JESUS, THE TRUE VINE
John 15:1-17
PRUNING WITH LOVE
There is a reason for pruning the branches of the vine according to the
Samaria and Lessons from the Vineyard by Doug Hershey
“Vineyard and Vines in the Bible
In biblical times, vineyards were very common. It was a great source of income, food, and drink as well as a place to enjoy and celebrate. Yeshua (Jesus) often referred to vineyards or vines in His teachings.
The Pruning at the Vineyard
Many branches are found growing on the main vine. Yet the further away from the vine these branches grow, the harder it is for them to receive nutrients and produce.
Branches that are growing far to the side or underneath the vine are trimmed since they will have a harder time getting sunlight. It is also simply easier to harvest a branch that is growing straight up.
So, after pruning the underside and sides of the vine, a few branches may grow close together. The vinedresser will keep the most upright and again, prune the others. The closer the branch is to the vine, the healthier and more fruitful it will be.
Likewise, if we are to bear fruit that the Father desires, the closer we are to Yeshua, the better.
The Life-giving Wind in Samaria
Once the gardener removes the dead branches, along with the underside and wayward ones, he considers the spacing of the remaining branches. The upright and fruitful ones need at least 4-5 inches from each other to allow the wind to pass through."
Vineyards have been planted and cultivated since the time of Noah's Ark landed on Mount Ararat. Noah planted a vineyard and drank wine (Genesis 9:20) God brought Israel into the promised land which was productive and complete with vineyards:
Deuteronomy 8:8-9
8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil, and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
The first miracle Jesus performed was at a wedding feast where He turned water into wine. The vineyards were plentiful and the production and the sale of wine was a thriving industry.
Jesus used the vineyard to describe His relationship with the Father and the believers' relationship to Him.
THE TRUE VINE
V:1 "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
There are many types of vines. Some produce fruit to eat, some produce flowers,
and some are just thrones. There are blackberry vines, tomato vines, watermelon
vines, and grape vines, just to name a few of them.
Jesus used the grapevine to symbolize Himself. Every Jew could identify with
His analogy. Just as there are different kinds of vines, there are different religions
that claim the Father, but not the Son. Without the Son, there is no spiritual
fruit for the branches.
The Jewish nation was a vine, that rejected the Father as their gardener (Isaiah 5:1).
They chose their traditions over the Word of God.
The true vine chooses the Father as the Gardner and follows His commands.
Believers are branches of Jesus. Verse 15:1 describes the relationship between
the Father, the Son, and the believers. Believers are placed in the Son and
cared for by the Father.
Some believers produce no fruit. They have a relationship but are not
active in the ministry. What does it mean in verse 2 when He said the Fathers
take him away? The Greek word for taketh away is airo which means lift up
or raise up. This does not appear to be a loss of salvation verse. Jesus said
what the Father has given me, I lose none. The branch may be lifted up to
the light to be enlightened. We were chosen to be in Christ before the foundation
of the world (Ephesians 4:1). We were drawn to Christ from a dark place. The
process of being enlightened takes time and is different for every believer.
None of us came to Christ-producing fruit.
Every believer has a direct connection to the Son who has a direct connection to
the Father. Jesus describes Himself as the vine planted by the Father. It is the
Father's job is to maximize the production of the vineyard.
There are four classes of fruit in this text. No fruit, fruit, more fruit, and much
fruit. I believe the no fruit represents the newcomers to Christ and the complacent
church members who enjoy the relationship with Christ but are not committed
to service.
The fruit-bearing branches are those believers who are working in Christ
using their gifts and talents but have areas that hinder spiritual growth.
They may still hold on to an unforgiving spirit. They may harbor some
envy and jealousy. They have some areas of lust they are struggling with.
God knows us intimately and knows what it takes to curve our appetites
to total commitment to Him.
The Greek word for purge or prune is kathairo which means to cleanse.
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We must look at ourselves,
recognize our sins, and repent. God’s mercy extends to us with forgiveness.
CLEANED BY THE WORD
V:3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
None of us are good in ourselves. It is our faith in the atoning blood that Jesus
shed on the cross that cleanses us from all unrighteousness. The word remain or
abide in Greek is the word meno which means to stay in a given place. We have
a choice each day to be obedient to God’s commands and remain in fellowship
with Jesus.
As a branch cannot produce grapes without being connected to the vine, we cannot
do the work of Christ without fellowship with Him. We have been given the job
of imitating Christ in our daily activities. We cannot do the work of Christ without
submitting to the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit that resides within
us. Producing fruit is our job. What is the fruit Jesus referred to?
Galatians 5:22-24
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentlenesses, and self-control. Against such things, there is no law.
There are nine elements of the fruit listed here. By ourselves, we are not capable of
producing this kind of fruit. Our character has been shaped by the world which
does not include this. It is only through the new creation in Christ that we are enabled
to produce fruit.
We have been placed in Christ according to His divine favor. It is through God's
favor that we were elected to produce fruit.
REMAIN IN JESUS
V:5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
The relationship with Jesus does not exist without Him being in our hearts. Our
relationship with Jesus is demonstrated through our obedience to His commands.
Acts 17:28
'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'
Notice verses 5 -7 begin with "if". The if represents our personal, daily choice
to follow Jesus. Verse 5 is a blessing and a curse. Remain Jesus; produce
much fruit. Break fellowship with Jesus, produce nothing.
Verse 6 is the result of doing nothing. By doing nothing you wither into a state
of worthlessness useful only for firewood which warms for a short time. God's
mercy is shown here because Jesus said you are like firewood. The word
like is the Greek word hos a comparative adverb. Hos is part of the word
hosanna which means oh save. We are saved by Grace not by works.
He If in verse 7 is the blessing of remaining in fellowship with Jesus;
Ask and it will be given to you; your wants, your needs, and your desires.
If we remain in Jesus we will only ask what is pleasing to Him.
Verse 8 is God’s will for our lives. To give Him glory by producing much
fruit. Why? So the world can see what a disciple of Jesus looks like. We are
the first beneficiaries of abiding in Jesus.
LOVE LIKE THE FATHER
V:9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
It is our duty to give a testimony of the Father's love for us. Jesus constantly talked
about the Father to his disciples and followers. He left no doubt that He was under
the Father’s commands.
We must first know the Father’s love for us. We must consider that whatever we
have, whatever we have accomplished is because of the Father’s Love. From
time to time we must reflect on what God has done in our lives. It is only
when we have confidence in the Father that we will express our confidence
to others.
The evidence of our love for God is our obedience to His commands. Notice
the result of our obedience is Jesus’s joy. Not partial joy, but complete joy.
Not joy that fades when trouble arises, but joy during trouble.
A FRIEND’S LOVE
V:12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.
Love requires sacrifice. If you are not willing to sacrifice yourself for someone,
love doesn’t exist. I am not talking about killing yourself. I am talking about doing
all that you know that will be helpful to them.
You can like a person without loving them. You can’t love a person
without liking them.
Those you love become your friends. Those you like become people you use. You
tell a true friend everything that will be helpful to them. You don’t worry about
hurting a true friend's feelings if what you know will help them.
Jesus made known to us everything He knew about the Father. We can only have
full knowledge of the Father through faith in Jesus.
CHOSEN BY LOVE
V:16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 17 This is my command: Love each other.
We must keep in mind that we did not come to Christ on our own initiative. It
was the Lord who chose us and gifted us with the spiritual gifts and talents to
bear fruit.
The benefit of being a branch in the vine of Jesus is the constant flow of spiritual
blessing. The blessing that we pass on to others is in abundance. We are assured that
all we need and want comes from the Father when our prayers are in Jesus' name.
We learn to love others through the love Jesus has shown us.
Rev. M. Mitchell
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