Monday July 10th, 2023
« He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful »
21 After He said these things, Jesus became visibly upset, and then He told them why. “One of you is going to betray me.”
22 The disciples looked around at one another, wondering who on earth He was talking about.
23 One of the disciples, the one Jesus loved dearly, was reclining against Him, his head on his shoulder.
24 Peter motioned to him to ask who Jesus might be talking about.
25 So, being the closest, he said, “Master, who?”
26 Jesus said, “The one to whom I give this crust of bread after I’ve dipped it.” Then he dipped the crust and gave it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot.
27 As soon as the bread was in his hand, Satan entered him. “What you must do,” said Jesus, “do. Do it and get it over with.”
28 No one around the supper table knew why He said this to him.
29 Some thought that since Judas was their treasurer, Jesus was telling him to buy what they needed for the Feast, or that he should give something to the poor.
30 Judas, with the piece of bread, left. It was night.
31 When he had left, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is seen for who he is, and God seen for who he is in him.
32 The moment God is seen in him, God’s glory will be on display. In glorifying him, he himself is glorified—glory all around!
The words of today’s memory verse should be sobering for every sincere child of God.
In it, we are told that the Father Himself does the cutting of the unfruitful branches from the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the True Vine!
In other words, it is a mistake to think that the devil is responsible for cutting people off from the Body of Christ.
It is important to note that these branches being cut off are already in Jesus Christ, meaning that they are believers and part of Him.
As part of the Church, they are right there within the Master’s sanctuary, causing havoc within the household of God and occupying positions without doing anything with them, apart from preventing others who want to serve the Lord from doing so.
It is terrifying to know that right from the time the Lord was here on earth, betrayals have always been found among those close to Him.
This might be the reason why the Father cuts many of them off before their time.
My father in the Lord, the founder of The Redeemed Christian Church of God, cut off some people from the fold before he finally left to be with the Lord. Some of us did not know why he was doing what he did back then, but people like me now know better.
Jesus Christ tolerated Judas Iscariot for three and half year, giving him ample opportunity and time to repent of his stealing habit that would eventually lead him to betray his Master for money.
However, very close to the time appointed for Him to go to the Cross, Jesus realized the Judas Iscariot had chosen to fulfill the prophesy of Psalm 41 : 9GNT ,which says:
« Even my best friend, the one I trusted most, the one who shared my food, has turned against me »
It was at this point that Jesus detached Judas Iscariot from himself as the True Vine.
Describing what happened after that, John 13:27 says:
« As soon as the bread was in his hand, Satan entered him.“What you must do,” said Jesus, “do. Do it and get it over with »
What can be more terrible that Satan himself possessing a person’s body!
Noticeably, it was after Judas Iscariot had been torn away from the True Vine and left to carry out his destructive mission that Jesus began to reveal to His real disciples some deeper things about His mission.
Beloved, the consequences of being cut off from the Lord’s Body are too dire to be contemplated. I therefore pray that the Master will not tear you away from Himself in Jesus’ Name.
Prayer point: Father, please remove from me whatever will cause me to be torn away from the True Vine, in Jesus’ Name.
Author: Bishop Enoch. A. Adeboye.
Edited by Naomie
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