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John 15:1-7 The Vine and The Branches

In verse 2 Jesus refers to the fruitless branches as those who are “in Me.” How can they be “in Him” and not be genuine followers?

When my wife was growing up down in Crescent, her dad used to go out behind their house and cut down a Christmas Tree each year. He never could find quite the right tree, so he'd improvise. He would drill holes in the trunk of the tree, cut limbs off of other trees, and stick those limbs into the holes. Amy's family would have what appeared to be a very full, very beautiful Christmas tree. For about a week.

Within 10 days, the limbs that had been stuck into the original tree were dead and brown, while the rest of the tree was nice and green. The dead limbs were "in" the Christmas tree, but they were not "of" the tree...therefore they died.

Some people who appear to be "in" the vine of Christ do not truly abide in him. They may seem to be alive - really they are dead.