John 15:6-10

 

John 15:6 (KJB)

If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

 

Here the Lord is speaking about those who are unsaved. At this juncture He would be speaking about the Pharisees who had opposed Him vehemently during His earthly ministry. Jesus is speaking concerning those who do not follow Him in salvation. He uses the metaphor of the branch again. In the previous verses, we saw that the branches which abide in Christ will be spiritually healthy and have eternal life. Here He states that those who are not attached to His vine, which are the unbelievers, will be gathered on the last day, as one gathers withered branches for the purpose of burning them for heat. In this case, those who are unsaved will be in eternal hell suffering for their sins in the lake of fire. As the branches are burned, so will the unbelievers at Judgment Day. (Rev 20:15 KJV) And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

 

John 15:7 (KJB)

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

 

Here Jesus speaks of the principle of answered prayer. The key to answered prayer is that first of all one must be saved and the second principle is that requests must be made according to the will of God. This verse is pre-supposing that Christians are walking in the spirit and continually seeking the Kingdom of God and our obedience to the commandments which Christ gave us. When the obedient mindset is present, it is seeking to ask of the Lord whatever is conducive to the ministry and the glory of God. We do not ask requests of the Lord for our own good. (James 4:3 KJV) Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. We must ask according to the will of God and if we do not receive what we ask for, then we were asking for something outside the will of God. Those Christians who are not walking obediently will not receive what they ask for because their prayers will be according to their will and not God’s will.

 

John 15:8 (KJB)

Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

 

With every person who becomes saved, it magnifies the glory of God because each saved person will worship God in the Spirit plus it shows to the world the glorious salvation from the Father. This is why the Christian must be obedient to the Great Commission so many people will be reached every day with the true Gospel. God is glorified when we bear much fruit, that is, bringing souls to the Kingdom of God. The Christian’s life must be on the principle of multiplication, that is, they are to reach as many people as they can on this earth while God gives us the time to do it. In our day of advancing technology, God is giving wisdom and knowledge to many to create and improve electronic systems so they can be used for the furtherance of the Gospel.

 

John 15:9 (KJB)

As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

 

Continue - Remain, abide, be permanent

 

The same love that the Father has for His Son, Jesus will have for us. Now it is impossible to know the fullest extent of the love between the Father and the Son because we are speaking of pure love which is unadulterated by the flesh. The adulterated love is all that we know, even though we can love someone very deeply it can never attain the level of the love between the Father and the Son. Yet, the Lord Jesus tells us that the same love the Father has for the Son, He will have for all His children. Since we know that this love is a deep love and one that will not abandon the believer, we are to remain in that love and we are to operate our Christian lives from the context of that love, that is, we are to show the same type of love to others, especially those of the household of faith. (Gal 6:10 KJV) As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. As we operate in the love of Christ, we begin to develop those characteristics of Christ and one of them is true love and not the Hollywood style of love which is and then it is not. The love of Christ is a constant in the lives of Christians.

 

John 15:10 (KJB)

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

 

Just as the Lord was in perfect obedience to His Father, especially in His sacrifice on Calvary on behalf of all the true believers, we are to keep the commandments which Christ gave us in the same fervent manner. For when we do that, our Christian lives will blossom and grow. If we neglect the commandments of Christ, we will find ourselves in a bewildered state with no power in our Christian walk. Obedience to Christ also brings a powerful testimony and ministry in our walk. The love of Christ in our life is guaranteed as long as we are obedient to Him as He was obedient to the Father. This means that there will come times in our life when we will hit a rough patch but if we know we are under girded by the love of Christ, we will be able to walk through those rough times. (Isa 43:2 KJV) When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. These commandments are not the commandments found under the law but they are the commandments of love which Christ gave us. (John 13:34 KJV) A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. Christ loved us with a sacrificial love and that is how we are to love others.

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