Purging

 

The work of the Father in fruitbearing

“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 ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.  Abide in me and I in you; as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can ye except ye abide in me.   I am the vine, ye are the branches.  He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.  For without me ye can do nothing.”

 

“Every branch in me which beareth not fruit…”.  This sets the context from the start; no one can be in Christ, and not have a relationship with Him.  The issue here is not union but communion, and the need to abide in Him.  This is made clear in v4, where He is speaking of those in relationship to Him-“Now ye are clean, through the word I have spoken unto you.”  The thought here is not of false profession, but of progressive sanctification.  The word for “taketh away” is airo and for “purges” is kathairo, so the two are closely linked.  This word has been translated as cut, or taken away in John 15v2, but look at how this word is translated elsewhere in the New Testament:  Mark 16v18 – They will pick up serpents…; Luke 5v24– I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go…; Luke 17v13– And they lifted up their voices and said…; John 5v8– Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk”; John 11v41– And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said…; Acts 4v24– And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God with one accord”; Rev. 10v5– The angel … lifted up his right hand to heaven.”  The predominant usage of the word therefore points to lifting up, in the sense of support, which is something vinedressers do regularly, to enable the branches to gain maximum sustenance.   

The entire context supports this view, since the emphasis is on abiding in Christ, which is repeated 11 times in different forms in the verses-abide, v4 (3 times); v5; v6; v7 (twice); v10 (twice); continue, v10; remain, v11.   As in nature the vinedresser will prop up and support those branches which are lagging behind, whether for lack of exposure to sunlight or some other problem, so the heavenly husbandman tends to us spiritually.  Those branches which do produce fruit, He purges, cleanses by removing things which hamper growth.  There is a programme of cleansing going on with the purpose of maximising fruit.  Scripture indicates the Father’s involvement in our lives, where it speaks of chastening and scourging in the lives of believers, as a means to producing more fruit-refer Hebrews 12v6-12.  The purpose is firstly to confirm the reality of new life, the second is to improve the quality of that life-the section ends with “yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness to them who are exercised thereby.”  The Father is engaged in this most important work in the lives of His people, and Christ Himself is the vine from whom we derive the fruit.  Paul said in Philippians 2v13 “It is God that worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”