The Garden
Gardens are important places in the Bible. From the creation of the universe in the Garden of Eden, to the Garden of Gethsemane and to the Garden City in the book of Revelation, the story of humanity and our cosmos’s creation, fall, redemption and restoration is framed by gardens.
In John 15:1-8, Jesus says, ““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, as I also 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 you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”
Jesus uses this vine imagery to describe to us the path true discipleship must take. Discipleship is a life seeking to remain in Jesus, so much so that it surrenders to the right moments for pruning, and also to the right moments for growth into fruitfulness.
The word ‘remain’ is also translated as ‘abide’. This word ‘abide’ is repeated seven times by Jesus as he teaches. Some might say that this number alone has symbolic meaning being attributed often in the bible as a number which symbolises the completion of divine work, as we see in Genesis where it describes how God’s created the world across seven days. However, it’s repetition alone has great meaning as Jesus seemly seeks to reveal the importance of us spending time abiding in Him everyday as our greatest purpose and pursuit.
This prayer week seeks to help us do just that, to abide in God’s presence whilst being inspired by the richness of garden imagery to help us pray.
Welcome back to The Garden. Welcome to abiding. Welcome to a journey of deepening discipleship.