Who Makes You Fruitful

Remain In Jesus And Bear Much Fruit

4.28.24 [John 15:1-8] River of Life (5th Sunday of Easter)

It’s the number one rule in real estate. Location. Location. Location.

You can change quite a bit about a home. You can paint it and fix up the backyard. You can remodel the kitchen & improve the curb appeal. But even if you go full HGTV, you can’t move it. The location is lasting and important. Even if you don’t have kids living in a good school district is attractive. Hiking trails are better than railroad tracks. A house with a view will always close the deal. Location. Location. Location.

It’s the number one rule in real estate. It’s also the number one rule in real, fruitful living. Location. Location. Location. Listen to Jesus: (Jn. 15:5) 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.

Jesus is teaching us the importance of our spiritual location. (Jn. 15:4) No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain in the vine. Location. Location. Location. (Jn. 15:6) 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. Location. Location. Location.

Just like house shopping, we want a good school district. What we’re being taught is crucial. Secondly, we want a place without a lot of outside noise, so no railroad tracks. And finally, we want a place with a great view. The right location has all three things 1) good teaching, 2) a spot where we can hear ourselves think, & 3) an extraordinary view. That’s where we’re going to settle down today. Let’s live with the Vine and follow his lead. Then we will be fruitful and fulfilled.

This text has all those things for us. But let’s take a quick glance at “the neighborhood” we’re in for John 15. It’s the night before Jesus was crucified. Shortly after Judas had left them all to hand Jesus over to the Sanhedrin. Shortly after Jesus had instituted the Lord’s Supper. He may have given this illustration in the Upper Room or on their way to the Garden of Gethsemane. The neighborhood sets an important context. This is not his teaching to the crowds. He is not telling people who have never heard him teach that they need to make a choice to remain in him. He is speaking to eleven men who have followed him closely for the past three years. Following him physically had been their identity for quite some time now. But that was about to change in a major way.

Jesus would be arrested, mocked, and crucified. The disciples’ worlds were about to be turned upside down. Jesus wanted them to know that they were still in his plans. He wanted them to hear that God the Father, the Gardener or Vinedresser, was working in them to make them more fruitful. He wanted them to remain in Jesus, even though Jesus’ time among was quickly coming to an end.

So how could they remain in him? Well, Jesus lays that out here because we are in the right location. He’s an expert teacher. He says to remain in him is to have (Jn. 15:7) his words remain in you and (Jn. 15:9) remain in his love. What does that mean?

When Jesus’ words remain in you and you remain in his love, his words are not just a passing thought, they’ve left a permanent imprint. When Jesus’ words remain in you and you remain in his love, you don’t just speak in pious platitudes or fine-sounding soundbites, you make dreadful confessions about yourself and difficult sacrifices for others. You wrestle with your sinful nature and all its wicked desires and you strive to deny yourself and pick up your cross and follow him.

You live a life of self-control—seeking opportunities to prove faithful and patient and to do good. Your life isn’t dominated by worries or complaints. You live a life of humble sacrifices—striving to be gentle, kind & compassionate, especially loving those who are hard to love.

When Jesus’ words remain in you and you remain in his love, life isn’t about what you can get or get away with, but how you can give glory to God in all that you think, say, and do. A fruitful life isn’t about serving the man or woman in the mirror but the Son of Man who was lifted up on the cross.

Does that sound like you? Do Jesus’ words remain in you even when others get on your last nerve? Does Jesus’ love remain in you when you’ve been wronged? Do Jesus’ words remain in you when you’re dealing with trouble and uncertainty? Does Jesus’ love remain in you when you’re feeling lost or abandoned?

So often we fall short of remaining in Jesus’ words or his love. We want to be the kind of people who say the right things, but our tongues utter things we can’t defend. We want to be the kind of people who keep Jesus' commands and love our enemies. But too often, we struggle to even love our decent neighbors as we love ourselves. In some moments, we don’t even love ourselves or what we’ve become.

Do you know why? It’s because we have lost sight of the number one rule in real, fruitful living. Location. Location. Location. We’re acting like our strength comes from within ourselves, rather than from the One who made his dwelling among us. We have forgotten why Jesus located himself in this world. We have lost sight of where our strength for holy living comes from. We have lost track of where the Father is and what he is doing. Location. Location. Location.

Jesus does not say to his disciples: I AM the Vine and you can be my branches if you just pattern your lives after me more carefully.

He makes three statements to his disciples, to all those who believe in him. I am the Vine. My Father is the Vinedresser. You are the branches. Those roles are distinct, clearly defined, and each is important. But the goals of all three are the same. Fruitfulness.

The Vine, with its deep roots and sturdy trunk, provides the structure and the nutrients that the branches need to be fruitful. But here’s the thing about grape vines. Wild grape vines aren’t all that interested in being fruitful. They are more vines and leaves than grapes. So good gardeners know that grape vines must be wrangled: pulled off the ground, crowded together, pruned back hard, and even restricted water—all counterintuitive actions that make it more fruitful.

The branches must be in the Vine & the Vine in the branches & also in the hands of a skilled Vinedresser. Location. Location. Location.

A good Vinedresser knows that a branch that has dropped to the ground is liable to try to start a new root system, to try to become its own vine instead of becoming fruitful. So the Vinedresser lifts that branch back up where it is supposed to be so it can be fruitful. If it remains unfruitful, he will make the difficult but necessary choice to cut it off, for the sake of the rest of the branches.

Yet even the fruitful branches need him. They are pruned, cut back, so that they might be more fruitful. And it’s not being cut back a little here and there. In many cases, expert vinedressers will say you need to cut 80-90% of the whole plant to make it flourish and be fruitful.

So how does God do this? He prunes us the same way he nourishes us—through his Word. This is why Jesus says: (Jn. 15:3) You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken to you. It’s also why he says: (Jn. 15:7) If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.

It is through the Word of God that we are pruned. It is through the Word of God that we are strengthened. It is through both uses of the Word of God, pruning and providing nourishment, that we are made fruitful.

One way God prunes us is through the Word of his Law. He lays bare all our sin, so that they might be taken away by his Son. This process isn’t pretty. It can be painful. But we need to be pruned so that we can be fruitful. God does this as he reveals the sinful passions and desires that produce the sour grapes of sinfulness. Our pride must be pared down. Our anger must be clipped. Our greed must be cut down. Our jealousy and lust must be lopped off. Our self-righteousness must be snipped. God prunes all these particular sins back with the word of his Law. He shows us that if we were to do as we please, to grow wild, we would only sin more and more. We would never produce the fruit that the Father looks for.

The Vinedresser prunes us so that we might produce fruit. After all, that’s why he planted his Son, the Vine, in the first place. Even in this, God demonstrated how important location was. He did not plant his Son in the sky and say imitate him and enter heaven. he did not plant his Son on a throne and say bow down to him and be welcomed into his kingdom. He planted his Son in a manger. In a humble town of Bethlehem. He planted his Son among sinners. He planted his Son on a cross and he declares whoever believes in him will have life to the full. Whoever believes in him will be fruitful.

And that is what you are. You are fruitful branches because Christ remains in you. His Word has left an eternal imprint on your heart and mind. You are fruitful branches because you remain in Christ. This world has many ideas on how to be fruitful, or successful as they call it. Some of those ideas fly in the face of your faith. But you remain in Jesus. You exercise spiritual self-control, disciplining your eyes and your tongue in a world that says whatever they feel and looks at whatever they like. You are compassionate and gentle in a world that is harsh and unforgiving. You love your enemies, blessing them and praying for them, even as they curse and persecute you. Your mind is at peace, your heart is filled with joy because Jesus’ words and his love assure you that he is in control and with you.

You are fruitful because of your location, location, location. A lot may change. Your appearance may change. Your job. Your health. Your energy. Your family life. But your location remains the same. You are in the Word. There’s good teaching about sin and grace. You have a spot where you can hear yourself think. You meditate on God’s Word and apply it to your life and the choices you make. And you have a perfect view. You see God’s Son, crucified, risen, and reigning on the throne. You are fruitful because of your location, location, location. Amen.