Salvation isn’t a transaction, it’s a relationship. We don’t do something to get something; we meet someone and then walk with that person for the rest of our lives. Then, when we arrive at our final day, He carries us through the veil of death into eternal life. It’s a relationship that connects us to the Creator, the One from whom all life flows. Life does not originate from an organic process, it produces an organic process. It comes from God and is sustained by God. One of the most amazing statements John makes in the opening to his gospel is this, “In Him (Jesus) was life, and the life was the Light of men” (Jn 1:4).

That means that life, organic life and spiritual life, comes to us through the Son. To be in relationship with Jesus is to be connected to the source of life. To be detached from Him is to die. His presence transforms whatever it touches. It heals things that are sick, it restores things that are broken, it frees things that are bound, it resuscitates things that have died, it even reveals things that are hidden, it restores sight to those who are spiritually blind. This is what Jesus came to make possible: a restored relationship, a reconnection to the Source of life.

Somewhere in Jerusalem, by the light of a full moon, Jesus continued to prepare His disciples for His departure. And, at its heart, that preparation was based on a warning. They were heading into an entirely new season. No longer would He be physically present to guide them, teach them, correct them, and comfort them. No longer would they be able to stand beside Him and watch Him perform miracles. Now they would have to learn to minister in God’s power for themselves. And the spiritual climate in the nation was already changing. Violent persecution lay ahead, not only for Him, but for them as well. Many forces were waiting to pull them away from Him, but they must not let that happen. They must keep their relationship with Him alive at all costs. He would return in spirit to be with them. He would do His part to protect that relationship, but they must do their part as well. To explain how important that would be, He used a grapevine as an illustration. He said, like the green canes that grew out of the woody stock of that vine, they must stay attached to Him or they would die. And He wouldn’t have said that if it were impossible to become detached. They needed to do their part, and in the time they had left together, He told them how. We need to listen, because we need to stay attached to Him as well.