translates á¼€sthá½³neia.
The point that I seek to make is that as a person is weak and incapable of spiritual function before conversion, so is that same individual incapable of any spiritual function even after conversion. Despite the believer’s best efforts to live for God, serve God, and produce spiritual fruit, it is not going to happen unless he abides in Christ. It must be understood that consecration, which has to do with one’s commitment to abiding in Christ and cultivating your relationship with Christ over time, absolutely will not result in the improvement of your spiritual ability to bear fruit.
You and I will never be given the spiritual ability to bear fruit. Sanctification, the process of growing in grace and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, does not result in any Christian developing or cultivating his ability to bear fruit. It is one thing to know the Lord Jesus Christ better and to love Him more, which happens with Christian growth and maturity. It is another thing to acquire the skill, the means, the techniques needed to bear spiritual fruit. That will never happen. Bearing fruit is always the consequence of abiding in Christ and is never the consequence of honing one’s skills.
I conclude with the consummation. When I refer to the consummation, I am talking about going to heaven, to standing before the Savior in a glorified body to see and be seen by Him. The Christian life begins with regeneration and the sinner trusting Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of his sins. The Christian is justified by faith in Christ, and at that moment, is indwelt by the Spirit of God. A process is also begun, called sanctification.
If justification immediately and forever alters your status before God, sanctification is the beginning of a lifelong process of growth and gradual transformation. We know that it will not end until we are in heaven, because of what Paul declared in Philippians 1.6:
“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
And also because of what he wrote in Romans 8.29-30:
29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
Thus, every born-again Christian will someday be in heaven. And as we travel through the Christian life, we will grow in grace and the knowledge of God. We will become more Christlike. That said, what we will never be able to accomplish by experience, maturity, cleverness, programs, manipulation, or persuasion is fruitfulness. No.
To bear fruit, we must abide in Christ. If you do not abide in Christ, you will not bear fruit. You may build a large Church, obtain many professions of faith, see lots of decisions. But you will not see actual fruit apart from abiding in Christ.
Most of what we see in the Christian realm around us that impresses us is the result of superior skills—marketing, persuasion, brilliance, organizational ability, and such as that.
But for your daddy to be saved, for your son or daughter to come to Christ, and for your friend or neighbor to trust Christ, will require that you abide in Christ.
Perhaps “much fruit” is souls saved.
Perhaps it is loving one another.
Perhaps it is Christlikeness.
Whatever it is, the reality of Christ’s life being lived through you will happen only when you abide in Christ.
__________
[1] Exodus 20.1-17
[2] Exodus 20.2-11
[3] Exodus 20.12-17
[4] 1 Timothy 2.5-6
[5] Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, (New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1996), page 1525.
[6] Matthew 16.24
[7] Ray Summers, Essentials of New Testament Greek, (Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman Press, 1950), pages 108-109.
[8] https://www.monergism.com/disturbing-legacy-charles-finney
[9] https://humanevents.com/2006/04/07/emexclusive-emthe-truth-about-la-raza/
[10] http://www.mayorno.com/WhoIsMecha.html
[11] Bauer, Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, (Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), page 735.
[12] Ibid., page 143.
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Pastor@CalvaryRoadBaptist.Church