Abiding in Christ

John 15:1–11

Summary: In John 15:1-17, Jesus presents the metaphor of the vine and the branches, illustrating the vital relationship between Himself and His followers. He emphasizes the importance of abiding in Him to bear fruit.

In the context of the Bible, Christ is not only the source of life but also the fulfillment of the promises made throughout the Scriptures regarding a messianic figure who connects humanity to God. The imagery of the vine and branches reflects Jesus’ role as the mediator who allows believers to share in His divine nature and fruitful existence.

Big Idea: True disciples of Jesus Christ abide in the true vine in an intimate personal relationship that is life-giving and Fruit-producing.

Introduction:

What comes to your mind when you think of what it means to bear much fruit as a disciple of Jesus Christ?

How is it that I become a disciple that bears much fruit in my life?

The answer this sermon will show us is to continue to do the work and accomplish the mission of Jesus in the world. Declaring and displaying to the world the truth that God has sent Jesus to save people from their sins and call them to life in His Kingdom!

A possible place in which Jesus gave this instruction to His disciples was the temple courtyard.

In the time of Jesus a great golden vine hung over the entrance to the Jerusalem temple. Josephus describes it: ‘The gate opening into the building was, as I said, completely overlaid with gold, as was the whole wall around it. It had, moreover, above it those golden vines, from which depended grape-clusters as tall as a man’ (Jewish War v.210–212). This teaching on the true vine may have been given in the temple courtyard with the great golden vine glinting in the light of the Passover moon.

1. The True Vine is Jesus Christ

John 15:1 ““I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.

Against the OT background of Israel as the vine that failed to produce good fruit Jesus said, I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener/vinedresser. Jesus is calling to mind the work and mission Israel had been given by God. And as we will see where they failed Jesus succeeded. Jesus success in the work and mission God had given to Him (in which he finds his deepest joy) is what He is passing on to His disciples by abiding in Him as the True Vine.

This is the last of the seven different ‘I am’ sayings(6:35, 48, 51; 8:12; 10:7, 9; 10:11, 14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1, 5).

I have proposed quite a bit already. Let me explain it more fully.

Israel was suppose to be the light to the nations, the glory of God was to be revealed through Israel and they failed!

In the OT Israel is referred to as God’s vine, planted to bear His fruit. They were chosen and loved to fulfill this purpose. And Jesus is now saying, “I am the True Vine. He is putting Himself in strong contrast with the failed and “false” vine, Israel.

Psalm 80 and Isaiah 5 both make this very clear. God has set the nation of Israel apart for the purpose of making His name great among the nations and to be a light to the world (all non-Israel nations- gentiles). They were given the work of bringing the nations to God to worship Him in all His majesty and glory and holiness,

BUT THEY FAILED!

Jesus has succeeded in the purpose for which God has sent Him as the True VIne.

Jesus used the word ‘true’ (alēthinos) several times to denote what is true or genuine (4:23: ‘true worshippers’, 6:32: ‘true bread’, 15:1: ‘true vine’, 17:3: ‘the true God’). He used it on this occasion to indicate that, as the true vine, he produced what the nation Israel failed to produce: fruit for which the gardener (the Father) was looking. By depicting the Father as the gardener/vinedresser, Jesus indicated that the Father was in control of both his ministry (as the vine) and that of his disciples (as the branches).

Jesus is God and the Chosen True Vine!

Jesus has repeatedly identified Himself as the God of Israel. In each of His “I am” statements He is making self declarations that he is Israel’s God!

He now takes a metaphor of the vine, exceedingly familiar to the audience, and adds to His revealing to everyone who He is not only as Israel’s God but as God’s true representative in this world ACCOMPLISHING GOD’S MISSION TO BRING THE WORLD TO HIM IN A RESTORED RELATIONSHIP.

Jesus is telling the 11 that “I’m the true Israel. What they (the Nation of Israel) were supposed to be doing was really pointing to what I am actually doing. They were a failed precursor to the real true thing.

BUT I AM IS HERE!

So Jesus is the true vine, True Israel.

God’s plan of salvation and redeeming of all things and all people’s of the world centers on and finds its source in Jesus Christ. (2X)

TRANSITION

So please hear this as I want very much this to be clear. This oft referenced passage is about far more that your personal transformation as a disciple alone. But is also the call of Jesus to His genuine disciples/branches to continue His mission and work! Just as God had in the Old Testament named His people Israel The Vine and He would care for them in His vineyard so they might produce the fruit of righteousness of bringing the nations to God, Jesus is declaring Himself the True Vine and calling His people to be grafted to Him, the True Vine in the New Covenant established in His death and resurrection to accomplish the mission Israel failed to accomplish.

The second part of verse 1 also introduces God the Father as the Vine-dresser.

Jesus presents Himself as the 'true vine' and His Father as the 'vinedresser'. Jesus’Emphasis on our need to 'abide in Me' reveals an invitation to depend on Christ for spiritual nourishment and the Father our Vine dresser to care for us in such a way that we bear MORE fruit!

2. The Caring Vine-dresser

John 15:2–4 “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”

The concern of the Father as the vinedresser is fruitfulness of the vine! “…that it may bear more fruit”

Ancient viticulture practices also provide important background information. Two processes were involved, the training of the vines and the pruning of the branches. Vines were trained in one of two ways: (1) they were allowed to trail along the ground and then the fruit-bearing branches were lifted up by placing rocks or poles under them to allow aeration in order to ensure better grapes, or (2) they were trained from the outset on to poles or trellises, the branches being lifted on to these to improve their fruit-bearing potential.

THE SECOND PROCESS

Pruning was also an essential part of first-century viticulture practice, as it is today. The first pruning occurred in spring when vines were in the flowering stage. This involved four operations: (1) the removal of the growing tips of vigorous shoots so that they would not grow too rapidly; (2) cutting off one or two feet from the end of growing shoots to prevent entire shoots being snapped off by the wind; (3) the removal of some flower or grape clusters so that those left could produce more and better-quality fruit; and (4) the removal of suckers that arose from below the ground or from the trunk and main branches so that the strength of the vine was not tapped by the suckers. Spring pruning did not involve the removal of wooden branches or their subsequent burning.

The second pruning occurred in autumn after the grapes were harvested and the vines were dormant. This involved the removal of unwanted branches, those that had produced fruit in the previous season but would not produce fruit in the ensuing season. It also involved cutting back the desired branches (the shoots from the year-old branches that would produce fruit in the coming year) to ensure maximum fruit production. After the autumn pruning the cuttings, including many wooden branches, were gathered up and burned.

ALL THAT TO SAY SIMPLY AND SUCCINCTLY IS the loving care of the vinedresser is for the fruit bearing branches to be even more fruitful.

This pruning can take on the form described by the writer of Hebrews. Hebrews 12:4–11 “In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness…”

The good goal of this loving care of the vinedresser is our holiness and righteousness.

The goal of God in this care as the Vine-dresser is to be sure you are in a proper condition and connection to the Vine. (2X)

So we have seen who and what the True Vine is and does and the role the Father has as the Vine-dresser of the True Vine Jesus.

So we can now conclude this introduction into John 15 with this final and third point with an explanation of our what a genuine branch is and what it does as a part of the True Vine.

3. Genuine Branches

Dead unfruitful non-fruit bearing branches reveal their true nature. 1 John 2:19 “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

Genuine branches bear fruit!

Now do NOT take this to mean as is the case of many that the love of God is earned by our fruit bearing. What does a genuine branch do?

What the genuine branch does is not earning the Fathers love by obedience but experiences the Fathers loving care in its obedience to the words of Jesus which is always to do the will of the Father which is always to accomplish His mission.

John 4:32–34 “But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.”

As we abide in Jesus in an intimate personal relationship it will bring to life in us and through us all the same as it produced in Jesus’ life. This is the only way a genuine disciple/branch can accomplish the mission and do the work Jesus asks us to continue on His behalf.

Doing the Father’s work (obedience to Jesus instructions) and accomplishing His mission (the great commission to the church) is to be done just as it was done by Jesus.

Jesus experience, and ours, of joy and the caring love of the Father was experienced in His obedience to the Father’s work prepared for Him and that He was sent to do. Jesus is preparing His Disciples (the 11) and of course by extension us as Jesus disciples to produce the fruit of accomplished works and fulfillment of His mission! Our joy must be His joy in our obedience to Jesus in our ongoing work to which He has called all genuine disciples and prepared for us to walk in, just like Jesus!

Ephesians 2:10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

This verse explodes in beauty and significance in the light of who Jesus is as the the True Vine and we His branches!

As we can see very quickly this work takes on a unique characteristic that is elaborated on in verse 9ff that only explain what verses 1-8 sought to establish as a foundation for us to be display as the beautiful work of God as His people, the church.

We will continue to see more fully what the fruit bearing work of genuine branches are next week. For now let’s bask in the joy of knowing we have believed in Jesus and been made a part of the vine and He will be relentless in the work in our lives to bear much fruit as God’s people.