Christ said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you; continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.”
(ST June 1, 1891, 1)
The apostle John presents before us in these words the necessity of a close connection with Christ. It must be as intimate as is the connection between the vine and the branches. As the graft becomes part of the living stalk, so the Christian is to become one with his Lord. Fiber by fiber, vein by vein, the graft is identified with the vine, drawing its life from the vine, and manifesting the life of the vine by its life and fruit. If the Christian is nourished by the life of Christ, he will manifest this in his life and character. He will follow in the steps of Jesus in all things, following in the path of self-denial and sacrifice.
(ST June 1, 1891, 2)
Christ denied himself. He did not count heaven a place to be desired while we were lost, and he left the heavenly courts to suffer a life of shame, reproach, insult, and mockery. For our sakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might become rich. He lived a life of self-sacrifice and self-denial, and passed over the ground that we must travel, in order to leave us an example that we might follow in his steps. And we love him, because he first loved us. We should cultivate love for Christ by yielding obedience to all his commandments. If we truly follow our Lord, we shall depart from all iniquity, the transgression of God's law, and become loyal and true to the requirements of Heaven. The church has been made the depository of precious truth, and its members are not only to believe these truths, but to disseminate their glorious light to those who sit in darkness, that souls may be brought to the Sun of Righteousness. In this way they may represent Christ to the world.
(ST June 1, 1891, 3)
Christ has said, “Without me ye can do nothing.” A great change must take place in us before we can live a true Christian life. We must become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruptions which are in the world through lust. We must be nourished by the life of the Living Vine, and then we shall become fruit-bearing branches. Christ has said, “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit.” The branch planted in Christ will bear the same order of fruit as he himself has borne. If we are in Christ, we shall love the things which he loved, hate the things which he hated, and be obedient unto all the commandments of God. As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so will the soul pant after the things pertaining to the Spirit of God. And we shall make manifest to the world that we are the children of God by the fruits we bear.
(ST June 1, 1891, 4)
“Faith without works is dead.” If we really believe in Christ, we shall work the works of Christ. We shall say, “Jesus is my Saviour, and I will commit the keeping of my soul to him as unto a faithful Creator.” The apostle declares: “What! know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” He who is purest, meekest, most obedient, will be most mighty upon earth. He who realizes that his strength, talent, means, all belong to God, will comprehend the meaning of the text I have quoted.
(ST June 1, 1891, 5)
All was lost in Adam, and the race was left in hopeless misery, but “God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Christ offered to become man's surety and representative. He offered man another trial, and came to bear our guilt, to suffer the penalty of our sin. He came not to please himself, but to work out the plan of redemption. He became a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Those who follow in his steps will not shun self-denial and the cross, but will imitate the example of Christ. And do you imagine in this life you will be unhappy? No; you will esteem it a privilege to be a partaker with Christ of his sufferings. You will have respect unto the recompense of the reward. Jesus will withhold nothing from those that walk in obedience to his commands; he will withhold no good thing from them that walk uprightly.
(ST June 1, 1891, 6)
Jesus has promised to be our friend, to stand close at our side, and we should tell him our griefs and trials as a child would tell its earthly parent its troubles. Without Christ you can do nothing, but with him you can do all things, for his grace will be sufficient for you. We must bring Christ into everything, and then we shall bear abundant fruit to the glory of God. Our good works cannot save us, for they are as filthy rags without Christ. Self-righteousness is as the offering of Cain. Cain brought of the fruit of the ground unto God, instead of bringing the blood of a slain lamb, the type of Christ, slain for the sins of the world. Abel brought that which God had commanded, and his faith was made manifest, his offering was accepted. These two brothers represent two classes of those who profess the religion of Christ. One are worshipers as was Cain, the other are worshipers as was Abel. How many claim to be the children of God, and yet refuse obedience to the plain commandment of God! The commandment reads: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, not thy stranger that is within thy gates.” But instead of conforming their practice to the word of God, they make excuses, and offer to God the first day of the week, which he has not commanded or sanctified. Is not this offering as defective as was the offering of Cain? He who truly believes in Christ will be obedient to all of God's commandments. There is no bondage in obedience; obedience brings peace and assurance and fullness of joy. Those who complain that the Christian life is full of trial, show that they think a great deal more of their inconveniences than they do of the rich blessing of God, the reward of faithful obedience. They are not connected with the Living Vine, for he that is connected in vital connection with the Living Vine will be in a flourishing condition.
(ST June 1, 1891, 7)