Originally posted 4/15/25
John 15:1-6 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 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. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.”
These verses contain the seventh “I AM” statement. These versus occur before Judas betrayed him. This was meant to be an encouragement to the disciples.
In typical fashion, Jesus provides an example that people would have understood. Using an agrigarian example would have been very familiar to his disciples. They understood how grapevine grew and produced fruit. They were familiar with the concept of pruning and cutting off unproductive branches.
Jesus says that he is the vine. He was setting up the contrast between believers and himself. Jesus is the source of everything on the vine. The branches, leaves and fruit depend on the vine. When separated from the vine, nothing can survive. Believers, likewise, cannot survive without our fellowship with Christ. The Holy Spirit comes upon us when we believe and the connection is made.
The ability to bear fruit is dependent upon the vine. If we are healthy branches, we will bear fruit. How does this compare to our walk with Jesus? When we are connected well to the Lord, we will grow and bear fruit. Others will see a change in us. We will reflect the nature of our Father. If we are not bearing fruit, we can expect to be pruned. It looks different in different situations. God may close doors to move us to a different path. We may be disciplined in order to help us make different choices. These things happen in an effort to make us more able to bear fruit.
Www.gotquestions.org words it like this, “Jesus went on to remove any misunderstanding about what He meant (John 15:4). He said that no branch can even live, let alone produce leaves and fruit, by itself. Cut off from the trunk, a branch is dead. Just as a vine’s branches rely on being connected to the trunk from which they receive their energy to bear fruit, Jesus’ disciples depend on being connected to Him for their spiritual life and the ability to serve Him effectively. The fruit we produce is that of the Holy Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22–23). Our source of life and spiritual fruit is not in ourselves; it is outside us, in Christ Jesus. We can live, live rightly, and serve Him effectively only if we are rightly connected to Him in a faith/love relationship.”
The lessons seem pretty simple. We cannot achieve anything spiritually valuable if we are not depended upon Jesus. As true believers, we will be healthy and produce fruit. If we are not producing fruit, perhaps we are not connected to the “true vine”. We can expect those branches to be removed from the vine or pruned.
In his book, Jesus in the Present Tense: The I am Statements of Christ, Waren Weirsbe states, “‘Since fruit has in it the seeds for more fruit, Jesus spoke of our bearing “fruit, more fruit, and much fruit” (see John 15:2, 5). The harvest God gives us depends on the spiritual gifts He has given us and our faithfulness in developing them and using them as the Lord opens service opportunities for us. If we are faithful in using the few gifts and opportunities we have, the Master will reward us with many more things (Matt. 25:21). This proved true with every servant in Scripture, especially Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, Daniel and Timothy.” p. 139
This implies that we have a continuous relationship with Christ which is demonstrated by faith and obedience. Christ remains in us and shows the presence of the Holy Spirit. The presence of fruit shows that our lives have been united with Christ and his character shows through us.
According to www.BibleRef.com, “Metaphors for vine and vineyards are common in the Bible for a reason. Most people would have been familiar with the process of growing and tending grape vines. The disciples, being Jewish, would have recognized references to vines from the Old Testament. Jeremiah 2:21, for instance, compares the nation of Israel to a vine that was planted but then turned wild. Passages such as Ezekiel 15, Isaiah 5:1–7, and Hosea 10:1 continue this analogy.”
“As Jesus introduces this symbolism, He evokes Old Testament ideas of God as a “vinedresser,” relating to His people much the same way someone might grow and nurture a plant in their garden or farm. That process includes things like pruning and removal of dead or diseased branches (John 15:2).”
https://www.bibleref.com/John/15/John-15-1.html
Other I Am Statements:
I Am the Resurrection and the Life
I Am the way, the Truth, and the Life
I Am the way, the Truth, and the Life
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Image taken from https://freebibleimages.org/illustrations/gnpi-088-vine-branches/