The Two Lessons of John 15

As the Savior walked in the evening light from the last supper to the Garden of Gethsemane, He spoke to them the words we now have as John 15.  Perhaps while traversing land with vines and fruit, He said to them, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing” (v5). This was surely a lesson that would stick with the apostles for the decades to come, and I have to think that they thought back often on this night as they struggled with seemingly insurmountable challenges as they sought to take the gospel to all the world.  They must have clung to these words, knowing that without the Savior they were nothing, that they needed His help in all that they did, that their success depended on their ability to depend on Him.  As they were cast into prison, as they were stoned and beaten, as they struggled to unite the Church in doctrine and bring the Gentiles into the fold, they surely pled for strength and help from the True Vine who still led His Church.  As disciples of the Savior we must all pass through this same lesson: we desperately need the Savior and we can do nothing of lasting worth without His divine aide.  Without Him “man is nothing,” but we can “do all things through Christ which strengtheneth [us]” (Moses 1:10, Philippians 4:13).

             The second great lesson of John 15 was the simple commandment He gave the apostles to guide all they would do in the coming years: “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you” (v12).  This was the great principle that was to help lead them in all their actions, the way their “joy might be full”—they were to love others as He had loved (v11).  Surely this was a command they similarly thought of often as they dealt with the challenges of bringing so many diverse people into the Church.  Perhaps they wondered at times if they could really show that kind of perfect love to the people; the command was not just to love but it was to love as He did.  Surely they were the first to ask the question, “What would Jesus have done?” or “How would Jesus have helped this person?” or “How would Jesus have made this decision?” as they struggled to lead the Church along.  Jesus chose to focus on love that fateful night before His crucifixion, inspiring the apostles to govern their actions by love for the decades that would follow.  These two principles are surely great keys for us as well in our lives; no matter what our problem or challenge we are facing, it is likely that one of them contains the answer: either we need to trust in the Lord more, to plead more for His help and guidance and strength, or we need to find ways to love those around us more fully.