Father, I must admit it has been a dreary day. I would pray that I would feel the Sonshine in my soul as we come together. May Your love radiant throughout my being! Amen.

John 15:1-8 (<<click here to read the passage)

I can’t leave this passage without addressing one more thing…

How many good people do we know? How many who are reading this would consider ourselves good people? I think overall that most of us assume that most people are good, don’t you? All kinds of bad things happen in our lives and it is not out of the ordinary that good people step forward and help if they can.

Being a good person is definitely a good thing. We are all very much aware that if good people weren’t there to stand in the gap, the world would be a much more unbearable place. But here’s the thing…being good…it just isn’t good enough…

There are many good, honest people who do what is right but if they are a branch that is not connected to the Vine…if they have never chosen to be a part of the Vine…all of their efforts and energies used in the name of “goodness” make them a dead branch. Apart from Christ our efforts are unfruitful.

If we chose to stop eating and drinking for our daily sustenance, what happens?

There is a “rule of three” that brings into focus how long the human body can last without the basics: three minutes without oxygen, three days without water, and three weeks without food.

We need these things to continue to live! We can live a lifetime without the nourishment and life offered by Christ – our Vine, but I would dare say that most people on their deathbed who have not known Him, would seriously wonder if their lives really meant anything at all…for all the time and energy they invested in it. All of the good acts, what did they amount to?

Remember the last part of John 10:10? Jesus said,

I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows]. AMP

It’s not good enough to just be a good person. Jesus has so much more for us if we remain in Him. For as Jesus also said,

“I am the [only] Way [to God] and the [real] Truth and the [real] Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6 AMP

Lord Jesus, help us to find the reality of that in our lives each and every day. Amen.

*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation

Sept 22nd, 2021, Wed, 6:31 pm