It Is Pruning Time

For those not familiar with an Anglican Service; there are four Scripture Readings before the Sermon.

The Scripture Readings for this day were: Acts 8:26-40; Psalm 22:24-30; 1 John 4:7-21 and John 15:1-8.

A missionary in Africa ....lived in his central mission ....which had a small generator ....to supply current ....for the church ....and a small rectory.

Some natives from an outlying mission ....came to visit the pastor.

They noticed the electric light.... hanging from the ceiling ....of his living room.

They watched wide-eyed ....as he turned the little switch ...and the light ....went on.

One of the visitors asked ...if he could have ...one of the bulbs.

The priest,... thinking he wanted it ....for a sort of trinket,.... gave him one of ...the extra bulbs.

On his next visit to the outlying mission,.... the priest stopped at the hut of the man ....who had asked for ...the bulb.

Imagine his surprise ....when he saw the bulb ....hanging from an ....ordinary string.

He explained that one needed to have electricity ....and a wire to bring the current ....to the bulb.

We may share an understanding smile ....at the innocence of the African native, .... but we may not .....be much better. (Pause)

In our text for today, .....Jesus tells a story..... concerning the importance.... of our connection..... to the true source of life.

To our continued source.... of power.

Our Lord uses the analogy..... of the vineyard ......of the vine .....and the branches.

Just as the electricity .....provides the power necessary for a bulb to produce light,.....

So the vine ......provides the flow of life .....necessary ....for the branches .....to produce fruit.

Jesus is the vine, ....God the Father is the vine grower, ...and the true believers.... are the branches.

As branches ....we are spiritually alive; ....yet we can only grow ....if we are connected to Jesus, ..... If we are connected .....to the true vine.

As long as we are connected to Jesus ....the power of the Holy Spirit.... can run in us...... and keep us spiritually alive... producing fruit.

Our Gospel reading ...has three primary messages.

Pruning, ....Fruit-bearing, .....and Abiding.

(1 Finger) First Pruning

It is interesting ....that the text discusses pruning..... .....as the first item.

Here again the words from the Gospel, BIBLE "He removes.... every branch in me ....that bears no fruit. ....Every branch ....that bears fruit ....he prunes ...to make it bear ....more fruit." END

Jesus says that God the Father prunes the branches that ........bear fruit ...... to allow the branch to do what? ........ To bear more fruit.

Vines left to themselves ....will sprawl in every direction ....and produce huge canopies...... of shoots, .....leaves and branches.

Unless that canopy is controlled, ....the vine..... will not .....yield much fruit.

Pruning at first glance ....may seem to be a counter-intuitive activity.

For what you are pruning .....would seem to most ......as a very healthy vine.

A vine ....that In fact,.... may look healthy .....but it is not bearing.... As much fruit as it can.

All show ......and no tell.

It seems to me ....that Jesus was concerned ....that the disciples ...might be facing this same problem.

Jesus ...was not interested in showy disciples ....any more than he is interested in.... showy Christians .....in this post modern world.

What Jesus is interested in ...... is fruit. (Pause)

Now .... My initial experience .....of pruning.... comes from the time ....when I had a summer job .... working for .....the Painesville Township Road Dept.

Part of our responsibility ....was to prune the fruit trees ...in the ....township cemetery.

The foreman ....explained the importance ....of trimming the suckers.... from the trees.

A sucker ....is a very small branch.... that usually grows ....on the main trunk.... of the tree.

Which if left alone ....will sap the resources ....from the ....fruit-producing branches.

So ... in order to have a flower filled tree .....and a better crop of fruit,... we were instructed... to remove ....the suckers.

Beloved... There are suckers... in this world... that seek to draw .....the spiritual life from us.

That seek to rob us .....of our.... Daily quite time ....with our Lord.

They must be removed.... They must be cut away... in order ....for us to bear fruit .....and to be transformed.

This pruning is not punishment, ..... it is done so that the vine ......can be ....even more productive ..... so that it will be .....more fruitful.

Pruning sounds destructive,.... but it is actually creative.

My second encounter with pruning..... came from Walt Disney World.

While visiting there with our children, .....I noticed ....that there were hedge-type plants .....growing in amazing shapes.

They had one .....that looked just like Mickey Mouse ..... another .....like Donald Duck.

By trimming the bushes regularly, ....they were able to shape the plants... into the form..... that they were seeking.

In a similar fashion, ..... God prunes our lives ....to shape us ....into the image..... of his son.