Unity Within The Body Of Jesus

to John. Jesus tells believers He is the vine, and they are the branches, abiding in Him will allow them to bear fruit, however without Jesus, believers are nothing. (John 15:1-5) “Vines were often used to express fruitfulness, dependence, vital union, pruning” and for a culture here people were familiar with agriculture, this metaphor would have made perfect sense. (Hutchinson, John C. 64) What Jesus likely desired from His disciples was a recognition that they were not capable of producing disciples without being deeply tied to Him, by understanding and living of His teaching and the Scriptures, as well as devoted time in fellowship and prayer. Discipleship is deeply tied to this passage, as one must bear fruit as a witness to their relationship …show more content…
If a part of the body is injured, then the whole cannot function at max capacity, everything suffers. Every part of the body is needed for it to function, and the same is with the body of Christ. By His grace, God has gifted believers with different gifts, interests and passions, making every one unique, and giving every individual a role within the body of Christ. Different experiences and perceptions contribute to what has shaped an individuals faith, giving them unique ways to relate to other both believers and nonbelievers. However, all the parts together make the body stronger, united under the salvation of Jesus Christ with the purpose and drive to make His name known throughout the …show more content…
As briefly mentioned above the Nation of Israel failed to remain faithful to God throughout the Old Testament, and in turn found themselves in destruction and exile. They were faithful to the desires of their hearts and sinful nature, rather than to the Lord. In the Gospel of John, Jesus tells His disciples to abide in Him as the true vine, and they as branches of Him for the purpose of bearing good fruit. In this Jesus is instructing those closest to Him to remain faithful to God, and to the doctrine and behavior that He has taught them, He is calling them to remain His disciples after He has departed this world. Christians today, who remain faithful to the teaching of the Bible are disciples, just as the believers trained by Jesus, and by those whom He trained. Therefore this calling remains the same today. Believers need to be faithful to the God who is always faithful to them, living according to His word, for the purpose of sharing His Gospel and raising up new believers. This is the mission that Jesus Christ lived on this earth, thus continuing this behavior united believers today with the mission and commission of Christ, and therefore to the universal