Dear Explorer,
Read John 15:2-4
John 15:3 is a parenthetical verse that is often overlooked if we study the entire chapter as a whole. However, it is a vital verse that adds clarity to the entire text of the chapter. Besides, Jesus was a Master Teacher and didn't waste words!
In English the phrase, "you are already clean" seems unrelated. But if we were listening to this in Greek or Aramaic (as Jesus was speaking) we would readily see the correlation of John 15:3 to the whole. The Greek word "kathairo" is the word for pruning or purging, and the word "katharos" is the word for pure, clean, clear. Same root word – slight variation. So, what was Jesus saying?
I believe that He was saying, "Don't confuse obedience with salvation!" Make sure you get the picture: pruning is only for "alive" plants. If a plant is dead, you don't spend time lovingly pruning it. You throw it away!
I believe that Jesus adds this phrase to remind you that this message is addressed only to those who have already chosen to be filled with Jesus. Only a few hours earlier, Jesus had washed the apostles' feet and talked about the bath or cleansing of inviting Him into your God-shaped vacuum. When we invite Jesus into our lives, several things happen. #1 He washes us clean by paying for each sin with His blood. and #2 God fills the empty vacuum at the center of our life with Himself. This "washing" and "filling" is what makes us alive and gives us eternal life. So, this parenthetical phrase is just a reminder that Jesus is only addressing His followers when He talks about bearing fruit and being pruned.
Now, let's get to a really simple statement in John 15:4: A limb cannot bear fruit by itself -- it must be connected to the tree. Duh! I love this next phrase -- and "neither can you!" How simple this walk with God really, really is. We simply stay connected to Him, our power source -- and He bears fruit through us.
Remember that we defined fruit as anything we do in obedience to the Holy Spirit. I believe that our obedience will produce “fruit” with eternal, supernatural value. It is God's work that He accomplishes through us when we are connected to Him.
When we are vitally connected to the vine, He uses us in supernatural ways to impact the people around us.
It's an awesome life!
In His service, dale
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