The True Vine, are You Plugged In?

Hello, sorry I missed my Sunday post from the Gospel of John. So here we in chapter 15. As Christ Jesus and His disciples left the Upper Room and moved toward the Garden of Gethsemane they passed the temple. Here one of the chief ornaments was a “golden vine with a cluster as large as a man.” This decoration becomes the basis of a visual parable. Christ Jesus’ intimate relationship with these men could not be stated in precise, theological terms. So, as He had done all through His ministry, He used the illustration of a vine and its branches to illustrate spiritual truth. His union with these men was as alive as the relationship of the vine to its branches.

It is generally agreed that Christ Jesus' discourse in this and the next chapter was at the close of the last supper, the night in which He was betrayed, and it is a continued discussion, not interrupted as that in the preceding chapter was; and what He chose to discuss was very pertinent to the present sad occasion.

Now that Christ Jesus was about to leave them, 1. They would be tempted to leave Him, and return to the Mosaic law again; and so He told them how necessary it was that they should by faith adhere to Him and abide in Him. 2. They would be tempted to grow apart; and so He told them how important it was to love one another, and to keep up their fellowship when He was gone; which had in the past had been their comfort. 3. They would be tempted to shrink from their apostleship when they met with hardships; and so Christ Jesus prepared them to bear the shock of the world's hatred. There are four words to which Christ Jesus' discourse in this chapter may be reduced; 1. Fruit (v. 1-8). 2. Love (v. 9-17). 3. Hatred (v. 18-25). The Comforter (v. 26,27). This morning we will be looking at vs. 1-8 where we will see the vine and the fruit.

John 15:1-8
15:1 "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. 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.

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 you. 8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

1. Christ Jesus Is The True Vine – (vs. 1)

1. Christ Jesus is the “true vine” (v. 1). In the Old Testament writings, Israel had frequently been spoken of as the vine which Yahweh loved and tended. But over and over again, waywardness and corruption had made God’s people barren ~
   Let me sing now for my well-beloved
   A song of my beloved concerning His vineyard.
   My well-beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill.
   He dug it all around, removed its stones,
   And planted it with the choicest vine.
   And He built a tower in the middle of it
   And also hewed out a wine vat in it;
   Then He expected it to produce good grapes,
   But it produced only worthless ones...
   For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel
   And the men of Judah His delightful plant.
   Thus He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed;
   For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress. (Is. 5:1-2;7) 
   
   
   
   
   Christ Jesus is the real vine, the Chosen One from God. His Father owns the vineyard and cares for it. The disciples and all Christians are the branches. The Pope is not the vine, Mohamed was not the vine, Billy Graham is not the vine, and the church is not the vine. Christ Jesus and Christ Jesus alone is the true vine! Branches placed anywhere else are false branches. 
   
   
   What vine have you plugged into? The world's vine – wealth and fame? A famous or charismatic preacher or church leader? Maybe it's a famous sports figure or political figure? If you are plugged in to any of these or anything else you have plugged your branch into the wrong vine. Again Christ Jesus is the one and only true vine. Why not plug into Him today?

Christ Jesus is the vine, and from His vine comes many branches. The non-producing branches are just dead wood.

2. Throwing Out The Dead Wood (vs. 2, 5-6)

In verses 2, and 6 Christ Jesus speaks of taking away the non-producing branches. Are the branches referred to in these verses believers? 

If that is the case you can see three types of believers named in these first verses of chapter 15. There are those who bear no fruit, those who bear some fruit, and later in verse 5, those who bear much fruit. But if this is a reference to believers then we are hard press to make sense of it. If once saved, always saved then how can one be cut off and thrown into the fire?

As I read this verse I can only think that it does not refer to true followers of Christ Jesus, but instead it refers to those who play at being a Christian. Barns in his commentary Barnes' Notes put it like this. As the vinedresser will remove all branches that are dead or that bear no fruit, so will God take from his church all professed Christians who give no evidence by their lives that they are truly united to the Lord Jesus. 

I do not want you to doubt your salvation, but went you examine your life are you really plugged into Christ Jesus or are you just playing at being a Christian?

So the vinedresser throws out the dead branches. He also works on the producing branches.

3. Pruning The Producers (vs. 2, 5-6, 8)

The “vinedresser” also prunes those sprouts and leaves which would hinder the branches from bearing fruit in any way. 

Generally in the month of August the little shoots that would take life from the vine would be pinched off. The fruit-bearing branches must get all the nourishment. 

The experiences in life we call troubles—the hurts and disappointments and defeats—are the Father’s way of pinching off those excess leaves that seem so attractive, but bear no fruit. 

The “vinedresser” calls you to strong discipline and obedience, and the rearrangement of your priorities so that time and talent and resources are at His disposal instead of being drained off in peripheral interests. 

The “vinedresser” has only one criteria for pruning: Will the branches bear more fruit? All true Christians, should bear some fruit. To bear fruit is to show by your life that you are under the influence of Christ Jesus, and that Holy Spirit produces in you His fruits.

Can people tell you are a Christian by the way you live your life? Do you live your life each and every day in such away that it honors God?

Christ Jesus is the true vine, and your branch should be hooked into Him and producing evidence of that.

4. Are You Abiding In Him? (vs. 7-8)

In vs. 7-8 you are told that in order for you to glorify God, you must: 

1. Be united to Christ - if you abide in me.

2. That in order to be preserved in this union, you must have your life grounded in the doctrine of Christ Jesus - and my words abide in you. 

3. That to profit from this union and doctrine, you must pray – ask whatever you wish.

4. That every heavenly blessing shall be given to those who continue in this union with a loving obedient praying spirit. - ask whatever you wish, and it will be done... 

It is the honor of the vinedresser to have good, strong, vigorous vines, that are plentiful and laden with fruit. 

It is the honor of God to have strong, vigorous, holy children, entirely freed from the wages of sin, and perfectly filled with His love. 

Can you be found abiding in Christ Jesus today? If the answer is no, then why not? Christ Jesus is a gentle master with a yoke that is easy ~ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matt 11:29-30

Conclusion: Even when you understand God's Word, it is easy for you to struggle with how to best make it work in your life. Let's look at Christ Jesus' words again in vs. 3: You are already clean; you must remain in me; your fruit glorifies God. While the things of this earth are temporary, the things of God are not. And so the abiding realities of this passage which includes answered prayer, the Father's glory, and Christ Jesus' affirmation of discipleship will always remain so.

If you have not done so yet, will you graft your branch into the only true vine, which is Christ Jesus; today?