03.21.07 thequest UPdate

thequest family,

Spring is springing. The warm weather has prompted attention to that stuff outside--lawns and gardens--not just snow and cold. So everyone is happier!

On the right, you see a picture of something brown and winding up wards. It doesn't look like much, but it's the main "trunk" to a grapevine.

It hasn't turned green yet and it won't (but some green ivy is peeking into the back). It isn't sweating, but it is working hard right now. It is the main conduit for the nourishment from the ground into the branches and the rest of the plant. As spring moves on, the vine will continue to awaken and do it's work so that the extremities can do their work.

Jesus said, "I am the vine..." The picture is a metaphor--a physical picture with symbolic/spiritual meaning. Jesus did his work, so that His followers (that's you and I) could do their work. Jesus died and was awakened, or resurrected, and is laboring even now on our behalf. His work on the cross in paying for our sins is complete. He's not still working on that. "It is finished" He said.

Jesus, as the vine, is still working on our behalf:

If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts. My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if you do sin, there is someone to plead for you before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who pleases God completely.
1 John 1:8-2:1 NLT

Jesus is pleading for us and forgiving us as we confess our junk to Him. He is doing that so we can get to the work that God has for us. He is about cleansing us so we can glorify God in our other activities.

I trust that you will reflect on the Vine this week as you are gardening or working outside. About His work on your behalf, and that you can be clean as you walk into your day to glorify God.

Press on,

Mike

PS. Thanks to the Totzke's for letting us take pictures of their grapevine. Also we hope to catch more glimpses into John 15 as the year unfolds.


If you want to do more study on what Jesus is doing right now, check these out:

What is Jesus doing Now? Part 1 /May 1, 2005 / thequest INSTITUTE

What is Jesus doing Now? Part 2 /May 9, 2005 / thequest INSTITUTE

To read the rest of this week's UPdate click HERE