PRUNED TO PRODUCE

 

PRUNED TO PRODUCE

John 15:1-2 "I am the vine and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do produce fruit so they will produce even more." NLT

I notice two things here that I can't get away from. Whether I like it or not, Jesus says that if I do not produce fruit, God will cut me off from Christ. We can discuss and explain it any way we want, but the fact remains it is what Jesus said. I can't get away from the simplicity and profoundness of what was said. It is a warning to me. I must not take for granted my position in Christ. I must continue to strive to produce eternal fruit in my life.

The other thing I notice is that God prunes those of us who are in Christ so that we can produce more fruit. The process of becoming more like Christ and useful to Him is never done. I need God's pruning if I am to be all that I need to be for Christ. The more I allow God to prune me, the more productive I become. The logical conclusion of the pruning process is that the longer I am in Christ, the more productive I should be for Him. In Christ, age should not slow us down! No matter how old we may be, we ought to continue to serve Christ and produce fruit for Him. Our lights should never dim or go out!

We must then ask ourselves, “How does God prune us?” I believe most of His pruning is done through God’s Word. It is there that we find the nutrients that we need to continue to be healthy and grow. It is there that we find what needs to go in our lives so that we do not have a bunch of dead branches bogging us down. It is also necessary for us to keep our prayer life active. In prayer we draw near enough to God to hear Him speak to us about what we need to rid ourselves of, add to our lives, and how to impact the lives of those around us. It is imperative for us to stay closely connected to the Lord in order for us to stay connected to Him.