06/01/2026
This Sunday, we got to celebrate a baptism, and we wrapped up our "Love Like Jesus" series in John 15, where Jesus uses the image of a vine and its branches to describe what it looks like to stay connected to Him!
Jesus calls Himself the "true vine" — not one option among many, but the only real source of life. Everything else you try to build your identity and strength around is a false vine. It may seem to work for a while, but it will eventually let you down. Here's what that means for us:
🔹 Connection is everything — Jesus doesn't call us to a checklist or religious performance. He calls us to remain in Him. That word "remain" (or "abide") means to stay, daily and actively. Fruit doesn't come from trying harder. It grows naturally from staying connected.
🔹 Pruning isn't punishment — God the Father, as the gardener, prunes healthy branches so they'll bear even more fruit. The hardships and seasons of difficulty in your life may be God preparing you for something greater, not punishing you for something wrong.
🔹 Abiding changes what you want — When you're genuinely connected to Jesus through His Word, prayer, and daily walk with Him, something supernatural happens: your desires start to align with His. Prayer stops being about getting what you want and starts being about what He wants.
🔹 Sticks can become branches again — A branch disconnected from the vine becomes a stick — lifeless and fruitless. Storms and sin are two of the biggest reasons branches fall. But Jesus has the power to graft dead sticks back into the vine. That's the Gospel. The true vine bled on the cross so that every disconnected branch could be restored.
No matter where you are today — deeply rooted or feeling completely dried up — it's not too late. Jesus didn't die for healthy branches. He died for sticks.
