John 15:1-27 CEB

[1] “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vineyard keeper. [2] He removes any of my branches that don’t produce fruit, and he trims any branch that produces fruit so that it will produce even more fruit. [3] You are already trimmed because of the word I have spoken to you. [4] Remain in me, and I will remain in you. A branch can’t produce fruit by itself, but must remain in the vine. Likewise, you can’t produce fruit unless you remain in me. [5] I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, then you will produce much fruit. Without me, you can’t do anything. [6] If you don’t remain in me, you will be like a branch that is thrown out and dries up. Those branches are gathered up, thrown into a fire, and burned. [7] If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you. [8] My Father is glorified when you produce much fruit and in this way prove that you are my disciples. [9] “As the Father loved me, I too have loved you. Remain in my love. [10] If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. [11] I have said these things to you so that my joy will be in you and your joy will be complete. [12] This is my commandment: love each other just as I have loved you. [13] No one has greater love than to give up one’s life for one’s friends. [14] You are my friends if you do what I command you. [15] I don’t call you servants any longer, because servants don’t know what their master is doing. Instead, I call you friends, because everything I heard from my Father I have made known to you. [16] You didn’t choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you could go and produce fruit and so that your fruit could last. As a result, whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you. [17] I give you these commandments so that you can love each other. [18] “If the world hates you, know that it hated me first. [19] If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. However, I have chosen you out of the world, and you don’t belong to the world. This is why the world hates you. [20] Remember what I told you, ‘Servants aren’t greater than their master.’ If the world harassed me, it will harass you too. If it kept my word, it will also keep yours. [21] The world will do all these things to you on account of my name, because it doesn’t know the one who sent me. [22] “If I hadn’t come and spoken to the people of this world, they wouldn’t be sinners. But now they have no excuse for their sin. [23] Whoever hates me also hates the Father. [24] If I hadn’t done works among them that no one else had done, they wouldn’t be sinners. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. [25] This fulfills the word written in their Law, They hated me without a reason. [26] “When the Companion comes, whom I will send from the Father—the Spirit of Truth who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me. [27] You will testify too, because you have been with me from the beginning.