Lent Devotional - Day 29
Read John 15:1-17.
In the world, independence is the sign of maturity, however in the Kingdom of God, increasing dependence and reliance on Jesus is the true sign of spiritual maturity. In the world, it is every person for themselves, however, in the Kingdom of God, we are commanded to love our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, and to lay down our lives for one another.
In following Jesus, we really are called to live very differently from the standards of this world. Jesus makes it clear that our lives are meant to be fruitful in him. In fact, all we have to do to be fruitful is to remain firmly attached to Jesus, but in order to do that we have to have his word in us, and we have to carry out his commands.
In one night, Jesus repeats this command three times: Love one another. The same command is found in John 13:34, John 15:12, and John 15:17. This must be important. How are we doing in obeying this important command?
In John 13:34, Jesus tells us to love one another as he has loved us and when we do the world will know that we are his disciples.
In John 15:13, Jesus tells us that true love is sacrificing one’s life for our fellow brothers and sisters, just as he has done.
In John 15:17, Jesus says plainly and clearly: Love each other.
As we grow in intimacy with Jesus, we learn his heart, his mind, and we are transformed by the Holy Spirit to grow more and more like him. This is why we need to read the Bible multiple times a day because we need to know the word of God so much that it is in us. It is not just for knowledge or collecting facts for Bible Trivia, but so that we are transformed inside out. We are bombarded by various messages from the world on a daily basis as it tries to shape us to look like itself. If we want to look more like Jesus than we must soak in his word, bathe in it, and drench ourselves with it. One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to remind us of everything Jesus has said, but if we don’t know what Jesus has said because we have not read the Bible then it is hard for us to be reminded.
Once we have his words in us, and as we live in obedience to his commands, we are then actively remaining in his love. This is how we remain as branches connected to the vine that will be fruitful. We don’t have to worry about being fruitful. Jesus takes care of that. We just have to love him with obedience. Let us love one another and grow in genuine love for one another.