Lenten Reader | Day 9

March 13th, 2025

Remain in Me

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

John 15:1-11

Poem:
You have loved us, and have remained,
And like a fruit tree we’ve produced much fruit that has been gained.
Please help us to remain in you,
To bear more fruit in all we do.

Devotional:
I sometimes wonder what the disciples would’ve said if they knew what they were getting themselves into at this point. Many of them probably misunderstood that the Messiah’s purpose was not to conquer Rome, but for something more significant than that. In particular I wonder how they would have reacted to what they had gained from following Jesus. Barring their varied persecutions and martyrdoms, the fruit of their faithfulness resulted in the Church and the Bible – both of which have changed the world throughout the last 2,000 years.

In our personal lives, there are so many wonderful fruits that come from following Jesus for each of us. For me personally, it came with incredible memories, meeting wonderful people from all over the world, getting to create, serve and go wherever He wanted me to go. Whether it be mission trips, writing songs, serving in local churches, or any other forms of ministry. I suspect that you have similar fruits that have come from your walk with Jesus.

Bearing fruit is one of the strongest indicators that we are remaining in Jesus. This is not necessarily reflective of our doctrinal correctness or our worshipful expressiveness but is reflective of an active relationship with the Lord. That is because overflowing with love, joy, peace and much more is indicative of the fact that Jesus is changing us from the inside out. Like an apple tree producing apples, if we remain in Him, we see more of these wonderful attributes naturally overflowing. As we observe this wonderful season of Lent, let us pray that we continue to produce these fruits as a sign we are remaining in Jesus, as He continues to transform us into His image.

Adam Dauber