#4 The fruit. The word "results" is often heard in the conversations of Christian workers, but this is not really a Bible concept. A machine can produce results and so can a robot, but it takes a living organism to produce fruit. It takes time and cultivation to produce fruit; a good crop does not come overnight.

We must remember that only people eat the fruit, not the branches. We are not making fruit to please ourselves but to please others. We should be the kind of people that feed others with our words, “The lips of the righteous feed many” (Prov. 10:21).

The Bible names several different kinds of spiritual fruit. When we win others to Christ, we bear fruit (Rom. 1:13). We are part of the harvest (John 4:35–38). As we become more holy and obedient, we are bearing fruit (Rom. 6:22). Paul saw giving as the fruit of a life dedicated to God (Rom. 15:28). “The fruit of the Spirit” (Gal. 5:22–23) is the kind of Christian character that glorifies God and makes Christ real to others. Even our good works, our service, are born of our abiding life (Col. 1:10). The praise that issues from our hearts and lips is actually fruit to the glory of God (Heb. 13:15).

Much of this could be faked by the flesh but would be found out in time. True spiritual fruit carries the seeds of more fruit within it. Man-made results are dead and cannot reproduce themselves, but spirit-produced fruit will go on reproducing from one life to another. There shall be fruit—more fruit—fruit in abundance.

A true branch, attached to the vine, will always bear fruit. Not every branch has a bumper crop, as not every field has a bumper harvest (Matt. 13:8, 23), but there is always fruit where there is life. If there is no fruit, the branch is worthless and is thrown away and burned. I do not think our Lord is teaching here that true believers can lose their salvation, for this contradicts what He taught in John 6:37 and 10:27-30. It is not wise to build a theological doctrine on a parable or an allegory. Jesus was teaching one main truth, and we should not press the details too much: the fruitful life of the believer. Just as an unfruitful branch is useless, so is an unfruitful believer, and both need to be dealt with. It is a sad thing when a believer who was once fruitful backslides and loses the privilege of fellowship and of service. But John 15:6 is about divine discipline, not everlasting destiny. [For believers] "There is a sin unto death" (1 John 5:16).

Our Lord had spoken of peace (John 14:27); now He speaks of love and joy (John 15:9–11). The first three “fruit of the Spirit” listed in Galatians 5:22-23 are love, joy, and peace. Our abiding in Christ should produce His love, joy, and peace in our hearts. We love Him, so we keep His commandments. We keep His commandments, so we abide in His love and know it more deeply.

In John’s gospel, you will discover Jesus speaking several times about the love of the Father for Him. We so emphasize God's love for the world and the church that we forget that the Father loves the Son. "For the Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand" (John 3:35). And shewed Him all things that He Himself doeth (John 5:20). The Father loved the Son before the foundation of the world (John 17:24); He loved the Son at the death of the Son on the cross (John 10:17). The wonderful thing is that today’s believers can experience that same love for themselves! Jesus prayed, “that the love wherewith thou hast loved Me may be in them [the disciples and believers today]." (John 17:26).

We are privileged to be branches in the Vine, and therefore we have the responsibility of bearing fruit. Now we move to the second picture, that of friends.

#2 The branches. One branch is weak and useless by itself. Good for bearing or burning, but not for building (read Ezek. 15). The branch cannot generate its own life; it must draw that life from the vine. Our fellowship with Christ by the Spirit is what makes bearing fruit possible.

Many images of Christ and the believer are used in Scripture to underscore this important idea of union and communion: the body and its members (1 Cor. 12), the bride and the Bridegroom (Eph. 5:25–33), and the sheep and the Shepherd (John 10). A member of the body that is cut off from the body would die. The marriage forms the union, but it takes daily love and devotion to maintain the communion. The shepherd leads the sheep into the fold, but they must follow him for protection and provision.

The sooner we, as believers, come to know that we are but branches, the better we will relate to the Lord, for we will know our own weakness and confess our need of His strength.

The key word is "abide," used eleven times in John 15:1-11 (“continue” in John 15:9 and “remain” in John 15:11). What is meant by “abide”? It means to abide in fellowship with Christ so that His life might flow in and through us to produce fruit. But this process is certainly connected with the Word of God and confession of sin so that we are not hindered in our fellowship with Him (John 15:3). It also means obeying Him because we love Him (John 15:9-10).

How do we know that we are “abiding in Christ”? Is there a special feeling? No, but there are special pieces of evidence that appear, and they are unmistakably clear. For one thing, when you abide in Christ, you bear fruit (John 15:2). We shall talk later about what that "fruit" is. You also experience the Father’s “pruning” so that you bear more fruit (John 15:2). The believer who remains in Christ has his prayers answered (John 15:7) and has an increasing love for Christ and for other believers (John 15:9, 12-13). He also has joy (John 15:11).

The branch and the vine have a natural, abiding relationship. It must be cultivated in the Christian life. It is not automatic.  To abide in Christ means worship, meditation on God’s Word, prayer, sacrifice, and service—but what a joyous experience it is! When you have begun to grow in this more intimate fellowship with Christ, you will never desire to return to the shallow life of the indifferent Christian.

Branches—We Must Stay (15:1-11)

The cultivation of vineyards was an important part of the life and economy of Israel. There was a vine of gold on Herod’s temple. When our Lord used this image, He was not introducing anything new; it was familiar to every Jew. There are four things in this allegory that we need to understand if we are to profit from His teaching.

#1 The vine. There are really three different vines in Scripture. First, the former vine was the nation of Israel (see Ps. 80:8–19; Isa. 5:1–7; Jer. 2:21; Ezek. 19:10–14; Hosea 10:1). God “transplanted” Israel into Canaan in a marvelous act of grace and gave the nation every possible benefit. What more could I have done to my vineyard? God asked' (Isa. 5:4). If any country ever had all the ingredients for success, it was Israel.

But the vine brought forth wild grapes! It practiced oppression instead of justice; it brought forth unrighteousness instead of righteousness and the cries of the victims. God had to deal with the nation Israel and chastise it, but even that did not have lasting results. God sent His own Son into the vineyard, but they threw Him out and killed Him (Matt. 21:33–46).

Second, there is also a future vine, “the vine of the earth,” described in Revelation 14:14-20. This vine is the Gentile world system ripening for God’s judgment. The saved are “branches of the vine of heaven,” while the unsaved are “branches of the vine of the earth.” The unsaved look to this world for their sustenance and satisfaction, but believers look to Jesus Christ. When Jesus Christ returns, the “vine of the earth” will be cut down and destroyed.

Third, there is the present Vine, who is the Lord Jesus Christ, and, of course, the vine includes the branches. He is the "true Vine," that is, "the original of which all other vines are a copy." As Christians, we do not live on substitutes! The symbolism of the Vine and branches is similar to that of the Head and the body: we have a living relationship to Christ and are members of Him.

We are united with Christ: a living union so that we may bear fruit; a loving union so that we may enjoy Him; and a lasting union so that we need not be afraid.