Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1891-10-30
CHRIST THE TRUE VINE.
LESSON v, FOURTH QUARTER, INTER-
NATIONAL SERIES, NOV I.

Iext OF the Lesson, JOhn Nv, l-lO-COm-
init Verses. 4, 5-Goiden Text, John XIV,
s-Commentary by the Rev. ID IL.
stearns
Compiled from Lesson Helper Quarterly by
permission of H. s, Hoffman, publisher. Phil
adephia.l
l. IL am the true vine, and My Father is
The husbandman."
Having arisen to go He still talks with
them. Israel was the vineyard of the Lord
of Hosts and the men of Judah His pleas
ant plant He also called Israel vine
which He had brought out of Egypt lisa
v. 8; Ps. Xxx. 81 But Israel was only a
type of Him who now spake with them
9. Every branch in Me that beareth not
fruit He taketh away"
And every branch that beareth fruit
He purgeth it that it may bring forth more
fruit"
Now He speaks of the eleven, who were
really His but needed cleansing, that they
might be more fruitful Anything of self
hinders fruitfuness. and all ithiness.
both of flesh and spirit, must he cleansed
This also is His work, and He will see to it
if we are only willing Oil Cor vii l. Eek
XXxvii, 2520
3 Nov ye are clean through the word
which have spoken unto you"
The revised version says, ALREADY We are
clean, reminding us of His words in xiii,
10, He that is washed is clean every whit
and ye are clean Every one In Christ is
washed, justified, sanctilied and made meet
tor the inheritance of the saints II Cor vi
/ II; Col. /, ~ The moment we are in Him
He is our righteousness, and we are ac
cepted in Him oil Cor V, 81, Eph. l. g. He
stands for us. and we stand in Him com
plete.
4 abide IN Ne and in YOU As the
branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it
abide in the vine no more can ye except We
abide in Me
81 am the vine, ye are the branches
He that abideth in Me- and in him. the
same bringeth forth much fruit. for with
out Me ye can do nothing"
We all know that the grapes are gath
cred from the branches of the vine and not
from the stalk. and also that grapes grow
only on the new growth of the branches
put forth year by year What then is this
abiding which He makes so much of and
by which alone we can bear fruit2 What
can 1t be but conscious occupation of the
heart with Christ; continuous faith in
J.
coming again
6. "lf 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"
believer may be stripped of his gifts
and opportunities which he failed to i'm
prove, and be thus left as "A warning to
Others, and finally saved as by fire q Cor
iii, ll-l5), or if only Il nominal Christian
as Judas, he will finally be cast into the
lake of fire (Math. XIV 4D
= IF we abide in Me and My words abide
in you, ye shall ask what We will. and it
shall be done unto you"
8. Herein is My Father glorified, that
ye bear much fruit so shall ye be My dis
ciples."
o. LAS the Father hath loved Me, so have
| loved you; continue We in My love"
Here is the source of all true service and
fruit bearlng-the love of God Who can
estimate the love of God to His only begot
ten Som And yet that Son says to all who
are truly in Him that His love to us is as
the Fathers love to Observation-Disclosures
unchanging, love that lays down its life
for its enemies, Il love that bears with such
as Peter and continues to love him through
all his wanderngs, boastings and denials.
TO- IF ye keep My commandments We
shall abide in My love- even us have kept
My Fathers commandments and abide in
His love"
II. These things have spoken unto you,
that My joy might remain in you, and that
your joy might be full"
1t was the delight of the Lord Jesus to
do the Fathers will, it was His meat and
drink Cps. xl, s; John iv, 81 This was
His joy, and the time will come when the
will of God shall be done on earth as in
heaven, the prospect of this enabled Him
to endure the cross and disregard the
shame (Heb. xii, |, 2) When the will of
God becomes our delight, and His way is
more to us than our own way, and the
glory of His kingdom is ever before us.
then shall we have His joy abiding in us
and be filled with it in proport. on as we
are filled with His spirit. See Rom. xiv, H.
L. This Is my commandment, that We
love one another as have loved you"
ID Greater love hath no man than this.
that a man la down his life for his friends. {"
This is the height of human love, to die
for friend, but see the love of God, for
"God commendeth His love toward us in
that while we were yet sinners Christ died
for u.s." Christ died for the ungodly"
Rom. v, 6-S).
IL Y are My friends II ye do whatso
ever command you"
Is. "Henceforth call you not servants,
for the servant knoweth not what his lord
doeth."
Paul took pleasure in calling himself the
servant of the Lord Jesus meaning by that
his very bond slave; as one whom Jesus
had taken captive from the enemy, but he
rejoiced to be the servant of Jesus because
he had been set free from the bondage OF
sin and Satan, aud he knew it and was
fully persuaded of it He was like one who
sang:
could not work my soul to save,
For that my Lord has done;
But could work like any slave
From love TO Gods dear son.
But | have called you friends, for all
things that have heard of Ny Father |
have made known unto you"
Just as we tell our secrets only to our
most intimate friends, so Jesus reveals
Himself fully only to those who prove
themselves His friends by keeping His
words, as He said in chapter xiv, %
l6 "Ye have not chosen Me, but | have
chosen you and ordained you, that We
| should 90 and bring forth fruit and tbat