John 15:7

If ye shall abide in Me, i.e. if ye shall persevere in My love and grace, and My words in you, in your memory, that you constantly call them to mind, and in your will, that you love them, and in works, that ye always fulfil My commandments, Ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done for you; because ye will ask nothing except according to My will. In truth ye will ask nothing except what ye know is pleasing to God, and will be for the advancement of His glory and your own and your neighbours' salvation. For abiding in Jesus, i.e. the Saviour, they can only wish for what pertains to salvation, as S. Augustine says. For the branch which exists in the vine, if it could ask for anything, would ask for nothing else but to be kept in the vine, and by the influx from it to produce grapes. Thus the righteous ask to be kept in the grace of Christ, and to do good works, and this they obtain. For if they should ask anything carnal, vicious, disgraceful, injurious, or unprofitable, they would ask what would be displeasing to Christ, and forbidden by Him. Therefore they would offend Him, and so could not abide in Him, nor obtain what they asked. Wherefore S. Augustine says, Christ's words in this place have to do with the prayer which He taught us (Mat 6:9). Let us not depart from its spirit in our prayers, and whatsoever we ask shall be done unto us. Ver. 8. In this is My Father glorified, &c. That is, is about shortly to be glorified after My death and the coming of the Holy Ghost. This is the fifth reason by which Christ urges His disciples to abide in Him and His love, because, that is, it will conduce to the great glory of God. "Abide in Me and My love, because by so doing God the Father will be glorified, that ye may bear much fruit," that being used in the sense of if. Abiding in Me, ye will bring forth much fruit, even a mighty harvest of souls, and the conversion of the whole world . And that so ye may be made My disciples, namely, perfect and exemplary disciples. For they were already Christ's disciples, but novices, and imperfect. He means, Ye shall glorify God the Father if ye abide in Me, and preach My faith to the whole world. For by this means ye shall take away the idolatry of all nations, and bring in everywhere the worship of one God in true holiness. And this will be the greatest ignominy to Satan, and the greatest glory to God. For the conversion of the nations will not be your work, but God's, who will bring it about by His grace. "For by whom shall we bring forth fruit, except by Him whose mercy preventeth us?" saith S. Augustine.

Again, that ye may become My disciples, may mean my imitators in zeal and preaching the Gospel. A disciple is put for an imitator, because it is the part of a disciple to imitate his master. And so the disciples did imitate Christ, by giving themselves up even unto death to preach the Gospel. Ver. 9. As the Father hath loved Me, &c. This is the sixth reason by which Christ stirs his disciples up to persevere in Him and in His love and faith. The word as does not imply equality, but similitude of love. For the Father loveth Christ far more than Christ loveth us. The meaning therefore is, As God the Father hath loved Me as man without any merits of mine freely before all others, and hath raised me to the Hypostasis of the Word, that I should be the Son of God, the Saviour and Redeemer of the world, and therefore not a natural vine but a Vine of salvation, so in like manner have I freely chosen you before other men, without any merits of your own, and raised you to the Apostolate, that ye should be made very near to Me as branches to the Vine, and that I through you should work out the salvation of all nations. Take heed therefore that ye abide in this My love. And this ye will do by loving Me and keeping my commandments. For so ye will deserve to be loved in return by Me, and be by Me constantly endowed with the benefits of which I have spoken. So S. Augustine.

Observe here, that Christ's predestination, election, love, and grace are the means, the end, and exemplar of our predestination, election, love, and grace. See what I have said on Romans 1:4.

Abide ye in My love; take care that I always love you. For it is a great thing to be loved by Christ. It is the fount and the cause of all graces. This is the active sense of the word My. But Rupertus here takes the love of Christ in a passive sense, meaning, abide in My love, advance in My love. This is an apposite, but not the direct meaning. It is inferential, thus, Take care that I love you. And this ye will be careful about if ye proceed to love Me. For I love those that love Me. Wherefore as the Father greatly loves Me, and so works through Me so many miracles and the salvation of the world, so also do I exceedingly love you, and therefore heap upon you so many benefits, gifts, and apostolic graces. Take heed then that ye continue in this My love and My grace. For so shall ye receive a daily increase of gifts from Me. Perceive from this the excellence and Divine virtue of love and affection. As Climacus says (Gradu 30), "I contemplate faith as a ray of the sun, charity like its orb in its fulness. Charity from its own very nature is likeness to God, so far as mortals can attain unto it. As regards its efficacy it is a sort of intoxication of the soul. Lastly, as regards its properties, it is the fountain of faith, the abyss of a just and patient mind, a sea of humility.

10. If ye keep my commandments, &c. If ye advance in loving Me and keeping my commandments, ye shall abide in My grace, favour, and affection, so that I shall proceed to heap My love and favours upon you.