Jesus Is God's Answer Sermon Viii: Staying Connected To Jesus For Purposeful Living Series

STAYING CONNECTED TO JESUS FOR PURPOSEFUL LIVING

The best time of year to visit Palestine is when fig trees, olive trees, and grape vines are at the height of their new growth. Everywhere you go, you see beautiful landscapes - orchards in the valleys and greenery on the hillsides.

You see flocks of sheep grazing; you see farmers cultivating crops. All of these “oasis” regions are quite a contrast to the deserts and rocky slopes that you see in barren parts of the country.

The roads today, for the most part, are paved; but in the days when Jesus walked from village to village, the roads were little more than path ways that had been trodden under foot by locals traveling from one point to another. Yet, as they walked along these pathways, the sight of fruit-bearing vineyards and grazing sheep was a sight to behold.

As was often the case when Jesus taught His disciples, He used that with which His listeners were familiar in order to teach profound lessons.

The great “I am” declarations of Jesus reflect His reliance on the familiar as a teaching technique. On occasion, He declared himself to be “the bread of life” – and on other occasions, “the Light of the world” . . .

The focus of today’s study is His declaration, “I am the true vine” – John 15:1-8 . . . How fitting that He would use the “vine” metaphor – when, all around Him and those who listened to Him, there were vast orchards of vines with branches spreading all over the place.

From a tourist’s viewpoint, there is no scene more picturesque than that of a beautifully landscaped orchard, with miles and miles of well-tended vines, growing in a well-designed pattern, and divided by precisely irrigated rows of cultivated earth in between the long rows of vines.

In season, the aroma of luscious bunches of grapes fills the air, and the anticipation of sampling freshly made juice or wine makes one thirsty. Indeed, a visit to Palestine is incomplete without tasting the fruit of the vine.

So, when using the analogy of a vine to teach a lesson, Jesus did not have to paint a picture on canvas; just the use of the word itself conjured up in their imagination the image upon which Jesus would base His teaching.

To understand what Jesus meant by saying, “I am the true vine,” we need to recall scripture from the Old Testament, in which the vine analogy was used to represent Israel as the chosen people of God.

The prophets spoke of Israel as the vine. Isaiah: “The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.” The vine was used as a symbol of the nation of Israel. For that reason, it was not unusual to see engraved on the front of the Jewish temple the representation of a vine with bunches of grapes.

When Israel got away from the Lord, and eventually fell out of favor with God, the prophet Hosea commented that “Israel is an empty vine.” Not a very pretty picture! Who needs an empty vine? What a contrast! A vine full of luscious clusters of grapes versus a vine that is barren with no fruit!

Israel, because of their sinful ways, had become like an empty vine, producing no fruit for the glory of God.

Jesus came along and called Himself the true vine – the real vine. What Jesus was saying to His listeners was a profound truth that all religious people need to hear and heed:

“You think that because you belong to the nation of Israel you are a branch in the vine that belongs to God . . . just because you are a Jew, and as such, one of the chosen ones, you are automatically a branch of the vine of God.

You must understand that your nation has become a degenerate vine. I was sent to correct that situation and therefore have become the true vine. The fact that you are a Jew does not save you. The only way now that you can be saved is to believe in me . . . accept me as your Lord and Savior . . . connect yourself to Me and, in that way, become a branch of the true vine.”

Folks, far too many people in our nation have gotten the notion that just because they were born in America, or that just because their parents or other family members are Christians, or that just because they belong to a certain church, they have been, are, or will be saved. “Pedigree” has nothing to do with eternity!

No one can say that he or she is a Christian “just because.” There’s got to be a right relationship to God – a relationship that can be entered into only by being “grafted” into the true vine which is Jesus Christ.