“I am the vine, and you are the branches.  If you remain in me and I remain in you, you will bear much fruit.” ~ John 15:5

When Jesus spoke these words, he’d just finished up some really sweet, sacred time with his closest friends in the upper room.  He’s broken bread with them, shared the cup, washed their feet, and given them the commandment to love each other as He has loved them.

Now after this, Jesus and his disciples depart from the upper room and begin their journey to Gethsemane, the place where he’ll pray for the strength to face the cross even as He awaits being betrayed by Judas and abandoned by his followers. 

And it’s here, in that space between the leaving and arriving…

In between the upper room and Gethsemane…

In between their feet being washed and Jesus’ arrest…

In between the candlelight of those Passover candles and the torchlight of the garden mob…

…that Jesus speaks these words: I am the vine, and you are the branches.  If you remain in me and I remain in you, you will bear much fruit. 

This space between is called liminal space.  It’s the space between where you were and where you’re headed, between what you’ve left and where you’re going, between what you know and what you’re learning, between what you’ve lost and what you’ve found.

Liminal space is the journey.  It’s the journey between what you’ve left behind and the destination at which you’ve not yet arrived.  And it is in this space where Jesus not only reminds us of who He is, but of who we are:

He is the vine. We are the branches.  And if we abide in Him and He abides in us, we will bear much fruit. 

Why did Jesus save these words for this moment right here?  Why speak these words here and now in the midst of their uncertain journey rather than the comfort of the upper room or even the painful clarity of Gethsemane?  Let me suggest two possibilities:

First, the liminal spaces of life often become the places where we wander from God.

Whether we’re in between jobs or relationships, in between how things were and the hope of how things might be, we have a tendency to pull away from Jesus and do life on our terms rather than God’s.  In the in-between spaces of life, when life no longer makes sense, when our health no longer cooperates, when our confidence crumbles, when our plans fall apart, when we’re on the move and don’t know where we’re going, it’s in these moments that we must abide in Christ, if we are to have the endurance to overcome the season. 

When we look at the ministry of Jesus, it’s fascinating that in between His baptism and the launch of His ministry is His temptation by the devil in the wilderness.  In between the beauty of his baptism and the excitement of launching into ministry, Jesus spent 40 days experiencing extreme hunger and fierce temptation. 

Turn these stones to bread… jump and let the angels catch you… all this can be yours, if you’d just worship me…

These are the temptations the devil sets before Jesus, but the temptations are more diabolical than this alone.  It’s not simply about the bread, or angels, or even worship – it’s about failing to embrace who the Father has publicly declared himself to be.  At his baptism, Jesus heard these words: “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” ~ Matthew 3:17 (NIV)

This is my Son.  Here’s what Jesus heard in the temptation:

If you are God’s Son… turn these stones to bread. (Matthew 4:3)

In between his baptism and ministry, in between being told who He is and revealing to the world who He is, the devil tempted Jesus to doubt and question everything He’d heard about Himself from the Father.  If you are God’s son….

Sometimes, the most liminal spaces we experience are not out there – in the world – but in the interior of our own hearts.  Sometimes, the space that trips us up the most is the space between who God says we are and who we think ourselves to be. 

Jesus speaks these words here, in between the upper room and Gethsemane, because the liminal space often becomes the space when we forget who God says we are and we wander from our Savior.  So, to those facing the uncertainty of liminality, Jesus says remain in me.  Remain, abide, continue, press on, linger, stay…  When you don’t know what to do or where to go, when everything feels like it’s falling apart, abide in Christ.  When we most feel like running away is when we most need to run towards Jesus. 

The other reason I think Jesus speaks these words in the in-between space is because Jesus does some of his best work within the liminal spaces of life. 

Just think about how many healings Jesus performed on the way to where he was going.  Think about how many miracles took place after Jesus had left somewhere and before He ever arrived at his intended destination.  Certainly, there are times when Jesus went to a specific place at a specific time to heal a specific person, but more often than not, so many of the signs and wonders Jesus performed took place on the way to where Jesus was headed. 

If Jesus did some of his best work in the liminal spaces of their lives, why should we expect anything less today? 

The spaces between where you’ve been and where you’re going, between what you know and what you’re learning, between what you have lost and what you’ll one day find, need not be feared.  Despite the uncertainty and confusion, these spaces are not our enemies – they’re places God loves to show up and do some of his best work. 

So, when you’re there, or if you’re there now, I want to encourage you to take Jesus at His word.  He is the vine, and you are the branches.  When we abide in Christ, we will bear much fruit.  May you bear much fruit for the glory of God and the sake of the world.