Lent prepares our hearts for Jesus’ ministry on the cross. Many of us choose to give up items such as coffee or chocolate with the idea that as we crave these treats, we will turn toward Jesus and pray. Over the last few years, in addition to treats, I have felt nudged to give up my preoccupation with productivity, of checking items off my to-do list. Drawing closer to Jesus has meant trusting him with my tasks so that I may spend time with him.

While Lent is not specifically mentioned in the Bible, we encounter intentional times of preparation throughout Scripture. One of my favourites is Jesus’ preparation of the disciples in the Upper Room (see John 13-17). Within this discourse, there is a unique call to abide. This call is an invitation to rest in the presence of Jesus, to deepen my relationship with Jesus and to trust that my ministry will flow out of this relationship, rather than my to-do list.

In the Upper Room, Jesus prepares the disciples to be left without his daily, physical presence. He is equipping them for his Passion, Resurrection and their future ministry. Jesus knows life will be difficult and he promises they will be sustained in their journey of faith. Jesus’ call to abide provides a way for the disciples to remain faithful, not in their own strength but in their connection to Jesus.

The word abide (menō in Greek) occurs 40 times in the Gospel of John—11 times in chapter 15 alone. As the Gospel progresses, menō deepens to reveal the primary way Jesus describes discipleship. The book begins with Jesus physically staying (abiding) with the disciples (see 1:38-39), progresses to Jesus’ words abiding with his disciples (8:31), grows to abiding in relationships—Jesus and his Father (14:10), and the promise of the Spirit abiding in the disciples (14:17). The image of abide deepens in John 15 to portray a relationship of mutual indwelling, of complete connectivity and dependence upon Jesus as the true vine. The disciples, as branches, are connected to Jesus, the vine, and tended by God as the vine grower. A deep characteristic of discipleship is a dependent relationship that infuses disciples with inner resources as they are nourished through the life-giving sap of the vine. Living into the call to abide invites us, as disciples, to have Jesus infuse and inform every aspect of our lives.

Jesus’ call to abide is significant for his disciples as they are being prepared for Jesus’ ministry on the cross, and becomes significant for the early Christian community, which was ostracized because of its relationship with Jesus. It is also significant for Christians in ministry today, especially with the temptation to prove our self-worth and appear competent. Jesus’ call to abide draws us away from relying upon external success to seeing ourselves as the place where Christ dwells, which in turn deepens our ability to respond to Christ in others.

An Abiding Life

As Jesus explains that he is the true vine, he teaches us what it means to live as a disciple. First, our call to abide involves an openness to being pruned: “Every branch that bears fruit [God] prunes to make it bear more fruit” (15:2*). Being open to pruning is to surrender our lives so that we may be filled with the life-giving sap of the branch. Second, as disciples we live with an openness to God’s Word (see 15:3). Throughout the Gospel, a disciple’s faith is expressed both in relation to Jesus as the Word and in listening to the words of Jesus. It means hearing Jesus’ words (see 8:27, 43), keeping them (8:51-52) and remembering them (15:20).

The image of abiding invites us into a third aspect of discipleship, abandoning self-sufficiency to live in dependence on God: “Apart from me you can do nothing” (15:5). Jesus draws on the fact that a branch has no life unless it is attached to the vine. Our call to abide requires that we remember to draw our energy from Jesus and find our sense of worth stemming from our relationship with him.

This relationship leads into the fourth aspect of an abiding life, obedience. “Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers” (15:6). We are invited to live in obedience to God’s law, not as a rule book, but out of a covenantal relationship with God. The Psalter opens with these words: “Happy are those [whose] … delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night” (Psalm 1:1-2).

Therefore, the posture of an abiding life is one that receives instruction, lives by the infilling presence of the Spirit and embraces a covenantal life.

Fruit of Abiding

Jesus promises that by abiding our lives will be fruitful. However, we must remember that our call as disciples is to abide. This will help protect us from the strong temptation to chase after “shiny fruit” to the neglect of our relationship with Jesus. The promised fruit is not a vague generality as Jesus provides the fruit that will grow in the life of an abiding disciple.

The first fruit is prayer. Jesus promises “ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7). God invites us to abide in prayer, to step aside from ministry demands and embrace a space where God meets and affirms us. A second fruit is living a life that glorifies God (see 15:8). Jesus flourishes as the vine because his Father tends the vine; disciples flourish by abiding in this vine. Our fruitfulness does not bring us attention, rather, it reflects the glory of God in us.

As we continue to abide in Jesus, a third fruit develops: love. Jesus promises that: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love” (15:9). This fruit is shaped by the love of Jesus and is lived out in community. Abiding in love then brings about a fourth fruit of steadfastness, the ability to keep the commandments of God (see 15:10). By faithfully setting aside time to connect with God, his words take hold in our hearts, bring comfort and help us discern his activity in the world.

All of these fruits culminate in the fifth fruit of joy: “I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete” (15:11). Jesus knows life will be hard for his disciples; he knows the deep grief they will experience with his Crucifixion. Jesus knows that living beyond the Resurrection in a society that is hostile to him will provide many situations that could rob their joy. In these verses, Jesus is not offering a situational happiness, rather, he promises a deep wellspring out of which the disciples will experience joy.

Bearing Fruit in Community

As disciples we are called to abide. As we heed this call and live in an intentional abiding relationship with Jesus, our lives will bear fruit. Yet this fruit is not to be hoarded, but shared. The fruit of our abiding will naturally leave our morning quiet times and extend into community. Not only are we connected to Jesus the vine, tended by God the vine grower, so, too, are we interconnected with the other branches of the vine.

Our society is fractured and disconnected. This has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Jesus’ call to abide comes in a unique time of social anxiety and stress, on one hand, and extreme individualism on the other. That is why the true fruit of abiding will be lived out in the context of community, and the church has a unique role to play in this. In Abide and Go: Missional Theosis in the Gospel of John, biblical studies scholar and author Michael Gorman emphasizes how spirituality that flows from mutual indwelling with Jesus is not only related to mission, it is inseparable. He envisions discipleship as a mobile vine that is oriented in Christ’s abiding love, all the while moving out to share that love with the world, infused and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Yet the problems of the world seem so immense, the demands of ministry so great, that if we are not careful, our mobile vine will become disconnected from the true vine. If we are not careful, we could lose ourselves and our identity in Christ in reaction to these demands, and lose our responses of love. To live in a community of love as the church, and live out this love in community, we will always be called to abide. By abiding in Christ, ministry will not morph into an unhealthy must, but remain an outflow of love, infused by an abiding relationship with the true vine.

As we progress through these next weeks of Lent, let us hear the call to abide, give up our striving and embrace a lifegiving relationship of abiding.

*All Scripture references in this article are from the New Revised Standard Version.

Major Corinne Cameron is the assistant training principal at the College for Officer Training in Winnipeg.

Photo: Forgiven Photography/Lightstock.com 

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