Friday May 24, 2024
John 15:2
“Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”
The life of Jesus was full of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, meekness. And it is His will that the world should benefit by this through His disciples. They are the branches which receive the life of Jesus in order to live this life out in the world.
It is this which is to win the world.
Therefore the lives of the disciples are more important than their work.
The disciples of Jesus live only to bear fruit for Jesus. As much fruit as possible. And Jesus, who has been given all power in heaven and on earth, guides the history of our little lives and directs everything in our daily walk with the one end in view that we may bear as much fruit as possible.
That is what Jesus speaks of as cleansing or pruning the branches. The pruning is intended to make the branches as fruitful as possible.
If we reflected upon this a little, many of the things that happen to us in life would be easier to bear. Many of the deepest problems of our lives would be solved in a simple and edifying way.
At some time or other we all meet with adversity or sufferings so great that we cannot fathom or understand them at all. But if we can look upon these things as the gardener’s wise and loving cleansing of the branches, we will be set free within, even though outwardly the adversity and the suffering still continue.
If a vine is not pruned, there will be no fruit, only foliage. And if the Lord did not prune us, we would first become spiritually barren, and thereafter die. We should thank the Lord that He does not hear all of our many prayers to be spared everything that is hard and heavy to bear.
We do not live in order to have a good time, but to bear fruit. Unto the glory of the Lord. If we will remember this, we will not be so surprised when the Gardener comes to us also with His pruning knife.
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD 
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