Taking Responsibility
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. John 15:1-6 [0]
How interesting that the first I AM saying is about bread, the last one is about wine.
The I AM is the vine that supports the results of our work. If the I AM tries to grow without involving Christ, for a while its branches will look healthy but then they will wither. Other branches will look promising and then bear no fruit. Each branch could be seen as a task; to love, to create, to gain wisdom, to be disciplined, to be objective, to resist being judgmental, to respect, to be thoughtful, to see and do the good. The list is endless.
Imagine this vine; see it roots in the earth drawing up the minerals and moisture from the soil; the soil which is now the substance of the body of Christ and the water which is the blood of Christ. How strong and supple is the vine? Move up the vine in your imagination and see the leaves, some are tender and green, others are old and weathered. Some have a spot of mould which results from opposition to the life force in the vine.
If, in a moment of ecstasy, we say to the Vinedresser, “not your will but thine” and the next day exert our own will, or worse exert our will onto others, a branch will wither.
Let’s say that our financial situation is causing anxiety. We look for ways to improve it but nothing seems to work and our anxiety rises. Our branch will wither or it won’t produce fruit until we are able to see that whatever we experience in life is exactly what we are meant to experience. That it is the will of the Father. Then even if we manage to accept the situation without one twinge of anxiety, just to make absolutely sure that we are a strong fruit-producing branch, the Vinedresser lops off our effort. This is the real test. Can we stand in our I AM knowing that we can do all things only in him - in Christ – who strengthens us. Php 4:13 [1]
My heart aches when I see the children in Middle East, their little faces in agony, hardly able to cry for the horror they see - as if they know that their tears will achieve nothing. It is a picture of innocence violated. But isn’t it also the picture of the Vinedresser pruning? If they can bear it, if they can stand in the midst of the craziness, their I AM will prevail over the group consciousness that infiltrates their existence. Christ appears to those who are scourged and prevail because they become one with him.
Imagine the vine again. See the tendrils, reaching into the air until they find something solid to curl around. Are they strong, are they supporting the vine as it grows to reach the sunlight? Are they strong enough to withstand the winds that blow in many distractions?
Do we support ourselves or are we always looking outside ourselves for support? Do we stand in our I AM and accept responsibility for all that comes our way? Often we don’t, we look outside ourselves because we are used to the support of old gods. We are still getting used to the god within which supports us through our own efforts.
Now look to the branches with their tiny buds of fruit. This fruit is the result of the I AM which is grounded in Christ. If this fruit is the result of the pseudo I AM, the astral; the seat of do-goodery, pride, selfishness and thoughtlessness, then the branch will bear no fruit. If we are oblivious to our environment or parochial or harbour feelings of jealousy, guilt etc. we will be gathered up and burned. We must be purified of all these things if the I AM is to be the vine that meets the Vinedresser’s standards.
We have been given the I AM and the way it develops depends entirely on our own work. The sooner we accept that, the sooner we will be at peace. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit”.