Of Vines And Branches - Part Two Series

Of Vines and Branches (Part Two)

Text: John 15:1-8

We are going to be looking at John 15:1-8 again this morning, so if you would, go ahead and turn there and we’ll read it. (READ TEXT)

So this is what is very clear from just this text.

1. Jesus is the Vine – the TRUE VINE.

2. God the Father is the Vinedresser

3. There are branches in the Vine

4. Branches that abide in the Vine bear fruit and are pruned so that they bear more fruit

5. Branches that don’t abide in the Vine don’t bear fruit, and are taken away.

Now one of the rules of hermeneutics is that – Scripture interprets Scripture. And God does not contradict Himself. If a passage or passages seem to contradict other passages, the misunderstanding is with us, not with God or His Word.

So let’s start where Jesus starts – He says, “I AM the True Vine” – Now we touched on that last Sunday, but I want to unpack it just a little more so we can get a better understanding of what Jesus has just said here. He begins this statement by saying “I AM”. Ego Eimi. And He does this several times throughout John’s Gospel, and it is – IN-FACT, a claim to DEITY! A claim to being God!

When Jesus says, “I AM” He is applying to Himself the Name of God, that God revealed to Moses in Exodus chapter 3. You remember that? God told Moses, “Go and tell Pharaoh ‘Let My people go!” And Moses said, “When I speak to Pharaoh, who do I say sent me?” And God says, “Tell him that the I AM that I AM, has sent you.” Now Jesus has already made this VERY, VERY CLEAR. If you remember, John 8:58 He said, “Before Abraham was – I AM.” And the Jews picked up stones and wanted to kill Him because He was claiming to be God.

In John 6 He said, “I AM the Bread of life.” In John 8 He said, “I AM the Light of the world.” In John chapter 8 – I just quoted it, that’s where Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” In John 10 He said, “I AM the Good Shepherd.” And “I AM the Door to the sheepfold.” John 11, “I AM the Resurrection and the Life.” And John 14, “I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”

And here Jesus says, “I AM the True Vine.”

All of those statements are so interesting in so many ways, but one I want you to notice is that out of those 8 instances, 3 of them point to the fact that life is found in Jesus… 4 of them if you count this here in our text from John 15. The Vine provides life. And this is why… in the very first chapter of John’s Gospel account, we see this… John 1:4, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

I AM – Ego Eimi – literally means, “The Ever Present One.” Or, “The One who is Always is.” And so when Jesus adds those other phrases… He’s saying, that He’s God, and He is the One who always is The Bread of Life… He is the One who always is the Light of the world… He is the One who always the Way, the Truth, and the Life… and He is always the One who is the Vine.

That’s why He says, “I AM the TRUE vine.”

The other vine was just a type – a picture. Pointing to the reality that is Jesus Christ.

So how does a person get saved? Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved, through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Every Christian believes and confesses this. It’s what we call an essential doctrine.

Romans 10:17 tells us “Faith comes from hearing.” And the kind of hearing which faith comes from, comes “through the Word of Christ.” That’s the Rhema of Christ… not the “Logos”… the “Rhema”… that’s the Word that Christ speaks into a person’s heart as they hear the Gospel message. We might say it like this – That’s Christ speaking to you, THROUGH the Word that is being preached. It’s the same word used in our text… in verse 7 (John 15:7). Jesus says, “If you abide in Me, and My Word (rhema) abides in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.” That’s why Peter says… In 1 Peter 1:23 that we have been “born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God.” And its why Jesus says, “Father, sanctify them with the truth – THY WORD is truth.”