ABIDING IN CHRIST IS FRUIT BEARING
The first and most basic characteristic of the early Christians and Christian community is abiding in Christ by a spirit-filled life. Their actions, words and thoughts were guided under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Hence, their testimony to Christ was alive, active and meaningful because of their abiding in Christ.
A spirit-filled life is a life of docility oriented, guided, and directed by every living presence of God: through the Holy Spirit in Christ. These early Christian communities were crucial to the spread of the gospel of Christ because of their docility to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
One principal element of this Christian community was that there were fewer human errors despite the fact it was a turbulent time. This sound doctrinal teaching is because the apostles and disciples abandoned themselves to the Spirit of God than relying on themselves.
The challenge to Christians and the Christian community today is to lessen the human element dominating our witnessing to Christ. This error-free Christian life can only be achieved when we learn to abide in Christ. Hence, abiding in Christ means living a spirit-filled life full of authentic testimony to the Risen Christ among men and women.
In this way too, our liturgical, doctrinal, theological, and biblical discussions will be less in wordiness and humanness and more efficient, effective, and meaningful. The call is to abide in Christ and rely less on our own wisdom and intelligence.
OUR THEME
The readings of this Sunday present us with a profound reality that the Christian life is wholly and totally anchored in Christ and under the direction of the Holy Spirit. In other words, without Christ and the assistance of the Holy Spirit life: human and Christian are nothing. The readings of today are all about abiding in Christ.
A spirit-filled life driving by God, the Father in his Son Jesus Christ through the loving action of the Holy Spirit is the Christians testimony to the gospel. In addition, this spirit-filled life is the life of love in Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit: the Spirit of God.
The Christian life devoid of the abiding in Christ and the Holy Spirit is the life without commitment to authentic love and witness. It is also a life dominated by avoidable human errors that lead to division, rancour, bitterness, envy, jealousy, and defamation in the Christian communities at all levels.
Finally, the Christians and the Christian community ability to bear witness and produce fruits of holiness, goodness, mercy, charity and virtuousness in abundance are also their ability to abide in Christ. As well as to live a spirit-filled life through the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. That is a Christian life under the leadership of the Holy Spirit: the New Advocate, Paraclete, Consoler, and Guidance.
THE FIRST READING: ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 9:26-31
During the violent persecution of the early Christian community spearheaded by Saul, a zealous Jewish young man. The Christians and the Christian community lived under a terrible horror: physically, psychologically, emotionally and mentally.
Hence, it was difficult for them to accept their persecutor now one of them with openness and warmness. They were hesitant due to fear, distrust and disbelief if Paul then Saul has accepted their faith in Christ Jesus. This reaction and feelings of the early Christians were normal, natural and human as well.
Therefore, the apostles and the Christian community needed to get to know Saul and his experience on the road to Damascus. Thanks to abiding Christ ever-present in their midst in the Holy Spirit. The Courageous disciple like Barnabas (the son encouragement) living up his name helped the integration process of Saul to the Christian community.
Amidst the gravest suspicion of Saul three things come to mind why the Christian community should accept him: (1) Stephen’s prayer for his persecutors including Saul. “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” Acts 7:60. (2) Ananias as an instrument of God´s forgiveness to Saul and his baptism into the new faith. (Acts 9:10-18) and Barnabas´ charity and courage to trust in Saul´s conversion and presents him to the Christian community. (Acts 9:27).
Beautifully, we learn much from Barnabas´ character as a true Christian man whom we should imitate:
a. He was a man who insisted on believing the best of others. When others suspected Paul of being a spy, Barnabas insisted on believing that he was genuine.
b. He was a man who never held anyone’s past against him. It is so often the case that because a man once made a mistake, he is forever condemned and reminded of that mistake.
Saul´s conversion brought great relief and peace to the Christians and the Christian communities in Jerusalem and Judea. However, it also brought a zealous, vibrant and courageous soul to the devastating Christian communities by his persecution. Even though, this turns the hand of time against him, as he the persecutor became the persecuted one due to his bold and fearless testimony to Christ as Lord and Saviour.
OUR LESSON FROM SAUL´S INTEGRATION IN THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY.
The biggest lesson for Christians today is how conscious are we to integrate newcomers or fallen members into the groups, organizations, or the larger Church community despite their past notoriety? Do we discriminate and judge them by their past or do we gladly and joyously welcome them into the new life they found in Christ?
How comfortable are new members or fallen members of our parish integrating or reintegrating with us the older members? How openhanded, warm, and welcoming are the parish groups and pious societies when it comes to integrating new members, fallen members or interested persons in their midst?
Notably, many people will like to be members of our parish community, parish groups and pious societies but are scared or have cold feet approaching to integrate into them. Either, it is because of their past, fear of rejection, or not fitting in due to cliques we form among us.
In today´s Psalm 22, the psalmist encourages us to praise and worship God in the community of the faithful. When he affirms “I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people.” This firmly buttresses that the Christian and the Christian community are solidly established in the Lord. They must and should abide in Christ at all times and in every condition.
SECOND READING – 1 JOHN 3:18-24
The apostle and evangelist John conscious of the abiding presence of Christ in the Christian communities encouraged them the two most fundamental commandments of God. That is, first is for them to believe in the name of Jesus Christ and second to love one another. This is a summary of the Christian life and its testimony to Christ in the world.
Of course, when he affirms belief in Jesus’s name, it means in the person of Jesus Christ. That is his whole nature and character as a person. This implies a firm faith in Christ: the Lord and Saviour of the World.
For John, the Christian life reveals the children of God. That is, how Christians should put their faith in Christ into living and concrete action in their relationship with their brothers and sisters. Though John is a mystic, his testimony to faith and Christian life is one of the practical steps in Christianity.
He is known to challenge Christians into living a concrete live-love experience or love in action with their brothers and sisters. “God is love,” 1 John 4:8 and “whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar.” 1 John 4:20. Today, he challenges us: “let us love not in word or speech but deed and truth.” 1 John 3:18
In essence, fine words will never take the place of fine deeds; and no amount of talk of Christian love will theologically, biblically or spiritually can take the place of kindly action to a man in need. Empathy involving some concrete actions of self-sacrifice is more practical and needed them beautiful emotional thoughts and words.
IN SUMMARY, WE CAN AFFIRM THESE CONCLUSIONS ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN LIFE THAT:
1. The great truth that the Christian life depends on is right belief and conduct. We cannot have the one without the other.
2. There can be no such thing as a Christian theology without a Christian ethic, and equally there can be no such thing as Christian ethic without Christian theology.
3. Our belief is not real belief unless it issues in action, and our action has neither sanction nor dynamic unless it is based on belief.
4. We cannot begin the Christian life until we accept Jesus Christ for what he is, and we have not accepted him in any real sense of the term until our attitude to men is the same as his own attitude of love.
The greatest challenge is that no matter the Christian life we claim to live in sacrifices of ourselves, candles, flowers, or offerings we make in worship, preaching and teaching. If they are not with a concrete belief in Christ as Lord and Saviour that leads us to concrete action of love toward our brothers and sisters. It is a mere sentimental life devoid of deeds and the truth.
THE GOSPEL: JOHN 15:1-8
The biblical imagery painted in the gospel of today as Christ is the vine, God the Father: the vinedresser, and we as the branches pruned in Christ Jesus to bear fruits in abundance. This points to one simple reality that without Christ, the Christian life is fruitless. The central theme of the gospel passage is abiding in Christ.
The gospel text of today is an essential text for the Christian life in Christ Jesus. It begins by telling us that there are two types of branches.
The fruitless branches, which are those who do bear fruits as Christ’s disciples or members of his body by not keeping his word, obey his commandments. They will be cut off and burned.
The fruitful branches are those disciples or Christians who keep, obey and bear fruits. They will be pruned to bear many fruits. Pruning is a technical agricultural term used to describe a vine-grower trimming off the excesses of vine branch bearing fruits to give it more nutrients, fluids, and space to the fruits it bears.
Therefore, it is a solid vine-branches imagery Christ is painting for his disciples that apart from the vine, the branch can do nothing or be anything. That is, if they are cut off, they cannot produce any fruit because all life and all the fruits that the branch produces come from the life of the vine itself.
Here, Jesus teaches his disciples and all of us the necessity of remaining in him. It is a beautiful image of the life of Christian discipleship and its apostolic life, work or evangelization.
This means that unless a Christian is abiding in Christ, he or she can do absolutely nothing or be anything outside Christ.
This message is essential for anyone who is engaged in Christ’s mission in or through the church. Either as pastors, catechists, leaders or members of groups, ministries or evangelization. They must realize that unless they do it in Christ, it will not bear any fruit.
As such, it is a fundamental caution to the temptation of those who think that apart from Christ, they can do something and with Christ, they can do betters or greater things. It should be realized that the work of the vine and vinedresser is essentially supernatural in its character. That is, the salvific of redemption through any ministry or evangelization is fruitful only through Christ Jesus and the father in the Holy Spirit.
By extension, we can also conclude that without God and Christ, not only the Christian life but also our human existence is meaningless. It is fruitless, hopelessness and absolute absurdity. It means that it is only in abiding in Christ Jesus, our Risen Lord and Saviour that there is hope and assurance of salvation for us.
THIS IS WHAT ABIDING IN CHRIST MEANS
i. Abiding in Christ means something like that keeping contact with him through prayer in quiet or busy times of life even if for a brief moment. The secret of Jesus’s life was his contact with God; frequently, he withdrew into a solitary place to meet him. Jesus.
ii. For some of us, abiding in Christ will be a mystical experience that is beyond words to express in silence meditation or contemplation in his presence.
iii. Our constant reading of the Holy Bible could also be our one ways of abiding in Christ. Where we allow the Word of God to permeate our lives and bring forth its fruits in our belief in Christ and loving actions toward others.
iv. Finally, our abiding in Christ brings about two excellent qualities in us as Christians-
a. First, it enriches the Christian own life and his or her contact make Christ makes him or her fruitful branch.
b. He or she brings glory to God; the sight of his or her life turns men’s thoughts to the God who made him make a big difference in the Christian world of hypocrisy and falsehood-
1. Abiding in Christ means being rooted in God’s word that purifies or prunes us to bear fruits. That is, reading and meditating on the word of God is the father´s way of pruning us to remove the excess things that could make us bear less or no fruit for the kingdom.
2. Through the sacraments, we are also rifted into Christ. That is, by staying in touch or entrench in the sacramental life of the church in Christ, especially the Eucharist we remain in Christ. In the Eucharist, Christ the true vine of him is made the wine, which becomes the blood we partake of.
3. Abiding in Christ also means avoiding sins that cut us off from God and Christ. Sin causes our separation from God by doing something wrong. That means our failing to love God and our neighbours in more practical ways. The concept of hell according to Catholic Catechism is the eternal separation from God. In other words, a complete loss of the eternal beatific vision of God.
If we are cut off from the vine through us not keeping or obeying God´s word, through our nonparticipation in the sacraments and by living a life of sin then we are spiritually dead.
This text of john 11:1-8 is one of the best biblical texts to show the falsehood of the doctrine of “once saved is always saved” or doctrine of absolute assurance of salvation prominent among many Christians today. They claim that once a Christian accepts Christ into his or her life as his or her personal Lord and Saviour. He or she is forever saved from eternal damnation.
It is not true and accurate. This is because Jesus’ claim of abiding in him means that a person who becomes his disciple, Christian or member of his body the church but who due to some failures do no remain in him through his word, the sacraments and live a life of sin no longer abides in him. Such a person will be cut off and burned.
Therefore, the doctrine of “once saved is always saved” is not only unbiblical but also contrary to the teaching of Christ. Jesus made it clear one who is not rifted in him but choose to be fruitless cannot be saved in him. Especially, when such a person deliberately chooses to remain or cut himself or herself from the source of grace, mercy and divine life.
In a nutshell, as Christians, we have the obligation not only to have faith to be grafted in the life of the vine, but also we must remain and bear fruits that will last.
God is glorified when we bear much fruit and show ourselves to be disciples of Jesus. The greatest glory of the Christian life is that by our life and conduct we can bring glory to God. Even when this entails deep sacrifices and disciplines from us (the pruning process from God).
OUR PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Vine, your Father is the Vinedresser and we are the branches unless we abiding in you we cannot be or do anything. Help us know and understand that abiding in Christ means an intimate relationship and not just a superficial acquaintance. And may your Father´s pruning of us, even sometimes against our wishes and desires make us bear abundant fruits that will last forever. Amen
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