Bethesda Chapel, 2000
SG Bible Study #10

BEARING FRUIT – JOHN 15:5-17

Warm-up question. (Everyone should answer.)

Have you ever tried to grow fruit or flowers? Describe your most spectacular success or greatest failure.

Text questions. (Read John 15:5-17, then answer based on this passage.)

  1. Jesus uses the expression ‘remain in me’ several times (5-7), then uses the expression ‘remain in my love’ (9-10). What do these expressions mean? Are they two different ways of saying the same thing?

  2. What does a person have to do to remain in Jesus’ love?

  3. Does Jesus mean that we have to earn his love by our obedience? In other words, when Jesus says, ‘If you obey my commands you will remain in my love’ (10), is this the same as saying, ‘I will continue to love you only if you obey my commands’?

  4. Why is it necessary to ‘remain in Jesus’ and/or ‘remain in his love’ in order to bear fruit?

  5. What kind of fruit does Jesus intend for his disciples to bear?

  6. Twice in this passage Jesus promises his disciples that they will be given whatever they ask (7, 16). Do you see any clues in the context which might indicate that Jesus does not have just any kind of asking in mind, but rather asking for things that relate to fruit-bearing?

  7. When Jesus talks about obedience here, what command does he particularly have in mind?

  8. Do you see any indication in the text concerning the nature of the love that Jesus commands?

  9. When Jesus says that his disciples did not chose him but that he chose them with the intention that they should go and bear fruit, do you think he was referring to his first twelve disciples only?

Application question. (Everyone should answer.)

Think carefully about your own life in light of Jesus’ words. Assuming that you desire to remain more fully in his love and thus to bear more fruit to God’s glory, name one specific action step you believe you should take at this time.