The True Vine
Notes
Transcript
Jesus is… who Scripture says He is.
This has been the theme throughout our study in John as we have looked at Jesus’ seven “I am” statements He made.
It is critically important to our faith that we accept Jesus’ identity as the Son of God.
As the Son of God He is:
Bread of Life
Light of the world
The good shepherd
The gate
The resurrection and the life
The way, truth, and the life
We have looked at these declarations to unpack how significant each one of them are. And in each of the studies, we have explained that there is no wordly substitute for any of these things. Jesus truly is I am meaning everything else… is not. Did you catch that? Jesus truly is I AM… meaning everything else is not.
This evening, we conclude the series with a study in John 15. Jesus makes His final I am declaration.
1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
And this declaration… has some significant historical roots. So before looking at John 15 in full, I want us to go back to a phrase used in the Old Testament… a phrase or a word used to describe the people of Israel.
Israel, in the Old Testament, was often referred to as… what? The VINE that God planted. Such references include:
8 You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
Then we see passages like this:
1 I will sing for the one I love
a song about his vineyard:
My loved one had a vineyard
on a fertile hillside.
2 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.
And lastly we see this in Jeremiah 2:21
21 I had planted you like a choice vine
of sound and reliable stock.
How then did you turn against me
into a corrupt, wild vine?
Israel… was supposed to be God’s evangelistic “vine” if you will to the rest of the world. It was to stand as a nation set apart, a nation that would honor God and follow His commands. A nation the would worship Him… but time and time again, Israel failed. Israel would make the choice to dishonor God, to engage in idol worship, and to turn away from God.
Israel missed out on its purpose and calling.
So why would God use the illustration of the vine?
Vines and vineyards were very common in this area of the world so illustrations that used this imagery would be understood by many.
The land was very fertile and would produce amazing results. In fact, grape clusters weighing roughly 12 pounds each have been reported in Palestine.
I also found something else that was interesting… vineyards were highly protected. They were either hedged or fenced as protection from wild animals. They also had something else that was unique… a watchtower was constructed in each vineyard that would house a guard. This guard would protect the vineyard from thieves and robbers.
So as I consider the words in Scripture… that Israel is the vine that God planted, that also means God is protecting them and watching over them. This “vineyard” was a precious and protected commodity of God.
But as stated before and as Scripture makes clear… Israel would not follow God as they were supposed to and this… was problematic. Israel was to be a beacon of God’s holiness and righteousness. … and they failed.
God did not mess up… His people did - as we do as well. We live in a broken world that is consumed by sin and we too are influenced and swayed to do things that do not please the Lord.
So God’s answer was simple… it was time to send in the TRUE vine.
Jesus identifies Himself as the true vine - as One who had not been corrupted by this world. Jesus takes on the identity of the One who has come to reveal the holiness and righteousness of our God.
Jesus did… what Israel could never do. Jesus did… what none of us could ever do! He lived a sinless life. His walk was blameless and pure. He never strayed from the Father’s plan - He was always about the Father’s business.
As Jesus continues on in John 15, He gives some important things to consider regarding His identity as the true vine.
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, 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.
Now, right out of the box someone might read this and say, “I don’t want to be cut off from Jesus so I better start producing fruit” but this would be missing the main point entirely. YES, producing fruit for the kingdom is important… but there is an even more important point we must see and remember.
This passage is not so much about producing fruit as it is about REMAINING or ABIDING in Him who is the true vine!
The point Jesus is making to all of His followers is simple: As Christ is the TRUE vine, His followers must make the choice to REMAIN in Him!
Verse 4 lays it out well.
4 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.
The rest of what we see in John 15:1-11 are the results of what life looks like for those who REMAIN IN CHRIST… who abide in the One who is the TRUE vine.
We see three attributes given by Christ of what life in the vine looks like. OUR LIFE AS FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST SHOULD LOOK DIFFERENT FROM THOSE WHO LIVE APART FROM HIM. And we see three of those differences given to us by Jesus in this passage.
As we look at these points tonight, I want us to be honest with ourselves and ask, “Am I truly abiding in Christ? Do my actions reflect the life of one remaining in Him… or of one remaining in the world?”
The point is NOT to condemn… but to realign. Sometimes we can get knocked off course. Sometimes we become distracted. Israel struggled with this all throughout the OT, let’s not think we cannot find ourselves in that same position.
Jesus is the true vine and these next three points reveal what life looks like as we REMAIN in Him.
Those who REMAIN in Christ are WASHED by the WORD.
Those who REMAIN in Christ are WASHED by the WORD.
I want us to see a couple of things from John 15 regarding this point.
First, Jesus declares His disciples to be “clean” in verse three for a specific reason.
3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
The disciples had ben cleansed by the Word that Christ had spoken to them. BECAUSE of their relationship with Christ (who is the Word made flesh), they had been washed by the Word spoken to them.
Thus, they were connected to the vine (who is Christ) because of their relationship to the Word (who is Christ).
Those who REMAIN in Christ, REMAIN in His Word.
So what does it mean for us today to have a relationship or a connection with the Word?
Before we can answer that we need to have an understanding of John 1:14
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus is the Word that became flesh. So to know the Word is to know Jesus and vise versa. To know Jesus is to know the Word.
Therefore, if we desire to REMAIN in the true vine… to be those who have been washed by the Word… then we must be those who KNOW and LIVE the commands given by the Word.
Jesus explains this a bit further in John 15:9-10
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
Jesus tells us to remain in His love and we do this by doing what? KEEPING HIS COMMANDS.
Now, to be clear, God does not love us any less should we choose to break His commands. HIS LOVE REMAINS. As the Word makes clear, His love ENDURES forever. NOTHING can separate us from His love.
However, when we choose to break His commands WE CHOOSE not to abide or remain in His love. His love is there, we simply do not receive it.
We demonstrate our love for Christ as we daily choose to keep His commands.
The keeping of His commands will keep us away from sin. The keeping of His commands will keep us away from the things of this world and darkness.
Jesus’ commands are given that we might experience His life to the full. Jesus’ words will NEVER lead a person to sin. His commands will NEVER lead a person to a place away from the Father.
Remember, Jesus is the TRUE vine meaning He will not fail as Israel did. He will not lead a person to improper worship, distractions, idolatry, etc. Jesus will ONLY lead a person back to the Father.
So in order to keep the commands of Jesus, in order to live by the instruction given, in order to be cleansed or washed by the Word… those who remain in Christ must be students of the Word.
We cannot live what we do not know. We cannot keep commands we have not heard. The disciples were in close relationship with Jesus meaning they were in close relationship with the Word.
When we come to know the Word… we come to know Jesus. As we come to know Jesus, we come to know His forgiveness and redeeming power. Connection with the TRUE vine means hearing, knowing, and living His cleansing Word.
Those Who REMAIN in Christ Will BEAR Much FRUIT.
Those Who REMAIN in Christ Will BEAR Much FRUIT.
Secondly, if we remain in Jesus, our lives will produce results of life in the vine.
Jesus makes this clear throughout the passage we are studying. But I want to focus in on one part in particular.
John 15:4-5
4 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.
5 “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.
We have a basic understanding of how a grapevine works. The ultimate goal of planting a vine is the production of fruit.
Al of the care, all of the patience, all of the protecting and oversight is given so that the vine can produce… grapes. The fruit of the vine is what we seek. But the fruit would not be possible without a healthy vine supplying life to the branches.
Think of our walk with the Lord. He is the TRUE vine, we are the branches. We are connected to Jesus and He gives us life. The life He gives us is given with purpose: TO PRODUCE FRUIT.
As Jesus makes clear in the verses we just read, a branch not connected to the vine can do nothing. It cannot produce life on its own nor can it produce fruit of the vine. OUR ABILITY TO PRODUCE FRUIT FOR THE KINGDOM HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH OUR CONNECTION TO THE VINE!
And should there be a connection without fruit, well, Jesus says what happens in this case as well. God is the gardener… and He looks for branches that do not produce fruit.
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.
Our connection with the vine carries a 2 part purpose.
One - remaining in Christ supplies us with life.
We cannot truly live outside of Jesus. Remember what I said in the introduction about the I am statements of Jesus? There is no worldly substitute for what is offered in Christ.
People are looking for life but will find no true satisfaction with anything of this world. They connect themselves with trends, substances, ideologies, identities, relationships, and so forth in which they hope to find the life they are looking for. But they are left unsatisfied. They are left still feeling a void… feeling lifeless.
We will not find the wholeness and life we need outside of Jesus! Everything else will fail you… but Jesus Christ will NEVER fail you.
The living water Jesus supplies as the TRUE vine will never leave you thirsty… He will never leave you unfulfilled. Jesus WILL SUPPLY your EVERY need. Jesus is the source and giver of life more abundantly!
Secondly, the life that Jesus gives us… is intended to give life to others. IF His life is in us, we will produce the fruit of the vine.
Our fruit will be that which points people to who or what we are connected to. We are identified by the fruit that we bear. Our relationship with Christ will either be confirmed or debunked through the fruit that we bear.
IF we remain in Christ, we will bear Christ-like fruit.
This will be seen in our attitudes, our behaviors, our daily walk, our finances, our lifestyle, our commitment, etc. Jesus will be seen in ALL that we are.
IF our remaining in Christ is nothing but a claim, then our fruit will call us out.
Jesus makes this clear in His Sermon on the Mount. In His warning regarding false prophets, He makes this statement:
20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
Listen, I’m not here to judge or to condemn or to guilt or to embarrass. However, it is important that we take time to evaluate the fruit we are producing in life.
We do so with this simple question: Does my daily life lead others to Jesus? Do my actions and words point people to His saving grace?
Here’s the reality… God will cut off the branches bearing NO fruit. As we remain in Christ, we MUST be about the will of the Father. God’s will for us is to produce fruit for His kingdom. If we are connected to the vine for any other reason i.e. just to get filled or as a get out of hell free move, then we are missing it completely.
Jesus wants to FILL you with both LIFE and PURPOSE! These two things are CRITICAL to our well being. He not only fills the void, but He gives purpose to those who have been made whole again!
Those Who REMAIN in Christ Will RECEIVE from GOD.
Those Who REMAIN in Christ Will RECEIVE from GOD.
God desires to use those who remain in Christ… for His glory. As we bear fruit for the kingdom, we bring honor and glory to God. And as we operate according to this purpose, God is FAITHFUL… say that word with me… FAITHFUL… to help us along the way.
Look at Jesus’ words in John 15:7-8
7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
Whoa… did we just read this right? God will give us whatever we ask… similar to a genie in a bottle? I sour wish a command for God?
NO… that is not how this works at all. I want to repeat something I said just a moment ago. As we bear fruit for the kingdom, we bring honor and glory to God. And as we OPERATE according to this purpose, GOD’S PURPOSE, God is faithful to help us along the way.
14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
HIS WILL is that we produce fruit for His kingdom. His will is that we point people to Jesus. His will is that we bring honor and glory to His name.
This idea that God will gives us whatever we want or ask is as immature as it gets. It places the emphasis on us, the branch, and off the vine that gives us life and purpose.
Consumerism… has no place in our relationship with Jesus nor does it have any place within His church. Consumerism places the focus on self, on personal wants and desires.
And yes, God cares about you and your wants and desires. However, the point of remaining in Christ is taking the focus off… YOU and placing it on HIM!
What I have found in my relationship with Jesus is HE WILL TAKE CARE OF MY NEEDS AND WANTS if I am faithful and abide in Him.
Paul knew this as well. He knew what it was like to have everything, and what it was like to have nothing. The secret to keep going was JESUS! Philippians 4:13
13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Life and purpose was not found in chasing wants and desires… it was found by remaining or abiding in Christ! It was found ONLY in the TRUE VINE!
God will give you EVERYTHING you need so long as you remain in Christ.
Jesus becomes our lifeline to God. Remember: what does the vine do for the branch? It is the source of life and nutrients for the branches connected to it. God wants to pour into you through the vine that is His Son!
The Vine who is Christ is the Word that brings us freedom, cleansing, and serves as our foundation.
The Vine who is Christ is the source of our life and purpose. He enables us to produce fruit for the kingdom and glory of God.
The Vine who is Christ keeps us connected to the will of the Father and the resources we need every single day. God WILL supply ALL your needs. The key is to remain in Jesus!
Closing
Closing
We we wrap this up with the question we asked ourselves in the introduction: “Am I truly abiding in Christ? Do my actions reflect the life of one remaining in Him… or of one remaining in the world?”
The answer comes from looking at three important clues.
Are you keeping the commands of Jesus? Are you living life according to the Word… or according to the world?
Are you producing fruit for the kingdom? Does your life, your words and your behaviors, point people to Jesus?
Are you receiving from God? Are you living according to your will, or are you living in His plan and purpose for your life?
There is no substitute for remaining in Christ. You will either find life in Him, or you will perish apart from Him.
As John 15:6 makes clear:
6 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.
God did not create you only to destroy you. He has a plan and a purpose for you… and all of that begins as we CHOOSE to remain in Christ. We must abide in the One who gives us life and purpose.
So our prayer is simple. “Lord, help me to remain in Jesus. Help me to abide in Him, ALWAYS. Help me to keep You commands. Help me to bear much fruit. Help me to receive from You.
If this is your prayer tonight, I want us to call out to the Lord and to receive from Him.
