Evening star., 1908-01-11
Christian Endeavor Hour
For Sunday. January 12. 1908.
Topic: The True Center of Life"
John. xY LILO

From the Twentieth Century New Testament
am the true vine, and My Father is
the vinegrower. He removes any of my
branches that do not bear fruit, and
cleans every branch that does, that it may
bear still more. You are already clean
because of the teaching that 1 have given
you. Remain united to Me and Il will
remain united to you. As branch can
not bear fruit of itself unless it remain
united to the vine: no more can YOU un-
less you remain united to Me. l am the
vine, you are the branches. Those that
remain united to me while l remain united
to them are those who bear fruit plenti-
1ully; Tor you can do nothing apart from
me. Any one who does not remain united
10 Me Is thrown away, as branch would
be, and withers up Such branches are
collected and thrown into the fire and
are burnt. Ii you remain united to Me,
ana My teaching remains in your hearts,
ask Whatever You wish and you shall
have 1t. 1t is by your bearing fruit plen-
tifully, and SO showing yourselves my dis
ciples. that My Father is honored. AS
the Father has loved me. so have | loved
you; keep in My love always. If you lay
My commands to heart you will keep in
My love, just as / have laid the Fathers
commands to heart and always keep in
His love.
The supper was over in the upper room,
the disciples had gathered their cloaks
about them and put their sandals on and
together they had started down the out
side staircase that led to the street below
Perchance the moon shone full that night
and sifted through the leaves of the vine
that arbored the stairway. 1t Is enough
to make all vines sacred to us to think
how He must have reached out His hand
and touched those moonlit leaves, and
used them for a sermon to the whole
world. generation after generation of
helpless. cropping men. who knew not why
their lives were withered and hopeless
II am the vine" He said as He touched
them, perhaps passing His hand gently,
lovingly across their broad surfaces as
He went down the stairs ''Ye are the
branches" The beautiful. graceful
branches with their glossy leaves, That
is what He lets oe. while He takes the
part of the vine, strong and hardy hidden
beneath the leaves. And yet the vine and
the branches are one. and together make
the beautiful whole. What would the
branches be without the vine, the
strength-giver. the supporter? just be-
yond His hand, perhaps, in a clear patch
of moonlight. hung dropping. blackened
branch, the leaves dry and cracking. the
beauty gone, leaving bare space where
once the leaves had Tapped over the others
IN glossy greenness. 1t was severed from
the vine. and hanging by filament Some
careless hand had broken its stem in
passing up the stairs, and the drying. dy-
ing branch withered in single hours.
marred the beauty of the vine. Perhaps
He reached out and plucked the withered
branch and flung it over the wall. saying
as He did so, Men gather such and burn
them. Tomorrow the gardener will pass
this way and put that branch with others
like 1t into his bonfire and burn it,
Did the disciples see the picture of their
lives should they become severed from
Him. their vine? Did they understand
that a life apart from Christ was worth
less, fit only to be destroyed-to be got
out of the way because It was an eyesore?
The contrast between the broken
branch. all withered and dry, and the
rich. green fourishing branch is great
even il we can see no purpling clusters of
grapes peeping between the leaves. What
kind of a vine would 1T be if every
branch were half severed from the vine