Abiding In The Vine - cfaith April 2012

Abiding In The Vine

This month, Christians around the world celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. His willingness to suffer and die on our behalf—in order to restore mankind’s relationship with God—is the greatest mystery and gift any Christian could possibly experience.

That’s why Easter is such an important holiday. It reminds me of Christ’s sacrifice, renews my faith in a loving Savior, and recharges my spiritual batteries to move forward—with power and confidence—in what God has called me to do.

I love the fact that we celebrate Easter in the spring—when all of creation is renewed again. Trees grow, flowers bloom, and landscapes explode with color as if God is sounding the trumpet of life to begin once again.

Forgive me, but I just don't get that warm, fuzzy rejuvenation feeling during the long months of winter. All I "get," here in Minnesota, is a whole lot of cold and snow.

But as spring represents newness of life in a natural sense, Easter does the same thing in a spiritual sense. The celebration of Easter is an annual reminder that no matter what sort of dry or desolate season we may walk in or out of, there is always hope—and new life—in what Jesus did for you and me on the cross.

But in today’s fast-paced world, it is easy to get caught up in the daily demands of life, work, and ministry and thereby miss the beauty and significance of Christ’s sacrifice. If I want to maintain and protect my intimacy with God—especially during the Easter holiday—I must guard against the increasing number of distractions that compete for my time, attention, and energy.

Abiding In The Vine
God longs to have an intimate relationship with all of his children. He loves us so much that He sent Jesus to die on the cross in order to abolish the barrier of sin that kept us detached from our heavenly Father.

That is what Easter is all about. Through His death, life was brought to us who believe. But in order to fully experience God’s power and presence in your lives, you must put away earthly distractions which get in the way of staying connected to Him. The Bible describes this effort as “abiding in the vine.”

"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."
(John 15:5-8 NKJV)

To “abide” in the vine doesn’t mean to simply visit with the Lord once a week on Sundays or whenever I feel like it. In addition, to abide in the vine doesn’t mean I throw up a quick prayer in the morning while I hurry out the door.

I want to get to a place where I desire to spend time with the Lord. It doesn't matter how much time. What matters is that I am there, seeking Him, because I want to...not because I feel compelled out of pressure or guilt.

Too often we tend to look at others and make assumptions about their spiritual condition based on the amount of time they spend doing religious activities. All of us have different motivations for doing these things, but if we are not serving God or others from the heart, then we are not abiding in Him.

The word abide means: to remain, to tarry or sojourn, or to wait. I like the way one translation puts it: “maintain a living communion with Him.” This suggests a relationship with God that is ongoing throughout the day. It means that my heart is in constant communion with Him.

If you are anything like me, by now you are probably asking a few different questions:

• “But how am I supposed to commune with the Lord throughout my busy day?”
• “Can’t I just think about all of this on Easter Sunday?”
• “How can I meditate on His sacrifice and resurrection when I barely have time to get dinner on the table?”

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