At Redeemer we are now moving slowly through John chapters 14-17. This coming Sunday morning I will preach on John 15:1-8 - the vine and the branches.
Keys to understanding what Jesus is saying here include:
- the secret of how Jesus has said what he says and has done what he does, which is that he is "in" the Father
- how we, then, are able to do the things Jesus has done, and even greater things, because the Father comes to make his home in us
- the being of God as Triune; perichoresis as a good way to describe the Triune Godhead
- the conditional truth-statements Jesus gives, such as: If you love me, you will obey my commands (in the same way as: "If it rains, the ground gets wet")
- Thus: "If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit"
