The Christian is to be a vessel through which the purposes of God are realized. We have been redeemed from dead works and a life with no purpose to become the servants of all that is good and holy. God has not saved us to occupy a pew in a church house, but to “walk in good works”. “For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, that no man should glory. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them.” (Eph. 2:8-10). This refers to a way of life, not just isolated deeds. The Christian, if he becomes what God intends for him, will be a person consumed with the presence and purpose of God.

            That order is significant, for it is the presence of God which leads to an awareness of and dedication to the purpose of God. God reveals His will and His way to those who are seeking Him in personal communion. The “number one” law of God is that we love Him supremely in our lives. Until this is our chief desire—to love God supremely—we can do nothing worthwhile for God. The person who has not thought of walking with Jesus intimately should not be thinking of working for Jesus.  The work of God is done through the people of God, and these are those who are seeking Him in their hearts.

            Much religious work has been done and is being done by those who have no serious desire for God in their hearts. This is a reality. Religious work can be done by anyone. Good moral people do good moral things.  But the reality is, for something to truly be the work of God, it must come from within a heart in which Jesus reigns supreme. God works in “earthen vessels”, which means that we are but the conduits through which His love is expressed in the world.

            So the starting point for truly spiritual activity is the earnest seeking of God with all of one’s heart. Walking with Jesus daily leads to effective work in His kingdom.  We do not need better “workers,” we need better “walkers”. Working is the inevitable fruit of walking with Jesus. Consider our Lord’s words in this regard from the fifteenth chapter of John’s gospel.  “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may bear more fruit. Already ye are clean because of the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing.”  (John 15:1-5). 

            Christ describes the objective of the Christian faith as “abiding” in Him. His disciples had much work that they were being commissioned by Christ to do. We must, as we read this text, be aware of the direct significance His words had to where the apostles were at this time. Christ was making preparations to leave the world and rejoin His Father in heaven. These men to whom He was speaking were going to have the unique mission of spreading His gospel throughout the world. What work would be required of them! But notice, the Master does not place emphasis on the work itself, but on the matter of maintaining their dependence upon Him. The fruit of a relationship with Christ is work for Him. The root of work is abiding in Him. This is the order, and if we miss this, we will not be doing the work of Christ. Let us examine in detail this first order of business, that of abiding in Christ. 

            The relationship of Jesus to His people is described as that of a vine to a branch. This brings to mind, if we have any familiarity at all with the world of botany, the idea of a struggle-less activity. Branches do not struggle to produce their own fruit. They simply abide in the vine and fruit is produced. It is the most natural of all concepts. The only way, in fact, for a branch to fail to bear the fruit of a healthy vine would be for it to lose its connection to the vine. The only thing the branch “has concern of,” if you will, is this matter of abiding.

            It is the same way with the Christian. Is there much work for God’s children to do in the world? Certainly there is. But that is not our concern. Our primary concern is not work, but abiding. If we will focus on that which concerns us, namely the maintenance of an intimate dependence upon Christ, fruit will naturally be the result.  This result could, in another context, be described as utterly “supernatural” for it is the work of God’s Spirit.  But here we mean that there is a spiritual law that has been put into place by God, and this law cannot fail. If we abide in Christ, we will produce fruit.  Notice again Jesus’ words:  “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing.” (John 15:4-5). 

            Christ is clear that no good work which God ordains for us can be accomplished apart from Him. There may be some relative good accomplished in human effort, but it will not be “good” in the truest sense—for it will not count before God. God’s work, His “fruit,” can only be accomplished in vibrant communion with Christ. This is why we must affirm that the matter of fruit production is God’s work alone. This is not our area of concern. We must concern ourselves with staying connected to Christ. 

            To those who abide in Christ, the promise comes:  “He that abideth in me and I in him, the same beareth much fruit.” Do you want to a successful worker for the Lord? Then abide in Him. Forget about the “work” and focus on the relationship. His promise is that fruit will be borne if the believer abides. His promise can no more fail than a branch can fail to bear the fruit of a healthy vine.

            Since it is our concern to abide in Christ, we must notice that such “abiding” does not come naturally, and is not the normal way for most believers to live. There is much more “religiosity” in our world than there is abiding in Christ. To seek the intimate communion of Jesus in a moment-by-moment relationship of utter dependence and devotion is an unusual thing among the people of God. This is the great tragedy of the church, and the reason for her many failures. 

            True spirituality is a difficult concept for many to embrace and live by. This is no doubt because we have confused “religion” with spirituality. One can be religious and not be spiritual. One can even be in a relationship with God and not be a spiritual person. We see this in what we read of the Corinthian Christians in the New Testament. They were carnal rather than spiritual.

            Our goal as believers in Christ should always be to maintain a “spiritual” existence. We should desire to be spiritual people, and that means that our spirits remain connected to Christ’s. We are the branches, He is the vine. Fruit will come if we abide.

Bryan Dunaway