Remain in the Vine

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." — John 15:5
 
Have you ever watched a cut flower slowly die?
 
Cut a rose and set it in a vase, and for a day or two it looks magnificent. The color is bright. The petals are full. Put it on the table and no one would guess anything is wrong.
 
But it's already dying. The moment it was severed from the plant, the outcome was settled. It just hadn't shown yet.
 
That's a picture of what happens when we try to live the Christian life apart from Christ. We can coast for a while on yesterday's growth. We can look healthy on the outside. But cut off from the Vine, no life is flowing in, and eventually it shows.
 
Jesus didn't say that apart from Him we can do a little. He said apart from Him we can do nothing.
 
"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him" (Colossians 2:6-7).
 
Fruit isn't produced by trying harder. It's produced by staying connected. A branch doesn't strain and grunt to grow grapes. It simply remains attached to the vine, and the life of the vine does the rest.
 
So how's your connection? Are you drawing life from Him daily, or running on reserves from a season that ended long ago?
 
Don't just visit the Vine. Remain in it. Stay attached. Let His life flow through you.
 
That's where the fruit comes from. It's the only place it ever comes from.