First Baptist Church of Niles

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Gurnee Bible Study

Christ Likeness; The Process.


John 15:1-8


1.What is the purpose of life?  To _________________ God and to  ____________Him forever.


2. What is God seeking to do in your life?  Romans 8: 28-30; 2 Peter chapter 1.  He is seeking to  ______________ you to the ___________ of Christ.


3. These words reveal the process our Lord uses to accomplish His purpose in our lives.


Jesus used the parable of the vine and the branches to teach his disciples heavenly truth, the process of our usefulness” The whole passage describes the living relationship between Jesus and His own followers.


Spurgeon's observations:

Our fruit comes from God as a result of our union with Him. The fruit of the branch is directly traceable to the root. Sever connection, the branch dies and no fruit is produced. By virtue of our union with Christ we bring forth fruit. Every bunch of grapes has been first in the root. It has passed through the stem and flowed through the sap vessels and fashioned itself externally into fruit. But it was first in the stem.; so also every good work is first in Christ, and then it  is brought forth in us. Treasure this precious union with Christ. It must be the source of all fruitfulness that you can ever hope to know. If you were not joined to Jesus Christ, you would be a fruitless branch indeed.

The fruit owes much to the root, that is essential, but it also owes much to external influences. How much we owe to God's gracious providence.

Consider the rain that falls, the bright sun, which swells the berries in the cluster. He provides us constantly with teaching, consolation strength or whatever we need. To this we owe all of our usefulness.

Our fruit comes from God as to skillful gardening. God's sharp knife promotes fruitfulness in the tree by cutting off superfluous shoots, so is it, Christian with the pruning that the Lord does to you.

Every branch that does not bear fruit he prunes that it may bear more fruit. Since God is the author of our spiritual graces, let us give him all the glory for our salvation.”


The parable. Why did Jesus use nature to describe our Christian life? .  __________________________________________________________________________________It has been said,  “All earthly things are shadows of heavenly realities”


A. The occasion. To whom was He speaking?   What was the occasion? How does this apply to you and me now?___________________________________________________________________________________


B. The description.    The True vine_______________________________________

The vine dresser __________________________________________________________

The branches __________________________________________________________________


C. The product. Fruit is the one product the branch is for. What is the fruit of the Christian?

__________________________________________________________________________Cf. Gal. 5:22 Consider the word “conformity”. The branch is exactly like the vine it is literally at one with the vine. The one and only purpose of the branch is to ________ ________ How is this fruit revealed and to whom? ___________________________________________


D. The condition. What is the one condition, the sole cause  for fruit bearing ? Verse 4, v5, v6, v7, v9, v10

”What does it mean? Absolute ___________________, undoubting _________________

You have but one thing to do; nothing more, nothing less;”Just be a branch, Christ will be the vine that gives all. and the vine dresser, the Father who's vine it is will make the branch what it ought to be”(Andrew Murray)


E. The procedure. Consider the words ,“Taking away”, pruning, cleansing so that more fruit can be produced.  The condition; What is the sole cause of bearing fruit. It is His life lived  ____   ___ “ Jesus said, now you are already clean. In other words, a work in you has already taken place. God prepared you, found you and has been working in you. You are already prepared to bear fruit.


F. The manifestation. How is the fruit revealed? Verses 9,10


G. The necessity. Verse 5. Without me you can do ____________________________  


Explain. ________________

Paul in Philippians 4:13____________________________________________________


Question: How can I in practice maintain this requirement?