9 The True Vine
9
The True Vine
I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 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. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also 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. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
John 15:1–8
You transplanted a vine from Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. Its branches reached as far as the Sea, its shoots as far as the River. Why have you broken down its walls so that all who pass by pick its grapes? Boars from the forest ravage it, and insects feed on it.… Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire; at your rebuke your people perish.
Psalm 80:8–13, 16
I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit.… The vineyard of the LORD Almighty is the nation of Israel, and the people of Judah are the vines he delighted in. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.
Isaiah 5:1–2, 7
John 15:1–8 is the seventh and last of the I AM statements recorded in the gospel of John. The first four were spoken publicly to the crowds, the fifth privately to Martha, and the last two privately to His disciples in His Upper Room Discourse. Using the metaphor of the vine, Jesus explained how they could serve Him in His absence and bear fruit for His glory. Just as a deep-sea diver survives underwater by breathing oxygen sent down from above, so God’s people grow and serve on earth because they have a living connection with Jesus Christ in heaven and abide in Him.
Jesus made it clear that apart from Him they could do nothing (John 15:5). Please note that He did not say they would be handicapped or disadvantaged, but that they were helpless, unable to serve Him effectively at all. What might look like spiritual service would be only “wood, hay or straw” (1 Cor. 3:12) and would burn up at the judgment seat of Christ. “For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen” (Rom. 11:36). If our work doesn’t begin with Christ, continue to be sustained by Christ, and end at Christ for His glory, it will not last.
In New Testament days, the Jews were basically an agricultural people and familiar with cultivating vineyards and making wine. Because water was a precious commodity in the ancient Near East, wine was a necessity and not a luxury. The prophets often used the concept of overflowing wine vats as a description of God’s blessing (Joel 3:18; Amos 9:13; Eccl. 9:7) and a scarcity of wine as evidence of God’s discipline (Deut. 28:39, 51; Joel 1:10). The prophets also used the winepress as a symbol of judgment (Lam. 1:15; Joel 3:11–13).
In Scripture, a vine can symbolize not only Jesus Christ but also the nation of Israel (Ps. 80:9–16; Isa. 5; 27; Jer. 2:21; 12:10–11; Ezek. 15; 17; 19:10–14; Hos. 10:1–2) and the apostate Gentile civilization on earth before Jesus returns—“the vine of the earth” (Rev. 14:14–20 NASB). In the book of Revelation, the followers of Antichrist are called “those who live on the earth” or “the inhabitants of the earth” (see Rev. 3:10; 6:10; 8:13; 11:10, 18; 13:12, 14; 14:6). Christians are citizens of heaven even though they live and serve on earth (Phil. 3:18–21), and their affection and attention are directed heavenward (Col. 3:1–4).
Just as Jesus is “the true bread” (John 6:32), so He is “the true vine,” which means He is the original of which all other bread and wine are only copies. This I AM statement in John 15 has a wealth of spiritual truth in it, but I want to focus primarily on the practical truths that can help us become fruitful Christians and joyful servants.