The Monday after the Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on October 20, 2025 by under
Scripture: St. John 15:1-7 (NKJV)
15:1 “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.”
Devotion
Jesus calls Himself the true vine, and His disciples the branches. Apart from Him, we can do nothing, for our sinful nature produces only death and disobedience. To keep His commandments on our own is impossible, as the Pharisees learned when they trusted in their own righteousness.
But Jesus gives life to His branches. He forgives sins, grafts us into Himself, and nourishes us with His righteousness. Our obedience flows not from human strength, but from Christ’s life living in us. He gives the Spirit who enables us to bear fruit—faith toward God and love toward neighbor.
Thus, the Law becomes something cherished, not burdensome, because the Gospel has freed us. In Christ we are new creations, not weighed down by condemnation but sustained by His life. We keep His commandments because His forgiveness has made us His own. To abide in the Vine is to live by His Word, delighting in His love, and showing forth that love in daily life.
Collect: O God, forasmuch as without Thee we are not able to please Thee: Mercifully grant that Thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
