Honey From The Rock

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Honey From The Rock
Psalm 81:16

"Sweet Stuff From God's Word"

A daily Bible study with Victor Knowles
Copyright 2007

TO THE GLORY OF GOD

This entry was posted on 10-20-2008 and is filed under uncategorized.

"By this My Father is glorified..." (John 15:8 NKJV). Jesus has already identified is Father as the vineyard owner, and the vinedresser, in verse 1. The Father is the One who prunes (cuts back) the fruitful branch. He is also the One who takes away (cuts off) the barren branch. Now He mentions His Father again. The fruit that we bear brings glory to the Father.

The text indicates that we bring glory to God when we are open to the spiritual nutrients that flow from the Vine, and are receptive to the Vinedresser's pruning process, and thus bear fruit for the Father - "Juice for Jesus" as it were. In his little book The True Vine, Andrew Murray comments: "It was God who did it. Men judge by the fruit of a garden of what the gardener is. Men judge God by the fruit that the branches of the Vine of His planting bears. Little fruit brings little glory to God." I think he is right. Sometimes Evelyn and I walk in the evening. As we pass by someone's flower garden or vegetable garden we "judge" the gardener by the beauty of the flowers or the bounty of the garden. Or not. When we produce only a little fruit, we bring only little glory to God. This is why it is so important to "abide in the Vine." Apart from Christ we can do nothing in the vital realm of bringing glory to God!

My Oregon friend Galen Farnsworth included the following in his Brotherhood Flier (Sept. 2000). "The man who goes out in the morning without prayer is, in effect, saying, 'I can well tackle today by myself.'...No man can ever met God without [the help] of God. The only way to prepare to meet God is to live daily with Him. The shock of that day will not be for those who have so loved that they have become the friends of God, but for those who meet God as a terrible Stranger!"

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to meet You each day as a wonderful Friend but never as a terrible Stranger! Produce Your fruit in us for only Your glory we pray through Jesus Christ.