Isaiah 11:1-3 – “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him; the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord –

– and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.”

Isaiah 11 is a prophecy about Jesus Christ, written about 700 years before he was born.  Jesus is the Shoot or the Branch who comes from the nation of Israel (the “stump of Jesse”).  Many other prophecies call Jesus “the Branch,” the “Shoot,” and the “Root” (see Psalm 80:15; Isaiah 4:2; Isaiah 53:2; Zechariah 3:8; Zechariah 6:12; Romans 11:16-18; Romans 15:12; Revelation 5:5; Revelation 22:6).  This prophecy also tells us something about the Holy Spirit, which inhabited Jesus and is inseparable from him.  God’s Spirit is sevenfold.  Of course, our mortal minds cannot fully understand or grasp this, as it transcends our mortal experience or comprehension.

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Luke 24:36-43 –

“While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’

They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to them, ‘Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?  Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself. Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.’

When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.  And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’  They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.”

PEACE BE WITH YOU – Not only does Jesus give us victory over death, but also peace in our souls.  Those who loved Jesus were grieved when they saw that He had died on the cross.  Jesus appearing to His disciples comforted them and prepared them for what He had for them next.

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John 21:18-19 – “‘I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.’  Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God.  Then he said to him, ‘Follow me!’”

In this passage, we see Jesus talking to Peter after restoring him.  Peter had failed, denying three times that he even knew Jesus.  WHEN YOU WERE YOUNGER – In the Bible, youth sometimes symbolizes spiritual vigor.

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John 18:38-40 – “What is truth?”  Pilate asked.  With this he went out again to the Jews and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.  But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover.  Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?”

They shouted back, “No, not him! Give us Barabbas!”  Now Barabbas had taken part in a rebellion.

Pontus Pilate, the Roman Governor who presided over Jesus’ trial and crucifixion, had a custom of releasing a prisoner as a gesture of good will on the Passover, an important Jewish holiday.  On this occasion, he presented a choice to the crowds gathered outside the Governor’s Palace, letting them decide which of two prisoners he would release.  The choice was between Jesus and Barabbas, a Jewish rebel leader and murderer.  The people chose Barabbas, exactly as Pilate expected.

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John 15:1-6 – “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

In John 15, Jesus describes himself as the VINE, and explains that we are branches of the Vine (that is, of Him).  The teachings in this passage took place at the Last Supper, the night they arrested Jesus and took him away to his trial.  What is the meaning of the statement that Jesus is the Vine?

Jesus uses the image of the Vine and branches to make four basic points about our salvation:

1)     God expects and requires that we are spiritually fruitful

2)    Close connection – we “remain in him” and he “remains in us,” sharing the same spiritual life and sustenance from eternity, in the same way that a vine and its branches share the same life and are part of the same organism

3)    Absolute dependence – we can accomplish nothing (fruit) on our own, but only through our close connection with Him

4)    If we lose our close connection with him, there are dire consequences – lack of fruit, and eventually, permanent severance and judgment.

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John 10:10 – “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

God’s plan for his people is for them to have abundant life. He challenges us to give Him the opportunity for this by putting Him first, before everything else in our lives. God does not ask us to ignore or neglect our families, or jobs, or personal needs.

He only asks that we put Him first, and then attend to these other things. Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 6:33 – “Seek first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you as well.”

Abundant life includes two types of “abundance.” There is material abundance and spiritual abundance. The second type is much more important, but many churches unfortunately focus on material abundance instead.

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John 8:12 – When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

This story takes place during Jesus’ visit to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles.  This was either on the last day of the festival (see John 7:37), or the next day (see John 7:53-8:2).

“I am the Light” – This is a main theme of the Gospel of John (review John 1:4-9; John 3:19-21; John 11:9-10; John 12:35-36; John 12:46). Jesus is not talking about physical light, but rather spiritual light. In Genesis 1:3, “light” existed for three days before the creation of the sun itself (Genesis 1:16-18).  Spiritual light is part of God’s essence – revelation, truth, and clarity.

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John 7:37-42 - On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.” Others said, “He is the Christ.”

Still others asked, “How can the Christ come from Galilee? Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David’s family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?“

This took place during the Feast of Tabernacles, one of the main annual religious holidays for Israel. Originally, it was supposed to be a time when the Israelites remembered the 40 years in the wilderness when they lived in tents and encamped from place to place as the Lord led them.

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John 7:37-39 - On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

The infilling of the Spirit in us is an important dimension of the “salvation” that Christ gives us. This is more than merely quenching our spiritual thirst – this is enough water for daily cleansing of our hearts and lives (purification, holiness). It is enough to bring abundant life. It is enough to overflow and provide a blessing for those around us. Each of us should become like a small fountain or spring, a source of this “living water” that flows fresh every day. John adds some comments that teach us a few other doctrinal points about the Holy Spirit:

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John 6:48-51 - “I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever.  This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

Jesus fed a large crowd at the beginning of this chapter, miraculously multiplying five loaves and two small fish into enough food to feed several thousand people (John 6:1-13).  The crowds then started following him asking him to do more miracles, especially ones that involve the provision of free food for everybody, like the miracle of “manna” that had occurred centuries earlier.  Jesus rebuked the crowd for focusing on their material and physical needs instead of the spiritual or eternal things (John 6:26-31).  Even today, many people focus on God’s healing power or seek other miracles, but show no real interest in spiritual things, eternity, sanctification and holiness, or learning to hear God’s voice.

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