Purpose In Trials

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. (John 15:2)

How do we apply this scripture in our lives? If we are disciples of Jesus Christ then we are the branches that are bearing fruit. The branches that are not bearing fruit are everyone else that is not a disciple of Christ.

This paper will look at the branches that bear fruit, those of us who choose to follow Jesus of Nazareth. Meaning of purge is to remove or cleanse.

If you have a fruit tree, you want to harvest the fruit of the tree. That is the measure of its creation, to put forth fruit. You remove any and all branches that do not produce fruit. The branches left are the ones bearing fruit. With those fruit bearing branches you prune them after the harvest. To prune them is to strategically cut the branches back so that they will devote the energy of the tree to producing more fruit the next season. That’s also why you cut the worthless branches off.

Doing all this work to a fruit tree takes an average fruit tree and makes it far more valuable by making it produce much more fruit. Doing this yearly keeps the tree healthy and productive. Every year some branches will die off and new branches will grow. It becomes a cycle that will keep the tree alive for a long and productive time.

As fruitful branches of the tree we have to go through the pruning process, on a regular basis to be even more fruitful, and thus more valuable. Applied to us, we grow as we get pruned by the caring, expert fruit grower. Christ knows our potential and He knows how to guide us to that potential, through expertly crafted trials and tribulations.

Having said all that, not all trials and tribulations come from The Master. Some trials come from the consequences of bad or sinful choices. If we are humble and repent for those sinful choices we can learn from those consequences and become fruitful again.

There are other types of trial and tribulation that come to us through no fault of our own. We can grow and become more valuable and a stronger Christian through The Lords helps. It’s up to us to determine the source of the trial just as it is up to us to determine how we respond to the trial and whether or not we will allow ourselves to grow according to The Lords will or get tired and rebel against The Lord.

But rest assured that for whatever trial or tribulation we go through, we can make it purposeful and fruitful if we go through it with The Lords help and let His master hand guide to the right outcome.

Filed under: Christian Articles, Christian Devotionals | Tagged: beareth, branches, fruit, Jesus Christ, Purpose in trials, remove, repent, tribulations | 1 Comment »