John 15:7-11 – Bearing Fruit
In some things Christians are alike. All feel their sins; all trust in Christ; all repent and try to be obedient. All have grace, and faith, and new hearts. But some are happier and holier Christians than others and have more influence on the world. Why? Well, the passage before us gives three clues.
Christ promises power and success in prayer to those who abide in Him. To abide in Christ means to keep up a habit of close fellowship with Him, to be always leaning on Him, resting on Him, pouring out our hearts to Him, and using Him as our Strength and our best Friend. To have His words abiding in us, is to remember His sayings and to make them the guide of our actions and the rule of our life. Christians like this will not pray in vain. Whatever they ask they shall obtain, as long as they ask according to God’s will. No work will be to hard, no difficulty impossible. Why is there so little power of prayer like this today? Because there is so little close fellowship with Christ and obedience. If we want to have answers to our prayers, we must keep up our intimate friendship with Christ.
Bearing much fruit in our Christian life not only brings glory to God, but it assures us that we are real Christians. To be always doubting and fearing about our salvation makes us miserable. If we want the peace and joy that comes with assurance, we need to try to bear much fruit in our life, for this is a sure sign that we belong to Christ.
Finally, Jesus teaches that the man or woman who is obedient to His commands will have a sense of Christ’s love in his soul. By the grace of God, we may live obedient lives and have a sense that Christ is pleased with us. The Christian who is living a faithful, obedient life will be the happiest Christian.
Questions
- What does it mean to abide in Christ?
- What are the benefits of bearing much fruit?
Prayer Points
- Pray that we would abide in Christ.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.