I Am the Vine
John 15:1-8
Introduction
We have been going through the seven I Am statements of Jesus from the Gospel of John and we have no arrived at our final message in this series. Before we get to that, I want you to think about what Jesus has said about who he is and what he does. What has clicked with you with these images? While all may be important, probably one or a few have connected with your faith journey.
It may be this final image: “I am the vine.” My temptation is to go through everything that the Bible says about vines but if I did that, we would be here for a long time. What you need to know is that vines are one of the most common images in the Bible, and in the Old Testament it is often used for Israel and in the New Testament it is often used for the church.
Israel can have a pretty harsh climate, especially as compared to such a lush environment as Nova Scotia. There are limitations on what can grow there, at least without the help of modern technology, but what does grow there, grows well. The areas around the Mediterranean, including Israel, are often known for two products: olives and grapes.
You have to go with what works and take advantage of the opportunities that are available. Some grapes would have been used as food, but the primary product was that of wine. This would have been useful for personal consumption but also for trading for other goods that were not readily available in that area.
Those who cultivated vines took their work very seriously. This was no hobby that would only lead to mild disappointment if the harvest was bad. It was essential that the vine dressers be extremely careful, doing what was in their power to promote a good harvest. All of these things would have been well known to the audience that heard his teachings. When he spoke of vines, they could picture them easily in their minds. When he talked about the cutting and pruning, they would have seen people involved in that very activity.
Jesus was a master at taking everyday images that were extremely familiar and use them to teach spiritual truths that had the power to transform lives. Even if you are not familiar with taking care of grape vines, the principles will be applicable to both your other gardening experience, as well as to our spiritual life.
Church as the Vineyard
So Jesus takes the familiar scene of a vineyard and calls his listeners to reflect on what this means for them, and by extension, for us. The Father is the vinedresser and it is God’s job to examine the vines. We might expect that role to be given to Jesus but Jesus has a different role. Jesus is actually the vine. What do we mean by the vine? In a grapevine, there is a trunk that emerges from the root system. This is the permanent part of the grapevine from which everything else grows from and it is this that Jesus compares himself to. From the trunk grows arms, which then produce the part that will hopefully produce grapes. It is these arms that Jesus compares to those who claim to follow him. This simple image says a lot about Jesus. The vine, that is the trunk, has much in common with the branches. They are made of the same stuff. But the branches or arms are reliant on the trunk for life. If there is a break in the connection, it is the branch and not the vine that will die. This is a picture of who Jesus is. He is human in that he is made up of the same stuff as us. But he is also God in that he is the source of all life. This concept of Jesus as God and human underpins most of the New Testament.
Going back to the Father as the vinedresser, his job is to examine the branches. The vinedresser is going to see three possible things.
The first is that the branch is dead. This does not mean that it looks like it’s getting a bit sick, but that it is completely dead. This happens because at some point there was a break at the connection between the arms and the trunk. When this happens, the branches cannot get the nutrients from the vine that are drawn from the root system in the ground. We have a raspberry bush in our yard and it is obvious that there are some branches that are dead. Extra water and fertilizer would not help. All that can be done is for them to be removed and cast away.
The second is that the branch is fruitful. You follow along and you see bunches and bunches of grapes. This is the reason that so much work is put into this. It is not just that the vinedresser likes the look of the vineyard. It is all about the fruit that is being produced.
But there is a third option. There are branches that are healthy and green, but are not producing fruit at the moment. This may be time for pruning. There are numerous types of pruning used for different reasons. But what they have in common is that the end goal is for greater production of fruit in the future. Pruning can be radical. I have seen plants pruned and I though the person was killing it, with hardly anything left. But what was once a not very nice looking bush or tree, looked completely different the next year as the pruning set it up for greater health.
Lessons From the Vineyard
If Jesus is the vine and we are the branches, what does this mean for us? There are actually some pretty bad interpretations that have come from this. For example, you have probably heard of people burning those they considered to be heretics at the stake. This was often Christians doing this to other Christians. Part of the inspiration was the idea that the dead branches are only good for the fire. That was not what Jesus was getting at.
This could also lead to people become “fruit inspectors.” We could go around and scrutinize everyone in the church to see if they are being fruitful to the degree that they have determined is required. Similarly, we could compare our own fruit, and while seeing something, feeling discouraged that they are not as fruitful as that other person. That’s not right either.
People tend to overthink in their interpretations when often Jesus is making a fairly simple point, or in this case, two points.
The main point is for the branches to be connected to the vine. Life flows up from the vine and out to the branches. We need that life flowing freely from the vine to us. We need to be in relationship with Jesus. Of course this suggests that it is possible for that connection to be broken. This is a big question and ultimately we do not have to determine if someone is no longer connected to the vine. There may be a tiny connection where drops of life are still flowing and yet we do not see it. What is expected of us is that we value our connection to the vine and that we strengthen our relationship with Jesus as much as possible.
The second point is that God is a Gardner and he is working toward a harvest in our life. We are not just ornamental plants, we fruit-bearing plants. Perhaps the best summary of the fruit is this: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23) But what if that other person has more kindness or gentleness than you? It is not a competition. When I pick raspberries at the house, I’m happy if I find one berry on a branch or if I find six berries. They all taste the same.
Related to this is that God prunes us to make us more fruitful. And that pruning can be painful and at the time you might be doubting that you could ever be fruitful again. But you can. Trust the vinedresser, the Father knows what he is doing.
Conclusion
From time to time I get asked if people from a certain group can be Christians. They have a different interpretation, a different tradition, and sometimes a different lifestyle or appearance. I understand the question and I reflect on these things too, but in the end, I am not the judge. But I would say that if they are attached to the vine and if they are producing fruit, then we should withhold our condemnation. That is not a suggestion that everything goes but it might help us get back to the main point. Are we connected to the vine and are we producing fruit? Jesus is the Vine and in him we have life. If we are connected to him we either are producing fruit or we are getting pruned so that we will soon producing fruit. That is what we need to focus on.
