You Can Do Nothing
Mandy was recently driving with all three kids in the car. The conversation was like a tripartite attack on Mandy with all three kids bombarding her with requests. After an untoward number of “I-wants,” Mandy announced a treaty: “Stop asking me for things. No one ask me for anything. Ask me for nothing.”
The kids sat in silence for quite a few seconds until Luke, the youngest, said, “Mom. Can I have nothing?”
You must understand that this sort of banter is quite common in our family: wit and sarcasm abound.
I found this to be quite similar to a passage I read this week:
John 15:5 — “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
Jesus makes it clear that without Him, we can do nothing. There is no work or good deed or action we can do to improve our situation. There is not even any sarcasm we can insert here. It is simply the grace of God that allows such improvement. In fact, it is only the grace of God that is necessary for the beginning, the continuance and the completion of our salvation.
Without Jesus, all we can do is nothing.
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