In John 15:6, the branch
that does not abide in the Vine is thrown away and burnt (judged). Does this mean
that a believer can lose his salvation?
“If
anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and
they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:6).
The
above verse is difficult and open to debate as it suggests that believers
can lose their salvation. However, some think otherwise, saying that the
passage in John 15 is about bearing fruit and not salvation.
On
one hand, we want to be faithful to the truth found in God’s Word. On the other
hand, we do not want to create a false alarm and cause unwarranted fear.
Let
us delve into the passage to get a full picture of its meaning:
“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,
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, 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, bears
much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in
Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw
them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you abide in Me, and My words
abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By
this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My
disciples.
(John
15:1-8)
In John 15, Jesus was addressing His disciples. Using an allegory familiar to God’s people (grapevine as in Isaiah 5:1-7), Jesus revealed to them God’s purpose in saving them: He wants them to bear fruit. Jesus paints a picture of Himself as the Vine, Father God as the vinedresser, and the disciples as the branches that form a part of the Vine. The purpose of anyone who plants a vineyard is to get a bountiful harvest of grapes. If the grapevine merely produces branches and leaves, the farmer’s hard work has gone to waste.
“I
am the vine, you are the branches; the one who remains in Me, and I in him
bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
This first part of the verse shows that Jesus was addressing his disciples (genuine believers) as the branches are arising from and drawing nourishment from the Vine (Christ).
What
happens to the fruitless branch?
According to John 15:2: “every branch in
Me that does not bear fruit He takes away.” Some think that God lifts up
the branch so that it receives more sunlight and this might promote fruit-bearing.
But this position is quickly dismissed by John 15:6: If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and
is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are
burned. This verse 6 has grave
implications as the fruitless branch
is part of the Vine (as suggested by ‘in Me’) and thus refers to genuine believers who fail to abide in
the Vine (Christ).
To abide is to remain in fellowship with Christ, study God’s Word and obey His commands. “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32).
How
does a believer choose not to abide
in Christ the Vine? Even genuine believers can depart from
the faith, commit apostasy, deny God or willfully live in sin as many verses
attest to this falling away. It all boils down to our free will/volition which enables believers to choose either to abide in
Christ or turn our backs on God.
“Beware,
brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil
heart of unbelief in departing
from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,”
lest any of you be hardened through the
deceitfulness of sin. For we have become
partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end” (Hebrews 3:12-14).
Notice
the following:
- 1. Even genuine believers can depart from
the faith.
- 2. Unbelief, hardness of heart and sin’s deceitfulness
cause believers to fall.
- 3. God’s promise of eternal life awaits
those who are steadfast in their faith till the end.
If
the farmer sees no fruit from the grapevine, he is likely to chop it down.
Similarly, God has no tolerance for dead
wood. The fruitless branch (genuine believer who chooses to depart from
Christ) will be taken away (John 15:2) or, more specifically, cast out as
useless, becomes withered and is burnt (John 15:6).
Now
‘fire’ in scriptures has different connotations. It can be positive as in the
case of gold refined by fire (Malachi 3:2-3). Or it can be also be positive as in baptism of
fire (Luke 3:16) or tongues of fire (Acts 2:3). However, in John
15:6, fire speaks of destruction
(negative). A genuine believer who fails to abide (fruitless branch) will be
judged, face destruction by fire and lose his salvation.
Now,
you might ask, is there any supporting evidence elsewhere in the Bible for such
a harsh view?
Fruit-bearing * is a very important part of a
believer’s life. “Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance and do not think
to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that
God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the
ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into
the fire”(Matthew 3:8-10,Matthew
7:19). This means, in effect, believers cannot depend
on their position in church or spiritual heritage; they need to bear fruit in
keeping with repentance.
The
prophet Isaiah described the Lord planting a vineyard, hoping to get a harvest
of good grapes but it only yielded wild grapes. Now the vineyard symbolised the
people of Judah. God looked for fruits (justice and righteousness) in their
lives but was disappointed. As a result, God threatened to destroy them (Isaiah 5:1-7).
In
the Parable of the Talents, Matthew
25:14-30, while addressing His disciples, Jesus warned that fruitlessness will incur God’s
judgment. Jesus condemned the one-talent
man who buried his talent and failed to multiply it: “You wicked and lazy
servant!” (Matthew 25:26). What happened to him? He was cast into the outer
darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 25:30). In contrast, the two servants who multiplied their
talents were commended and given fresh responsibilities.
Paul
told the Gentiles not to be proud or complacent that they have been chosen over
the Jews; it is because the latter rejected God. Gentiles have to realise there
is a condition to be met if they want to remain in God's favour (Romans 11:17-22). "Note then the
kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but
God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you
too will be cut off" (Romans 11:22). To ‘continue in His kindness’
is to abide in Christ in obedience to His commands.
Jesus
cursed the fruitless fig tree in a
way that seems inconsistent with His meek and mild image—one who welcomes
children with open arms and heals with compassion (Mark 11:12-14, Mark 11:20).
This drives home the point that God’s judgment on fruitlessness is indeed
severe.
Notice
the various ‘agriculture theme’ allegories used to emphasise the danger of fruitlessness
as it brings about God’s judgment:
Grapevine:
John 15:6, Isaiah 5:1-7
Fig
tree: Mark 11:12-14
Tree: Matthew 3:8-10, Matthew 7:19
Now
let us deal with the possible objections
to my stance regarding John 15: 6—that believers will lose their salvation (be cast
away and burnt) if they choose not to abide in Christ.
Those
who say this passage refers to a professing believer and not a genuine believer
fail to recognise that Christ mentioned the fruitless branch is ‘in Me’ in John 15:2. This
fruitless branch is growing out of the Vine, Christ Himself. Thus the fruitless
branch represents a genuine believer. Furthermore, Jesus was addressing his
disciples (genuine believers) in John 15:5. This point about ‘professing believers’ is a
lame argument put forward by eternal security adherents and Calvinists in order
to fit into their man-made doctrine, ‘Once saved, Always Saved’.
Others
assert that no one can snatch a believer out from God’s hand. “And I give them
eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out
of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no
one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand (John 10: 28-29). But they ignore the condition set forth in the preceding verse, “My sheep hear My
voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27). Yes, no one can snatch believers out from God’s hand provided they continue to abide in
Christ and obey Him. What if believers choose to depart from God, deny God or
willfully live in sin? This passage in John 10: 27-29 does not promise that God is obligated to hold the hand of such unfaithful
believers and keep them eternally safe and secure.
Another argument raised by eternal security adherents is found in John
chapter 6. “This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has
given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And
this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and
believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last
day” (John 6:39-40).
However,
more accurate exegesis shows that it is only those who keep looking at the Son, and keep
on obeying Him have eternal life and Jesus will raise them up on the last
day (John 6:39-40). Jesus taught that assurance of salvation comes to those who
continue to follow and obey Him. Our
salvation is not secured by a one-time following or obeying.
Notice
that Judas was lost though he was “given” to Jesus by the Father as one of the
twelve disciples. “Those that Thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is
lost, but the son of perdition” (John
17:12).
Source:
https://www.jesuswordsonly.com/topicindex/657-john-6-39-40-biased-mistranslations.html
The
two references advanced by eternal security proponents (John 10: 28-29 and John
6: 39-40) epitomise the danger of eisegesis
(viewing scriptures through the lens of eternal security) rather than
allowing scriptures to speak for itself (exegesis).
The positive take-home message of John chapter 15 is that genuine believers—as branches attached to the Vine (Christ)—need to abide in Christ so that they might bear much fruit * (John 15:2b, John 15:8). This is consistent with Paul’s teaching that believers are saved for good works which God has prepared beforehand (Ephesians 2: 8-10).
On
the other hand, John 15 also issues a grave
warning: Genuine believers who choose
not to abide in the Vine (Christ) will be cast away and burnt—face God’s
judgment and lose their salvation. Being detached from the Vine, they are
unable to draw life-giving nutrients from the Vine and thus remain fruitless.
And the danger of fruitlessness is illustrated by Christ who cursed the barren
fig tree.
This difficult verse—John 15:6—is an example of a harsh but relevant truth that needs to be taught more often. Everyone welcomes “feel good” teaching but when the unpleasant truth is presented, we become uncomfortable, squirm in our seats (John 6:60) and think of various ways why a particular verse cannot mean what it explicitly says. And so we try to twist that verse so that it becomes more acceptable to us and our belief in eternal security.
Theologians can make things complicated, especially when they allow their preconceived ideas (eternal security) to colour their perception. This allegory in John chapter 15 on the Vine (Christ) and the branches is actually straightforward:
- 1. Audience: Genuine believers who are the branches (John 15:2, John 15:5a).
- 2. Positive message: Abide in the Vine (Christ) in order to bear much fruit (John 15:5b, John 15:8).
- 3. Warning: Genuine believers who do not abide in the Vine (Christ) are not only fruitless but will be cast out and burnt (face judgment in hell). This means loss of salvation (John 15:6).
Like the fruitless
branch that is cast away and burnt, genuine believers who fail to abide in the
Vine (Christ) face the possibility of losing their salvation.
* What
are the types of “spiritual fruit” God expects us, as believers, to bear?
Fruit
of good works (Colossians 1:10)
Fruit
of righteousness (Philippians 1:11)
Fruit
of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5: 22-23)
Fruit
of evangelism—lives impacted by Paul’s ministry (2 Corinthians 3:2)
Fruit
of lips—praising God (Hebrews 13:15)
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