NOTES for Joh 15:1-8
Before going to His death, Jesus speaks the most important words to His disciples. He reveals the very essence of what it means to be His disciple. Each of us is called to be a branch on the vine, and therefore to be directly connected with Christ and nourished by life-giving sap, as happens in a plant. If a flower is cut from its stem, however beautiful it may be, it will inevitably wither. In the same way, a person who has lost his connection with God loses life and is unable to bear fruit.
There are many indications in the Gospel that this connection with the Lord is realized through His Word. Here Jesus once again addresses the apostles and all of us, saying that “the words that abide in you” are a necessary condition for fruit to appear and for the whole branch to remain alive. If this condition is met, even the most incredible things become possible; then, “ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”