Charles Spurgeon Commentary John 15:16

"Ye did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that ye should go and bear fruit, and [that] your fruit should abide: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you." — John 15:16 (ASV)

That whatever you shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

For, where the fruit remains, power in prayer will remain. If we are constantly living for God, we will find ourselves privileged to have the ear of God; and when we pray to him, he will grant us the desire of our hearts.

Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that their fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

Fruitfulness, perseverance, and power in prayer, these are the priceless blessings that come to us through our being one with Christ.

Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

There you see divine election leading to fruit-bearing, and perpetuated in perseverance: that your fruit should remain. It also brings to every one of its objects this conspicuous favor, prevailing power in prayer: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

And ordained you, that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain:

There are some people who are very fond of quoting the first part of this verse; they are very glad to hear a sermon upon the free, sovereign grace of God. They cannot too often repeat the words, You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you; but they do not talk so much about the next clause: and ordained you, that you should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain.

Let us accept all God's words as he has given them to us, and keep up the due proportion of the whole. Note that Christ is not speaking here of spasmodic piety, the religion that can only be kept up by popular preaching, and great meetings, and much excitement, and all that sort of thing; but of the religion of principle that bears its clusters tomorrow as well as today, and even months and years hence—the religion that bears its fruit every month, and whose leaf does not wither. May we be such branches in the true vine that our fruit shall thus remain.