Experiencing God - I Am The Vine 34

"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." 
Gospel of John

We read several stories in the Acts to the Apostles of a church in crisis.  These crisis were often over matters relating to faith practice.  There were good reasons for these problems to arise.  The early Christian Church was born from Jewish roots.  Mary, Joseph and Jesus were Jewish.  They practiced their faith in the Jewish synagogue.  The apostles, their families and the early followers of Jesus were Jewish.  After the resurrection and the first encounters with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, it would have been quite normal for the new followers of Christ to incorporate Jewish rites in their worship, and Jewish rules in their faith practice. 

But a problem arose when the Christian faith spread to the gentiles who, not only did not practice Jewish rites, but were not familiar with them.  Should the rules that the apostles and the early Jewish Christians practiced also be a condition for the new gentile believers?  This question was ripe for a crisis.  The important thing that came from all this was that the church gathered and prayed about these contentious issues.  The Holy Spirit was consulted.  Through prayers and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, a decision was made, and the church moved on from there.  Were there people dissatisfied with the decision?  Probably some were.  Were there some who may have left the Christian community because of the decisions?  Probably some did.  The important thing is that the Church, the people of God, remained close to Christ; they remained connected to the vine, and in doing so, this community moved ahead in accordance with God's will.

In the Gospel of John mentioned above, Jesus encourages us to remain connected to the vine.  Jesus says:

 "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." 

We can see and identify with this on a personal individual level, but we must also see this and connect with it on a communal level.  Christ will only be made visible to the world as we work together as people of faith to bring His Kingdom alive in the hearts of others.  It's not a job we can do by ourselves.

We remain connected to Christ in our personal encounter with Him, but we also remain connected with Him through His vine the Church which gives witness to His presence in the world.

Does our culture have difficulty with some of the Church's practices and teachings?  Sure they do.  Do we at times?  This is true as well.  But as we bring these issues of concerns before the Lord, if we do it as church, as the people of God, then the direction we must go will come forth, maybe not always in accordance with what we want all the time, but in accordance with God's will for the Church at this moment in our history.

"If you remain in me, Jesus says, and my words remains in you, then what you ask of me in prayer will be granted if it is for the glory of the Father and the building of His kingdom on earth.  These are the things that will determine if you are my disciples, my followers."