John 15:4

The 15th chapter of John contains one of my favorite verses in the entire canon, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me” (verse 4).

In the previous verses, Christ established Himself as the vine, the source of nourishment and nutrients for the branches and fruit. He then continues to define His apostles and each of us as the vines, while defining our greatest objective as the production of good fruit.

I love the symbolism and like to use the relationship of trees, branches and fruit to bring the story to life in my mind. Just as no branch can produce fruit once removed from the trunk, no person is capable of producing good fruits without the Savior. Even the most productive branches, once removed from the trunk, wither and die in their fruitlessness. Likewise, the lowliest of all branches, while still with the trunk, is capable of delicious fruit.

Life then becomes a question of who is closest to the vine instead of who can do the most while away from Him. What then does it take to produce good fruit? It does not depend on the square footage of our home, our position at work or even our IQ; it all depends on our proximity to the vine.

In the verse, Christ invites us to “abide” in Him. Abide means to remain, to continue or to stay. A beautiful invitation, but one I believe is limited by the constraints of the English language. In the Reina Valera (Spanish) translation of the Bible Christ’s invitation is given as a command to “permanacer” in Him.

“Permanecer” is one of two Spanish words that can be translated to “abide.” The other is “quedar.” Although the two mean roughly the same, there is a subtle yet important difference. “Quedar” is used when someone or something remains in a place or state temporarily, as one would “quedar” full or satisfied after a meal. Although there is no current desire for more, it is understood that at some future point, more nourishment will be required.

“Permanecer” is a different form of the word abide. The root of the word stems from the Latin word “proprius,” meaning permanent. If someone or something is to “permanecer” it is to do so forever. There are no breaks and no exceptions; it’s permanent.

That was Christ’s invitation. We must not just abide in the true vine, we must “permanecer” in Him.