Tight

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” John 15:5,8   

I can remember, oh a hundred years ago when I was an electrician out on the left coast, working with someone, who when asked, “How are you doing today,” would respond, “Great! Just hanging with the Lord.”  Seems this fellow was close with Jesus.  I remember admiring that, though as I also recall, the fella himself was kind of annoying.  I guess being tight with Jesus doesn’t make someone perfect.

The Scripture above is all about being tight with Jesus. Jesus uses an illustration of him being a vine, and his followers being the branches. Stuck on Jesus.  Tight. Which makes the guy’s statement, “Just hanging with the Lord” deeply meaningful.  For if we are the branches attached to that vine….then we are to be hanging with the Lord…literally.  Tight.

How is your hanging going anyway?  Are you (or am I) being tight? With the vine? The reading above says that if you are tight, you will bear “much fruit.”  The fruit we bear will be in direct relation to how tight we are.  And if you are not bearing much fruit…then maybe it’s time to check how close you are to that vine.  Is the vine within arm’s reach, or have you let the vine go so you need binoculars to find it again?

“I am the vine; you are the branches.”  Friends, bear fruit.  Much of it. 

Be tight.