The Vine, And The Branches

A branch cannot bear fruit by itself; it can do so only if it remains in the vine. In the same way you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in me. "I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me,

 and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me.

 

Prayer

When I travel on a plane, I am completely dependent on the expertise of the pilot and crew. I rely on those who design the airports and runways, the computers and navigational equipment on the plane. I am dependent on the skills of all those who manufacture and service the planes.

When I drink a glass of water at home, I depend upon the chemists who make sure our water is clean and the plumber who gets drinking water into the taps of every home in our cities and towns.

When I switch on a light, I rely on the know how of contractors, technicians, and inspectors, and of a vast industry of specialists. We rely on doctors, nurses, the pharmaceutical companies, and the Medicare system to help us stay healthy.

When you think about it, we are dependent on so many people. We trust them to do their job so that we can live safe and happy lives. When we go out to eat we trust that the chef is providing good fresh food. We know there are times when this has not happened and people have gotten sick.

Michael, a helicopter pilot was home on leave from oversea mission and was sharing his story with friends all about the choppers he flew often in very dangerous conditions far out at sea. He concluded by saying that his life and that of the crew depended on one bolt – the bolt that held the huge whirling rotor in place.

He went on to say the mechanics had named this the ‘jesus’ bolt. You can see why. Without the ‘jesus’ bolt they would be doomed. Their safe return home depended entirely on this one single bolt.

That is a modern parable of what Jesus is telling us in the reading from John’s Gospel today when he says, "I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me" (John 15:5). You don’t have to know too much about gardening and plants to realize that a tree, shrub or any plant as far as that goes, depends on the trunk and the root system for it to be happy and healthy.

A man once planted cucumbers in his backyard. He made sure that the ground was well prepared. He bought the best cucumber seedlings and planted them. To his delight, soon he had cucumber vines all across his back yard. The plants were green and healthy.

One day as he walked through his garden, he noticed that some of the leaves didn’t look as green as the others. Not many days later, some of the leaves were as good as dead. He followed the vines with the dead leaves until he got back to the main plant.

There at the base of the main stem he noticed that some kind of insect had almost eaten through the stem. The cucumber plant was dependent on the main stem for water and nourishment. Life giving juices flow from the main stem to the branches and enables delicious fruit to appear.

It's not possible to produce fruit without being connected to the stem. Even though the man had cultivated the ground carefully and watered daily, the cucumber vines were unable to receive that goodness and so withered and died.

In a similar manner, as Christians, we need our true vine, Jesus Christ. When Jesus says, "I am the vine, and you are the branches" he is talking about the very special relationship that exists between him and us, between you and I. We are dependent on him for everything we need in our daily life from food, health, family and good friends to love, forgiveness, hope, comfort and eternal life.

Apart from him we would be like the cucumber vine with its wilting leaves. Without being joined to the main stem and roots we would die. As Jesus said, "If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you can’t do anything without me" (John 15:5 CEV).

When did this take place? At our baptism and faith is professed in the name of Jesus Christ. We might say that when the water of baptism was poured over us we were grafted into the vine, Jesus. We were intimately connected to him and receive from him all that we need to sustain our lives.

We are connected to him when we come here to worship, and when we hear his Word. It doesn’t matter how much we think we know about the Bible or how many time we have read it we need the life-giving nourishment that God’s Word offers. As we read it and study it, God’s Word offers us strength in the face of new situations.

We are joined to Jesus when we receive his body and blood in Holy Communion. We are refreshed and freed from the guilt of our sin. Our faith is strengthened as we are nourished through God’s Word and Sacrament. If we don’t eat and drink every day we would become sick and maybe even die.

Likewise as branches of the true vine, Jesus, we are kept healthy and alive because we are connected to the source of life. The translators of the New Testament have used various words to describe this connection. Whether we talk of ‘abiding’, ‘remaining’, or ‘being joined’, one thing is clear being connected to Christ is crucial. It is the only way to a complete life

There are those who say that there is only one heaven with many different roads that lead there. Whether it’s Buddha, Mohammed, Jesus or the latest guru in town it doesn’t really matter, they all point to the same place. It’s okay to follow any of them. That’s not what Jesus is saying.

No one can get to the Father without him, (John 14:6) and he is the only vine from which the branches are nourished. Without the crucified and risen Jesus, the branches wither and die. Jesus puts it so vividly, "Those who do not remain in me are thrown out like a branch and dry up; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, where they are burned" (John 15:6).

When we plant a cucumber patch we expect to have a crop of cucumbers. From the grape vine we expect a crop of juicy grapes. And likewise with us. Jesus is the vine, we are branches and from the branches Jesus says he expects to find a lot of fruit. To be joined to Christ, to be a branch that is grafted into the vine Jesus means to "bear fruit".

The kind of fruit that should be evident in our lives is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control (Galatians 5:22,23). The fruit we bear shows itself in very practical ways.

If we are joined to Christ you cannot look the other way when someone is in need. If we are joined to Christ you don’t cross the street to avoid the person with whom you have had a disagreement.

As a branch attached to Christ we don’t hold back our forgiveness, we try to be understanding and helpful, we want to be encouraging instead of being negative and critical. Being connected to Jesus means that we will seek reconciliation instead of adding fuel to the disharmony.

It means showing love and patience to those whom we think don’t deserve it. In other words, being joined to Jesus has practical implication for the way we live our every day lives.

This nice picture of the vine, branches and fruit is not just a theory. It isn’t a matter of having a nice warm feeling about being closely connected to Jesus. It isn’t something we nod our heads in agreement here in this church and then forget about it until next time.

Bearing fruit isn’t an optional my friends. Showing love, care, forgiveness, commitment to Jesus’, eagerness to worship and to hear God’s Word, is a natural part of being a branch attached to Christ, the vine.

But to have a good crop of grapes it is necessary for the farmer to prune his vines. When I lived in Kitzingen, Germany, Kitzingen is in the River Main valley a vine growing area, I was amazed at how ruthless the farmer is with his vines.

I witnessed on several occasions how the farmer cuts off all the unnecessary suckers, and leafy branches leaving a pile of dead wood on the ground alongside each vine. Pruning is essential for a good harvest. (example: Ulla Kock with prunner).

If the farmer doesn’t prune the vine and get rid of all the useless branches, the vine will look lovely and leafy, but the quality of the fruit will be poor if there is any fruit at all.

Jesus is saying that all the useless foliage in our lives needs to be cut away. We may think this foliage makes us look attractive especially to the world, but will not in anyway help us to bear fruit that will bring glory to God.

It might be acceptable to others to run down people behind their backs, or participate in some harmful act that endangers our health and leads others astray but must be pruned away if we are to show the fruit of care, understanding, and self-control.

We might think that it’s okay to be unkind, grumpy and intolerant of other religions, race, different orientations, these must be pruned away if you are to grow the fruit of love, peace, and patience

To bear the kind of fruit that Jesus is looking for means to prune away all this foliage so that the Holy Spirit can cause real fruit to grow – the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience and self- control.

None of this is easy. We find it easier to ignore people than to help them. It is so much easier to be hurtful and critical than to encourage and comfort someone. We can’t do this kind of pruning by ourselves.

We need our heavenly gardener, to give us the strength and the will to want to change. We need the Holy Spirit to help us cut out the dead wood of self-righteous and to grow beautiful fruit. That’s why it is ever so important that we are connected to the vine.

From the vine, Jesus, we receive the nourishment we need to live as his disciples. We receive the forgiveness we need for our failures; we grow in our understanding of what it means to be baptized persons in everyday living.

We are still in the Easter season. Because the vine lives, so do the branches. The vine daily gives the food and nourishment to the branches so that they can produce a lot of fruit. Likewise the life of Christ flows to us though the Word and Sacraments.

 

As Jesus said: "I am the vine you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, and I in him, will bear much fruit…," the fruit of faith and good deeds.

May the life-giving sap of Christ’s love make us all fruit bearing branches.

Amen.