Lesson 10 The Character of Christ

     John 15:1-8 (Amplified) says, "I Am the true Vine, and My Father is the Vine dresser. Any branch in Me that does not bear fruit (that stops bearing) He cuts away (trims off, takes away); and He cleanses any repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit, to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit."  Verse 3 goes on, "You are cleansed and pruned already, because of the Word which I have given you (the teachings I have discussed with you."  Verses 4-8 go on,
"Dwell in Me, and I will dwell with you (live in Me, and I will live in you) just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me (cut off from vital union with Me) you can do nothing. If a person does not dwell in Me, he is thrown out like a (broken-off) branch, and withers; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and they are burned. If you live in Me (abide vitally united to Me) and My Words remain in you, and continue to live in your hearts; ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. When you bear much fruit, My Father is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine."
     There is so much to share in these few scriptures and so much to be learned from them.  We have misinterpreted much of what Jesus had to say in these verses.  He said that, "He is the Vine" and the life of the branches is fed through the vine.  God is the Vine dresser and owner of the vineyard.  He is the One Who takes care of the vineyard and is in charge of the vine. 1Timothy 2:6 (Amplified) says that, "(It is) the hard working farmer (who labors to produce) who must be the first partaker of the fruits. It is the Father (the Farmer, or the Vine dresser) that is reaping the harvest of sons into glory."
     Jesus said in Verse 2 that "every branch that stops bearings, He prunes and cleanses so it will bear fruit again; and every branch that is bearing fruit (leading the people to salvation) He prunes and cleanses it to bear better fruit."
     If you will read to Verse 3, you'll find how He is pruning and cleansing the branches.  Thus, it says, "You are cleansed and pruned already, because of the Word and teachings that He had given them."  Our pruning and cleansing doesn't mean trials and tribulation or sickness and hardship.  It is the Word that will prune away things that hinder our witness.
     Ephesians 5:26-27 (Amplified) says, "So that He might sanctify her (the Church, the believer)  having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, that He might present the Church to himself in glorious splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such things (that she might be holy and faultless)."
     The vine can only produce sons and daughters in the same image as the seed.  This fruit isn't the "Fruit of the Spirit" found in Galatians 5, but it's the fruit of the new birth.  God said in Genesis 1:11-12 (Amplified) that "Not only will each thing produce after kind, but will carry its seed within itself."
     We learned in 1Peter 1:23 (Amplified) that after we're born again, "You have been regenerated (born again) not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from One that is immortal by the everliving and lasting Word of God.  Jesus is the Word according to John 1:14 (Amplified) which says, "And the Word (Christ) became flesh (human, incarnate)."
     Jesus was sown as a seed in the earth.  John 12:24 (Amplified) says, "I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains (just one grain, it never becomes more but lives) by itself alone. But if it dies, it produces many others and yields a rich harvest."
     These scriptures make it plain that the fruit we are to produce from John 15:1-8 is the same fruit (the born again sons of God) that the seed produces.  And, because the seed is the Word of God (Jesus), as we go into all the world preaching the Word, we are sowing seed to bring the new birth or children to God.
     Jesus continued His discourse in John 15:4-8 (Amplified) saying, "Without abiding in Him, we cannot reproduce the fruit."  He didn't say that we're not the fruit, but that the seed (Word) that reproduces isn't dwelling in us.  In Verse 5 Jesus says that whoever believes in Him and He (the Word) lives in them, they will bear more fruit.  These are seed bearers and those who witness and plant the Word in others.  Jesus says something that is often misunderstood in Verse 6 saying, "If a person does not dwell in Me, he is thrown out like a (broken off) branch, and withers, such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and are burned."
     Those who don't dwell in Him (Who is the Vine), are those who are not born again.  Only those who are saved are the branches of the vine.  These "branches" aren't Christian people, but the unsaved persons.  Only the branches of a watermelon vine can produce the fruit of the watermelon.  So, those who are not "dwelling or joined to the vine" aren't born again yet.  If we preach the Word and sow the seed in their hearts, then they can still become fruit of the Vine.
     Verse 7 is one that we need to pay close attention to, saying, "If you live in Me (abide, vitally united to Me) and My Words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you."
     There are many times when we fail to study and search the Word.  We're not backslidden or back in the world, but we're not "vitally united to Him" like we should be or once were.  We begin living more by what we know than by "Who we know."  We start living by sermons and religion instead of by united fellowship of revelation.  We become "Churchy."
     Did you ever buy a package of seed in the spring that produced a very low level of fruit?  I've planted seed in the spring that was leftover from prior years, but because it was too long removed from the vine, it lost some of its vitality to reproduce.
     The discourse Jesus gave on the vine and the fruit is about the new birth and the fruit of the seed (Jesus).  When we become born again, we are in His Image and in His likeness.  The Fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23 comes into play in our lives as seed bears.  Ephesians 5:1-2 (Amplified) says, "Therefore, Be imitators of God (copy Him and follow His example) as well-beloved children (imitate their Father) and walk in love (esteeming and delighting in one another) as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a slain offering and sacrifice to God (for you, so that it became a sweet fragrance)."
     We see that as imitators of God, we walk in the Fruit of the Spirit and have the character of Christ living through us on an individual basis.  In order to produce the character in our lives, we must find the instructions on how to perfect it.  Thus, John 15:2-3 (Amplified) says, "And He cleanses us and repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit, to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit."  Verse 3 says, "You are cleansed and pruned already, because of the Word which I have given you (the teachings I have discussed with you)."
     The Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) will be honed to sharpness and effectiveness by the Word and the Vine dresser and their teachings.  The more time you spend in God's Word by the Spirit, the more His character will abide in you and you will become "imitators of God" through the revelation of His character.