John 15:1-11
1 Jesus said to his disciples:
- I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
- 2 He cuts away every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit. But he trims clean every branch that does produce fruit, so that it will produce even more fruit.
- 3 You are already clean because of what I have said to you.
- 4 Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it stays joined to the vine, you cannot produce fruit unless you stay joined to me.
- 5 I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me.
- 6 If you don’t stay joined to me, you will be thrown away. You will be like dry branches that are gathered up and burned in a fire.
- 7 Stay joined to me and let my teachings become part of you. Then you can pray for whatever you want, and your prayer will be answered.
- 8 When you become fruitful disciples of mine, my Father will be honored.
- 9 I have loved you, just as my Father has loved me. So remain faithful to my love for you.
- 10 If you obey me, I will keep loving you, just as my Father keeps loving me, because I have obeyed him.
- 11 I have told you this to make you as completely happy as I am.
PRAY: Father, bring me more fully into your Word and your words more fully into me. Help me to find the life, strength and motivation that come from engaging in your Word. I want to connect deeply with your truth and insight. Enrich my intimacy with you and let that experience change the way I live, love and lead.
Jesus takes his disciples to a vineyard and refers to himself as “the true vine” and to his followers as “the branches.” In the midst of the descriptive narrative on the work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus suddenly draws upon the vine and the branches to describe the spiritual intimacy, union or connection he came to bring into their lives. He makes it clear that he is out to make them spiritually alive so that they will become spiritually productive. He reveals his goal, his method and means of doing so. These shine a light on the way he works in our lives. Consider this:
The Goal: producing fruit (“produce even more fruit,” v. 3) in our lives.
The Methods: staying connected to the “vine”, to Christ (“stay joined to me,” v. 4); God is removing “branches” in our lives that don’t “produce fruit” (v. 2a); and God is trimming the “branches” in our lives that do “produce fruit” so that they will produce “even more” (v. 2b).
The Means: the words of Christ at work within us (“let my teachings become part of you,” v. 7).
Jesus’ discourse on the vine and the branches not only calls the followers of Christ to be connected to (i.e., “stay joined to”) him, but to do so by making sure we let his words get connected to us. He calls us to something beyond simply reading. He doesn’t want us to just meditate on his Word; you might say he wants us to marinate in it! Scripture engagement means getting immersed in it and, as a result, it changing us. After all, when we open ourselves up to someone, isn’t that exactly what happens? We share more of our thoughts and our ideas with them. Openness and honesty occurs. On the same token, we more carefully, sensitively and fully contemplate and consider their thoughts, their words, and their opinions. The experience affects us. That is intimacy. That is engagement with the Word of God.
Not only does Jesus tell these leaders that in order to experience intimacy with him they need to let his words dwell richly within them, he tells them something else. Jesus says if they will allow his words to become part of them, of their lives, thoughts and actions, then they “will become fruitful disciples of [his]” (v. 8). As a result, Jesus told his disciples that a few important things will happen: