Bearing fruit of the greater works.

 John 14 and 15

¹⁰ Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. ¹¹ Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves. ¹² Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. ¹³ Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.

¹⁵ “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

Role of the Spirit

¹⁶ I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; ¹⁷ that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

Jesus Is the Vine—Followers Are Branches

15 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. ² Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. ³ You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. ⁵ I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. ⁷ If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. ⁹ Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. ¹⁰ If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. ¹¹ These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

Jesus, knowing He was about to go to the cross poured Himself out to His disciples, encouraging them and preparing them for the next phase as His followers. Jesus makes some powerful statements and promises to the disciples and to us. Read them again.

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.  Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.

Jesus says that those who believe in Him will do even greater works than He did. Think about that. Jesus fed thousands with a few fish and loaves. He  opened blind eyes, caused lame to walk. He healed many diseases and delivered many from oppression and possession. He raised the dead back to life. He says we will do the works that He did and greater works. He says that whatever we ask in His name, He will do it. This though is not a magic formula to get whatever we want by asking in Jesus name. So what exactly do these words mean for us today? 

In the context of Jesus declarations and promises He lays out the ground work and conditions for the fulfillment of His words. Jesus was speaking about His relationship with God the Father. His oneness with Him, that all that He did was the Father's work and will. To fulfill the Father's will, that was the focus, the very purpose of Jesus life. So to ask anything in Jesus name it must also be in accord with the purpose of His life, fulfilling the will of the Father.

Jesus then promises to give us a Helper, the Spirit of truth. Just prior to our text Jesus said  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life;  The Spirit of truth then is His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the third person of our triune God. This Helper, is the One who keeps us unified with Jesus and the Father. Jesus says He, the Holy Spirit will abide with us and be in us. Jesus gives other instruction also about abiding.He says  " If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love."

Jesus compares our abiding in Him to being branches on a vine. He says if we abide in Him we will bear much fruit, apart from Him we can do nothing. In much - apart nothing. It's really pretty simple. Let's look then at the fruit that abiding in Jesus will bear in and through our lives.

Galatians 5: ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

We can not expect to do the works that Jesus did if we are not bearing the fruit of a life that is abiding in Him. If we are abiding in Christ we will bear much of the fruit of the Spirit in and through our lives. Apart from Him we can do nothing. To do the works that Jesus did we must abide in Him. The evidence of that abiding will be the fruit listed above. If we will live that abiding life, He will continue to fulfill His purpose, to do the will and the work of the Father, through us. Jesus said in Matthew 17:20

"truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you."

The faith of a life that abides in Christ, faith in Christ to do the work through us so that nothing will be impossible to you, that's the promise Jesus makes.

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit thank You for Your promises in Your word. Help me to abide in You more and more each day. My desire is to bear the fruit of an abiding life and to leave the work to You. I surrender myself to You and Your purposes. This I ask in Jesus name.