It Is Pruning Time

Sometimes this pruning involves..... removing sin .....or other distractions ....from our lives.

Sometimes God's pruning is painful, .....but over time ...God is changing us ....to be more like his son.

Remember the Father.... Is the vine dresser.

Because God loves us, ....He "prunes" us ....which allows us .....to bear more fruit .....for His glory.

If the branches could speak, ..... I am sure they would confess ....that the pruning process hurts.

Yet I am convinced they would also rejoice ....that they will now be able to produce ....more and better fruit.

Beloved ......hear me on this.... You will never see a branch ..... pruning another branch! (Repeat)

The responsibility of pruning,.... shaping and trimming the vines .... is not that ....of the other branches.

That responsibility... is the Fathers ...and His alone.

(Slow) And Beloved... Have comfort.... Your Heavenly Father ....is never nearer to you ....than when He.... is pruning you. (Repeat) Amen!

At times ....He will cut away the dead wood..... that might cause us trouble.

But often ....He will cut off the living tissue ....that is robbing you ....of spiritual vigor.

Pruning ....does not simply mean spiritual surgery .......It is not ...just the removal ....of what is dead.

(Slow) It can also mean cutting away the good.... and the better ....so that we might enjoy .... the best. (Repeat) (Pause)

First (1 Finger) There is Pruning and Second (2 Fingers) there is Fruit-bearing

What is meant by fruit ....in our Gospel text?

Some suggest that fruit-bearing ....means leading others ...to Jesus Christ.

And that is a worthy application, .... but the text ....does not seem to imply .....that meaning.

It seems ....that the application ....is speaking of the spiritual life .....flowing through ...the vine.

And this spiritual life ....produces a spiritual fruit ..... The Fruit of the spirit.

Hear these words to the believers gathered in Galatia Galatians 5:22:

BIBLE "By contrast, ....the fruit of the Spirit... (Fruit it is singular one fruit with these attributes) ...."The fruit of the Spirit is.... love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. ....." END

Also Remember ......the branches ....do not eat their own fruit: .......others ....receive and eat the fruit.

We are not producing fruit ....to please ourselves ....It is produced to give to .... And to serve.. others.

And A true branch, ..... One united with the vine, ....will always ....bear fruit. (REPEAT)

Not every branch bears a bumper crop, .....just as every field.....does not have a bumper harvest (Matthew 13:8, 23), but there is always fruit .....where there is life.

A branch should have the same DNA ....as the trunk.... As its Source.

If God's DNA is love, ....then our DNA should be love.

(1) There is Pruning (2) There is Fruit and (3) there is Abiding

The paragraph that follows our text today in the Gospel of John speaks about.... abiding in love.

BIBLE " As the Father has loved me ....so I have loved you ..... abide in my love." END