Sunday School Lesson on Vine and Branches Topic Discussion

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Sunday School Lesson on Vine and Branches Topic Discussion

1.In what ways have you noticed God "prun-ing" your life? What have you learned from thisexperience?

God seems to have various methods for prun-ing those who seek Him, doesn't He? We seesome of those ways in the pages of Scripture (ex-amples: Luke 18:28; 19:1-10). Some refused to bepruned, with sobering consequences (examples:Luke 18:18-23; 2 Timothy 4:10a).

Rather than wait for God's (possibly) severepruning, perhaps some self-pruning is in order."Don't confuse activity with accomplishment" isan old cliché, but it has a ring of truth. Somefolks take on too many jobs at church, and theirflurry of activity leaves them physically, men-tally, and spiritually exhausted. A good start maybe to consult with someone who knows you welland will give you frank answers. Ask, "Whatareas of my life do you think I need to pruneback?" Then brace yourself—don't get defensiveat an honest reply!

2.Bearing fruit (not just foliage) is vital. Whatkinds, qualities, and quantities of fruit do youthink Jesus expects you to bear? How do youavoid the trap of perfectionism in this regard?

The first question should naturally bring tomind Paul's discussion of the fruit of the Spirit inGalatians 5:22-26. How those descriptions "playout" in everyday life can make for good discus-sion. Jesus said that ungodly people can be recog-nized by the fruit they bear (Matthew 7:15-20).Certainly a Christian's fruit should include bring-ing others to Christ.

The second question recognizes a real danger.One possible answer will include the idea ofhaving an accountability partner or fellow mem-bers of a small group to help us see our motives properly.

3. Jesus' teaching on remaining faithful wouldbecome critical during the persecution that thefirst-century disciples were to face. What aresome specific challenges that your church andher individual members face that cannot beovercome without complete faithfulness?

We sometimes hear that we live in the darkestdays (spiritually) of history. But hasn't every gen-

eration of Christians said that? Zoning commis-sions may try to block construction of a churchbuilding because such a structure won't con-tribute to the local tax base; this is an issue thatthe first-century church didn't face. At the level ofthe individual, sin has always posed a challengeto holiness. Sin may be more apparent today,however, because we live in the Information Age.Pornography is all over the Internet, lurking andwaiting to bring the believer to the gutter.

The media often ridicules churches or individ-ual Christians who want to remain consistent totheir Christian testimony. Our stories of trials,challenges, and temptations may not always bethe some as those of our first-century brethren.But Jesus knows how to help each generationwork through its unique issues.

4.How has obedience to Jesus brought joy toyour life?

Jesus said, "My yoke is easy, and my burden islight" (Matthew 11:30). God never intended forobedience to be burdensome. Jesus is the onewho took away our sin-stigma. Since Jesus mani-fested His love for us in this way, it should beeasier to love one another and to know the joythat comes from being part of His family.

Two extremes regarding obedience must beavoided. Legalism brings back the law in a waythat destroys the joy of salvation by grace (com-pare Galatians 3:10-14). License, or "do whateveryou want," may seem fun for a time but will takeus out of fellowship with Jesus (compare Jude 4).

5.Here Jesus refers to His disciples asfriends. But in John 13:13-16, He affirms Hisrole as Lord. How do you harmonize these?How do you fulfill your roles as both a servantand a friend of Jesus on a daily basis?

Analogies are defined and limited by theircontexts. Jesus is God and we are not: in thatsense He can be nothing other than Lord andMaster. He, however, is not like an ordinary mas-ter; He grants us all we need to have, and Heeven dies for us! Ordinary, earthly masters sim-ply don't do such things for their servants. Wefulfill our roles as both servant and friend ingratitude of this fact.

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