A few days ago, as I was leaving to get my car repaired, I grabbed my iPad to pass the time I’d spend waiting. Later that morning, when I opened the device, the screen was black. I’d failed to charge the battery, and therefore, the perfectly good iPad was useless until I plugged it into a power source. Unfortunately, I’d spend the next two hours drinking bad coffee and watching the tortuous thing we call daytime television.
But the spiritual analogy wasn’t lost on me.
There’s a section of Scripture in the book of John that strikes me as so intimately personal, I often feel as if I’m eavesdropping when I read it. Theologians refer to John 14-17 as the “Farewell Discourse” because it records the last conversations Jesus had with His disciples before going to the cross.
Jesus knew his time on earth among His disciples was coming to an end. The disciples had given up everything they had to follow Christ (Mark 10:28). Jesus knew they didn’t understand the looming events that were about to take place and He wanted to prepare them. They’d soon be overcome with confusion, grief, and fear. So Jesus spent time teaching them how to live the Christian life apart from His physical presence. In doing so, He teaches us.
As the Master Teacher Jesus often used metaphors as a teaching tool. He routinely used common examples to teach new concepts. In this case, Jesus used an agricultural illustration everyone would understand.
“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 15:5).
What’s fascinating about this statement is Jesus didn’t say, “Alright guys, you’ve been with me 24/7 for three years. I’ve taught you the ropes. Now, believe in yourself, set your goals high, and give it all you’ve got.”
Not even close.
Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing.”
A tree or plant receives its nourishment and strength from the vine. When cut off from proper nourishment the branch withers and dies. In the same way, Christians who attempt to live apart from Christ cannot flourish. We are dependent on a power outside of ourselves to thrive. Tragically, we often attach ourselves to alternative sources that have no ability to nourish us. They might appeal to our flesh, but we wither. Jesus refers to himself as the “true vine” (John 15:1). The only way to actually thrive is to abide in Christ.
Practically speaking, the primary way we abide in Christ is through the spiritual disciplines of Bible study, prayer, worship, and a variety of other disciplines. These disciplines place us in a posture to be spiritually nourished by God. They are not means to gain His favor. Because of Jesus, those of us who are in Christ already have God’s favor. Rather, the spiritual disciplines position us to be taught, strengthened, and transformed by God.
Author, Richard Foster describes the spiritual disciplines this way, “God has given us the disciplines of the spiritual life as a means of receiving his grace. The disciplines allow us to place ourselves before God so that he can transform us.”
Thankfully, we aren’t eavesdropping when we read the Scriptures. Jesus intends these Words for us as much as He did when he first spoke them to the disciples. I’ve often wondered if Jesus would use an electronic analogy if He taught this concept in our modern-day culture. Either way, the message is the same. We are dependent on a Source outside of ourselves. Apart from Christ, we can do nothing. But as we abide in Him, we thrive and live the vibrant life He intends for us.
