“I am a true sprouting vine, and the farmer who tends the vine is my Father. [2] He cares for the branches connected to me by lifting and propping up the fruitless branches and pruning every fruitful branch to yield a greater harvest.
John 15:1-4 TPT
Part of the beauty of the Holy Scriptures is how God uses things we can see and touch to communicate deep eternal truths. Romans 1:20 says the invisible things of God are communicated to us by what we can see. Knowing this truth encourages us to look for God in our surroundings and even every aspect of our daily lives, including our careers, families, and relationships. Being children of a God, who is Spirit as John 3:6 says, it makes sense that as spirits ourselves, everything we do is spiritual. Life then takes an exciting twist every day once we decide to make an effort to interact with the Spiritual that is in and all around us as much or even more than the physical world we see.
A lot of Israelites were farmers and so Jesus’ parables often included some aspect of agriculture, just like in the parable of the vine. John 15:1 points out three characters worthy of note: Christ (the true vine), Our Father (the vine dresser), and the branches (us, His Church). The branches and the vine are one! The vine cannot bear fruits without having branches and the branches cannot survive without the branch. This shows beautifully, the co-dependence between Christ and His Body, the church. We are one with God, not separate. This is important because the flow of life in a vine is upward from the root, through the stem of the vine to the branches. Hence, Jesus said without him, we can do nothing. Jesus lived this life while He was on the earth and made statements like “I can of my own self do nothing” in John 5:30 even though He was fully God. Job said in Job 23:14 “He performs that which is appointed for me” and Jesus said in John 14:10 “My Father in Me does the work”. This means we can experience God’s divine life flowing through us even in the mundane things we are appointed to do as we remain in Him. Imagine how beautiful and stress-free life would be when we do everything by the strength and life of Christ our true vine.
John 15:2 is a verse commonly misunderstood by many. The verse in the KJV says every branch in me that does not bear fruit, He takes away and that which bears fruits, He prunes. However, the word translated as “takes away” really means to uphold or lift up. How do you know a true friend? When you are in need. One who really loves you will not cast you away in your weakest moment but will lift you up. Jesus calls us friends! Note that this branch Jesus speaks of is IN Him. God has promised to never leave nor forsake us.
Even when this branch is bearing fruit, He purges or prunes it. What does this mean? A healthy branch often has the tendency to grow a little branch from itself. This little branch often splits the flow of life from the vine to the branch, causing the fruits to be smaller and less nutritious. A good farmer diligently looks out for these and prunes off these little distracting branches. For us, these branches may not be sin per se. They could be careers, relationships, even ministry or family, anything that is a distraction from the true fellowship with the Vine.
Final thoughts: The process of pruning isn’t always a beautiful one. Depending on how big foliage may be, pruning can cause some stress to a branch. However, properly pruned branches usually have the best fruits and fewer pests in the long run. Knowing that we have a vine-dresser with eternity worth of experience who is equally committed to our blossoming gives us assurance that all things work together for good to the called according to His purpose.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for your dedication to me. Thank you because you are able to present me faultless before the throne of God. Help me to yield to Your pruning, that I may bear bigger fruits that will make You proud. Amen.
Scripture: John 15:1-5
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